Four print productivity boosts you could be missing out on

As the Government injects £37 million into ground-breaking new research for solving the productivity puzzle, we spoke to our partners Brother UK to find out the top five ways in which IT leads can help to save time and ground efficiencies via their print estate.

In August, the Government unveiled a £37 million plan to open a new UK Productivity Institute in Manchester, in a bid to strengthen recovery post-Covid, level up wages and improve living standards across the country.

It’s the latest in a line of efforts from government, academics and businesses to crack the productivity puzzle: how can we ground efficiencies that help workers to focus on more productive tasks?

Research from Brother UK has revealed that almost all IT decision makers see technology as essential in improving productivity, and 84 per cent now view it as their priority focus. Read the full research results here – Solving the productivity puzzle.

We spoke to Sara Diggle, head of SMB laser & scanner business unit at Brother UK, to discuss how a piece to the puzzle lies in firms’ print estates.

Having complete oversight of networks, using faster performing devices, embracing mobile print and staying print secure are each simple ways businesses can save time, and money.

1) Get complete oversight of your print network

Now more than ever, gaining complete oversight of systems and networks can feel like an impossible task for IT leads. This is especially true with the emergence of the ‘hybrid workforce’ post-lockdown, as employees continue to mix working between the home and office.

But having oversight of print estates is simple. With solutions such as Brother’s proprietary BRAdmin platform IT leaders are able to monitor and manage printers wherever they are. This means support teams can stay in one place, with employees not having to wait around for issues to be resolved. It’s a great time-saver for IT and office managers juggling the needs of a decentralised workforce.

2) Stay secure and prevent lost time

When replacing, upgrading or expanding print estates, speak to your supplier about the level of security devices offer. Even a minor security breach can seriously impact productivity, and older, cheaper models are often an easy back door through which criminals can access a business’s IT network.

Brother’s suite of print solutions are loaded with state-of-the-art security features that help users protect systems against cyberattacks and data misuse – boasting features like automatic intrusion detection software, end-to-end encryption and PIN and ID-card-protecting printing.

3) Consider if slow printers are sapping productivity

Old devices could be costing businesses more than they think, as employees queue to collect documents slowly released from legacy hardware, creating knock-on effects for lost time.

Flagship SMB laser printers for business, like Brother’s high-performance MFC-L9570CDW, are combining fast and reliable printing with high yield toners and impressive paper-handling features to ensure that they work more quickly for longer.

4) Use enterprise platforms to maximise workflow efficiency

Creating seamless end-to-end workflows really helps to improve employee productivity, and platforms like Microsoft SharePoint and Google G Suite have come into their own as businesses adapted to lockdown life.

Brother’s SMB print and scan solutions are compatible with a wide range of enterprise platforms – whether on-premise or cloud based – including SAP, Citrix, Kofax ControlSuite, Papercut and SafeQ6, allowing integration with an almost endless list of popular cloud software. This is helping lots of tasks, from barcoding to CRM, to be easily integrated with print systems.

Making the day go faster

Ultimately, a fresh look at print estates can help to unlock lots of opportunities to save employees time, helping staff to carry out tasks that bit quicker. These bits of saved time add up through working weeks and whole teams to give companies a big productivity boost.

Read more about how you can boost productivity your organisation in Brother’s Guide to Improving Your Print Productivity.

Find out more

Give us a call on 01274 396 213 to find out how to order and claim your cashback.

Complete IT Systems and Brother

See how Complete IT Systems and Brother can help your business here.

 

Strengthen user cybersecurity awareness to protect business finances

 

 

In a series of forthcoming articles and resources, Complete IT Systems and Kaspersky will be guiding your business through how to build your users’ cybersecurity awareness. The next article in the series focuses on how user awareness can affect business finances.

