Leadership Thoughts: Noteworthy Blog Posts – May ’25

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As small business owners and leaders, you carry the responsibility for the direction and success of your business.  And while Cumulus Global provides managed cloud services and Cloud Forward IT service and support that help you thrive and grow, we understand your responsibilities are broader than just IT.  Here is a curated list of blog posts from trusted experts and thought leaders that we hope will inform and inspire.

Vision

Business and IT Strategy 

  • Save or Spend? IT Decisions for Turbulent Times
    • Radical changes in government policies, along with unpredictable tariffs and trade policies, create a level of economic uncertainty that impacts our business decisions. Across all aspects of our businesses, including IT services, is it time to save or spend?
    • Allen Falcon, Cumulus Global Blog

Leadership

  • Engaging Generation Z in the Workplace
    • Generation Z (Gen Z) accounts for a growing percentage of the global workforce. However, many individuals in this demographic feel disengaged or disempowered in the workplace. This article explains how engaging Gen Z is important for organizations, outlines challenges employers face in these efforts and provides tips on engaging this demographic in the workplace.
    • Chrystine Heier, Sullivan Benefits

Legal

  • Sue the Bastard! … I Think
    • When it comes to reviews, businesses have a strong incentive push for 5 stars. For instance, an increase of one star on a Yelp review can lead to a 5-9% increase in business revenue, according to a Harvard Business School study. But what if the review is not a true reflection of the company? 
    • Daniel Batterman, Esq. at Lipresti Law

Human Resources

Marketing

  • Marketing Through Challenging Times
    • In today’s rapidly changing world, marketing strategies that resonate on a deeper, more authentic level are crucial. As a business owner or marketer, adjusting your narrative to align with current events, while maintaining authenticity, can significantly impact both your audience engagement and your own mental well-being.
    • Kristi Mitchell, Marketing Uncomplicated

Social Media

  • Should I Be Using Threads for My Business?
    • Given the immense popularity and potential of this microblog-style social media app, you might be wondering if Threads is worth exploring for promoting your organization. So today, I wanted to take a minute to outline some key highlights about the platform and offer my thoughts on how you can evaluate its suitability for your needs.
    • Nicole Porter, Monomoy Social Media

Productivity

  • Gen AI Prompt Engineering
    • You don’t need to be a data scientist or a machine learning engineer – everyone can write effective gen AI prompts. This 60+ Google whitepaper goes beyond “prompting 101” and dives deep into advanced prompt engineering with Gemini AI and for large language models (LMMs) in general.
    • Cumulus Global Library, May 2025
  • Slash Email Time by 50%: Must-Have AI Tools
    • Those constant incoming messages can weigh us down and make it tough to stay productive. When your inbox is overflowing, it’s hard to know where to start or what to prioritize. Plus, the urge to respond right away can pull our focus away from those bigger, long-term projects that really matter. But this can all change! With the right email management tools powered by AI, your inbox is transformed from a daily hassle to a simple task you can easily handle.
    • Mike Grossman, Mike Grossman Consulting, LLC

Wellness

  • Boosting Your Mental Health Daily
    • Mental Health Awareness Month is observed every May to help break the stigma and support people living with mental health conditions. Mental health is always there; your state continually changes depending on resources and challenges. Focusing on maintaining or  improving your mental health is important, so here are five ways to boost your mental health on a daily basis.
    • Chrystine Heier, Sullivan Benefits

Cybersecurity

  • Why Not Prevent AI Data Breaches?
    • To state the obvious, AI data breaches and leaks will damage your business. Even sharing sensitive or protected information internally will cause problems. Less obvious is the fact that you have already shared information that should not be shared. You should expect that private, sensitive, and protected information in Google Workspace or Microsoft 365 is already accessible to your AI tools. Now is the time to prevent AI data breaches.
    • Cumulus Global Blog, May 2025

Help us keep the ideas flowing. As a thought leader, if you have any blog posts that you want to share, please let us know.

