4 ways a CRM helps you improve customer relationships

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Excellent customer service is an art. One that can be difficult to master. The good news is there are plenty of tools that can help you better serve your customers.

Our favorite is a CRM.

But CRMs are packed with features. It’s hard to know the best way to use such a robust tool. To help out, let’s explore the high points.

Here are our 4 favorite ways your CRM can help you improve your customer interactions.

#1: Detailed customer dashboards.

When all of your customer data is in a single location, you spend less time searching for individual pieces of information. 360-degree customer profiles centralize customer information so that it’s all available on a convenient dashboard. In a single view, you can see email messages, order history, transactions, previous customer support interactions and more.

When a customer calls, you’ll be able to see every interaction you’ve ever had with them. All without having to dig for information.

“64.2% of companies rate CRM tools as impactful of very impactful.” — LinkedIn

#2: Access important information on the go.

Sales representatives need to be able to help customers no matter where they are—at their desks or out on the road. CRM systems are built with mobility in mind.

It doesn’t matter if your employees at a trade show, a client’s office, or in a cab on the way to a meeting. As long as they have an internet connection, your team can stay productive.

#3: Social media management made easy.

More and more CRMs are incorporating social media interaction. Why would you want to link your company’s Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, or LinkedIn account with your CRM? So you can see how social media activity is affecting customer relationships.

For example, a lot of customers will take to social media when they have strong feels about a company. Every mention is an opportunity—even when customers are upset. If you can turn a bad experience into a good one right there in your Twitter feed, you’ll win that customer back as well as every other customer who’s paying attention.

“Customer relationship management (CRM) systems help you better understand your customers’ needs and how to meet those needs while enhancing your bottom line.” —CIO

#4: Knowledge at your customers’ fingertips.

Some customers will do absolutely anything to avoid making a phone call. That actually plays to your favor. Sure, you could tell insist that they call or email. Or you could create a knowledge management portal using your CRM.

Wiki-style knowledge management portals enable customers to access FAQs or troubleshooting information all on their own. Many CRM systems also let customers build their own online communities. These are spaces where customers can ask each other for help and provide your business feedback. An IT consultant with CRM experience can help you with setup.

Get the most out of your CRM system.

If you’re not using your CRM to build brand loyalty and enhance your customer service efforts, you’re missing out. These 4 CRM features will allow you to tap into and improve your customer’s experience.

Happy customers are loyal customers. And the more loyal customers you have, the more you’ll be able to grow your business.

4 SMBs that can benefit from a custom mobile app

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When it comes to selecting a gaming computer there are two options. Build a custom machine or purchase a pre-built model.

You don’t need a customized computer to play online games. But if you’re looking to optimize your gaming experience, a custom-built machine is the best way to get exactly what you want.

This same idea applies to businesses and custom mobile applications.

There are plenty of pre-designed apps that will likely work for your organization. And some of them, like Office 365, even allow for moderate customization.

But if it’s freedom you’re after, partnering with a professional to build an app for your business is the way to go.

“72% of SMB decision makers say that technology solutions can help them significantly improve business outcomes and/or run the business better.” – SMB Group

To show just how versatile a custom mobile app can be, we made a list of 4 SMBs that would benefit from one.

1. Schools

Keeping busy students and educators informed about important details and activity is a challenge many educational institutions struggle with. A custom mobile app can bolster school security while also keeping staff, students, and parents in-the-know about on-campus happenings.

Possible features:

  • School calendar
  • Secure access to grades and class schedules
  • Real-time campus activity updates for teachers and staff
  • A button students press if they feel unsafe, informing campus security of their location
  • Staff and administrator directory

2. Real Estate Firms

Realtors need access to local housing market data on the go. A mobile application can provide convenient, reliable access to the property, client and area information they need when and where they need it.

Possible features:

  • Directory of available for sale and rental listings
  • Mortgage loan and property tax calculator
  • Floor plan and space measurement aids
  • Map detailing school district boundaries and community demographics
  • Electronic document management and approvals

3. Homeowners’ Associations

HOAs are required to keep their residents informed about community issues, activities, and rules. A customized mobile application can help HOAs share relevant updates and encourage participation while giving residents access to basic community and local area information.