Human factors in cybersecurity

There are a lot of stats out there about cyberthreats – we recognise that. But specifically for small businesses in the UK, there are four in particular that should be noted:

  • 60% of employees have confidential data on their corporate devices (financial data, email database, etc.)
  • 30% of employees admit that they share their work PC’s login and password details with colleagues.
  • Last year, 43% of cyberattacks targeted small businesses
  • For SMBs, the average annual financial impact of data breaches caused by inappropriate IT resource usage by employees is around £75,000 ($98K). On top of this, the physical loss of company owned devices or media costs a further £80,000 ($105K).

Close to home

In other words, these aren’t random global statistics about data breaches targeting the likes of Google, Facebook or other household names. These are real data breaches happening to small and medium sized UK firms.

In fact, in the UK, the Information Commissioners’ Office reported that 88% of data breaches in the country over the past two years were caused by human error, rather than by hacker attacks*.

Take action – get your users clued up on cybersecurity

The stats show the harsh reality that, completely unwittingly, users are directly or indirectly responsible for the vast majority of company data breaches in the UK.

Read this guide from Kaspersky to start managing the human factor in your company’s cybersecurity strategy.

Want to find out more?

As Kaspersky Gold Partners, Complete IT Systems can offer you expert advice on the solutions and how they could be effectively deployed in your business.

To find out more or request a free trial, please call us on 01274 396 213 or use our contact form and we’ll arrange a good time to call you back.

References

“Sorting out a Digital Clutter”, Kaspersky, 2019.
“Measuring & Managing the Cyber Risks to Business Operations”, Ponemon Institute LLC, Dec 2018
“2019 Data Breach Investigations Report” Verizon
“On the Money: Growing IT Security Budgets to Protect Digital Transformation Initiatives”, Kaspersky, 2018

Building user cybersecurity awareness

 

In a series of forthcoming articles and resources, Complete IT Systems and Kaspersky will be guiding your business through how to build your users’ cybersecurity awareness.

Educate, protect and empower your users

According to the UK Information Commissioner’s Office, a staggering 90% of cyber-incidents are caused by human error*. Let that sink in for a moment.

Thanks to advanced phishing filters and firewalls, many organisations have better security protection. So today, the first point of vulnerability in the cybersecurity chain is your own users. They provide an entry point into IT systems, with human error now accounting for the majority of cyber incidents.

Your organisation could lose significant revenue, simply through a lack of security awareness. In fact, 82% of employers report a shortage of cybersecurity skills. Educating your users about cybersecurity issues now – to change their attitudes and behavior – will protect your business and IT systems.

The freedom to perform

While the South American jungle is / may be an exaggeration, the fact is that IT departments’ old comfort blankets of secure office LAN networks and VPNs are becoming more and more obsolete.

Great technology exists in many companies, so people must have the cybersecurity skills to use it confidently. The right training delivers that, and also increases security awareness amongst your employees, boosts morale and contributes to a better work culture.

Just like other training, learning cybersecurity skills is less effective if courses are lengthy, technical and uninspiring. Security awareness training should be continuous, with a clear programme structure, and smaller step-by-step lessons that stimulate the necessary behavior and motivate your employees to detect and report real attacks.

Giving your users the freedom to perform will have widespread benefits for your business – well-trained employees safeguard your company by reducing security incidents, improving uptime and efficiency across your organisation.

Kaspersky Automated Security Awareness Platform (ASAP).

With Kaspersky Automated Security Awareness Platform (ASAP), you benefit from more effective computer-based interactive training, which can significantly decrease the number of human-related cybersecurity incidents in an organisation.

Want to find out more?

As Kaspersky Gold Partners, Complete IT Systems can offer you expert advice on the solutions and how they could be effectively deployed in your business.

To find out more or request a free trial, please call us on 01274 396 213 or use our contact form and we’ll arrange a good time to call you back.

Check out this short video to see ASAP in action!

*References

https://go.kaspersky.com/Awareness_Guide_Landing_Page.html – Analysis of data breach reports filed with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO).

