
Technology News:
FILTER: USER TECH | CLOUD INDUSTRY

Skype Shutdown on July 31, 2023 – Are Your Phones Ready?
As I’m sure you recall, Microsoft retired Skype for Business Online in Summer 2021. At that point, users were left with basically two choices, early to market product Zoom, and the up and coming Teams, also delivered from Microsoft. Having a combined 80+ years of Telecom experience, we know our users greatly value the investment they‘ve put into Skype, so they’ll be glad to know there is a solution through SIP Gateways to enable these devices to securely connect and function as Microsoft Endpoints should. We encourage our clients and all users to consider this solution, as Skype for Business Online is set to PERMANANTLY BE SHUT-OFF ON JULY 31, 2023.

Migration as a Service (MaaS) – Managed Migration Providers
In our continued series on trying to help you focus on your business, and not on your technology, we thought it would be interesting to talk about Migration. And not so much the process of migration, but migration solutions delivered to you as an ongoing service, with all-inclusive use and support.

Managed Vs. Co-Managed IT – Which Do I Need?
Well-managed IT services are essential in any industry and as technology advances, it offers many new opportunities to businesses and organizations. At the same time, however, these advances are making IT more difficult to manage in-house. But as technology continues to specialize to some degree, hiring traditional full-time staff gets extremely expensive.

Why hire an MSP, What They Do, and What to Expect
Today, many organizations have started realizing the benefits of engaging experts in their IT operations. And then they see the cost. This is exactly why Managed Service Providers have begun to thrive, offering expert level services at a fraction of the cost. Because let’s face it, every business faces ongoing IT questions like when to manage some or all IT services or projects in-house and when to outsource them.

So, you use Slack eh…
Yes, it’s true. In an effort (I guess) to apparently not use a unified system built by a reputable provider, many companies initially put their faith in Slack to help fill their enterprise collaboration efforts. “Well, it’s free right?” Um, no, it’s really not, there is an initial free tier, but once that trial ends you pay for members that are active in your workspace. “So, what’s the problem?” The problem in question here is…

If You’re Not Using Microsoft Teams, Then You’re NOT Collaborating
While Teams Telephony is certainly a game changer, I feel the even more valuable, commonly overlooked and least understood aspect of Teams and its Unified Communications benefits, is in Enterprise collaboration. In my opinion, this is where Microsoft Teams truly shines and provides benefits to users that they can’t find anywhere else. Well, they could (and do) find similar apps from different providers…

Wait, Google isn’t free anymore? My personal information not enough?
After more than a decade, Google is moving away from free use of its services to paid, beginning with small businesses, and the response is… well, not great. In January, Google announced that customized email services and other workplace apps which had been free for over a decade, were quickly coming to an end. Needless to say… business owners quickly responded that they feel…

Microsoft Teams Creates Winning Leverage for Legal Firms Over the Competition
When localized, O365 was deemed secure, but with the addition and coordination of Microsoft Teams, began to raise some questions about security and data protection due to its always on, 24/7 available access to sensitive resources, documents, collaboration and more. There’s no question about the obligation of law firms to take appropriate measures to keep their client data secure. Today, through commercial cloud-based platforms, this combination offers significantly more in the way of data security and system reliability than old, on-premises/legacy/server-based systems.

Microsoft Teams Phone Systems – Operator Connect vs Direct Routing Service
Unveiled at Microsoft’s Ignite conference last year, Operator Connect is an operator-managed service that makes it easier for businesses to connect their PSTN to a Teams-based Phone service. By maintaining an existing operator relationship, companies save on infrastructure purchases and management, as well as benefit from enterprise-grade reliability and shared technical support.

Managed IT Service Providers See Success with Fixed-Cost, All-Inclusive Approach
The rise of the contingent workforce has made day-to-day workforce management increasingly complex for HR and procurement departments. Hybrid, remote and on-site workers all have very different needs when it comes to IT services and workforce tools, expanding the knowledge and skills necessary to properly service an entire organization. Working with a Managed Service Provider (MSP) has often been the most successful solution, primarily through having access to an entire team of technicians, versus one in-house person.