Selecting an IT provider is one of the most significant decisions any business can make, especially in today’s business climate where we rely on technology more than ever. In nearly every industry, but especially technology, consumers make poor buying decisions and purchase the cheapest products and services simply because they don’t have enough information to allow them to make the best purchasing decisions.
What’s with the name?
Considering we have clients in nearly all 50 states, we get this question a lot. As you probably guessed, we started this business in Louisville, KY and our headquarters remain in the Derby city. In 2019, we opened Lexington Geek in Lexington, KY, and plan to continue expanding into new markets with similar demographics in the future.
Most people typically think of pocket protectors and thick glasses when the term “Geek” is used. To us, a Geek is someone who has a deep-rooted passion for technology. We are firm believers in the old adage, “If you love what you do, you’ll never work another day in your life.”
Can You Service Businesses Outside Of Kentucky?
Yes! As the COVID-19 pandemic taught us, today’s digital age allows many of us to work from anywhere with an internet connection. Several of our clients are located throughout the United States, and because we offer 24/7 services, we are able to accommodate service hours to meet the needs of clients in different time zones. We also regularly coordinate and deliver boots-on-the-ground service throughout the US, so we’re no stranger to fulfilling on-site service wherever you might need.
Why do small businesses use Managed Service Providers (MSP’s)?
https://louisvillegeek.com/news/choosing-the-best-it-support-for-your-business/https://louisvillegeek.com/news/choosing-the-best-it-support-for-your-business/In today’s business climate, most organizations could not survive without technology. Most SMB’s reach a point where it no longer becomes sustainable to keep IT in house, so they hire MSP’s like Louisville Geek to help manage their technology needs. There are several reasons companies make the decision to outsource their IT needs to a specialized provider, but in our experience, it typically boils down to the following reasons:
Lack of technology skills within their organization
Often SMBs depend upon a single “quasi” support technician. If this one individual is occupied with other tasks or unavailable to users, technical glitches can accumulate and employees may be unable to complete regular daily tasks. Plus, it’s unreasonable to expect a single individual to stay current on all the technology trends that enable and impact a business. From workstation issues to network problems, from hosted email and cloud services to database management and security expertise, today’s information technology demands are typically too great a burden for any single individual to master.
Working with a technology partner provides access to a range of professional technicians, on the other hand, who solve problems quickly and often faster than a single individual merely assisting in the role is able. Consultancies boast an advantage in that they can employ technicians across many disciplines. Such professionals also typically command greater experience, expertise and knowledge.
Save money and Increase Technology ROI
Maintaining a fully-staffed IT department is expensive. MSP’s can help organizations scale these costs and customize them to clients needs. Reputable MSPs will have relationships with well-known vendors (Microsoft, Dell, Cisco, etc.) and are able to negotiate cost savings and other advanced resources unavailable to the general public. The majority of our clients purchase all of their hardware and software licenses through Louisville Geek because it’s more affordable and convenient.
Reduce Risks
When it comes to cybersecurity threats, nobody is safe. Especially small businesses. Cybercriminals know that most small businesses don’t have the resources to invest in cybersecurity prevention so they view small businesses as low-hanging fruit. An MSP can help organizations choose the right approach to protect their data at an affordable rate.
Click the links below to read more about selecting an MSP:
What Makes You Better Than Your Competition?
As author and physician Edward de Bono once put it, “Companies that solely focus on competition will ultimately die. Those that focus on value creation will thrive.”
Competition means there is demand for the services we provide, which we view as a good thing. It’s also inevitable, so rather than wasting energy focusing on our competition, we focus on ways to consistently improve ourselves. The majority of our key performance indicators (KPIs), Rocks (EOS milestones) and company-wide goals are all centered around improvement.
We think what sets us apart from other MSPs is our flexibility. We don’t lock you into any long-term contracts, and we won’t hold you hostage if you are unhappy with our service. Every business is different; there is no one-size-fits-all approach. Because we work with a variety of different vendors, we are able to comparison shop for our customers (similar to an insurance broker) to find a solution that aligns with your business objectives.