Tintri IT Professionals Survey – get a £25 Amazon Gift Card

Are you keeping up with the infrastructure requirements for the digital age? What will you need to design an Intelligent Infrastructure that will support Machine Learning, AI, Big Data and automation?
 
The pace of innovation is accelerating; new technologies, environments, and applications. IT Managers must anticipate and implement solutions that enable and drive future productivity and harness the power of data to deliver the best experience to their customers.
 
Help us understand where you are in creating an Intelligent Infrastructure to support the demands of the future by taking our 1-minute survey and we will give you a £25 Amazon Gift Card.
 
This short survey is only intended for UK or Ireland-based IT professionals who are responsible for researching, evaluating and purchasing IT Infrastructure. Please enter a few details on this link, and if you qualify we’ll send you the survey to complete for your £25 Amazon Gift Card.

Want to find out more?

As a Tintri Partner, Complete IT Systems can offer you expert advice on the solutions and how they could be effectively deployed in your business. More information is available on our Tintri solutions page. 

To find out more please call us on 01274 396 213 or use our contact form and we’ll arrange a good time to call you back.

4 steps to creating a wellness programme with Fitbit Care

All good companies know that employees who are physically active are healthier and more productive, and wellness programmes can play an enormous role in driving physical activity and health in the workplace.

Download this guidebook from our partners Fitbit to get started on your firm’s wellness programme today.

Great savings on Fitbit this holiday season

It’s that time of year again already (almost!).

As more and more companies look set to postpone their Christmas parties, Complete IT Systems and Fitbit are offering a way to help spread the festive feeling this holiday season. With this, employees can enjoy a happy and healthy Christmas – even without a party!

This includes fantastic savings off the full Fitbit range of devices, with which employers can save on the latest smartwatches or by gifting entry-level tracker devices as rewards for employees’ efforts throughout the year.

FREE challenge dashboard included

Fitbit are also offering access to their challenge dashboard for free – letting employers set bespoke challenges by team, department, or even country to create a bit of healthy competition.

Introducing the latest Fitbit devices

In September, Fitbit launched three exciting new products; Fitbit Sense™, Fitbit Versa 3™, and Fitbit Inspire 2™. Each device contains Fitbit’s most innovative technology to date, helping people unlock more information about their health.

Request your handy comparison sheet to evaluate which Fitbit device is right for you!

Find out more

As Fitbit Partners, Complete IT Systems can offer you expert advice on the solutions and how they could be effectively deployed in your business.

To find out more please call us on 01274 396 213 or use our Fitbit contact form and we’ll arrange a good time to call you back.

How can NHS Trusts juggle increasing services with shrinking budgets?

Health trusts and services are being asked to deliver and support an increasing number of services through IT. Probably more than any other sector within Public services, the NHS is being asked to provide a more business to consumer approach to the patients they care for. This must be achieved within the confines of an aggressive savings agenda and shrinking budgets.

What does that mean?

In short, it means that a health trust needs to support and deliver multiple applications securely to a wide range of health professionals. In order to deliver savings and a supportive IT environment health trusts will have to completely rethink how their technology is delivered to end users.

How can Droplet Computing help?

  • Challenge the expensive desktop deployment solutions currently deployed by health trusts.
  • Droplet Computing containers enable health trusts to develop an application platform configured to end user need.
  • Breath new life into “fat client” software by delivering via Droplet Computing containers
  • Remove applications from the underlying OS enabling clinical hardware (such as an MRI scanner) reliant on an older OS, without worrying about an unsupported OS affecting application functionality.
  • Enabling staff to access patient critical applications on any device even offline – saving on hardware and enabling staff to work offsite and with patients in the home.

Use case

Health workers who are required to visit patients require an IT environment that is robust, flexible and cost effective.

Droplet Computing enables staff to use hardware such as the Chromebook which, in comparison to the cost of a tablet or laptop, is far more competitively priced and offers greater battery life. Droplet Computing containers effectively turns a Chromebook into a PC. The heath trust could purchase three Chromebooks for the price of a single laptop.

