Does your computer provider have the right skills?

Microsoft Server products, including Small Business Server (SBS) are complex and highly configurable software. Without up to date and appropriate expertise these applications can be mis-sold and mis-configured leading to issues, or at the very least sub-optimal solutions.  In our time, we have seen the adverse business impact of misconfiguaration on many ocassions.

So how do you know whether your provider will configure and support your systems correctly? Well, one method is to confirm their certifications, and another is to confirm satisfaction with their existing local clients.

In order to gain Microsoft Small Business Specialist (MSBS) status, a company needs to meet a number of entry requirements imposed by Microsoft which are designed to demonstrate competence in selling, designing, configuring and supporting Microsoft Small Business Server.  These criteria include: a certain number of satisfied client feedbacks , and also meeting Microsoft's technical competency tests. To gain Microsoft Certified Partner status is similar but is more demanding and  intended for larger partners that install and support other products than Microsoft SBS.

So Microsoft certified partners have to conform to certain standards, but just as importantly for you, the client; Microsoft certified partners also have immediate access to a wealth of Microsoft resources, to ensure that no issue remains unfixed and that partners are kept completely up to date on best practices.

So if your company is living with an issue because your told it cannot be fixed, or you're not certain that you are getting the most out of your IT investment then contact us for an informal discussion.

According to Microsoft:

"Partners who qualify as Small Business Specialists have proven competency in marketing, selling, planning and building solutions for small businesses. All active Microsoft Partner Programme participants who meet the requirements are eligible to enrol online in the Small Business Specialist Community."