AI in Google Workspace – Docs

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AI in Google Docs

Google Workspace is a comprehensive and secure platform that empowers organizations to be more productive, collaborative, and creative. This series explores the power of AI built within Google Workspace across each of the workspace apps. In this post, we cover AI in Docs

AI in Docs

Google Docs is an editor built for collaboration. Using simple prompts, Gemini AI in Docs helps you create professional, stylized, and structured documents with images, tables, and more. Get help refining your content, see the latest summary of your work, and ask questions to improve and finalize your document. Gemini in Docs can help you build better docs.

Here are 3 Gemini features in Docs you should know:

Create Your Doc

Gemini in Docs lets you build a stylized, structured document using content in Drive from a single prompt. Gemini in Docs helps you transform your long-form document with cover images, in-line images, stylized text, tables, and more.

Create an Image

Create unique inline and cover images with Gemini in Docs. Personalize your documents, add your branding, or elevate promotional content. With Gemini in Docs, you can also apply different styles, such as photography or watercolor.

Help You Write

Gemini in Docs can help you write. Use Gemini in Docs to:

  • Brainstorm
  • Create an outline
  • Build your first draft
  • Fix grammar and punctuation
  • Help adjust the length and/or tone of your content.

And More …

Gemini in Docs can reference files from your Drive and Shared Drives when generating responses in Docs. You can also summarize files from Drive and emails from Gmails. Access to your content empowers Gemini to help you create and refine. 

We Will Help

At Cumulus Global, our priority is ensuring that you have productive, secure, and affordable managed cloud services. We work to ensure that you get the most value from the IT and cloud services you need and want, without overspending, to best support your business objectives.

Unsure of where to start? Check out our IT Assessment or schedule a meeting with a Cloud Advisor. We will help you adapt while keeping your IT services secure and cost-effective.

About the Author

Allen Falcon is the co-founder and CEO of Cumulus Global.  Allen co-founded Cumulus Global in 2006 to offer small businesses enterprise-grade email security and compliance using emerging cloud solutions. He has led the company’s growth into a managed cloud service provider with over 1,000 customers throughout North America.

AI in Google Workspace – Meet

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AI in Meet

Google Workspace is a comprehensive and secure platform that empowers organizations to be more productive, collaborative, and creative. This series explores the power of AI built within Google Workspace across each of the workspace apps. In this post, we cover AI in Meet.

AI in Meet

Google Meet offers business-grade video and voice conferencing designed to enhance collaboration. Gemini AI in Meet takes care of the details, enabling you to focus on participating instead of meeting management and logistics. Beyond providing a smarter meeting experience, Gemini in Met can help you look and sound your best.

Here are 4 Gemini features in Meet you should know:

Take Notes
  • In addition to generating a transcript, Gemini in Meet will automatically take notes during a meeting.
  • While a transcript captures every word spoken, notes provide a summary of discussions, highlight key points, and identify action items.
  • Notes offer a great way to share information from meetings with others and to help create minutes. Notes are placed in a Doc and save it to your Drive. Gemini also notifies you on Gmail for quick access to your notes.
Captions with Real-Time Translation
  • Gemini in Meet provides real-time captions and can translate captions into more than 65 languages, breaking down language barriers and helping everyone feel included.
Adaptive Audio
  • You can join hybrid meetings without conferencing hardware or rooms.
  • Attendees can use their laptops in any space. Gemini AI in Meet will synchronize microphones and speakers to avoid echoes, feedback, or distortion.
Show and Tell
  • Gemini in Meet includes tools to enhance your appearance and audio, with lighting and look adjustments and audio filtering/noise cancellation.

After the Meeting …

  • Gemini in Meet can create summaries of key points and identify action items. You can create custom summaries to identify information such as most discussed or “best of” topics.

