In the era of big data and artificial intelligence (AI), the cloud has become an indispensable ally for businesses seeking to make informed, critical decisions. However, leveraging AI effectively requires more than just uploading vast amounts of data to the cloud. Cloud infrastructure and reliable cloud data must be prepared in advance to harness the power of AI as a means of making confident AI-driven decisions. In this blog, we will explain the key steps required to prepare your cloud data so that you can leverage AI for critical decision-making. Step 1: Understanding Your Data Land ..read more

Business Review: What is it and why you benefit from it. An IT Business Review is a strategic tool that helps organizations make informed decisions about their IT investments, ensuring that their technology supports and enhances your business goals. It’s typically conducted periodically or in response to significant changes in the business or technological landscape. In this video, we cover: The anatomy of a business review: what it is and what you can expect to talk about. How you will achieve your goals Specific IT initiatives that support those goals include IT infrastructure, business ..read more

Our clients often express surprise when they learn about our firm stance on what we choose not to do at Blue Fox Group. Our mission is to guide business leaders beyond the routine transactional decisions in IT, steering them towards a more strategic and business-centric IT approach. As a result, it’s crucial to understand what your IT partner should do and what they shouldn’t. Here’s what Blue Fox Group will NOT do: 1. Give you advice without a strategy. Advice without a strategy is a blind sales pitch, and we are not salespeople. We are business IT consultants. Every IT decision has an i ..read more

Crafting a well-planned and efficient IT budget is paramount for businesses. However, the stakes are even higher for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs). Given their restricted resources, every penny spent must yield the highest returns. Before diving into the specifics of your IT expenditure, it’s crucial to understand the underlying factors influencing these costs and pinpoint the essentials you can’t overlook. In this article, we’ll delve into and elucidate the following key questions: What are the primary drivers behind IT service expenses? Which technology services are considered ..read more

Save Time, Reduce Costs, Improve Your Reputation with Managed IT Services Managed IT Services is a significant saver in terms of time, cost, and reputation for businesses.  Here’s how: 1. Time Saver: Proactive Monitoring and Maintenance: Managed IT services involve constant monitoring of your IT infrastructure, identifying issues before they become major problems. This prevents unexpected downtime and minimizes disruptions to your business operations. 24/7 Support: Managed IT providers often offer round-the-clock support. This means you don’t have to worry about IT issues occurrin ..read more

The pandemic changed the way we work. It’s reported an employee saves, on average, 44 minutes of commute time by working from home. It comes as no surprise that 77% of employees say they were more productive working from home, and 61% say that even though their office is open, they prefer to work from the comforts of home. (Source: CNBC Feb. 2023) While many employers attempt to revert to a pre-pandemic work week, employees are pushing back. The emerging hybrid worker insists on working from home and the office forcing employers to find creative ways to lure employees back into the office ..read more

The pandemic changed the way we work. It’s reported an employee saves, on average, 44 minutes of commute time by working from home. It comes as no surprise that 77% of employees say they were more productive working from home, and 61% say that even though their office is open, they prefer to work from the comforts of home. (Source: CNBC Feb. 2023) While many employers attempt to revert to a pre-pandemic work week, employees are pushing back. The emerging hybrid worker insists on working from home and the office forcing employers to find creative ways to lure employees back into the office ..read more

Cloud is quickly transforming the way we work. It provides flexibility, cost savings, and new ways to optimize team productivity regardless of device and work preferences. But there are still unknowns, fears, and “cloud baggage” that keep many SMBs from making the decision to transition some or all of their technology into the cloud. In this episode of #BFGTechTalk, Nerdio Cloud expert Will Ominsky challenges cloud buzzwords and SMB fears around cost and complexity in this version of Tech Talk: SMB Cloud Questions – DEBUNKED. Cloud Migration Help At Blue Fox Group, we help SMBs overcome ..read more

Big and small IT choices impact your internal operation costs, employee productivity, and customer perception of your ability to deliver on your promises. The ripple effect of IT choices impacts money, time, and reputation. Below are three different scenarios that greatly impacted time, money, and reputation. What seemed like a good choice had a ripple effect that could not be stopped. Less expensive backup ends up costing 7x more than the original spend. Everyone wants to save money, especially when it comes to IT. You may be tempted to purchase an inexpensive backup solution rather than ..read more

Top Email Security Hacks to Avoid in 2023, Part I, we described four major email security hacks. Simple use of malicious URLs or executable code in the body of the email. Sharp rise in the use of HTML and PDF attachments that SEGs do not block. Cybercriminals are using indirect and multi-step methods to lure in the end user, making the experience feel more real. Expect more “personalized” phishing attempts. –> [Read the Article] In this blog, we outline the following four, new, and most effective email hacks you can expect to see in 2023. 5. Fake Voicemail Alerts — another common t ..read more