I am always very thankful to get a new customer, and when I realize someone lost that business to Arnold Consulting—it is a humbling realization.
When I come into a new company, I always ask to see any documentation, and most of the time it is non-existent or the provider has it. I get non-existent, but I don’t understand why the customer, “The stake holder,” does not have a copy? You know—the guy that pay’s your invoice. They paid for the work, they should have it.
If you are an IT guy that does not like to share you will say, “The customer will start fiddling with the system and blame us that is why we don’t give the documentation.” In the twenty years of running my business and giving documentation to owners— I have never had a problem!
I don’t know everything there is to know about IT, but I am very good and here are my credentials:
- Microsoft MCSA (Microsoft Certified Systems Administrator)
- MMIS (Master of Management Information Systems)
- 25 Years of IT experience in various roles around the Chicago Area
- 20 Years of Owning Arnold Consulting
I do a lot of reading and testing of software; seeing how it works and what really happens when you hit the ‘next’ button. I read a considerable amount of book materials and manuals every day.
With all that being said, there are Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP), and I would also like to think there are Generally Accepted Networking Principals (GANP). GANP, covers common sense things and best Microsoft / vendor practice.
My case files have really happened, and actually what I have come across in my 20 years of doing IT. Below is another DOOZY—Really!
Case files of Arnold Consulting:
I just got this new customer, a tax service in the Milwaukee area two weeks ago. Their former IT provider is well known in the region and has 48 offices spread across the United States. I see their trucks and vans on the road when I am going back and forth between customers all the time.
Monitoring the Network and the Backup:
When I started digging into my new customers IT infrastructure, I was shocked. Their former provider said they did 24 X 7 monitoring of their infrastructure, but the new customer did not have a good backup of a virtualized Domain Controller, File Server, or hardware used to house these virtual computers. The backup had not worked for a year and a half and remember they monitor!
They were backed up using an, online file level backup, would have taken days to restore their computer system with the amount of data they had, and during tax season—they don’t have days.
Domain Controller:
So, if one computer failed, no matter when, this company would have been Out of Business (OOB) . The last backup they got was so old, the information is no longer useful. In addition to that, they only had one Domain Controller (DC).
Why is that bad? I get the backup being bad, but why is one DC bad?
In a Microsoft Active Directory Environment, it is best practice to have two DC’s in case one fails, then you still have network services. A DC in a bigger network runs the whole network and provides for security policies that you can enact from the DC that will be pushed to all the PC’s instead of going to each individual PC and setting the policy.
So, in their current condition, if the DC fails their network is hard down until it is repaired. If it cannot be repaired, exacerbated by the fact they do not have a current backup, they are OOB.
Firewall:
They had a proper firewall, however, it was neutered for lack of a better word. It had services that you could buy separately such as:
- Antivirus Checking
- Intrusion Prevention
- Ad-Ware Blocking
- Firmware updates—Yes you really have to buy those they were not included!
- Webpage Filtering
The only thing the firewall had was VPN capability. Allowing for secure connection from the outside to the inside of the network from a home office. When I asked the customer why none of these other things were purchased, the customer responded, “We thought those things were included in the quote.”
The firewall was no better than the Comcast modem hooked into the infrastructure, and worse yet, it was causing latency across the network—not doing any real meaningful work. In other words, it is a door stop.
Here at Arnold Consulting we sell Fortinet. Fortinet has all these services included for a very reasonable support package all the services mentioned above and more are included in the yearly support fee.
End Game:
Going back to my original question, “Is your IT Company really doing what they are being paid for?” The customer’s response was, “Well, I don’t know, but I trust them.” It’s ok to trust, but it is also ok to verify.
I have gotten many customers over the years and seen a lot of strange stuff. When you have a qualified, independent third party checking the work—there comes a certain peace of mind. Yes, my company is doing a good job, and if they are not—you know that too.
My philosophy is to keep the network infrastructure as simple as possible, with the fewest moving parts, providing network failover when it’s needed. Network failover is something my new tax customer does not have currently—but will shortly.
If you are not sure your IT company is living up to its end of the deal—give Arnold Consulting a call. We can come in—do a simple look see, and if anything, put your mind at ease. If we find something more, like your IT systems have not been backed up in years or some other serious issue—we will tell you and give you the documentation of what we found. If you like our work, we would really enjoy having your company in our family of customers.