Posts

Leadership Thoughts: Noteworthy Blog Posts – Jan ’26

/in ,

Leadership Thoughts

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

AI Strategy

  • A 5-Step Strategy for Responsible AI
    • AI is changing how our businesses operate and compete. As we rely more on AI, having strong governance is essential to ensure our AI tools are used securely, ethically, and responsibly. Our use of AI should align with your company’s values and regulatory standards.
    • Allen Falcon, Cumulus Global Blog

Business and IT Strategy

  • How Financial Benchmarking Can Save Your Business
    • Many businesses with $2M-$50M in annual sales overlook a critical indicator of business health – financial benchmarking. Much like a pilot’s artificial horizon, benchmarking signals when a correction is needed, and sometimes making that adjustment is a matter of survival.
    • James Wheeler, kept.pro
  • Start the New Year with an Effective IT Budget

    • If you do not have an IT budget, there is no such thing as an “in-budget” IT purchase. Every unplanned expense adds costs and introduces uncertainty, putting profit at risk. With a budget in place, you get clarity on current spending and can plan ahead instead of scrambling. Step into the new year with more control by following this simple process that gives you a complete view of your IT.
    • Allen Falcon, Cumulus Global Blog

Leadership

Legal

Marketing

Productivity

  • Boost Your Biz with Smarter PDFs now!
    • The PDF format is preferred because it displays consistently on any device, and it’s reliable for storing important information. But not all PDF software is the same. Use the wrong one and you can have a problem with some of the functionality you’ve come to expect.
    • Mike Grossman, Mike Grossman Consulting, LLC

Cybersecurity

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.

Simplify Your IT Strategy

/in ,

UPDATED: January 2, 2026. Added related resources (see below).

As a small to medium-sized business (SMB) leader, you already know how tough IT decisions can be. From software to infrastructure, every choice affects your efficiency, budget, and long-term growth. One of the biggest challenges is decision-making paralysis. With so much information coming at you, it’s easy to feel overwhelmed and unsure about which details actually matter. The key is learning how to manage that information effectively.

Managing Information Overload

Access to information can be both a benefit and a burden. Thanks to search engines and AI-powered tools, you can gather data faster than ever. But too much information can feel like noise if you don’t know where to start.

Connect with a Cloud AdvisorTo cut through the clutter, start by identifying your core business goals and IT priorities. This will help you filter out irrelevant information and zero in on what truly supports your objectives. Additionally, you should lean on trusted sources and expert insights, as they provide accurate, reliable information that helps you make decisions based on facts rather than assumptions.

When you create a structured approach to research, you turn information overload into informed decision-making.

Evaluating Your Options

After narrowing your focus, the next step is choosing the right solution. With so many options available, it’s easy to second-guess your choices. A structured evaluation process helps you stay objective and confident.

  1. Define your key requirements and goals: Identify what your business truly needs from an IT solution. Use these requirements as benchmarks to quickly rule out any options that don’t fit.
  2. Research your top contenders: Take a closer look at the solutions that meet your criteria. Watch product demos, read case studies, and, if possible, talk to current users to understand real-world experiences.
  3. Evaluate long-term performance: Ask how each option will scale with your business, how reliable the vendor’s support is, and how easily it integrates with your current systems.

Following these steps will help you minimize risk and choose solutions that support lasting growth.

Putting a Process in Place

Once you’ve evaluated your options, you should put a clear process in place to ensure that your decisions align with your business goals.

  1. Form a team of key stakeholders to gain diverse perspectives and ensure all relevant viewpoints are considered.
  2. Set a timeline with milestones to keep the decision-making process on track and maintain momentum.
  3. Use decision-making frameworks such as SWOT analysis or a Decision Matrix to compare options objectively.
  4. Document your reasoning throughout the process to maintain transparency and create a reference that supports future decisions.

In Summary

IT decision-making doesn’t have to feel overwhelming. The right approach not only helps you choose the best solutions but also saves time, reduces stress, and positions your business for growth. Start small, stay focused, and turn decision-making from a hurdle into a strength for your SMB.

How We Help

We provide the structure, communication, and support your team needs to succeed. From defining roles and prioritizing tasks to managing follow-ups and challenges, our professional services help keep your IT systems in sync with your business priorities so projects move forward efficiently.

