With the launch of our new website comes the introduction of a simplified way to present our core services. We call it the Set You Free IT model:

The model shows the four fundamental outcomes we deliver to businesses, how these build upon each other and what our core services are that help achieve these outcomes.

If I was to describe it in a sentence:

“Evolve IT helps optimise and manage core technology systems, which leads to staff working faster and smarter, helping to improve the customer experience which ultimately allows your business to further enhance and evolve.”

We’re passionate about seeing small and mid-sized businesses adopt fantastic technology solutions to drive success. And we think our new Set You Free IT model gives a clearer picture of the path Evolve IT can take you on to achieve it. What do you think?

Follow me on Twitter @claytonhm

We’ve recently been letting all our clients know the Small Business and General Business Tax Break finishes at the end of December.  So you only have a few weeks left to take advantage of this business tax incentive being offered by the Federal Government!

Eligible small businesses can claim an additional 50% tax deduction, and other businesses up to an additional 30%, for capital equipment purchased prior to the deadline. Read the latest press release here for more detail, and Evolve IT recommends seeking advice from your accountant or tax agent regarding eligibility.

Take advantage of the offer to get the technology you need now to help you:

• Reduce costs - New core technology allows you to do more with less, can reduce power costs and can lower the number of physical servers you may already have, creating a saving in ongoing support and maintenance.
• Work Faster and Smarter - New core technology can help provide your staff with the tools to perform their job better. From accessing information from anywhere, anytime to being able to collaborate on projects in real time.
• Improve Customer Experience - New core technology can provide an enhanced experience for your customers and provide you with a competitive edge.

Contact us now about making a strategic investment in technology whilst taking advantage of the Federal Government’s offer.

Follow me on Twitter: @claytonhm

This post, originally titled “Don’t Rely on Your IT Guy”, was first posted in May 2009 on another blog I contribute to, Small Business Daily.  In the past 6 months I’ve received great feedback - primarily from other companies just like Evolve IT trying to highlight the value they offer to small business customers.  I also receive a number of requests each month for a link to the article, so I thought I’d repost it to perhaps make it easier for people to find, and hopefully to have a whole new bunch of people read and find value in the post.

Follow me on Twitter: @claytonhm

New research from the Ponemom Institute and Lumension, shows that a majority of firms are struggling to secure data as users quickly adopt new and emerging technologies such as mobile, cloud computing, and collaborative Web 2.0 technologies. The study, which surveyed IT security and IT operations practitioners, shows that many (44 percent) feel that their IT network is less secure than a year ago or that their IT security policies are insufficient in addressing the growing threats arising from the use of new technologies. Budgets are also a limiting factor, with many feeling that IT security budgets still aren’t what they need to be to fully support business objectives and security priorities. Other findings from the report:

• 56% said mobile devices are not secure, representing a risk to data security
• 49% said data security is not a strategic initiative for their company
• 48% said their companies have allocated insufficient resources to achieve effective data security and regulatory compliance
• 47% cited a lack of strong CEO support for information security efforts as a reason for ineffective data security programs
• 41% said there was a lack of proactive security risk management in their organization

Just as large companies worldwide struggle to keep up with security, many small businesses do so even more. If you need help understanding the security implications that new technologies bring to your organization, contact us so we can help.

Related articles:

• Companies face IT attacks in uncertain economy: Ernst & Young (newswire.ca)
• Keeping America’s information safe offers a secure career (techburgh.com)
• Cloud Security and Privacy (oreilly.com)
• Computer Security Challenged By Web 2.0 ‘Endpoint’ Growth (Investor’s Business Daily via Yahoo! News) (slumpedoverkeyboarddead.com)

First published on Small Business Daily, Sep 17th 2009.

It’s astounding how many fantastic free resources are made available by some of the big technology vendors out there. It’s even more astounding to discover how many people fail to utilise, or even know about, these resources! So in this post, let me introduce you to a couple of resources you never knew about. These tools are so useful you’ll want to keep them a secret from others so you can “skill up” on the sly and become a genius!