Possible features:

  • Secure resident directory
  • Real-time updates on critical community and safety issues like street closures and water leaks
  • Pool hours and cleaning schedule
  • Community events and schedule
  • Board meeting minutes and bylaws

4. Healthcare Practices

Thirty-minute doctor’s visits often aren’t enough time to gain a full picture of a patient’s condition. A mobile app can allow patients and doctors to exchange more data on health history, status, and symptoms, helping to better diagnose, manage and customize treatment.

“46% of healthcare professionals say they will introduce mobile apps into their practices over the next five years.” – Research Now Group

Possible features:

  • Heart rate and glucose reporting
  • Calorie, nutrient, and physical activity tracker
  • Symptom journals
  • Appointment, testing and refill requests
  • List of medications and their dosage

Creating a Custom Mobile App: Next Steps

The bottom line is, custom mobile apps can help a variety of SMBs increase efficiency, mobility, and productivity.

“To really move the needle on productivity, companies need custom mobile apps that empower people to perform critical processes anytime and anywhere.” – CDW

If you think your business would benefit from one, reach out. We’re confident we can design a custom mobile app that incorporates all of the features your business needs to tackle projects and increase customer satisfaction.

Related Blog: Top 3 Signs Your Business Needs a Custom App

 

4 tips for securing your enterprise resource planning software

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In the Oscar-winning drama The Social Network, Mark Zuckerberg and Eduardo Saverin are two Harvard college students working to create what is now the most widely used social networking site in the world: Facebook.

There’s a scene from the film where a crowd of students cheer on five nerdy guys furiously typing on computers. Zuckerberg looks on while Saverin approaches him, asking what’s going on.

“They have 10 minutes to get root access to a Python web server, expose its SSL encryption, and then intercept all traffic over its secure port.”

Saverin replies, “They’re hacking.”

Turns out, these five guys are participating in a “hackathon.” One where, according to the rules, they take a shot every 30 or so seconds.

To these students, hacking is a game. Something fun to do at a party. In the business world, it’s anything but.

The possibility of a cybercriminal breaching your business network and gaining access to sensitive company data is very real. And very serious.

One of the ways a hacker can do this is through your enterprise resource planning software. We’re here to help you prevent that from happening.

Why is ERP security important?

Enterprise resource planning software has the potential to give an overview of your entire company-wide operations, including everything from customer and financial relationships to personal data, HR information and intellectual property.

A data breach that includes ERP records would have sweeping impact. Productivity takes a hit, your reputation suffers, and revenue could easily dip. And if your business is subject to compliance regulations, you could be looking at hefty violation fines, too.

The key to avoiding these headaches is a robust network and application security designed specifically to protect all your data, including the information managed by your ERP solution.

Here are 4 tips to help you better secure your ERP software.

  1. Update, update, update.

Forgive the repetition, but this first tip is just that important. Update your network security and upgrade your application software to the most current release. Due to ERP’s integration into nearly every area of your company, a breach into one are of your network can expose your entire system to hackers.

Patching your system will protect against new malware threats and fix bugs. Plus, updates can introduce new software capabilities unavailable in previous versions.

Since enterprise resource planning software is massive, performing updates will take longer. Scheduling them outside of business hours will help you eliminate update-related downtime.

  1. Control user access.

If anyone in your company can access all the information in your ERP, then in the famous words of NASA Mission Control, “Houston, we have a problem.” Allowing every employee to see every module’s information is a security risk. And, depending on the data, a potential compliance violation.

“66% of data protection leaders admit that employees are the weakest link in an enterprise’s security posture.” – Ponemon Institute

To prevent internal attacks or accidental data removal, define permissions for different features in your ERP and require employees to frequently change their passwords. If an employee doesn’t need access to certain information to do their job, they shouldn’t have it. An experienced professional can help you set up these permissions.

  1. Train your employees.

Piggybacking onto our previous point, it’s essential to acknowledge that employees pose a substantial security risk, so be sure you take into consideration segregation of duties when allocating permissions. Sure, your staff means well. But humans, by nature, have a larger predisposition for error than machines.

“60% of respondents believe employees lack adequate knowledge of cybersecurity risks.” – Ponemon Institute

That’s why it’s critical to train your team on cybersecurity best practices. If your team knows how to spot and report unusual activity in your ERP, you can greatly reduce a cyberattack’s damage.

  1. Use active reporting.

Visibility is crucial. If an issue occurs, you’ll need to know where in order to resolve it. Real-time, internal reporting can help by letting you see problematic user activity as it happens and trace data quickly and efficiently. Run frequent audit reports in your most sensitive ERP modules.