We Will Help

At Cumulus Global, our priority is ensuring that you have productive, secure, and affordable managed cloud services. We work to ensure that you get the most value from the IT and cloud services you need and want, without overspending, to best support your business objectives.

Unsure of where to start? Check out our IT Assessment or schedule a meeting with a Cloud Advisor. We will help you adapt while keeping your IT services secure and cost-effective.

About the Author

Allen Falcon is the co-founder and CEO of Cumulus Global.  Allen co-founded Cumulus Global in 2006 to offer small businesses enterprise-grade email security and compliance using emerging cloud solutions. He has led the company’s growth into a managed cloud service provider with over 1,000 customers throughout North America.

Why Not Prevent AI Data Breaches?

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Data Loss PreventionTo state the obvious, AI data breaches and leaks will damage your business. Even sharing sensitive or protected information internally will cause problems.

Less obvious is the fact that you have already shared information that should not be shared. You should expect that private, sensitive, and protected information in Google Workspace or Microsoft 365 has been shared inappropriately to people within your company, outside your company, and/or publicly.

Not obvious to most is the fact that integrated AI tools, like Google Gemini and Microsoft Copilot, will find, use, and share any information the tool can access.

Just because an employee or a customer has never reported seeing something they shouldn’t have does not mean they have not done so. Nor does it mean they will not see something that should be secure in the future.

The Problem

The problem we face: the myths we believe when it comes to our own information security and the risk of AI data breaches.

Myth 1 – Oversharing Does Not Happen

What do we mean by oversharing?  Oversharing is when somebody gives access to information (files or folders) that unintentionally gives others access to the information, directly or indirectly.  

Most often, this happens when sharing a file or folder by link in an email or chat. You are prompted by the system to grant access. Typically the prompt is to give view access to “Anyone with the link” or “Anyone within your company.” This one-click option is easier than finding the file and editing the permissions.

The risk of course is that “anyone with the link” can be anybody — inside or outside – to whom the message is forwarded or added to a reply.

And “anyone within your company” means just that. They may not see it if they never search for it or for something similar.

Myth 2 – Security Breaches Require a Deliberate Act

We want to believe that our employees would never intentionally breach security or leak sensitive information. When we equate intentional acts with deliberate acts, we forget that many user actions can, and will, intentionally share information beyond what is appropriate.

With email, we diligently warn people that clicking the wrong link is damaging and to remain vigilant. We are not nearly as diligent when it comes to files and folders. Most of us assume that the permissions set on files and folders will keep us safe.

Myth 3 – Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 are Secure

Like most myths, this myth is partially true. Both Google and Microsoft aggressively secure their cloud services and have a “shared responsibility” security architecture.

Microsoft and Google secure the services they provide to ensure only authorized users can access the services. They also provide the infrastructure for you to manage user accounts, access, and permissions. You are responsible for the security of your data within Google Workspace and Microsoft 365.

As an example, both services allow you to block external file sharing. If you choose to allow external file sharing and a file is mistakenly shared externally, this is your issue to resolve.

The Reality

When you use Microsoft Copilot and Gemini AI, the tools have access to data according to the access available to each user. If a user has inappropriate access to confidential information, Copilot or Gemini have access as well. 

Since the AI tools will collect, analyze, and integrate multiple relevant sources, the AI tools are more likely to find and use the information.

The Solution

Ensuring that your information is properly protected as you begin using AI tools is not easy. The solution for preventing AI data breaches, however, does not need to be difficult or expensive. 

Data Loss Prevention

Modern Data Loss Prevention (DLP) services give you the ability to 

  • Set policies and rules for handling sensitive and protected information
  • Analyze the content of files and folders against the policies and rules
  • Notify, report, and automatically mitigate any violations

Mitigation can include redacting sensitive information and/or modifying permissions to bring them into compliance.

More robust DLP solutions offer advanced tools to manage access and permissions, such as conditional access, time-limited access, and managed permission overrides.

DLP Options

Both Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace offer DLP features and capabilities. Most of these features are within the Enterprise tier (more expensive) subscriptions.

