Article written by – Nick McCourt
You’re outside walking in a nearby park and the idea hits you: let’s create a business that is the best in what it does, but keep it small and somewhat intimate with your clients. This should be a private business with specified goods/services, that will be well known but something you don’t want to sell to the highest bidder. You will need the following to begin:
- A plan to rent services/hardware to run your business
- A recruiting plan to hire only those you can trust to keep your trade secrets and to work exclusively for you in the building of this franchise.
- A way to protect your investments from the outside world
Much like Germany’s construction of an Air Force before World War II, or car manufacturers of today, you will need to put together parts of your business in separated areas and cells to cut cost and increase efficiency. For security reasons you may have your separate operations unknown to each other until you put everything together to begin your business campaign out in the real world. As a small business you will prize quality over quantity, innovation over complacency, loyalty over disposability.
After all of this planning, the creation of your grass roots business, the encouragement of intrigue by the public, I need to tell you what you’re actually selling, your occupation.
You are a hacker.
The mentality has changed for criminals in the new age. This is no longer a medieval pillage and plunder type of raid. This is a strategic organization, a collection of a few people who operate together or in a loose autonomously oriented team to provide services in the world of shady dealings. As small business owners, they have to establish themselves, create a reputation, and maintain it. They have to operate under a certain code in order to not be phased out or exposed by their competitors.
These hacker operations should be treated as business competition by us as well. Should you have a manufacturing company, textiles, hospitality, medical supplies, sports gear, etc., you will need to welcome these new business competitors the way you do your own field. You should smile politely, and professionally work hard to beat them and put them out of business in the capitalist spirit.
This means that you should be planning your IT budget first, not shifting it to the bottom of your list. Your data on your clients, your transactions, your negotiations, all of that information is worth money, both to steal, and to protect. The decisions you make regarding your security will affect your company’s future, and will allow your competitors to get ahead.
Your IT MSP is dedicated to combating these issues first, knowing that the loss of your information can mean damaging losses to your business. Trust in your IT provider to attack these initiatives with a sense of relief as they can check them off of their list. IT Consultants at Integris work between their Service and Project teams to come up with the best and most affordable solutions for you and your company, while maintaining high standards for security. To learn more contact Integris at (888) 330-8808 or email: [email protected].