HP Learning Centre – Free online classes, 24/7! This site is like a mini online university. It offers everything from quick “how-to” videos to comprehensive instructor-led online courses. Yes, that’s right; instructor led, for FREE. Click on the “See all classes” tab and you’ll find a long list of classes covering a broad range of topics. Try out “Create and print your own high-quality marketing materials” under home office, or “The other 90 percent: unlock your vast untapped potential” in business basics, or for the weekend, “Beyond basics: fundamental photography techniques” in the digital photography category.

Microsoft Business Resource Centre
An excellent resource for small businesses, courtesy of Microsoft, that offers personalised self-help, support, community connections, training and articles based on a simple profile created on sign up. So a small business owner with 10 employees in the finance industry will see content relevant to her, whereas a Creative Director in a 200 staff advertising agency will see different content more relevant to him. Note that this site is still in beta so it’s subject to changes and content may be a little light-on currently.

Jump on and sign up now – just do it!

Clayton Moulynox – Evolve IT Australia
We fix business problems, not computer problems - Develop, Solve, Evolve.
Follow me on Twitter: @claytonhm

A recent study by the Kelsey Group reveals that more small and midsized businesses are using digital media, specially the Internet, to promote or advertise their business. Their study, conducted with research partner ConStat, indicates that the penetration of digital/online media increased from 73 percent in August 2008 to 77 percent in August 2009, while that of traditional media such as TV, radio, and print decreased from 74 percent to 69 percent during the same period.

This is a clear indicator that the Internet has become an important source for many businesses to generate and manage their business. Potential business can come anywhere – from their website, queries in search engines, online ads, and lately even social networking sites. According to the study, for businesses that track lead sources, the percentage that does so using the Internet has increased from 22 percent in 2008 to 30 percent in 2009.

Although the Internet can often be a scary for many SMB’s and their prospects place with threats such as spam, malware, phising, and more, this study reveals that it is still a source of tremendous value for those who know how to use it effectively.

Related Information:

• If you’re a Microsoft Partner you can access my 5W50 Webinar “Building Your Online Marketing Engine” If you’d like a copy of the presentation don’t hesitate to drop me an email and request it
• Online Media Ad/Promo Use Eclipses Traditional Among SMBs

You know, sometimes I used to kick myself when at a function and someone would invariably ask “So, what do you do?”, and automatically I launched in to terms like infrastructure management, managed services, virtualisation, IT procurement…ho hum….are you bored yet? Probably.

People aren’t really interested about what business I’m in, they genuinely want to know what it is we do. Like, really, what do we ACTUALLY DO? Now that I understand this my answer to the question in much better: We help small and medium businesses be more successful through using technology. Specifically, we help businesses outshine their competition, help employees collaborate and be more efficient, unchain workers from their desks, allow access to information from anywhere at anytime, give business owners more time and help them cut costs and manage cash flow. Wow, now I understand how to communicate my marketing message better, and don’t sound like an uber-geek, people actually want to talk to me at functions!

>>Read the rest of this post on Small Business Daily

Follow me on Twitter: @claytonhm

If you enable your employees to work where and when they like, at any hour of any day, you’ll likely see big gains in productivity.

With traditional network infrastructure, when employees are away from the office—because they’re traveling for business purposes are or are taking time off—collaboration is impossible and productivity is lost.

As a result, many companies are helping their employees to work remotely. A 2007 study by Nemertes Research revealed that 83 percent of organizations now consider themselves virtual, with workgroups spread across multiple locations and geographies. In addition, 91 percent of employees work outside of headquarters, and 96 percent use some form of real-time collaboration tools.

A mobile workforce may involve:

• Real-time access to desktops and documents;
• Internet and instant messaging access through mobile devices;
• Real-time collaboration tools (such as editing documents simultaneously); and
• Audio and video conferencing.

Companies that effectively enable a mobile workforce:

• Improve productivity through ongoing access to information;
• Drive business responsiveness through constant communication between employees and clients; and
• Support work-life balance and improve job satisfaction—which helps attract and retain talent.

However, there are challenges to enabling a mobile workforce:

• Deployment can be disruptive to your current IT infrastructure;
• Devices and applications may be incompatible with your current infrastructure;
• Employees may not know how to use new tools; and
• Mobile devices and data may not be protected.

We can help you avoid these problems when enabling a mobile workforce—and at the same time, minimize your investment in technology with products that scale to support your evolving needs. Contact us for more information.