[Net-Tech] My Best Practice: PTO

Matt Bratlien and G.L. Dart

Copyright © 2019 Matt Bratlien and G.L. (George) Dart All rights reserved. With the exception of quoting brief passages and snapshots for purposes of review or education no portion of this book may be reproduced without express permission from the author and illustrator.

Frequently Used Acronyms: MSP: Managed Service Provider PTO: Professional Technology Organization ISBN: 978-1-7333519-0-4 (Print version) ISBN: 978-1-7333519-1-1 (Kindle version) ISBN: 978-1-7333519-2-8 (ePub version) Illustration by Michael Rohani. Book Design by DesignforBooks.com Printed in the United States

SORRY SON, I NEED TO TAKE THIS. IT’S WORK. I KNOW, IT WILL BE SHORT. I ALREADY MADE THE DECISION.

YOU ALWAYS HAVE TO WORK.

NO, NOT INTERNAL TECH… NO, NOT AN MSP…

I COULD USE PAID TIME OFF, TOO. WE NEED A PTO.

READY? TWO PLEASE.

WHAT WERE YOU TALKING ABOUT?

WE NEED NEW TECHNOLOGY HELP, AND I HAD TO TELL THEM WHAT TO LOOK FOR IN A COMPANY.

YOU SHOULD HIRE ME! I HAVE THE HIGHEST SCORE IN ALL THE GAMES ON OUR COMPUTER.

IF WE EVER NEED HELP THERE, WE’LL CALL, BUT THIS ISN’T AN INTERNAL HIRE.

THEY WON’T HAVE AS MUCH EXPERTISE AS WE WANT. WHY NOT?

HOW DO YOU KNOW? YOU HAVEN’T MET THEM. ISN’T THAT HOW MOST PEOPLE WORK?

BECAUSE THEY’D ONLY BE WORKING FOR OUR COMPANY. IT USED TO BE THE WAY. NOW MOST ORGANIZATIONS USE OUTSIDE PARTNERS THAT LEARN FROM OTHERS.

LIKE MONKEYS!

WHAT?

YES, LIKE MONKEYS. MONKEYS CAN LEARN BY OBSERVING WHAT OTHER MONKEYS DO.

THEN THIS FIRM MAKES SURE WE BENEFIT FROM WHAT THE OTHERS ARE DOING. THEY WILL SHARE THE BEST PARTS WITH US.

SO, YOU NEED SOMEONE WHO WORKS WITH OTHER COMPANIES TO HELP?

YES.

ISN’T THAT WHAT UNCLE TONY DOES? ALMOST. DOESN’T HE HELP COMPANIES WITH COMPUTERS AND THE INTERNET?

UNCLE TONY IS A MANAGED SERVICE PROVIDER (MSP).

SO, ARE YOU HIRING HIM? NO BECAUSE WE….

BECAUSE YOU SHOULDN’T WORK WITH FAMILY?

SOME PEOPLE THINK THAT! NO, BECAUSE WE WANT A PROFESSIONAL TECHNOLOGY ORGANIZATION, A PTO.

IT CAN MEAN THAT TOO, AND I’LL HAVE SOME ONCE WE HIRE THE PTO.

THE TICKET MAN SAID PTO WAS PAID TIME OFF.

AND YOU CAN’T GET THAT WITH UNCLE TONY.

NO, MSPS ARE GOOD GUIDES, LIKE THIS MAP OF THE ZOO. IT SHOWS PATHS, BUT WE STILL HAVE TO DECIDE WHERE TO GO.

A PTO IS LIKE THAT TOUR GUIDE.

BECAUSE THEY TAKE YOU WHERE YOU NEED TO GO?

YES, AND THEY HAVE EXTRA INFORMATION THAT YOU CAN’T SEE ON THE MAP.

I THOUGHT EVERYTHING WAS GOING TO THE CLOUD?

IT CAN’T DO EVERYTHING?

THE CLOUD IS A GREAT RESOURCE, BUT WE NEED HELP UNDERSTANDING WHAT IT CAN AND CANNOT DO.

NO. AND IT’S ALWAYS CHANGING.