For example, if users try to access data without the required permissions, you’ll know. Once you’re made aware, you can address the issue immediately, minimizing potential damage.

Securing your enterprise resource planning software.

Taking a preventative approach is always the best way to approach network and application security. While there’s not a universal solution, these tips should provide you with a solid foundation for securing the sensitive data in your ERP.

Related Blog: The Advantages of ERP for Small and Medium-Sized Businesses

Top 3 signs your business needs a custom app

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If your business is on the right track, you already have a captivating, user-friendly website that is optimized for both desktop and mobile use. The next step in promoting a better relationship with employees, customers, and potential customers is to create a custom app that maximizes value  through unique features and functions.

Here are 3 signs you are ready to talk about app development.

1. Your customers need an easy way to connect.

Keeping customers happy is one of your top priorities. To accomplish superior customer satisfaction you need to listen to your customers and provide solutions to their problems. If your customers are looking for easier ways to connect, make requests or complete a certain task, then it’s time to consider app development.

Here’s an example:

Breakdown: As a manufacturing company, you interact several times daily with customers to ensure complete orders.

Problem: Your customer wants to track order progress without having to send multiple inquiry emails or call your dedicated line.

Solution: You work with professionals to create an app that focuses solely on tracking progress of orders.

There’s a special anagram created by the Navy that is the secret to success in app development: KISS (keep it simple, stupid!).

When apps were first created, creators took an “everything but the kitchen sink” approach. This is the opposite of what you want. The entire concept of creating an app is to make things work easier and better for users – in this case, your customers. So, instead of creating one app that does everything, you will actually want to create multiple apps that are hyper-focused to address specific needs or outcomes.

In our example here, you want your customer to use the custom app to see the progress and status of their order as it moves through the inventory, production, packing and delivery processes. Paying an outstanding invoice or inquiring about product specifications should be addressed in a different app altogether.

Focus on your customer wants and needs, and your app will be a success.

2. Your internal operations need more efficiency and flexibility.

In the same way that apps help connect customers in a one-touch approach, app development can also be effective for improving internal business.

Many companies have custom apps for office communication, human resources access, and presence. Here’s one example of how that might work:

Breakdown: Your mid-sized office requires constant communications between employees in different departments.

Problem: In the office, your employees communicate via an internal messaging system, but you don’t have a way for them to access messages out of the office without using company email via cell phone (security risks include internal theft and insider threats).

Solution: You work with professionals to create an internal communications app that accommodates your current cybersecurity protocols and mobile communication functionality. This app integrates with in-office tools to provide seamless communication between office and mobile environments.

Your employees deserve a quick and seamless workflow. Why? Time is money. If work satisfaction and efficiency run hand-in-hand, then creating apps for your employees is a no-brainer and it will save you money by improving productivity.

3. You are ready to tackle the mobile market opportunity.

Mobile productivity essential in most industries now, with over 62% of companies utilizing mobile applications. One recent report showed that each company had an average of 10.6 apps. Don’t let that intimidate you, though. Start with the most important issues and address others as they arise. The important thing is to remember that one app will not, and shouldn’t, solve all problems.

Once you have your apps out there, you’ll find that you’ve succeeded in a few different ways.

First, you have put yourself out there in the mobile realm. That’s huge. In fact, you should have FOMO (fear of missing out) if you don’t have an app. Your competitors probably already do. Second, you’ve created a new connection and a sense intimacy. And finally, you have made it easier for customers and employees to collaborate and solve problems.

How to Develop an App

When it comes time to develop your app, you’ll need to work with a team that is experienced at providing the right design, content, and development to fit your specific business needs..

Whether the needs are driven by customer, staff or market requirements (or all of the above), we can assist. Here at CCS we have proven experience developing apps and we’d be happy to speak with you about how that process looks. Feel free to give us a call or shoot us a message.

5 disaster recovery tips from aboard the Battlestar Galactica

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In the year 2003, SCI FI Channel (now Syfy) aired a successful mini-series remake of the 1978 series, Battlestar Galactica, which launched the 2004 Battlestar Galactica series. In the plot of the mini-series, we have perhaps the most potent argument for a disaster recovery plan of any single piece of entertainment media.