Most of our competitors have 1-2 receptionists (with no technical expertise) who answer the phones and route calls to the next available technician. This may work for some MSPs, but it often leads to long wait queues and other service issues stemming from the non-technical receptionist’s lack of knowledge. Our Technical Support Concierge Team is made up of technicians who manage support calls, create support tickets, schedule service calls and much more. And because they are technical minded, often they can solve minor issues themselves, something a receptionist typically cannot do.
Who Are Your Main Competitors?
Our main competitors locally are ABS and Mirazon. ABS has been in business for over 25 years and Mirazon opened in 2000. Both companies provide managed IT support and they have both joined Louisville Geek on the Fast 50 (fastest growing businesses in Louisville) and Best Places to Work on multiple occasions.
What Has Been The Biggest “gamechanger” In Your Business?
While it’s hard to identify a single factor, adopting the Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS), investing in a headquarters building that best facilitates our needs and workflow and learning to properly mentor leaders and effectively delegate responsibility top our list.
Are You Affiliated With The Geek Squad?
While we do share the “Geek” in our names, Geek Squad is owned by Best Buy. We are not affiliated with the retailer’s service arm, which is also responsible for installing everything from microwave ovens to television surround sound systems. Further, the Best Buy service crew typically provides residential services, as opposed to managed services for businesses. Their customers also sometimes call us for assistance, but that’s another story for a different day.
Is Louisville Geek A Private Or Unionized Company?
Louisville Geek is a privately held company. There are five managing partners who all remain active in our day-to-day operations.
How Many Employees, Engineers, Or Developers Do We Have?
Since 2018, we’ve had approximately 80-100 full-time employees.
Do you all offer project management?
Yes. In fact, the Project Management team is the first department our new clients work with. Before a new client is onboarded, we assign a project manager who will put the onboarding plan in place and will oversee the entire onboarding process. The project management team also helps clients who require cloud migrations, office moves and expansion assistance.
Is It Hard To Recruit Or Retain Talent In A Booming Industry Like Technology?
This has always been our biggest challenge for a few reasons. Technology is always evolving, which means that we must continually maintain skills and expertise to meet our clients’ needs. And while the Louisville talent pool is not as big as a large metropolis like New York or San Francisco, we’ve found creative ways to find and retain talented engineers. For example, we developed relationships with local colleges and made a commitment to providing ongoing training for our employees, which is a must if you want to succeed in the technology sector.
Do You Shop Prices For Hardware Or Buy From One Specific Vendor?
When we procure hardware for our clients, not only do we shop all of our vendors for the best price, but we also look for additional perks such as extended warranties to ensure our customers get the most bang for their buck. Read more about our vendor relationship management approach.
How Do You Determine Pricing For Managed It Services?
Our flat-fee pricing depends on a few variables:
How many users your organization has. This is important for a few different reasons. First, we’ll need to know how many licenses (Microsoft 365, antivirus, etc.) you’ll need. Second, the number of employees is typically a good indicator as to how much service the organization will require on a monthly basis.
Network and Application Complexities. A community bank with 5 branches is going to require a more sophisticated network than a plumbing company with 11 employees. Regulated industries such as healthcare or financial have strict regulations that they must adhere to in order to protect sensitive data, such as health or bank records. Because many of our clients are in these regulated industries, our team is well-versed to assist with compliance from a technology standpoint.
What day-to-day services are we providing? We offer a variety of different services, so our pricing will also depend on which of these services we’re providing to your organization.
Check out our pricing calculator to receive a ballpark estimate on how much our services would cost.
Do Your Offer Flat Fee Pricing?
Yes, we operate in a flat fee, “all you can eat” model.
What’s included in the Flat Fee Managed Services Agreement?
What’s NOT included in the Flat Fee Managed Services Agreement?
Do You Charge To Onboard?
Yes. We treat the onboarding process as a project.
Why do you charge an onboarding fee?
While onboarding new clients is always exciting, it also requires a great deal of planning and execution to ensure that the transition is smooth.
How do you determine the price for onboarding fees?
We understand that, in most cases, paying for an onboarding fee is not ideal so we offer 3 options and encourage customers to choose the option that best fits their situation:
Option 1: One-time fee
We charge a one-time onboarding (project) which. Monthly billing begins once the onboarding project is closed.
Option 2: No Onboarding Fee in exchange for a Two-Year Service Commitment
Louisville Geek will waive the one-time onboarding cost entirely in exchange for a 2-year service commitment. Billing for monthly support starts once the onboarding project is complete.