For small and midsize businesses using Business tier subscriptions, adding an integrated, third-party DLP service will be less expensive than upgrading. 

Third-party services offer robust management portals that are generally easier to learn and use than the built-in features.

Getting Started

First things first, do not panic. Begin by reviewing your current security and permissions policies, procedures, and top-level settings. Also, consider how you and your team are currently using Copilot, Gemini, and other AI tools, and how you expect or plan to use them in the future.

With a high level assessment, you can explore how you want to use DLP and which services will provide the most effective and affordable solutions for your needs.

Cumulus Global can assist with real-time assessments of your file and folder security to provide a benchmark and a baseline for planning and decisions. From there, we can help implement, configure, and manage your DLP services

Why Cumulus Global?

At Cumulus Global, our priority is ensuring that you have productive, secure, and affordable managed cloud services. We work to ensure that you do not overspend on services and to focus your IT dollars on the capabilities and services you need.

Let us know how we can help, or schedule a meeting with a Cloud Advisor.

We will help you adapt while keeping your IT services secure and cost-effective.

About the Author

Bill Seybolt bio pictureBill is a Senior Cloud Advisor responsible for helping small and midsize organizations with cloud forward solutions that meet their business needs, priorities, and budgets. Bill works with executives, leaders, and team members to understand workflows, identify strategic goals and tactical requirements, and design solutions and implementation phases. Having helped over 200 organizations successfully adopt cloud solutions, his expertise and working style ensure a comfortable experience effective change management.

AI in Google Workspace – Drive

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AI in Workspace: DriveGoogle Workspace is a comprehensive and secure platform that empowers organizations to be more productive, collaborative, and creative. This series explores the power of AI built within Google Workspace across each of the workspace apps. In this post, we cover AI in Drive.

AI in Drive 

Gemini in Drive helps you quickly find answers and insights from across your files. Catch up with summaries of long documents, query project folders, and automatically classify your most sensitive content.

Features you should know when using the Gemini Drive

The Gemini Side Panel is available when you are looking Drive. In general, you can:

  • Specifically direct Gemini to analyze a particular folder by typing “@” followed by the folder name in your prompt (e.g., “Summarize files in @Marketing Reports”).
  • Explicitly select a folder as a source for Gemini to focus on when you ask a question or request a summary.
  • Use Gemini’s ability to understand folder content is currently focused on non-media file types like text documents, PDFs, spreadsheets, and presentations.
  • Use or modify “nudges”, or suggested prompts, which are provided based on your content in Drive.
Q&A for Understanding Folder Content
  • Gemini can analyze the files within a folder (including documents, PDFs, spreadsheets, and presentations) and provide a concise summary of the main points or themes. This allows you to quickly understand the content of a folder without opening each file individually.
  • Gemini can answer specific questions about the information contained within a folder. Gemini can synthesize information from multiple files in the folder to provide an answer. For instance, you could ask, “What are the main risks identified in the documents within the ‘Q3 Planning’ folder?”
  • Find specific pieces of information or quick facts related to a project or topic by analyzing the files within a designated folder.
  • Identify the overarching theme or topic of the content within a folder.
AI Classification
  • Automatically identify, classify, and protect your organization’s sensitive content with precision and scale.
PDF File Support
  • Get the gist of a long document with Gemini’s help, summarizing it, or ask Gemini complex questions about any PDF in your Drive.

File and Folder Management

  • You can instruct it to “Create a new folder” or “Create a new folder named ‘Meeting Minutes’.
  • Use Gemini to create new Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides within your Drive. Specify the name, for example, “Create a new Google Doc titled ‘Project Proposal Draft’.

We Will Help

At Cumulus Global, our priority is ensuring that you have productive, secure, and affordable managed cloud services. We work to ensure that you get the most value from the IT and cloud services you need and want, without overspending, to best support your business objectives.