Our Cloud Advisors help you put your IT plans into action. We assess your current technology, identify productivity and security gaps, remove redundant services, identify opportunities, train your team, and help you manage IT projects and your overall IT ecosystem.

eBook - Smart IT Budgeting Pays OffIT Budget Workbook Template

Related Resources

Take the next step with our recent “Smart IT Budgeting Pays Off” eBook for a deeper dive into the process for building an effective IT Budget.

You can also download our IT Budget Workbook Template to help you get started.

No matter your starting point, book time with us to create your IT plan for 2026 and take control of your technology and spending.

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.

Boost Your Tech Project Team Performance

/in ,

Your technology projects succeed when your project team performs well as a team and individually. When team members communicate clearly, stay accountable, and focus on what matters, your projects run smoother and achieve better results.

Here’s how to make team participation work.

Define Your Project Team

Remember that your project team is more than your IT staff and vendors.  You project team should include stakeholders – executive sponsors, subject matter experts, and key users/user groups. Your extended project team helps you define success metrics, prioritize requirements, manage and communicate change, and provides testing and feedback.

With a well-defined team, you can manage your project to the metrics that matter. You also have more control of project scope and direction.

Set Clear Roles and Commitments for Team Members

Teamwork starts with clarity. Define roles, responsibilities, expectations, and deadlines from the start. Verify that everyone knows their responsibilities, and accountability and motivation will naturally follow. (This 3T@3 Series recording discussing managing project input and feedback)

Clear commitments reduce confusion and align your team.

Prioritize Tasks

After setting commitments, establish priorities. Technology projects have many moving parts. To manage these effectively, teams should collaborate to identify and rank priorities based on urgency, impact, and dependencies.

By focusing on high-priority work, you ensure that your team completes critical tasks first and that you allocate resources efficiently. Clear priorities also help your team maintain a steady workflow and remain aligned.

Follow Up Consistently

Even the most organized teams need structured follow-ups to maintain momentum. Regular, structured check-ins help you and your team track progress, address roadblocks early, and reinforce accountability. Use follow-up and status meetings to catch missed deadlines and project issues before they get out of hand. You gain flexibility to adjust timelines and resources slightly without compromising the overall project schedule.

Consistent follow-ups help you address issues early, keep your team on track, and reinforce a shared sense of responsibility and accountability.

Handle Disruptions Constructively

Working in a team isn’t always easy. Sometimes team members may be disruptive, overlook mistakes, or push back against collaboration. The key is to address these issues early and respectfully. Take the time to listen, acknowledge what’s going on, and respond promptly. Be transparent when addressing concerns and remember that it’s perfectly fine for your answer to be “no.” When you explain the reasons behind your decisions or changes in direction, it helps everyone stay on the same page. Even if not everyone agrees, they will understand where you’re coming from.

By constructively managing conflicts, you and your team maintain a positive environment that encourages productive contributions from everyone.

How We Help

We provide the structure, communication, and support your team needs to succeed. From defining roles and prioritizing tasks to managing follow-ups and challenges, our professional services help keep your IT systems in sync with your business priorities so projects move forward efficiently.

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.

Sustainability: Our Next Milestone

/in

ReforestationIn January 2025, Cumulus Global expanded its sustainability program to help offset the carbon footprint of our offices and operations.  In partnership with Evertreen, we fund the planting of 100 trees per month.

Over 1,500 Tonnes of CO2 Offset

With over 2,300 trees in 7 countries on 3 continents, our current forest offsets the electrical use of more than 975 households.

In addition to the climate benefits, our forest is producing food, reducing soil erosion, protecting watersheds, and providing local jobs.

As an IT firm, planting trees to offset our carbon footprint is part of an overall commitment to sustainability that includes using 100% renewable energy, reuse, and recycling.

We Can Help You Do More

One of the best ways to improve sustainability is to recycle electronic waste (e-waste). E-waste recycling has challenges, including but not limited to, finding reputable recyclers and cost.

Our Basic and Business Managed Cloud Services include lifecycle management for your computer with unlimited, no-cost, e-waste recycling. We provide a prepaid label. Just box up the items and drop them off at your local post office. As an added bonus, our IT asset disposal partners partner with Veritree to plant trees with every recycling order.

Call to Action:

For more information about our Managed Cloud Services, please contact us or schedule time with one of our Cloud Advisors. 

