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Boost Your Tech Project Team Performance

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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.

A 5-Step Strategy for Responsible AI

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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.

By setting clear policies and accountability, you can reduce risks like data breaches, ethical issues, and noncompliance. Strong governance also prevents unauthorized AI use, making sure that every AI activity supports your business goals.

1 Create Comprehensive AI Use Policies

Unauthorized AI use, or Shadow AI, creates serious risks for your business. To manage Shadow AI and other risks, you need visibility, control, and guidance for your team. A well-crafted AI Usage Policy reduces the chance of mistakes or misuse and helps you responsibly manage AI usage.

Your AI usage policies should:

  • Define allowed and unallowed use of AI as a tool/resource
  • Outline principles for ethical and appropriate use
  • Specify security guidelines to ensure data protection and compliance with regulations, industry standards, and contractual obligations

Your policies should also clearly state:

  • How your team should handle your company data
  • How your team should handle and protect third party data
  • Which AI tools are approved
  • When and how team members may use external AI resources

2 Implement and Monitor Controls

Implementing access controls and monitoring systems helps you identify when AI tools are being used outside approved channels.

Create processes for:

  • Your team to request access to AI tools and services
  • Evaluating requested tools for applicable use cases, usability, security, and cost
  • Deploying new AI tools and services, including education and training

Periodically audit your environment to spot unauthorized applications before they create problems. 

Work with your team to move to authorized AI tools that provide the same capabilities or review and select a solution you can secure and support.

3 Ensure Legal and Regulatory Compliance

Compliance is a key aspect of responsible AI use. Your AI practices need to follow data privacy laws, industry regulations, and contractual obligations. 

Begin by identifying and reviewing relevant laws, industry standards, and contractual obligations related to data privacy. Identify any specific conditions or requirements related to the use of AI services.

You want to be able to demonstrate and document your compliance. Review the security compliance certifications and practices of your AI services and tools. Collect the necessary information, including how your AI tools collect, store, and use data. 

Regular audits will help catch potential issues, particularly with Shadow AI. 

Stay current with evolving legislation to ensure that your AI practices remain compliant over time.

4 Prioritize Ethical AI Practices

Ethical AI builds trust and protects your reputation. When you prioritize ethics, you show that your business values integrity and fairness, strengthening relationships with clients and stakeholders.

  • Regularly review your AI models and the data they use to remove bias and ensure transparency in decision-making. In addition to bias detection and mitigation, AI training should include diverse data sources and that results are not skewed by inherent biases.
  • Make sure your AI is fair, explainable, and accountable, so your team and clients can trust its outcomes. AI tools should articulate results and decisions in human-understandable terms. People need to be able to understand the rationale behind the AI results.
  • Ensure you have human judgement and intervention at every stage of your AI journey. Clear lines of responsibility provide accountability. Human review prevents over-use of AI, particularly in decision-making. Encourage feedback from employees, clients, and other stakeholders.

5 Train and Support Your Team

Your AI strategy will only succeed if your team knows how to use AI safely and effectively. When your team is confident in using AI, you maximize its benefits while minimizing risks.

Provide training and support that covers technical skills, applicability to relevant use cases, and ethical considerations. 

Support strategies include:

  • Offering training sessions and user guides.
  • Providing a dedicated support team for questions.
  • Offering ongoing learning opportunities as AI evolves.

How We Help

Using AI securely and ethically requires careful planning and ongoing effort. Our Cloud Advisors can help you identify use cases, select tools and services, endure data security and government, and help your team get the most from your AI investments.

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.

{URGENT}: Windows 10 Support ENDS on Oct. 14th. Extended Security Updates Available

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Windows 11

ACT NOW!  Support for Windows 10 officially ends on October 14, 2025. After this date, Microsoft will no longer provide software updates and technical assistance. If you are not upgrading to Windows 11, you must purchase Windows 10 Extended Security Updates to continue receiving critical and important security updates.

Without these extended security updates, continuing to use Windows 10 dramatically increases your exposure to significant risks. Your systems become prime targets for cyberattacks, ransomware, and data breaches. You risk costly downtime, loss of sensitive information, and severe compliance issues. 