THAT SOUNDS FRUSTRATING. ONLY IF WE TRY TO DO EVERYTHING ON OUR OWN. THAT’S WHY WE NEED THE PTO.

IS THAT WHY A PTO IS DIFFERENT? BECAUSE OF CLOUD MANAGEMENT?

NO, IT’S MORE. THEY ALSO OWN ALL THE HARDWARE WE USE AND REPLACE IT WHEN THERE’S A PROBLEM. THEY EVEN GIVE US NEW HARDWARE EVERY 3 YEARS!

LUCKY YOU! HOW CAN THEY DO THAT?

THEY HAVE STANDARD PROCESSES AND HARDWARE FOR ALL THEIR CUSTOMERS.

STANDARD? BUT YOU’RE ALWAYS TELLING ME TO BE UNIQUE!

OH! SNOW CONES! CAN WE GET SOME?

YES. AND A PTO WORKS LIKE ORDERING SNOW CONES.

PIÑA COLADA, PLEASE.

I’LL HAVE A CHERRY SNOW CONE WITH BLUE RASPBERRY, PLEASE.

HERE YOU ARE!

SEE HOW YOU GOT WHAT YOU WANTED, AND I HAVE SOMETHING ELSE?

BUT BOTH ARE SNOW CONES.

ARE YOU SAYING PEOPLE CAN CHOOSE THINGS FROM THE PTO BASED ON WHAT THEY WANT?

EXACTLY. EVERYONE GETS A STANDARD SERVICE. THEY’RE ALL ORDERING SNOW CONES. CAN THEY ASK FOR ANY FLAVOR? YES, THE SERVICE, LIKE A SNOW CONE, CAN BE CUSTOMIZED.

DOES ANYONE ELSE HAVE THIS?

A PTO IS THE NEXT REVOLUTION OF I.T. SERVICES. IT’S BASED ON ESTABLISHED INDUSTRY BEST PRACTICES.

WHY WAS THAT NECESSARY?

WITH SO MANY VENDORS, THE TECHNOLOGY WORLD CAN BE CHAOTIC. THEY WANTED TO CREATE ORDER TO MAKE IT EASIER FOR COMPANIES LIKE MINE.

OUR TEACHER MAKES US WALK IN A STRAIGHT LINE TO KEEP US IN ORDER WHEN WE GO ON FIELD TRIPS.

OR HAVE ANY FUN.

BECAUSE THEY DON’T WANT YOU TO GET IN TROUBLE OR HURT ANYONE.

I THINK IT IS TO KEEP YOU SAFE. A PTO DOES THE SAME THING

BY GETTING ORGANIZATIONS THE TOOLS THEY NEED TO SUCCEED. BUT THAT’S ABOUT SUCCESS, NOT SAFETY.

THEY HAVE A PROCESS FOR SECURITY TOO.

IT’S BASED ON HOW MUCH PROTECTION A BUSINESS NEEDS. NOT ALL BUSINESSES NEED THE SAME AMOUNT?

EXACTLY. SEE HOW WE CAN COME INSIDE TO SEE THE KOALAS BUT NOT THE LIONS?

RIGHT, THE PTO JUDGES OUR RISK AND DESIGNS THE RIGHT-SIZED SECURITY SOLUTION TO KEEP US SAFE.

BECAUSE THE KOALAS AREN’T AS DANGEROUS.

YOU MUST REALLY TRUST THIS PTO.

WE THOUGHT ABOUT IT FOR A LONG TIME AND TOOK THE LEAP BECAUSE THEIR EXPERIENCE MADE US COMFORTABLE. THEY’VE BEEN DOING THIS SINCE BEFORE THE CLOUD EXISTED!

THAT’S A LONG TIME!

YES IT IS.

THEY DEMONSTRATED TO US THE MASSIVE FINANCIAL COMMITMENT THEY MAKE FOR THE SUCCESS OF THEIR CLIENTS LIKE US. AFTER THAT I TRUSTED THEM.

THAT MAY BE MORE THAN YOU NEED TO HOW ABOUT THIS, KNOW. BUT IT WAS IMPORTANT TO US. WOULD YOU TRUST A ZOO TOUR GUIDE?