Unsure of where to start? Check out our IT Assessment or schedule a meeting with a Cloud Advisor.

We will help you adapt while keeping your IT services secure and cost-effective.

About the Author

Allen Falcon is the co-founder and CEO of Cumulus Global.  Allen co-founded Cumulus Global in 2006 to offer small businesses enterprise-grade email security and compliance using emerging cloud solutions. He has led the company’s growth into a managed cloud service provider with over 1,000 customers throughout North America.

AI in Google Workspace – Gmail

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AI in Workspace: GmailGoogle Workspace is a comprehensive and secure platform that empowers organizations to be more productive, collaborative, and creative. This series explores the power of AI built within Google Workspace across each of the workspace apps. In this post, we cover AI in Gmail.

AI in Gmail

AI in Gmail lives in the Gemini Side Panel.  Gemini in Gmail is your productivity partner that can help draft, reply, sift through, and summarize your emails to save you time at your desk or on the go.

Features you should know when using the Gemini Side Panel in Gmail

The Gemini Side Panel is available when you are looking at your inbox and when you have opened an email or email thread. From the inbox, or at any time, you can:

  • Find specific messages or information in your inbox
  • Identify trends and topics
Draft Emails and Respond
  • Summarize an email thread. You can ask for a more or less detailed summary than the initial response
  • Draft an email based on keywords and the context of your inbox
  • Edit emails to polish your tone or change the length of your message
  • Ask Gemini to suggest a response to the email
Access Calendars and Events
  • Create events using your natural language requests
  • Search for calendar events by dates, participants, or subject
  • Request details about specific upcoming events
Access Files and Drive
  • Search Drive for documents related to the topic of an email thread
  • Use the “@” prompt to search for and add specific documents to your query

The “One-Click” features you should know when working in an email message

  • When viewing, the “Summarize this email” link gets you an instant summary of the message and thread
  • When composing a new email message, the “Write an email for me” link prompts you for information and drafts your message

We Will Help

At Cumulus Global, our priority is ensuring that you have productive, secure, and affordable managed cloud services. We work to ensure that you get the most value from the IT and cloud services you need and want, without overspending, to best support your business objectives.

Unsure of where to start? Check out our IT Assessment or schedule a meeting with a Cloud Advisor.

We will help you adapt while keeping your IT services secure and cost-effective.

About the Author

Allen Falcon is the co-founder and CEO of Cumulus Global.  Allen co-founded Cumulus Global in 2006 to offer small businesses enterprise-grade email security and compliance using emerging cloud solutions. He has led the company’s growth into a managed cloud service provider with over 1,000 customers throughout North America.

AI in Google Workspace – Gemini App

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AI in Google Workspace - Gemini AppGoogle Workspace is a comprehensive and secure platform that empowers organizations to be more productive, collaborative, and creative. This series explores the power of AI built within Google Workspace across each of the workspace apps. We begin with the Gemini App in Google Workspace.

The Gemini App

The Gemini App is a Large Language Model (LMM) service built to help you get more done in less time. It’s great for brainstorming ideas, researching topics, and improving your writing. Use Gemini to pressure-test your work against target personas, with enterprise-grade data protections. 

Choose from multiple versions specifically designed for advanced reasoning, complex tasks, deep research, and everyday queries.

Three features you should know

Deep Research

Explore complex topics and get findings from different sources across the web in a comprehensive, easy-to-read report that brings hours of research to your fingertips in mere minutes. The reports can also be exported into Google Docs to easily share with your teams, allowing you to dive into industry trends, understand the competitive landscape, or even research customers ahead of a sales meeting.

Gems

Gems are customizable versions of Gemini that help with specialized or repetitive tasks. It’s like having an expert to help craft compelling marketing copy, prepare for job interviews, brainstorm new ideas, and so much more. You can even feed Gems your documents and other information, making them smarter and more tailored to your needs.