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. Starting his first business at age 12, Allen is a serial entrepreneur. He has launched strategic IT consulting, software, and service companies. An advocate for small and midsize businesses, Allen served on the board of the former Smaller Business Association of New England, local economic development committees, and industry advisory boards.

Major Google for Education Licensing and Price Changes

/in , ,

Google for Education Logo

As you are hopefully aware, Google announced major changes to both licensing and pricing for paid Google for Education editions. 

These changes will impact most schools after February 1, 2026, and will affect some schools as soon as October 1, 2025.  Depending on your annual renewal date, your district may experience a significant increase in Fiscal 2026 over current budgeted amounts.

The following are the licensing changes, pricing changes, and timing for the changes. We are also sharing our general recommendations based on your current subscription and plan.

Licensing Changes

  • Google is eliminating licensing that differentiates between students (full and part time) and faculty/staff. 
    • All users will require the same license(s)
    • You will no longer receive a staff license at no cost for every four (4) student licenses.
    • Every active user must be assigned an Education Fundamentals license
  • Education Standard and Education Plus subscriptions are designed and intended to cover all active users, not just a subset. 
    • Partial domain licensing is no longer possible, with few exceptions.
  • If you subscribe to either Standard or Plus, you must:
    • Purchase enough paid licenses to cover every user with an Education Fundamentals license
    • Ensure that all users with an Education Fundamentals license have an assigned paid license
  • Google is enforcing a minimum purchase requirement for paid licenses of 50 seats.
    • If your school has fewer than 50 faculty/staff and students, you must purchase 50 Education Standard or Education Plus licenses.

Pricing Changes

Google is increasing Google for Education pricing as follows. Note that subscriptions that were licensed and paid per-student will now be per-user, inclusive of students and faculty/staff.

Education Standard

  • Price remains at $3 per user per year.

Education Plus

  • Price increases from $5 to $6 per user per year
  • If subscription cost increases more than 10%, you may be eligible for a 1-year 10% discount on your license fees
  • Discounts are available with multi-year contracts

Teaching and Learning add-on

  • Price increases from $48 to $60 per user per year for Annual/Fixed Term Plan Subscriptions
  • Flexible Plan subscriptions increase from $4.80 to $6 per month

Timing of Changes

License and pricing changes start as early as October 1, 2025, for new all subscriptions and existing Flexible Plan subscriptions.  The changes take effect beginning February 1, 2026, for all existing Annual/Fixed Term Plan subscriptions.

New Purchases

  • For new Education Standard and Plus purchases, the new pricing takes effect as of October 1, 2025. The new pricing is for both Flexible (monthly) Plans and Annual/Fixed Term Plans (1+ year commitment with annual or monthly payments).

All Flexible Plan Subscriptions

  • If you are on Flexible Plan (monthly) subscription, the new pricing begins as of October 1, 2025.

Annual Plan Subscription Renewals

  • If you are on an Annual Plan Subscription, the price increase takes effect with your next annual renewal, on our after February 1, 2026.  As such:
    • If your renewal is before February 1, 2026, you may renew with the current licensing and pricing for one (1) year only.  Any renewal for multiple years will use the new licensing structure and pricing.
    • If your renewal is on or after February 1, 2026, your subscription will move to the new licensing and pricing structure upon renewal.
  • Please note that 
    • If your renewal is after February 1, 2026 and within your current fiscal year, your new cost may not be fully budgeted if your budget was finalized before considering the new licensing and pricing structure.
    • If you are renewing Education Plus and see a cost increase of more than 10%, Google will authorize a 10% discount for the first year of your renewal.

Annual Plan Subscription Upgrades

  • If you are using Education Standard, you can upgrade to Education Plus using the current licensing structure and pricing until January 31, 2026.  This includes mid-term upgrades that change your renewal date.
  • As of February 1, 2026, upgrading from Education Standard to Plus will move you to the new licensing structure and pricing even if the upgrade is prior to your renewal date.

Downgrades

  • If you choose to downgrade from Education Plus to the Teaching and Learning add-on, the new licensing and pricing takes effect October 1, 2025.

Our Recommendations

Depending on your current Google for Education subscription and plan, we recommend you consider the following:

New Education Standard and Education Plus Subscriptions

  • Schools planning to add Education Standard or Education Plus should do so with an Annual Plan commitment before September 30, 2025. 
  • This will provide first year savings over the new licensing and pricing structure and provide you with the ability to properly budget for FY2027.