A quick refresher: The beginning of Battlestar Galactica (2003) sees humanity at the height of culture and on the cusp of a digital revolution. The Twelve Colonies are comfortable and they are progressing. To top it off, humans have enjoyed a 40-year armistice with their sworn enemy, the Cylons.

The Cylons are a cybernetic race of soldiers and workers who had rebelled against humanity during a 12-year war and then disappeared into space.

During the mini-series, the Cylons return to rain down unholy hell on the Twelve Colonies, effectively destroying most of humanity via nuclear assault and…cyber warfare.

Meanwhile, Captain William Adama prepares to decommission his storied ship, the battlestar Galactica, which will soon be transformed into a museum.

So what does Battlestar Galactica have to do with your business network? Everything. The Cylons are able to destroy the Twelve Colonies by exploiting the exact same weaknesses that hackers use to destroy businesses every day.

Let’s take a look at what the Cylons did, and how Captain William Adama of the Battlestar Galactica is able to rescue humanity with the help of a disaster recovery plan.

The Nefarious Plan of Cylons and Cyber Attacks

In order to destroy the Twelve Colonies, the Cylons attack on two fronts. First, they make a physical attack with calculated nuclear strikes. Second, they carry out a catastrophic malware attack which renders nearly the entire military of the Twelve Colonies useless.

The Cylons carry out their cyber attack by seducing a human (literally, with a sexy spy model indistinguishable from humans) and using his credentials to access the military network. Then, they upload malware to the network that shuts down most of the battlestars, smaller ships, and other military units, and even drives them to attack and destroy one another.

The digital warfare perpetrated by the Cylons is nothing short of brilliant, and it is cataclysmic to the human race. In a short time, most of the human race is destroyed.

Cyber attacks on your business work the same way. For instance, malware will attack your network by either recognizing weaknesses in your digital infrastructure or by hiding in attached documents. With a few catchy subject lines, hackers are able to “seduce” your own employees into downloading dangerous material.

Even as vicious cyber attacks have become commonplace, end user education still falls behind the techniques of cyber criminals. Human error and insider threats remain a particular weak spot in the world of cybersecurity.

In one report that compiled 20 years of data, ITIC found that human error is the cause of 70% of data center incidents.

Whether it’s a sudden influx of downtime costing $100,000 per hour, or a major data loss incident racking up more than $18,000 for only 100 records, the financial losses can be as devastating as a Cylon attack. In fact, that type of loss can be outright fatal after experiencing a significant data loss incident.

So how did Battlestar Galactica continue for 75 episodes after the Cylons wiped out most of humanity?

Battlestar Galactica, Humanity’s Backup Plan

Commander William Adama was a man of extreme practicality, which some might say bordered on paranoia. As commander of the Battlestar Galactica, he insisted that the ship remain disconnected from the military network and prohibited any upgrades to digital interfaces. While the rest of the world became increasingly more connected, the Galactica was completely self-sufficient.

Adama’s disdain for the digital was more than an inability to adapt to evolving times – he in fact had his reasons. Adama knew that the Cylons had every tactical and strategic advantage in a digital world. They were created to out-process and out-think humans. He specifically kept his ship offline because he wanted to be able to maintain command if the central network was compromised. Boy, was he right on the money.

At the time of the Cylon’s attack on the Twelve Colonies, the battlestar Galactica was hosting an eclectic mix of military personnel and civilians to cover the ship’s decommissioning. Those aboard the ship went on to consist of most of humanity’s survivors.

For most of the remainder of the show, Adama must outthink the Cylons, flee their ranks, and ascertain the identities of the near-human Cylons that seek to infiltrate his ranks.

It is estimated that around 50,000 people lived aboard the ship at the beginning of Adama’s command of the survivors. By maintaining a command that was isolated from the main network, Adama is able to preserve humanity.

Backup and disaster recovery is an essential element of maintaining the longevity of your business. Just as Adama’s analog ship is able to maintain humanity, you should always back up your network in different places, both on your network and off your network.

In addition to Adama’s triumph for humanity’s future existence, the command structures are able to create a new government to guide the survivors beyond Adama’s military lead.

You should also have a disaster recovery plan, including a chain of command that ensures immediate response and establishes near-term operations and communication.

If you’re making a checklist, add a few of these things that we’ve learned from Battlestar Galactica:

  1. Back up your data
  2. Implement cybersecurity solutions
  3. Prepare and execute a Disaster Recovery Plan
  4. Don’t trust strange emails and attachments
  5. Trust the professionals

“So say we all.”