Integrations

Gemini seamlessly connects to other Google Workspace apps. Pull schedules from Gmail, PDFs from Drive, and content from Docs into the Gemini app without switching tabs or windows, so you can stay focused and get quality work done faster.

We Will Help

At Cumulus Global, our priority is ensuring that you have productive, secure, and affordable managed cloud services. We work to ensure that you get the most value from the IT and cloud services you need and want, without overspending, to best support your business objectives.

Unsure of where to start? Check out our IT Assessment or schedule a meeting with a Cloud Advisor.

We will help you adapt while keeping your IT services secure and cost-effective.

About the Author

Allen Falcon is the co-founder and CEO of Cumulus Global.  Allen co-founded Cumulus Global in 2006 to offer small businesses enterprise-grade email security and compliance using emerging cloud solutions. He has led the company’s growth into a managed cloud service provider with over 1,000 customers throughout North America.

Save or Spend? IT Decisions for Turbulent Times

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Radical changes in government policies, along with unpredictable tariffs and trade policies,  create a level of economic uncertainty that impacts our business decisions. Across all aspects of our businesses, including IT services, is it time to save or spend?

Background

Global Economic Policy Uncertainty Index

Global Economic Policy Uncertainty Index through March 2025

US Economic Policy Uncertainty Index

US Economic Policy Uncertainty Index through March 2025

According to Economic Policy Uncertainty*, the Global Economic Policy Uncertainty Index is the highest it’s been since the index was created in January 1997. For the US, and globally, the Index is at or above record highs seen at the onset of the COVID-19 global pandemic.

With this level of uncertainty, we need to reassess our existing strategies and plans. The trends and assumptions used to create long- and near-term plans may no longer hold true. The lack of clear policies that we can use guides further complicates matters. 

Impact on Our Decisions

How does economic uncertainty impact us as small and midsize business owners and leaders?

Downturns

Generally, when we expect an economic downturn, we focus on saving. With the potential of stagnant growth or drops in revenue, we seek ways to reduce costs. With respect to IT services, these savings can be tangible. Delaying equipment replacements and software upgrades is one common example. Savings can also be intangible, or indirect. Increasing automation and streamlining processes to improve productivity can mitigate staffing needs and reduce the need for additional IT resources and services.

Growth

When we expect a period of economic growth, we tend to spend. More specifically, we focus on investments that enable us to take advantage of growth opportunities. For IT, direct spending often looks like investments in new technologies and services. Indirect investments commonly focus on productivity and automation to mitigate staffing needs as your business grows.

Should We Save or Spend?

For your business, and specifically at your information technology and services, should you save or spend?

You should do both! Save and spend.

Save

Most small and midsize businesses overpay for portions of their information technology and services. The most common culprits are duplicate services. Poor license management, shadow IT, and a lack of lifecycle management often contribute to overspending.

Now is a great time to assess your IT services, for example:

  • Identify areas where you can standardize and consolidate
  • Examine on/off boarding to ensure you remove unused licenses and services
  • Work to eliminate shadow IT services
  • Monitor consumption-based services for saving opportunities
  • Explore using cloud services, such as VDI / Remote Desktops to extend the life of laptops and desktop
Spend

The economy is changing and may require you to adapt to new market realities. These changes may also create unexpected opportunities. 

You want (and need!) to be ready. Investing now can help ensure you are ready to exploit new opportunities, adapt to changing market conditions, and leverage future growth opportunities.

Tactically, look for opportunities with quick returns. One-time expenditures can provide long-term value. 

  • User Training and Support: Help your team get more value out of current IT services; improve productivity and job satisfaction.
  • Migrate more to Cloud Services:
    • Expand support for hybrid, remote, and flexible work patterns
    • Improve security and meet security requirements more cost-effectively
    • Replace fixed capital expenditures with variable operating expenses you can scale based on need and usage

Strategically, explore opportunities to invest in technologies and services that will enable your business to grow.