Current Education Plus Subscriptions

  • Consider a multi-year commitment with possible discounts.
  • Evaluate your usage and determine if downgrading to Education Fundamentals and using the Teaching and Learning add-on is appropriate.

Upgrading from Education Standard to Education Plus

  • Schools planning this upgrade should do so with an Annual Plan commitment before September 30, 2025.
  • This will postpone the price increase and will provide a year savings over the new licensing and pricing structure and provide you with the ability to properly budget for FY2027.

Flexible Plans

  • Assess the stability of your user counts and, if feasible, move from your monthly plan to an Annual Plan prior to September 30, 2025. 
  • This will lock in current licensing and pricing for the first year and give you the opportunity to budget for increasing costs in the future.

We Will Help

Plan Now; Act Soon.  As with any major change, we expect you will have questions and that you may need to reassess your budget.  With the first deadline approaching October 1st, you have limited time to make decisions.  

Our Cloud Advisors are here to assist. We can review your current subscription, discuss your options, and help secure the initial year and multi-year discounts.

Please schedule time with one of our Cloud Advisors for assistance.

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.

Rightsizing IT: Managed Cloud Services for Smaller SMBs – Part 2

/in

Rightsizing IT for Smaller SMBs with Managed Cloud Services

Smaller businesses, like yours, use technology differently than larger organizations. You rely more on commercially available solutions than custom-built or highly-customized solutions. You are held to the same security standards as larger companies, but you lack the expertise and budget of bigger businesses. Rightsizing your IT means carefully matching your IT services to your needs, priorities, and budget. This is key to keeping your services productive, secure, and affordable.

In Part 1, we discussed the unique IT challenges you face as sole practitioners, solopreneurs, or very small business (VSB) owners and leaders. In Part 2, we dive into the process of rightsizing your IT.

1
Pick the Right Productivity Suite

Think beyond just email and calendars; focus on how you communicate and share information with your clients, customers, contractors, and vendors. Do you send and share documents? What CRM and financial apps do you use? Do you rely on and use any industry-specific software locally or in the cloud?

While other platforms exist, some at lower costs, Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace offer the most comprehensive platforms for small business productivity, communications, and collaboration.  Microsoft and Google promote different philosophies:

  • Microsoft 365 works best as a hybrid solution, with full-featured software running locally, slim web versions, and a range of integrated apps, such as planning, bookings, and PowerBI. 
  • Google promotes a cloud-first approach. Focused on core communication and collaboration, Google expects you will select and integrate cloud-based (Software as a Solution / SaaS) business apps to meet your specific needs. Google is designed to serve as your identity manager, providing integrated access to your cloud apps and services.

Consider the business apps and systems you use and how you want them to work with your productivity suite. Your line of business and back-office apps can guide whether Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace is the best fit for your IT ecosystem and your business.

2
Avoid Duplicate Services

Both Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 are robust productivity suites. And yet, we often opt to purchase additional solutions out of convenience even though we already have similar features at our fingertips. The most commonly duplicate services across our smaller business clients are:

  • Meeting services
  • External file sharing
  • Generative AI
  • AI assistant tools (transcription, note taking, etc.)

Learning to use your existing features and capabilities negates the need to spend money on – and manage – additional solutions. You can easily overcome concerns by ensuring you and your team know how to use the features you need. For example, when scheduling a meeting with a client, you might say, “I will send you a Google Meet invite, or if you prefer Zoom, you can send the invite.”

Note that features may vary based on your Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace subscription. You may need to upgrade in order to access certain features you require. This upgrade is likely less expensive than licensing another third-party app.

3
Be Cloud Forward

For smaller businesses, the cloud offers significant advantages over on-premise solutions.

  • Mobility: Securely access your systems, apps, and data, whether you are in the office, a coworking site, at home, or on the road.
  • Security: Leveraging the cloud simplifies your security exposure, lowering your costs while maintaining or increasing your protections.
  • Business Continuity: Cloud-based services protect you from local outages and service disruptions, reduce the number of ‘things’ that can break, and make it easier to recover when things do go wrong.
  • Ease of Access: Get to work without having to jump through VPN hoops. Your access is the same, regardless of where you are working.
  • Affordability: With a simpler, more secure, and integrated IT ecosystem, you pay less for the support and services you need and want.