Option 3: No Onboarding Fee in exchange for a One-Year Service Commitment
Louisville Geek will waive the one-time onboarding cost entirely in exchange for a 1-year service commitment. Billing for monthly support starts the day we start physically onboarding them.
Do you provide IT services during the onboarding process?
Yes, we refer to this as the Adoption phase. During this phase, our support services are available for internal IT members (and/or VIP’s) right away but we always forewarn our customers to expect slower than average resolution times until we’re fully onboarding all devices with our monitoring and management software.
Do Your Employees Work On Commission?
Yes, some of our sales reps are paid on commissions as part of their compensation plan. While our base compensation for sales staff remains aggressive, we believe sales personnel are best incentivized to develop the strongest value-based relationships with customers when they have skin in the game.
How Are You Handling Onsite Work During The Covid-19 Pandemic?
Thanks in large part to cloud computing, most of the work we do can be performed remotely. However, there are certain occasions when we need to send a technician onsite. During the height of the pandemic, we provided weekly COVID-19 testing to all of our employees right in our office. We also provided employees with additional paid time off whenever they were exposed to someone with COVID-19 and to encourage employees to obtain vaccines. We also ensure technicians receive a negative test before reporting onsite, when customers require. To read more about how we have handled the COVID-19 pandemic in general, please click here.
What types of SLAs do you offer?
***Service ticket resolutions are generally addressed quicker than the times depicted above
Defined as an occurrence that prevents multiple users from conducting normal business operations. Examples include critical server failures, major security breaches or network outages.
Defined as an occurrence that prevents a single user from conducting normal business operations. Examples may include password resets or workstation failures.
Defined as a service/support request that does not immediately impact users from conducting normal business operations. Example: a new user setup or routine maintenance requests.
How do clients submit service requests?
Submitting a support ticket can be done with just a few clicks by visiting our Support center, emailing [email protected] or calling 502-897-7577.
If we hire a new employee, do you help onboard them?
Yes. We regularly assist with the onboarding (and offboarding) process, depending on client needs.
Do you provide residential services?
We no longer provide residential services. However, if your business has remote workers, we can certainly support users who work from home.
What are your work hours?
Our normal in-office hours are Monday through Friday from 8:00 a.m. until 5:30 p.m. EDT. But, because we service clients throughout the country, we offer extended and even custom service hours for select clients and packages.
How do we pay our invoices?
Louisville Geek offers a secure online payment platform, powered by ConnectBooster. Customers seeking to pay invoices via bank draft or credit card may do so using the new Louisville Geek payment portal.
Customers who have not created a new payment account can request an account by clicking here. Next, click the Request Account link to establish a new payment account. Once an account is created, log in to Louisville Geek’s payment portal using the email address and password used to create the account.
If you have questions, please email [email protected] or call 502-897-7577.
Do you offer 24/7 services?
Yes, we have the ability to offer 24/7 services. Because this is a relatively custom offering, you’ll want to speak with a sales rep for more details about pricing.
Am I going to have one go-to person manage my account, or do I just call the main line when we need support?
All managed service clients are assigned an account manager who they can turn to at any time, however, all clients are encouraged to call our support line or submit tickets through the support center when possible, to help speed response. Because our system automatically notifies your account manager whenever a ticket is updated, they’ll always be in the loop.
Do you have a full list of your services?
To view a full list of our services, please head over to our IT Services page where you’ll find a thorough rundown of each of our offerings.
Do you offer any Á La Carte services?
Below are some additional services that are appealing to some of our flat-fee customers. If you’re interested in learning more about any of these services, please contact your sales rep or email us at [email protected], as these services need to be quoted upon request.
Do you run background checks on your employees?
Yes, all employees are required to undergo a background check, references review and drug screen before becoming an official employee.
Does Louisville Geek use any third parties to assist with security?
Yes. When it comes to cybercriminals, it’s always better to be safe than sorry so we utilize a variety of third-party vendors to help ensure our data (and our customers data) are locked down.
Do you operate a least privilege access policy and network segmentation to minimize the attack surface?
Yes, we utilize least privilege role-based access control for all employees.
How can Louisville Geek protect my business from ransomware?