There are many other ways that Battlestar Galactica shows us what to do in the event of a disaster. We’d love to talk to you about them when you call us or send us a message.

You can also couple this article with our recent Star Wars Weapons Can Help You Find the Best Backup and Restore Plan for Your Business and The Top 5 Reasons to Prepare Your Business Continuity Plan.

Star Wars weapons can help you find the best backup and restore plan for your business

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You can create the best cybersecurity, cloud, and help desk solutions, but in the event that a disaster strikes your business, none of that will matter if you are not operational. Estimates of the cost of downtime range from $8,600 for small businesses to $100,000 for larger businesses. To avoid these astronomical costs, many businesses turn to an alternate site to backup and restore business operations.

Smooth operation of your business depends on a consistently reliable physical location for your employees and your equipment. To understand the three primary forms of backup sites – cold, hot, and warm – we’re going to examine three of the famous weapons from The Star Wars Saga.

Wondering what weapons have to do with a backup site? Allow me to explain.

Here’s the scenario:

You are a young Jedi Padawan during the Clone Wars. Your name is (First Name=take your real first name and add a hyphen somewhere at random, Last Name=the first syllable in your mom’s maiden name), and you have been on the trail of bounty hunter Cyb Rattack on the planet Datalos. Unfortunately, you have lost your lightsaber. What’s a Jedi to do?

The Blaster: the Cold Site Weapon

If you’re going to have any chance of stopping your enemy, you’re going to need a new weapon. If you’re limited on funds, you’ll probably want to opt for a good old-fashioned blaster.

A blaster is nothing like the graceful lightsaber, but at the very bare minimum it will get the job done. With a few extra credits and some elbow grease, it can easily be modified to meet your specific needs.

This is the same concept as a cold recovery site. If your office is hit with a disaster, you can choose a cold site to get back to business, but this is definitely the bare bones approach.

A cold site will most likely have only space, power, and utilities. You’re starting from scratch here. A cold site, like a blaster, is perfect for those who need something affordable that will do the trick – albeit sans all bells, whistles.

The Lightsaber: the Hot Site Weapon

When Anakin Skywalker loses a lightsaber, he doesn’t settle for a blaster pistol, he immediately finds or procures a brand new lightsaber. In fact, most young Jedi have to construct their own lightsabers as a ritualistic rite of passage.

The Lightsaber is not a cheap weapon. The construction of this beautiful laser sword requires a lot of effort, and even on the open market, it will cost quite a bit. If you have the credits and the time, it is the number-one best option for your next weapon. The same goes for a hot recovery site.

When you opt for a hot recovery site, you are getting all of the top-notch recovery services available. Your recovery site will be specifically designed to mirror the infrastructure of your original business, allowing for a seamless transition and eliminating expensive downtime.

The hot site will already have all of your data transferred, and will require no time delay in resuming network functions.

The hot recovery site, while the most costly of options, is the closest you will get to operating out of your original business location. This may not be a viable option for all businesses, but it is definitely the premium option, and best when seamless restoration is a necessity.

The Vibrosword: the Warm Site Weapon

If you’ve seen the newest Star Wars movie, The Last Jedi, you’ve seen the red-clad Praetorian Guard fight a wicked battle using vibroswords. These weapons, which utilize an electrically charged blade, are the only swords that can stand up against a lightsaber.

If you happen to have a decent amount of credits, but not enough for the real thing, you could purchase a vibrosword. This weapon is capable of superior movement, though it will involve less grace than a lightsaber and more of the chaos of nature. It is a perfect hybrid of the minimalism of a blaster and the power of a lightsaber.

You were most comfortable with a lightsaber, and it will take some effort getting to know your new weapon.

A warm recovery site is very similar. With this option, you’ll find an internet connection and available servers for network transfer, but there will be a brief delay while you move over network functions. Where the cold site was basically an empty room, the warm site will often include workspaces for key staff who may be displaced.

The warm recovery site won’t break the bank and you’ll end up getting more functionality, response and productivity with your space.

Use the Force

Unfortunately, backup and data recovery is something 3 of 4 businesses aren’t planning for.

Becoming familiar with the available weapons in your backup recovery arsenal will help you choose the best option for your business when the time comes.