  • AI-Powered Solutions: Look for ways to improve marketing, sales, customer service, or internal team productivity.
  • Replace or Upgrade: How well are your key systems servicing your business? Could you benefit from better customer relationship management, marketing and sales tools, financial systems, or reporting?

We Will Help

At Cumulus Global, our priority is ensuring that you have productive, secure, and affordable managed cloud services. We work to ensure that you do not overspend on services and to focus your IT dollars on the capabilities and services you need.

Our IT Assessment may be a good place to start. Let us know or schedule a meeting with a Cloud Advisor.

We will help you adapt while keeping your IT services secure and cost-effective.

* Economic Policy Uncertainty is a non-profit research collaboration from Northwestern University Kellogg School of Management, Stanford University, and the Hoover Institution

About the Author

Allen Falcon is the co-founder and CEO of Cumulus Global.  Allen co-founded Cumulus Global in 2006 to offer small businesses enterprise-grade email security and compliance using emerging cloud solutions. He has led the company’s growth into a managed cloud service provider with over 1,000 customers throughout North America.

Inc. Names Cumulus Global to the 2025 Inc. Regionals Northeast List

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2025 Inc. Regionals: NortheastCompanies on the Inc. Regionals: Northeast list added $6.7 billion to the Northeast US economy

Westborough, MA – April 1, 2025 – Cumulus Global proudly announces Inc.’s recognition Cumulus Global at No. 152 on its 2025 Inc Regionals: Northeast list. The company’s inclusion on the fifth annual listing of the fastest growing private companies in the Northeast follows Cumulus Global’s prior recognition in the Inc. Power Partner and Inc. 500/5000 lists.

“We greatly appreciate the recognition of our continued growth and contribution to the regional economy,” noted Allen Falcon, CEO. “Our growth reflects the commitment of our team to deliver productive, secure, and affordable managed cloud services to small and midsize businesses, local governments, and K12 school systems.”

2025 Inc. Regionals Northeast

An extension of the national Inc. 5000 list, the Regionals offer a unique look at the most successful companies within the Northeast economy’s most dynamic segment–its independent small businesses.The companies on this list show a remarkable rate of growth across all industries in the Northeast. Between 2021 and 2023, these 154 private companies had a median growth rate of 100 percent; by 2023, they’d also added 9,114 jobs and $6.7 billion to the region’s economy.

“The honorees on this year’s Inc. Regionals list are true trailblazers driving economic growth in their respective regions, industries, and beyond. This list celebrates their achievements and tells the stories of remarkable companies that are fueling growth and adding jobs in local economies throughout the country,” said Bonny Ghosh, editorial director at Inc.

Complete results of the 2025 Inc Regionals: Northeast including company profiles, can be found at https://www.inc.com/regionals/northeast as of April 1. You can sort the list by by industry, metro area, and other criteria.

About Cumulus Global

Cumulus Global helps small and midsize organizations thrive and grow with productive, secure, and affordable managed cloud services. 

  • What We Do: We translate your business goals and objectives into solutions and services.
  • How We Do It: We start with your business needs and priorities. Planning and migration includes guidance to help your team adopt and utilize new services. Your team benefits from co-managed services, on-going support, and client success services. We help you adapt as your business changes and grows.
  • What We Offer: Managed cloud solutions featuring Google, Microsoft, and more than three dozen providers.

For more information, schedule a no-obligation introductory meeting with a Cloud Advisor.

More about Inc. and the Inc. Regionals 

Inc., the leading media brand and playbook for the entrepreneurs and business leaders shaping our future, publishes the most prestigious ranking of the fastest-growing private companies in the Northeast (Pennsylvania, New York, Vermont, New Hampshire, Maine, Massachusetts, Connecticut, Rhode Island, and New Jersey).  

