Who is the ‘Accidental Admin’?

An “Accidental” or “reluctant” administrator is an employee (or owner) of a company who has fallen into performing IT duties; although they would prefer not to be doing so, or are only somewhat equipped to handle the complexity of IT work. The “Accidental Admin” often has more computer experience than the majority of their work mates, and thus is often the ‘go-to person’ in the office for computer problems. Surprisingly this person is frequently the business owner themselves or one of their most trusted right hand people; who arguably could/should be focused on more important matters that are more closely aligned with the mission of the business. At AVAREN we receive phone calls from members of this group on a regular basis. They either need advanced help or wish to extricate themselves from IT duties altogether. If you are the “Accidental Admin” at your company, qualified assistance is but a phone call away.

How AVAREN Can Help the “Accidental Admin”?

Dealing with frustration because much of your IT related duties could be more appropriately handled by a team with the needed skills? Do you find yourself dreaming about delegating the IT portion of your duties? Call AVAREN today.

The cost of downtime can be calculated by adding a business’s fixed costs per hour (labor, rent, etc.) to the amount of lost revenue per hour. Thus downtime is a double whammy (losing revenue while continuing to incur expenses) that can cost a business thousands of dollars per hour. While the ‘Accidental Admin’ may struggle to prevent downtime, the IT pros at AVAREN know how to prevent outages before they occur.

Perhaps you have already seen how adding a number of new devices or other equipment to a business network can cause issues to emerge later? Or, perhaps you have experienced a situation where new equipment or software remains only partially functional after installation? While adding new computing equipment to a network is often exciting, in order to get the most out of the investment, and to ensure other problems don’t come about afterwards; new equipment additions would ideally be integrated by a skilled team with a deep understanding of the “big picture” of both your needs and your business’s computer network.

Are manual interventions (after new equipment installations) costing your firm productivity and profits? If having the wrong solution, or having a solution configured inappropriately are causing you grief; let AVAREN handle these challenges for you. Getting started takes but a phone call.

“Shadow IT” or “Stealth IT” are terms used to describe unauthorized devices, software, or processes set up by company staff while lacking consent from management. This issue will often manifest itself in the form of employees bringing in unlicensed software to make their jobs easier (potential legal liability). Sometimes employees bring in equipment such as laptops or other devices (which can increase the company’s exposure to computer viruses and mal-ware). We have even seen employees bring in and connect their own wireless routers/repeaters to a network; while leaving them inadequately secured and thus exposing the company’s internal network to the entire neighborhood. Occasionally, viruses are introduced onto a company network by allowing employees to check personal e-mail accounts on their work computers. More frequently these days, cellphones that have been compromised while connected to a third party WiFi provider (such as those at a hotel or coffee shops) will be brought into work and allowed on the internal network.

These are only a few examples of the types of dangerous activities we have seen employees engage in while lacking adequate IT staff oversight. Preventing downtime proactively often entails IT staff exhibiting greater control over a business network; this includes governing which devices or processes are authorized to be used on the internal network. This level of oversight (arguably required to keep a company safe) are not likely to occur without IT staff watching over or periodically auditing a company’s infrastructure.

Are you in need of the latest hardware or software tools (to proactively monitor, manage, or backup your company’s computing infrastructure), but lack the time or know-how? Or, would you prefer that your employees telephoned AVAREN instead of calling you when they have trouble? People who only work part-time in IT cannot be expected to stay on top of the latest technological developments or time saving techniques. Let AVAREN help you by either supplementing your existing team or managing your infrastructure in full.

Whether you are in need of automated maintenance, automated backup, or 24/7 help desk, or more; our team is ready to assist you or simply manage these concerns on your behalf. Call AVAREN today and say goodbye to these challenges for good. 214-379-4200