Please give us a call or send us a message and we’ll share some more information about how a backup site would work for your business.

You’re also invited to check out our recent whitepaper on the best business continuity plans. We’re happy to help, no strings attached.

The top 5 reasons to prepare your business continuity plan

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The last thing you want is to go out of business in the event of an unforeseen circumstance. A business continuity plan is essential for modern businesses in any industry. Regardless of what kind of technology you use, think of this plan as a blueprint for keeping your business running in the event of a major disaster.

Disasters come in many forms, including natural disasters, human error, cyber attacks, and insider threats. The worst disasters always have the same effect: stopping your business dead in its tracks.

Sometimes, it’s hard to really conceptualize the importance of a continuity plan without looking at what happens if you don’t have one.

Take, for instance, the Great Chicago Fire of 1871. Urban legend has it that the conflagration started when Mrs. O’Leary’s cow kicked over a lantern in the family barn. The fire’s origin is debatable. The aftermath, however, is well documented and devastating by any standards.

The Great Chicago fire completely destroyed 3.2 miles in the heart of Chicago, rapidly consuming homes and businesses. The inferno resulted in the death of 300 citizens, the destruction of 17,500 buildings, Of the 300,000 residents of Chicago, 100,000 were left homeless.

The 185 firefighters employed within Chicago were ill-equipped to handle the ferocious spread of the fire, which was attributed to a drought as well as the mostly wooden construction of the city’s buildings, roads, and sidewalks.The total cost of the fire was estimated at $222 million, or roughly $4.6 billion today.

When a disaster this large happens, the only way for a business to survive is to have an understanding of what needs to be protected, how you want to respond, and which practices to follow to continue operations. Here are the 5 most important things to focus on when putting together a continuity plan.

1. Minimizing Downtime

The primary reason for a business continuity plan is to eliminate downtime. 75% of businesses don’t have any sort of business continuity plan or disaster recovery plan. Skipping out on a continuity plan is not only reckless, but extremely expensive.

ITIC’s latest survey data finds that 98% of organizations say a single hour of downtime costs over $100,000.Those aren’t numbers to be ignored. Whether you suffer a natural disaster or a cyber attack, the only way to stay in business is to continue your work as soon as possible. Otherwise, you may very well go out of business.

2. Protecting What’s Important

A business continuity plan should detail the necessary components and data that will keep your business running. This involves inventory of backup devices and cloud services, as well as an outline of your data backup specifics (when and where) and an overview of how company assets will be handled when disaster strikes.

3. Communicating with Confidence

One of the primary benefits of creating a business continuity plan is to establish a state of order amid the chaos. Your plan should focus on a chain-of-command delegation of responsibility, and should include reliable communication channels prioritized for contacting employees, partners and customers to minimize breakdowns in collaboration and service.

4. Resuming Operations

The goal of any business continuity plan is to get you back in business as soon as possible. Many companies have taken the extra precaution of utilizing backup and recovery sites. These are off-campus facilities where your business can be relocated to continue operations regardless of any damage or limited access you may experience.

These sites run the gamut from “cold sites”, which are bare-boned facilities without any installed operations, to “hot sites”, which are exact duplicates of your current operations.

5. Ensuring Your Recovery

A recent report finds that 60% of small businesses close within 6 months of a significant cyber attack. But this doesn’t have to be you. Implementing a business continuity plan to your current backup and data recovery solutions will allow you the peace of mind that even if disaster strikes, you don’t have to become a statistic.

We Are Here to Help

CCS Technology Group would be happy to help your business create a specific business continuity plan. We have proven experience developing solutions that will keep you in business no matter what outside forces may arrive.

It’s important to plan ahead. It might just save your business.

Give us a call or send us a message to learn more.

 

Star Wars is basically an ad for ERP systems

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We’ve all seen the commercial where the entire concept is “Don’t do X or you’re totally doomed. Do Y instead.” Like, some guy picks up a can of generic beer and he’s lonely and depressed, but then he grabs a Bud Light and he’s surrounded by beautiful women and fancy cars. That kind of commercial.

Well, it turns out that the Star Wars saga is basically a cautionary tale for what happens if you don’t use Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems. Here’s why…

1.  It’s an ERP!

Every time any jedi in Star Wars wants to get anything done, they have to hop in a starfighter and zip from planet to planet. You would think with an entire galaxy to protect, they might create some sort of proprietary ERP system to save the jedis some precious time and fuel.