To see how Droplet Computing containers can help transform the way you deliver healthcare applications today, contact us for a free trial, or demonstration and redefine your application delivery.

The offline working offered by Droplet Computing will also enable staff working offsite, out of connectivity, to still provide a service to customers.

Want to find out more?

As Droplet Computing Partners, Complete IT Systems can offer you expert advice on the solutions and how they could be effectively deployed in your business. Read more on our central Droplet page here.

To find out more please call us on 01274 396 213 or use our contact form and we’ll arrange a good time to call you back.

6 ways to improve IT asset tracking

As your IT infrastructure adds more IT assets, it is hard to manually add new ones and update any changes in the old ones. Be it the software installed/upgraded or a hardware change. A simple hardware change, when tried to update manually, can become a very challenging task, this is when IT asset tracking becomes critical.

ManageEngine AssetExplorer helps you in tracking your hardware and software automatically. It not only automatically scans and discovers your IT assets but also updates every time there is a change in any of the IT assets.

ManageEngine AssetExplorer helps you in 6 ways:

  1. Hardware inventory tracking
  2. Software inventory tracking
  3. Associated vendors and contracts
  4. Managing asset groups
  5. Asset relationship
  6. Asset history

Software and Hardware inventory tracking

Track all the your IT assets – software and hardware – in your IT infrastructure. The hardware that can be identified with ManageEngine AssetExplorer are workstations, printers, routers, switches & any devices with an IP address and connected to the network and some of the OS that are discovered – Windows, Linux, Solaris, Mac, IBM AIX and VMWare ESX/ESXi. The software inventory is also scanned across the network devices and listed in AssetExplorer. The dashboard has easy-to-understand charts that gives you the inventory detail at a glance.

Scan, Discover & Update – Automatically

Any mundane task automated is a blessing. As an asset manager, it would be great for you to have a tool that automatically scans you network, discovers IT assets (hardware and software) and updates whenever there is a change in any of IT assets. ManageEngine AssetExplorer has a number of ways to perform those tasks.

Tracking Ownership, Status & Total Cost of Assets

Get clear picture of the assets you own, the ownership details and its history. AssetExplorer accurately maintains a history of the asset, that includes ownership historyand changes during the asset’s lifecycle. The support and maintenance costs incurred by the asset helps you understand the real cost of the asset – Total Cost of Ownership. This helps in forecasting and making purchase decisions.

Manage Contracts and License Agreements

The tracking of IT assets gives you details on the contracts, software licenses and vendors associated with that particular asset. You can also enable notifications to specific users before the contract or license agreement period of the asset expires, thus making sure that you do not forget to renew your contracts.

Group Assets for better and easier understanding

AssetExplorer helps you create focused asset groups for better management and control. You can create Static or dynamic groups based on asset properties and for ease of management. With static groups you can choose assets with different properties. Dynamic groups help you to group asset based on specific criteria. Tracking IT assets as a group gives you a better understanding of a group behaviour, be it department/geography/asset type wise.

Asset Relationships – CMDB

Establishing relationships with other assets is an useful value add to simply tracking IT assets. CMDB gives you a good understanding of the various relationship of an asset in your IT infrastructure. This helps when you are troubleshooting an incident or a problem. Knowing the relationships is the key to carrying out root cause analysis for a problem and rectifying it efficiently and quickly.

In short

ManageEngine Desktop Central manages over 7 million endpoints with a happy customer base of 12,000+ organisations, and over 85% of customers renew the product annually. With a complete endpoint management and security solution in place, Desktop Central will watch over all the endpoints in the your organisation.

Take it for a test drive

Request your 30 day free trial today, and manage unlimited endpoints.

Want to find out more?

As ManageEngine Partners, Complete IT Systems can offer you expert advice on the solutions and how they could be effectively deployed in your business.