OF COURSE! WHY?

BECAUSE THEY KNOW ALL ABOUT ANIMALS AND ARE PAID TO HELP VISITORS.

BUSINESSES NEED HELP TOO. PEOPLE KNOW SOME THINGS, BUT NOT EVERYTHING.

SO THEY PARTNER WITH A PTO BECAUSE THEY’RE TECHNOLOGY EXPERTS.

YES, SIGNING UP WITH A PTO GETS THEM AN IT SOLUTION FROM EXPERTS WHO ARE ALWAYS LEARNING.

THEY GO TO SCHOOL FOREVER?

THAT WOULD BE A COOL JOB.

KIND OF. THEY STAY ON TOP OF ALL THE LATEST TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPMENTS.

THEN WHAT THEY LEARN THERE AND FROM OTHER CLIENTS IS ADDED TO THE PROCESS.

HOW DO YOU KNOW IT WORKS?

OUR SYSTEMS RUN SMOOTHLY, AND WE CAN FOCUS ON OUR BUSINESS INSTEAD OF TECHNOLOGY PROBLEMS.

SO IF YOUR COMPANY DOESN’T HAVE PROBLEMS, THAT MEANS THEY’RE WORKING? YES. WILL THEY CALL YOU ALL THE TIME TO DO THIS?

NOPE, ONLY TO CHECK ON GOALS OR IF WE ASK FOR SOMETHING.

A PTO IS A TRUE BUSINESS PARTNER. OUR PRIORITIES ARE ALIGNED. WE BOTH SUCCEED WHEN MY BUSINESS RUNS SMOOTHLY!

THEY MUST REALLY CARE ABOUT YOUR BUSINESS TO HELP OUT SO MUCH.

PLUS, THEY BUY ALL THE HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE, REMEMBER?

A PTO STILL HAS TO COMPETE WITH ALL THE OTHER OPTIONS.

THIS SOUNDS EXPENSIVE.

LAST NIGHT WE TALKED ABOUT SEEING ANIMALS AT THE ZOO OR AQUARIUM TODAY. AND I CHOSE THE ZOO BECAUSE I WANTED TO SEE LIONS.

BUT IF YOU DIDN’T CARE WHAT ANIMAL YOU SAW, YOU’D HAVE BEEN HAPPY AT EITHER, RIGHT? OOOH, ARE YOU SAYING THEY COMPETE WITH EACH OTHER? I AM, AND IF THE ZOO COST A LOT MORE THAN THE AQUARIUM, THEY’D HAVE FEWER VISITORS.

PARTNERING WITH A PTO SOUNDS LIKE A GOOD IDEA.

YOU AGREE WITH MY DECISION?

YOU DON’T HAVE TO WORRY WHEN THINGS BREAK, CAN SPEND LESS TIME THINKING ABOUT TECHNOLOGY, AND YOUR EXPERT HELPS YOU OUT BASED ON WHAT OTHERS ARE DOING.

I THINK YOU FORGOT A BIG BENEFIT.

I DID? FEWER WORK CALLS ON THE WEEKENDS!

Why We’re Committed to Helping Organizations with Technology Although technology has changed dramatically since we started in the industry two decades ago, the frustration and waste associated with IT support remains.

Poorly defined expectations and an overall lack of standards make it challenging to compare IT strategies or see the true value of a technology partner. As we speak with local organizations, we continue to hear unfavorable accounts surrounding inflated budgets and short-term fixes.

G.L. Dart

We understand the frustration.

Discussions like these do not align with the role we believe technology should play within an organization. Technology needs to be managed with a long-term, business-driven vision, not patchwork fixes. That’s why we established the first Professional Technology Organization (PTO), a holistic IT solution designed to actually manage the data, not just react to issues in our clients’ environments.

Working with a PTO brings a true business partner to your team. We focus on aligning our IT expertise with your objectives to find the technologies and solutions that drive growth. Our thorough processes and systems are designed to bring scalable IT solutions to your organization.

—Matt Bratlien and G.L. (George) Dart, Net-Tech cofounders

Matt Bratlien

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