Example: Obi-Wan needs to jet off to planet Kamino to check up on some poisonous dart and then finds that the Republic invested tons of money in clones. RED FLAG!

With an ERP system, all resources in your business are live. If $50,000 is spent by your clone recruitment department, you’re going to be able to pull that information on the fly and save yourself a trip across the galaxy – not to mention saving those funds for lightsaber components and blue milk.

Tracking live resources is one of the most important parts of any fast-moving business, and so is communication.

When you utilize an ERP system optimized for your operations and priorities, your departments have a vehicle for interdepartmental coordination, communication and efficiency. The reduced payroll hours and added transparency ERP delivers creates an immediate reporting channel and enhances efficiency throughout your business.

This can mean big savings and profits. Businesses using an ERP saw an average increase in profitability of 10% over two years in a recent Aberdeen study. Additionally, 96% of the top-performing companies experiencing growth rely on ERP solutions.

2. Use the ERP, Luke…

Arguably, the greatest tragedy in the Star Wars saga is that the friendship and guidance of Obi-Wan is not enough to save Anakin from joining the dark side of the Force. Obi-Wan, clouded by his good intentions, is unable to see the dangerous path his friend has followed. This, of course, leads to the death of Padme, the birth of Vader, and years of chaos and destruction for our favorite galaxy far, far away.

If you are fortunate in your business, you are probably so busy that you don’t have time to crunch numbers and run manual reports, or to update forecasts based on these predictions. The good news is that unlike Obi-Wan, you can make good use of an ERP system to keep your forecasts regular and current.

ERP systems gather live data for your reporting requirements, and it can predict future patterns based on this data. From anticipating office expenses to scaling workforce resources to predicting network traffic patterns, capturing and analyzing this information in real time according to your operational KPIs is priceless when planning for your business growth.

3. The ERP is strong with this one…

When you utilize ERP systems, you also benefit from scalability. Both the Empire and the Republic suffered from gross inefficiencies.

The Republic had a bunch of clones sitting on a planet working out and training, not knowing how many they would need. They then needed to rush production on hundreds of thousands more to fight the Empire’s drone forces.

With a proper ERP system, the Republic could have used forecasting to know how many soldiers they would need for each battle, and then they could have scaled quickly and efficiently to deliver the right amount and type of soldiers. Why send 20,000 to each planet when 200 would do?

Just shoot us a message or give us a call, and we can chat about how to support and optimize your business operations with the right ERP capabilities.

May the Force be with you…

Aerosmith and the art of rockin’ IT solutions

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“Tell me how it is that you can sleep in the night, without thinking you lost everything that was good in your life to the toss of the dice?” – Aerosmith, “What it Takes”, (Pump, 1989)

Steven Tyler totally has the right idea on the song “What it Takes”. You never want to roll the dice when it comes to IT solutions. Inspired by some of Aerosmith’s greatest tracks, here’s a setlist of rockin’ IT solutions for your office.

Dream On

Ever catch yourself daydreaming, head in the clouds? In your business, that’s not a bad idea. Introducing a cloud-based solution to your business will help you streamline your workplace systems, improve your operation and reduce overhead costs.

Right Scale reports that “Companies now run 79 percent of workloads in cloud, with 41 percent of workloads in public cloud and 38 percent in private cloud.”

Cloud solutions allow for ease of installation, lower payroll hours, and scalability for growing businesses. Those are pretty impressive stats, right? If you know anyone in business who thinks they can move forward without incorporating cloud solutions, you can probably tell them to “dream on.”

Just Push Play

Often, apps exist that are perfect for your business. When they aren’t, you need the capability to develop your own apps that are customized to fit your specific business needs.

App creation is also super beneficial when accounting for the increase in employees who need to be able to work from mobile devices. The proliferation of mobile apps in business actually casts a shadow on those not yet in the app game. Adobe reports that “61% of organizations believe that if a company hasn’t deployed any enterprise mobile apps yet they’re at a competitive disadvantage”.

Whether you’re building internal apps for specialized workflow or customer-facing applications to better engage clients, the goal is to create something that fits your business so well that all you have to do is “just push play” and you are ready to get to work.