To find out more please call us on 01274 396 213 or use our contact form and we’ll arrange a good time to call you back.

Webinar: Embrace cloud security to prevent threats and protect your business | 17 September, 14:00 BST

We’ve all seen the news about cyber attacks costing businesses of all sizes millions of £, not to mention the reputational damage that comes with losing customers’ data. Choosing the right security solutions can be time-consuming, and in a crowded marketplace, it is not always easy to evaluate the best solution for your business.

Join Complete IT Systems and Kaspersky for our live webinar, in association with BrightTALK, on 17th September at 14:00.

During this webinar, Darryl Wiffen from our mutual customer Caledonian Consumer Finance will describe his journey with Complete IT Systems and Kaspersky, and what they were looking for from their solution provider and security platform.

You will also be hearing from Mark Olding – Pre-Sales Manager (Kaspersky Cyber-Security Expert) who will explain and demonstrate the benefits of:

  • Kaspersky Endpoint Security Cloud
  • Kaspersky Endpoint Security Cloud Plus
  • Kaspersky Security for Microsoft Office 365

The cloud is a powerful tool, so long as you know how to control it. With NEW Cloud Discovery (part of Kaspersky Endpoint Security Cloud), you can:

  • Know which cloud services your employees are using on their work devices
  • Block prohibited cloud use automatically
  • Uncover new potentially malicious cloud services

Cloud Discovery isn’t the only life-changing tool in the Kaspersky Endpoint Security Cloud arsenal. With SharePoint and Teams now in common usage, the need for a dedicated cybersecurity solution for Microsoft Office 365 has never been greater. That’s why we’ve added Kaspersky Security for Microsoft Office 365.

Join the webinar and see for yourself how much easier life can be with the right cybersecurity technologies.

Speakers:

  • Darryl Wiffen – IT Support Technician, Caledonian Consumer Finance Ltd
  • Mark Olding – Pre-Sales Manager at Kaspersky
  • Kevin Roy – Technical Director at Complete IT Systems
  • Dominic Ryles – Partner Account Manager at Kaspersky

If you can’t join the live session, register anyway and we’ll send you a link to the recording after the live event.

 

Small business technology solutions for startups

Starting a business is not easy, especially in the current climate. But we know that there are still entrepreneurs creating and innovating, and rolling their sleeves up even despite the challenges that the pandemic is causing to business.

Now more than ever, the journey of an entrepreneur is riddled with challenges and stumbling blocks. There are deep-pocketed Goliaths to stand up to, aggressive competition to stand out from, and an increasingly demanding group of consumers to please. And for every problem, there’s an ocean of solutions to choose from. Without the right guidance, it is easy to lose focus from what you set out to do. You need someone you can trust, to empower and guide you every step of the way.

Complete IT Systems, Lenovo and AMD are here to help you discover the right solutions for your technology needs, and grow with your business every step of the way.

Technology as a foundation for your startup

To ensure sustained growth of your business, it is imperative you consider technology, not just as an enabler, but the bedrock on which your business is built. The gains you’ll make from building your business in the right way are immense, and range from increased productivity, to image, to data mining, and everything else in between.

There are three aspects that you need to be mindful of while developing the technology strategy for your business:

  • Your must-have technology
  • Specialised technology for your profession or industry
  • Support and assistance to fuel success

Lenovo’s guide helps take you through these steps, and helps you build your foundations in the right way.

 

Must-have technology

New and emerging businesses need rock-solid IT infrastructure as the foundation of their survival and growth. The requirements for IT may vary, depending on the nature of the business as well as the stage of development your business is in. But there are certain must-haves which no business can operate without. Watch this short video to find out more.

Want to find out more?

As Lenovo Platinum PC Partners, Complete IT Systems can offer you expert advice on how the devices and solutions and could be effectively deployed in your business.

To find out more please call us on 01274 396 213 or use our contact form and we’ll arrange a good time to call you back.

This article was originally posted here.