4
Pick the Right Partner

If you are a sole practitioner, solopreneur, or VSB, most IT service providers do NOT want you as a client. Our research indicates that fewer than 10% of traditional IT and managed service providers want clients with 10 or fewer employees. Their business models require an economy-of-scale that is not viable with very small clients.

Pick an IT partner that wants your business and does not see you as an exception to their normal or preferred type of client. Look for an IT service provider that has:

  • A successful history working with smaller businesses.
  • Services and solutions tailored to your needs and priorities as a smaller business.
  • Gives you options that let you make value-based business decisions about your IT services.
  • Focuses on affordability as much as features, capabilities, and security.

How Will Cumulus Global Help?

At Cumulus Global, we truly value sole practitioners, solopreneurs, and very small businesses. We specialize in tailored solutions designed just for businesses like yours, backed by a proven track record of success.

Our top priority is ensuring that you have productive, secure, and affordable Managed Cloud Services, Cloud Forward IT Service and Support, and Security CPR® Managed Security services. 

We focus on how your IT services can best help your business thrive and grow without overspending.

Schedule a meeting with a Cloud Advisor and take your first step towards better IT for you and your business. 

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.

Rightsizing IT: Managed Cloud Services for Smaller SMBs – Part 1

/in

Rightsizing IT for Smaller SMBs with Managed Cloud ServicesSmaller businesses, like yours, use technology differently than larger organizations. You rely more on commercially available solutions than custom-built or highly-customized solutions. You are held the same security standards as larger companies, but lack the expertise and budget of bigger businesses. Rightsizing your IT – carefully matching your IT services to your needs, priorities, and budgets – key to ensuring your services are productive, secure, and affordable.

As a sole practitioner, solopreneur, or very small business (VSB) with fewer than 20 employees, you face an additional challenge. Most IT firms prefer clients with over 20, or even over 30, employees. The business model for most IT service firms, including Managed Service Providers (MSPs), requires clients that can provide an economy of scale. In short, most MSPs see you as an unprofitable client.

By rightsizing your IT with managed cloud services, you can find and benefit from affordable, secure, and productive IT solutions and the services your business needs and deserves.

How You Are Unique

Smaller businesses rely heavily on commercial software and public IT services. Given the investment required, you are less likely to use customer-built and highly-customized solutions. Software packages, software-as-a-service, and public cloud services (Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace) best meet your needs.

Sole Practitioner

As a Sole Practitioner, you are the business. When it comes to IT, you likely …

  • Run your business on a laptop, smartphone and maybe a second computer.
  • Work from a home office, coworking space, or wherever you can when you are on-the-go. You are mobile.
  • Rely ubiquitously on your technology. Your IT focuses on your productivity in all your day-to-day activities.
  • Worry that security and other IT costs are, or will grow, beyond your budget.
  • Fear IT problems as disruptions, or downtime, immediately impact your business.
  • Rely on others, formally or informally, for IT advice and assistance.
Solopreneur

As a Solopreneur, you are the business, for now, as you plan for growth. When it comes to IT, you are similar in need to sole practitioners with some added concerns. You likely …

  • Expect to grow your business adding staff, freelancers, or contractors over time.
  • Want your IT solutions and services to scale with your business, without overtaking your budgets. You must manage fixed costs.

In addition, you may have investors and other stakeholders with opinions, or requirements, for how you should manage your business and which technologies to use.

VSB Owner or Leader

As an VSB owner or leader, you have a team that relies on you to provide a productive and effective working environment. You likely …

  • Understand how critical effective collaboration is to your success.
  • Have team members with varied levels of tech skills; your staff needs help and support at times.
  • Work with customers that share expectations or requirements about information security.
  • Have access to IT resources. These may be informal or professional, internal or contracted.
  • Face budget constraints on your IT spending.

Given your IT needs, business priorities, security requirements, budgetary constraints, and the challenge of engaging qualified IT professionals, you and your business face significant challenges.

Rightsizing IT is the Solution

Rightsizing IT, matching your IT solutions and services to your prioritized needs and budget, with managed cloud services ensures your business can operate productively and securely without destroying your budget.

In our next blog post, we share how to assess and right-size your IT, and how to find and leverage the right IT resources.

How Does Cumulus Global Help?

At Cumulus Global, our priority is ensuring that you have productive, secure, and affordable Managed Cloud Mervices, Cloud Forward IT Service and Support, and Security CPR® Managed Security services.  We focus on how your IT services can best help your business thrive and grow without overspending.

