Author Archives: thrivewpengine

The events of September 11, 2001 changed a lot of things including the manner in which businesses assess risk and devise plans to deliver critical services in the event of a disruption. Although catastrophic events have a minimal probability, the businesses that plan carefully for business continuity are the ones that stand the best chance of continuing their services in the event of a disaster.

It does not take a monumental catastrophe to disrupt daily operations of a business. Sometimes it can be something as simple as a power outage or intermediate interruptions that result from a storm or an attack instigated by cyber criminals.

Having a business continuity plan in place means arranging to continue to deliver services which are the most critical to business operations and identifying the resources which are needed to support business continuity. In order for a business continuity plan to be effective there are key critical components that must be present during the planning process.

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Many businesses are under pressure nowadays to meet the increased demand for technology while working with limited technology budgets. One of the ways that businesses are saving on costs while increasing productivity is through the implementation of a hosted email solution. A hosted email solution, such as Microsoft Exchange, allows businesses to increase productivity without having to invest in costly infrastructure.

With hosted email, you can use email configurations which are complex and can be used with a variety of mobile devices as well as onsite. When you implement a hosted email solution, your email and data is securely stored on a remote platform which is maintained by your email hosting provider. The hosting service provides redundancy and security while your business enjoys the benefits associated with business class email services. (more…)

Network Security in today’s high tech environment is now more important than ever. Hackers and cyber criminals have gotten very sophisticated in the methods they use to carry out exploits. For many companies this means added layers of security and infrastructures which create a network with many different facets.

In today’s economy many businesses do not have the resources which are required to implement the necessary equipment and employ staff with the skills to maintain network security. This represents a very real challenge for companies in terms of data security, business continuity and productivity. This is where network protection services can be invaluable when it comes to protecting company assets. (more…)

Have you ever wondered why some tasks take so much longer than others? If so, have you come up with solutions to reduce the amount of time required to perform the task, including cost effective measures for same?
We are all so busy within an organization that restructuring a task or activity is not a priority. However, without question, it should be.

Every month, our company generates invoices for our product and services. In the past, all invoices within the organization were sent via the postal service. We now send the majority of our invoices via email. The end result: less time folding invoices, stuffing envelopes, adding postage. Not a big deal, you say? Well, let’s take this business example and determine how much is being saved using email versus the postal service.

Monthly Invoicing Example

Let’s say every month you send 200 invoices. Half are sent via the postal service and the others are sent via email. Costs are calculated as follows: (more…)

Monitoring the health of your network is an essential part of maintaining business continuity and productivity. Similar to a routine checkup with your physician a Network Health Assessment ensures that your business goals are appropriately aligned with the technology required to meet those goals.

So what is a Network Health Assessment and what does it entail?

A comprehensive Network Health Assessment takes anywhere from four to six weeks and is typically managed by a senior engineer who oversees the process and then reports on the status of the network. The process involves a series of assessments on network components which include the following:

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Thrive Networks is proud to have been ranked #26 on MSPmentor’s Top 100 Managed Service Providers List for 2011-12. This is the fourth straight year that Thrive is being recognized as one of the most progressive Managed Service Providers (MSP) in the world and is one of a select few companies that have appeared on the list each year during this time period.

The MSPmentor 100

The MSPmentor 100 is an annual research report from MSPmentor and its owner, Nine Lives Media Inc., MSPmentor is widely considered the ultimate guide to managed services and the leading global destination for managed service providers. Nominees were evaluated in a range of industry-specific categories including:

• Annual managed services revenue (2011)
• Annual managed services revenue growth (2011 vs. 2010, in U.S. dollars)
• Annual managed services revenue growth (2011 vs. 2010, percentage growth)
• Percentage of overall revenue from managed services (2011)
• Devices/seats managed (2011)
• Devices/seats managed, annual growth (2011 vs.2010) in raw numbers)
• Devices/seats managed, percentage growth (2011 vs. 2010)
• Recurring revenue per full-time employee (2011)

This methodology ensures small, midsize and large MSPs from around the world are recognized on the MSPmentor 100.

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With more businesses deploying different types of technology to increase productivity, it can become a monumental challenge to stay current with every IT process that requires support. If you are struggling to keep up with the increased demand for IT, the good news is that there are professional IT support services available that can help you relieve the burden of trying to stay on top of every aspect of your IT infrastructure.

It is important to note that the size of your business will be the key factor which determines the type of IT support you require. If you are a small business it is less likely you have a comprehensive IT support staff. For medium to large sized businesses you may have a partial IT support team or a full-fledged department that may be over extended.

To choose the approach that is best for your business it helps to know what options are available to you when it comes to outsourcing IT support. Many quality IT support services will work with you to plan the best approach however, here is an overview of the different types of IT support services to help you get started.

IT Support for Small Business

While some companies prefer to employ an in-house IT team others find it more cost effective to outsource IT support. This leaves more time for new IT initiatives which support company growth and revenue. Here are some of the ways that you can outsource IT support to a qualified IT support provider: (more…)

During a difficult economy, virtualization and cloud hosting represents a viable solution for cutting costs while increasing company productivity and IT services. Many companies are considering the use of virtualization and cloud hosted Services as a means for reducing IT costs through hardware consolidation.

But what happens to compliance standards and service level agreements that must be maintained if you decide to use virtualization and cloud hosted Services?  (more…)

The security of today’s information systems go far beyond the general protection measures that were once considered to provide ample security against intrusion.For many companies that are implementing new technologies one of the top priorities during the planning phase is security. There are many different aspects that define the overall security of a company’s infrastructure, one of which is patch management.

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Server and network availability is an essential aspect of maintaining business productivity and continuity. IT administrators face many challenges and responsibilities when it comes to maintaining the network and keeping downtime at a minimum.   Depending upon the size of the organization there are many components to keep track of such as device management, updates, patching, new application configurations, compliance requirements, and issues that arise as the result of human error or environmental factors.  So, what are some of the challenges that IT administrators face and what are some of the ways you can overcome these issues?

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