Back in the Saddle

Picture this: It’s a sold-out stadium show for Aerosmith. Steven Tyler saunters out and takes center stage, his ego boosted by the adoring applause of tens of thousands of fans. Joe Perry follows suit, retrieving his beautiful Les Paul Gibson guitar from its stand. And it’s totally busted. For some reason, the roadie forgot to string the guitar. It’s sitting there with one D string, the other five tucked away somewhere backstage or on the tour bus. What’s a rock star to do?

This is a situation that happens often with technology, particularly if you have been handling your own system backup and software maintenance.

What would Joe Perry do? He’d do the same thing any IT team would suggest. He’d reach for his backup. If you’re Joe Perry, that means you reach for one of the other 600 guitars in your collection. If you’re a business owner, you need your own redundancies in place to keep the business going if your systems are interrupted for technical or human reasons, which can vary from the mundane to the criminal.

In fact, you may even want to work with your IT team to add a foolproof disaster recovery plan for any situation to the list of your IT solutions and you’ll be “back in the saddle” in no time.

We would be happy to jam with you about more ways to incorporate rockin’ IT solutions into your business. Feel free to give us a call or shoot us an email.

Justice is servered: The ultimate professional services superhero team

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As managed service providers (MSPs) develop more expertise to fit the specific needs of their clients, it’s often beneficial to offer advanced professional services to growing businesses. You can compare this to superheroes teaming up in the Justice League to save the world and take on nefarious criminals. Sure, Batman might be able to fight off a dozen assailants, but it’s a big bonus when Superman is there to round them up and fly them off to jail at the speed of sound.

Ideally, when choosing your managed service provider, you want to make sure they have experts on their team who can fill the following roles:

1. The Heart, Wonder Woman

One of the primary professional services you’ll encounter is physical installation. For this, you’ll want to look for an MSP with the physical resources and knowledge to properly set up your office network and system to fit the needs of your team and your customers.

Think of Wonder Woman. She’s a fierce warrior and easily capable of the physical work, but one of her greatest strengths is her compassion. She longs to understand and honor the human element. This is a quality that is super important when setting up a physical network. An MSP needs to know how the network will be used and how to apply the infrastructure to your specific business and organizational needs.

2. The Fortifier, Batman, Cyborg

Remember that time you snuck into the Batcave? Probably not. That’s because Bruce Wayne has built a veritable fortress with the best cybersecurity and physical security in the world to guard his secret identity and to protect his Bat-family.

Many MSPs will do the exact same for your business, by installing physical security components to work in collaboration with your cybersecurity solutions. Physical security options can include cameras, electronic access, and more – all designed to eliminate external and internal threats. Sometimes, this even requires educating employees and adjusting current behaviors. Especially when 55 percent of organizations have had a security incident or data breach due to a malicious or negligent employee. Even Robin needs a lesson or two about how not to blow things up in the armory.

3. The Mindreader, Martian Manhunter

The Martian Manhunter is the Justice League’s resident telepath. He knows the best path for people’s lives, because he excels at reading their hopes, dreams, and goals.

The best MSPs know what you need for your business, because they put in the time and effort to get to know your business and its operations. From a professional services standpoint, this means they are often able to create custom IT solutions for your business.

One of the hottest professional services right now is app development. Any leading MSP should be able to create a custom app for your business that will help streamline your particular workflow. In fact, app development is practically becoming mandatory for businesses who want to win customer loyalty. OuterBox reports that 40% of users will go to the competitor after a bad mobile experience.

4. The Speedster, Flash, Superman

When Lois Lane gets a craving for authentic Thai cuisine, Superman is off like a rocket to Bangkok. When some poor gal falls from a 45-story building, the Flash runs up the facade and catches her, depositing her safely on the rooftop garden.

Many MSPs provide the same level of on-call service. Make sure to always check your MSP’s hours of operation, service response standards and after-hours options. Some MSPs even offer a Batcave-like Network Operating Center (NOC), where your network can be monitored 24/7/365. This is the best way to make sure your network issues are solved in a flash.

5. The Backup, Green Arrow

In the world of IT solutions, it’s important to create redundancies. If the measures you have in place to keep your network running end up taking a beating, then you better make sure you have a backup plan.

In the Justice League, that means Batman might have to call in his pal Green Arrow, who happens to have a knack for hitting the bullseye when things go awry. In IT, that means that your MSP can help you target areas of data that need to be backed up more frequently, and create a disaster plan.

Please give us a call or send us an email when you are ready to chat about these super Professional Services and more.