IT Services

Provide a brief bio about how you entered the industry, what you enjoy, and how it has evolved over the years. I started in the industry back in 1983 as a copier tech and worked for a company for 9 plus years before starting ABS. I went from working with and managing the copier side of the business to working on the technology side. The position then was scanning solutions and print solutions which finally evolved into my current role as a network consultant. The best part of my job now is helping businesses be aware of how to keep their business safe and be proactive and diligent on the constant changes that happen rapidly.

How do you ensure our IT infrastructure is scalable and flexible enough to adapt to future technological advancements and business growth? We have partnered with an organization called TAG which has 150 or more dealers that do the same thing that we offer and are constantly looking at best practices and the newest solutions to try our best to stay ahead of the hackers. The other part of the group is that we all communicate and are able to see trends and issues as a group rather than trying to figure it out on our own.

What are the key strategies and tools you use to protect our company against cybersecurity threats, and how do you stay updated on emerging threats? We offer many solutions such as cloud back up and data recovery response programs and email security both for spam and also encryption. Firewall protection is a must have and allows for secure VPN access to the network and endpoint security along with multi-factor authentication.

Can you describe a recent IT project that significantly impacted the company’s operations or revenue? What were the key success factors? We have been busy with a strategic plan on replacing legacy servers with Windows 2012 server operating system that is know longer supported by Microsoft and is a security risk to the network if not replaced which has added to our hardware sales.

How do you balance the need for innovation with the requirement for stability and reliability in our IT operations? ABS realizes that companies have all experienced increases and we try to set a minimum requirement standard but if that is not met then we can not maintain a service agreement in place.  For those that have the minimum we will meet semiannually and put a plan in place to advance security with the Pros and Cons of the solution. Most times I is not a monetary issue it can turn out to be a loss of productivity and business interruption that will impact the bottom line.

What measures do you have in place to ensure compliance with industry regulations and data protection laws, and how do you handle potential breaches? ABS encourages every managed client to has a disaster recovery plan and also to purchase a cyber security insurance plan which will have them fill out a document making sure all of the things we have been talking about today are in place. Also HIPPA and Compliance regulations are something we assist our clients with if needed.