Schedule a meeting with a Cloud Advisor to discuss your challenges, needs, and priorities.  We will help you assess, plan, and execute the right IT services for your business and your budget.

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.

Leadership Thoughts: Noteworthy Blog Posts – May ’25

/in ,

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.

Why Not Prevent AI Data Breaches?

/in ,

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.

Save or Spend? IT Decisions for Turbulent Times

/in

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.

library

IT Budget Workbook Template

/in

eBook | Source: Cumulus Global — Most small businesses do not create an IT budget. Instead, we renew services when they come due and make new spending decisions as the needs or opportunities arise. Without an IT Budget, every spending decision is out of budget and an exception to our spending and fiscal expectations. This eBook shares a simple 5 step process for planning your IT spending.

Read more

Smart IT Budgeting Pays Off

/in

eBook | Source: Cumulus Global — Most small businesses do not create an IT budget. Instead, we renew services when they come due and make new spending decisions as the needs or opportunities arise. Without an IT Budget, every spending decision is out of budget and an exception to our spending and fiscal expectations. This eBook shares a simple 5 step process for planning your IT spending.

Read more

Make IT Decisions Like a Pro – 7 Best Practices

/in

eBook | Source: Cumulus Global — IT decision-making often feels overwhelming. With countless new products, services, and a seemingly endless stream of information, it’s easy to hesitate, overanalyze, and doubt your decisions. You want (and need) IT services to drive growth, improve efficiency, and position your organization for long-term success.

Read more

Webcasts

Make IT Decisions with Confidence

/in

(08/19/25) – As small business owners and leaders, we struggle to make IT decisions. We may trust our advisors, our sources of information and guidance, but is that enough? In order to make IT decisions with confidence, we need to trust ourselves. If not, we struggle with analysis paralysis amid overwhelming information and options.

Read more

Better IT for SMBs

/in

(06/17/25) – Most IT firms serving small and midsize businesses target companies with more than 20 employees. As a smaller business, your IT needs differ. You want and deserve secure, productive, and affordable IT. This 3T@3 Series event recording dives into how sole practitioners and very small businesses can and should get the productive, secure, and affordable IT solutions and services you need.

Read more

Secure Your Data for Gemini AI

/in ,

(05/20/25) – Take steps to ensure that Gemini and other AI tools will not expose sensitive information internally or externally. In this 3T@3 Series online event, Cumulus Global CEO Allen Falcon is joined by Paul Lees, CEO of Bespin labs to discuss the importance of data governance and security with gen AI in Google Workspace.

Read more

Pick the Right Service Plan

/in

(04/15/25) – Management, administration, training, and support determine how much value you get from your IT services and systems. In this live 3T@3 Series online event, Cumulus Global CEO Allen Falcon discusses how to select the right service plan and managed cloud services for your business.

Read more

Managed Cloud Services Update

/in ,

(03/18/25) – Cumulus Global is updating our Managed Cloud Services to expand protections against cyber attacks. Cybersecurity Enhancements Add Value to your Managed Cloud Services. Changes to our traditional Service Plans give you even more options.

Read more

Data Loss Prevention (DLP) for SMBs

/in ,

(02/18/25) – If your business must comply with government or industry regulations covering disclosure of protected information, Data Loss Prevention (DLP) can be complex and expensive. This session coves affordable, effective DLP solutions for small and midsize businesses, like yours.

Read more

Your 2025 IT Checklist

/in

(01/21/25) – 2025 will be a year of change.  Expect new economic, political, business, and technology opportunities and challenges. Smart IT spending requires upfront planning. A 2025 IT Checklist for creates a roadmap for cost-effective IT decisions that yield better results.

Read more

A Techy Look at 2025

/in

(12/17/24) – Technology, the economy, and governmental policies will each impact our businesses in separate and intertwining ways. Consider these 5 technology related Issues as you make your 2025 plans

Read more

IT Safety for Sole Practitioners, Startups, and Smaller Businesses

/in ,

(11/19/24) – Your computer, and your IT services, are your business lifeline. Manage, protect, and secure them to protect your business. Here are affordable solutions to protect you and your business.

Read more

Google Gemini Quick Start

/in ,

(10/15/24) – The value of Google Gemini depends on how well you are able to use it. This Gemini Quick Start gives you an overview of your options, shares more than 11 ways you can use Gemini, and covers Gemini’s limitations.

Read more