Methodology 

The 2025 Inc. Regionals ranks businesses according to percentage revenue growth over two years. To qualify, companies must meet these criteria:

  • Founded and generating revenue by March 31, 2021
  • U.S.-based, privately held, for-profit, and independent – not subsidiaries or divisions of other companies – as of December 31, 2023. (Since then, a number of companies on the list may have gone public or been acquired)
  • Exceed the minimum revenues required for 2021 at $100,000 and for 2023 is $1 million

As always, Inc. reserves the right to decline applicants for subjective reasons.   

About Inc.

Inc. is the leading media brand and playbook for the entrepreneurs and business leaders shaping our future. Through its journalism, Inc. aims to inform, educate, and elevate the profile of its community: the risk-takers, the innovators, and the ultra-driven go-getters who are creating the future of business. Inc. is published by Mansueto Ventures LLC, along with fellow leading business publication Fast Company. For more information, visit www.inc.com.

Microsoft or Google Calling? Call Your Trusted Advisors

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Ringing PhoneYou work with an IT service provider that learns your business, priorities, and IT needs. They work to address your needs and priorities within your budget and in alignment with your business goals and objectives. When economic conditions shift, the vendors with whom your IT service provider partners – Google, Microsoft, and others – get nervous and begin calling you directly, bypassing your trusted advisors.

Since February, we have seen and received reports that our customers, and those of other Microsoft partners, are receiving unsolicited calls, emails, and calendar invites from “Microsoft” about their accounts, licensing, and renewals. These unsolicited contacts are NOT Microsoft “solutions consultants” or “international suppliers” as they might claim. They are Microsoft telemarketing contractors tasked with convincing you to upgrade and expand your Microsoft licensing.

Why is This a Problem?

The contractors doing the outreach do not know your business, nor do they know the extent of your relationship with us, or your Microsoft partner.

  • Their suggestions are often incorrect.
    • They are not aware of how you are using your Microsoft 365 services and the needs of your business.
    • They are not aware of other services you are using, such as backup/recovery and third party security services.
    • Many of their recommendations will duplicate services and costs.
  • The communications and tactics are often aggressive.
    • They may state that they have reviewed or audited your account and you need to upgrade. They may also claim that you need to do an audit, giving you the impression that you are out of compliance.
    • They may attempt to refer you to specific vendors for assessments and services. These often duplicate services you already have or that can be provided more cost-effectively by us or your current Microsoft partner.
  • Customers and Microsoft partners report that the calls and meetings are often just high-pressure sales pitches to buy more seats – a waste of time.

What To Do

If you receive a call or email that you suspect is from a Microsoft “Solutions Consultant” or “International Suppliers”, verify that this is the case. Ask if they are a Microsoft employee or contractor and where they are based. Note that their email address will start with a “v-”, indicating they are a vendor – even though the domain remains “microsoft.com”.

If you do not want to engage, let them know as much and instruct them to contact Cumulus Global, or your partner. We, or your partner, will be happy to screen the call and advise you if the offer is worth considering.

Do you want to engage? Insist that Cumulus Global, or your Microsoft partner, is invited and participates in the meeting. We can provide context to the “consultant” and guidance to you.

Microsoft is not the only vendor that may bypass your IT service provider and contact you directly. It is always best to loop-in your IT service provider.

Your Next Step

At Cumulus Global, our priority is ensuring that you have productive, secure, and affordably managed cloud services. We work to ensure that you do not overspend on services and to focus your IT dollars on the capabilities and services you need.

If your needs or priorities change, let us know or schedule a meeting with a Cloud Advisor. We will help you adapt while keeping your IT services secure and cost-effective.

About the Author

Bill Seybolt bio pictureBill is a Senior Cloud Advisor responsible for helping small and midsize organizations with cloud forward solutions that meet their business needs, priorities, and budgets. Bill works with executives, leaders, and team members to understand workflows, identify strategic goals and tactical requirements, and design solutions and implementation phases. Having helped over 200 organizations successfully adopt cloud solutions, his expertise and working style ensure a comfortable experience effective change management.