14 Common Tech Problems Washington DC Gov. Contractors Are Eliminating From Their Business Forever

They say, “You get what you tolerate” and now more than ever, we’ve been conditioned to tolerate worse service at higher prices. Companies get a ‘free pass’ simply by saying phrases like “the labor shortage,” “because of COVID,” or “inflation.”

But it doesn’t have to be that way.

While you may be able to still do business even with some less-than-stellar vendors in some areas, if all your computers were to suddenly stop working, your network goes down, and your files are gone, chances are you’d be dead in the water.

Your business depends on technology, and you need to make sure everything is up and running RIGHT, and you’re protected ALL the time.

Here’s a list of ten common problems, complaints, and just downright failures in service we hear of all the time…and I’ll show you how to eliminate them in your business.

1. When you call your IT company, they don’t answer calls with a LIVE person, your calls are answered by an Automated Attendant (AA), then your call goes to voice mail and you’re stuck waiting hours (or even days) for a call back for your problem to get resolved.
2. You often must reach out multiple times to get a problem resolved and you need to check back to see what the status is and get a timeframe.
3. Your IT Company does NOT offer a guaranteed response time (QRT) or Guarantee Resolution Time (GRT), thus they are not accountable to the Services Level Agreement(SLA) being Provided.
4. Your IT company uses outsourced non-US Based (citizens or permanent residents) support personnel or support staff in India, Philippines, or who knows where; leaving and exposing your company to high risk of data spillage and non-compliant with FCI, CUI, and CMMC requirements.
5. Your IT company doesn’t proactively monitor, patch, and update your computer network’s critical security settings daily (or at least weekly) leaving your entire business vulnerable to cyber-attacks.
6. Your IT Company is not offering you the option to reduce the cost of your Microsoft Office 365 (M365) Licenses by conducting a strategic license cost analysis and using multiple license type options to help you save money.
7. Your IT company doesn’t offer proof that they are backing up ALL your data, laptops, and devices.
8. Your IT company doesn’t meet with you regularly (at least once a quarter) to report what they’ve been doing, review projects and offer new ways to improve your network’s performance instead of waiting until you have a problem to make recommendations.
9. Your IT company doesn’t provide detailed invoices that clearly explain what you are paying for.
10. Your IT company doesn’t explain what they are doing and answer your questions in terms that you can understand, but “geek speak” and they don’t routinely ask if there’s anything else they can help with, no matter how small.
11. Your IT company doesn’t proactively discuss cybersecurity with you or make recommendations for protecting your network from ransomware and offer employee training videos, so they don’t fall victim to a scam.
12. Your IT company hasn’t provided you complete network documentation, and they hold the “keys to the kingdom” refusing to give you admin passwords so you’re totally helpless if something goes wrong and you can’t get a hold of them.
13. Techs arrive late and dressed unprofessional and badly groomed, and you cringe every time you need to make that call for them for onsite support issue resolution.
14. Lastly, they talk rudely to you and make you feel like it is your fault when things go wrong even though you’re paying them!

If you’re tolerating any of these common problems, I want you to know that you don’t have to!

You could be paying for substandard support and, worse, not keeping your company protected as it should be.

This could jeopardize your data, and network security and cost you thousands in lost productivity because you and your employees are spending time dealing with problems that shouldn’t exist. Plus if you are like many of our government contractors, you could be losing contract award opportunities because your SPRS score is low or not even existing

If that’s the case, then it’s time you see what else is out there and make sure you’re getting what you pay for and deserve.

To learn how we mitigate all these risks posed by your IT Support Company, schedule a free 10-minute discovery call to see how we can get rid of your tech and compliant issues, go to www.smarthostdesign.com/aspirin or call us at 301-576-1122.

Smarthost Design Technologies is a trusted Information Technology (IT) Support and Cybersecurity Solution Provider in Washington DC Metro Area that specializes in serving the US government, government contractors (Gov.Con), Healthcare providers, Property Managers, Finance, Accounting, and Professional Services companies.