As cybercrime continues to surge, small business owners must understand that there is no such thing as a perfect, foolproof, impenetrable secure environment. There are several measures organizations can take to prevent a ransomware attack, however, the first thing we recommend is to make cybersecurity a priority. Technology moves at warp speed, making it a challenge for most SMBs to keep up with the times so they depend on experts like us to help them select the technology that enables their business to scale and keep their network secure.
Because 95% of cybersecurity breaches are due to users’ errors, Security Awareness Training is something we highly recommend. Employees are the last line of defense and business leaders must invest the time and money into training their employees on the latest threats so that they can protect the business.
We also recommend utilizing Managed Threat Response (MTR), which typically includes an outsourced vendor to monitor the network 24/7. We partner with Sophos, the industry leader in MTR thanks to their combination of threat intelligence, and innovative AI and machine learning technology.
We also strongly recommend having a backup and disaster recovery solution (BCDR) in place. In a worst case scenario (e.g. bad actors gaining access to your network), having backups and a disaster recovery solution can literally save your business. We recommend Datto, an industry leader in BCDR. The Datto Siris 4 is an affordable, all-in-one solution that allows businesses to protect physical, virtual and cloud infrastructure running on Windows, Mac or Linux.
To view a summary of the vendors we work with, please click here. To read more about our recommendations on cybersecurity, please click here.
Do you undertake regular and comprehensive security audits/reviews?
Every year (since 2016), we hire a third-party firm to conduct a SOC-2 audit of our own network, practices and policies. The SOC 2 audit focuses on an organization’s non-financial reporting controls as they relate to systems security, availability, processing integrity, confidentiality and privacy. We have been SOC-2 certified annually since 2016.
Do you regularly train and update staff in phishing awareness?
Yes, we partner with KnowBe4, world’s largest integrated Security Awareness Training and Simulated Phishing platform. All of our employees are required to complete quarterly security awareness training programs. We also utilize KnowBe4 to send simulated phishing emails to employees and track how they respond. In the event an employee falls for a simulated phishing attack, the employee must complete an instant remedial online training program.
Do you have disaster recovery?
Yes, we use Datto for our backups and disaster recovery. Their wide range of products protect and ensure we can continue to access our data and operate smoothly in the event of an untimely interruption to their networks, like unintentional employee errors, disgruntled ex-employees, natural disaster or malicious activity.
What is a CAL (Client Access Licenses)?
Microsoft’s licensing can be complicated due to the technical nature of server products and networks. Microsoft offers device-based CALs (Device CAL) or user-based CALs (User CAL). In addition, an External Connector (EC) license is offered for some products as an optional alternative to address specific customer scenarios. For more information on CALs, please click here.
Why do I need to buy CALs (Client Access Licenses)?
CALs are required by Microsoft for all users or devices that access a Windows Server Standard or Windows Server Datacenter system. When a customer buys Windows Server Standard or Datacenter, they receive a server license that allows them to install the operating system on one computer. A server software license by itself doesn’t provide the license rights to allow anyone to connect to that computer, whether they work for the company or not. Instead, each user or device needs a CAL.
What are options for purchasing CALs?
There are 2 different types of CALs:
With the User CAL, your organization purchases a license for every user who accesses the server for services such as file storage or printing, regardless of the number of devices they use for that access. Purchasing a User CAL usually makes more sense if your company’s employees access network resources using multiple devices, or from unknown devices, or if you simply have more devices than users in your organization.
With a Device CAL, you purchase a license for every device that accesses your server, regardless of the number of users using that device to access the server. Device CALs usually make more economic and administrative sense if your company has workers who share devices, for example, on different work shifts.
Do you work with internal IT teams?
Yes! There is a common misconception that organizations must choose between having an in-house IT team or outsourcing an MSP but this could not be further from the truth. Most internal IT teams are bogged down with daily maintenance and support that they don’t have time to handle the mountain of behind-the-scenes work that is required to keep a business running efficiently and securely. Finding an MSP who can perform a la carte services to ease the workload for the internal team is typically a win-win for all parties.
Louisville Geek’s team can answer all your hard hitting questions about our company, approach to customer service and Managed IT Services.
Louisville Geek is a privately-owned Information Technology company that provides comprehensive managed IT services for SMBs and organizations throughout Kentucky and the greater US.