Proactive planning and action are not just recommended, they are critical for your business continuity and security.

Know Your Windows 10 Options

We agree with Microsoft’s recommendation to upgrade all eligible systems to Windows 11. We also understand you may have budget constraints or compatibility issues with older software.

You can check if your PCs will run Windows 11 using Microsoft’s PC Health Check app. If your PC will not run Windows 11, you have options other than buying new devices.

Windows 10 Extended Security Updates (ESU): 

Microsoft has release pricing for ESU licenses.  The license are available as a one-time purchase for each year. You do not need to commit to multiple years up-front, you can purchase the licenses annually if needed.  The pricing is as follows:

  • Year 1 – from October 2025 to October 2026 – $61 each
  • Year 2 – from October 2026 to October 2027 – $122 each
  • Year 3 – from October 2027 to October 2028 – $244 each

Important Notes:

  • Not all systems are eligible to install the updates. To be eligible to install updates from the ESU program, devices must be running Windows 10, version 22H2. For more information on prerequisites and enabling ESU in commercial environments, see Enable Extended Security Updates (ESU).
  • ESU Program updates do NOT include: New features; Customer-requested non-security updates; Design change requests; or General support.
  • The Windows 10 ESU only includes support for the license activation, installation, and possible regressions of the ESU itself for organizations with a support plan in place.

Keep in mind, the Windows 10 Extended Security Update program serves as a temporary bridge and does not address underlying hardware or software compatibility issues related to upgrading to Windows 11.

Virtual Desktop Services: 
  • Using virtual desktop services, such as Azure Virtual Desktop, allow you to use your existing PCs to access a robust and secure Windows 11 environment. Virtual desktops work well for hybrid team members and to mitigate the cost of upgrading multiple devices.
  • Connect with one of our Cloud Advisors to explore this option.

Windows 11 Upgrade HelpPlan for Your Windows 11 Transition

Regardless of the strategy you choose, proactive planning is crucial for a smooth and secure transition. Follow these steps to ensure you’re ready:

Assess Your Current IT Environment
  • Use Microsoft’s PC Health Check app to determine which devices can run Windows 11, which can be upgraded, and which require replacement. If you use Windows 10 in embedded systems, check with your vendor.
  • Confirm which of your business-critical applications and tools are compatible with Windows 11. Identify necessary software upgrades or migrations.
Prepare Your Budget
  • Accurately map the cost of upgrading and/or replacing devices. Keep in mind that older systems, even if upgraded now, may soon require replacement.
  • Identify any software upgrade costs.
  • Keep in mind any fees for tech support or professional services. You may need or want help transferring applications and data to new devices or setting up virtual desktops.
Develop Your Transition Plan & Data Strategy
  • Plan your timing and procedures for upgrades, purchases, and migrations. Focus on preventing data loss during migration and consider staging your rollout in phases to minimize disruption.
  • Crucially, ensure all critical data is securely backed up before upgrading or migrating systems. 
  • Remember to allow time to test critical software on Windows 11 before upgrading.
Train Your Team
  • Provide resources and help your team become familiar with the Windows 11 interface and new features.
  • If you are upgrading your business software for compatibility, you may want to provide additional training on new functionalities and capabilities.
  • Stay Informed: Monitor Microsoft’s official updates and announcements. Keep current with regarding Windows 10 end of life and Windows 11 developments.

Cumulus Global Will Help

Plan and Act Now.  As with any major upgrade, we expect demand for PCs, laptops, and technical services will increase as the deadline nears. Waiting may result in delays and missed deadlines. Losing Windows 10 support can result in costly business disruptions.

For assistance, schedule a brief, free call with one of our Cloud Advisors to discuss your assessment, plan, and upgrade needs, priorities, and budget.

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.

Avoid MFA Pitfalls and Lockouts

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MFA PitfallsMaybe you have seen the meme about spending 6 hours per day entering multi-factor authentication (MFA) codes. While inconvenience is one pitfall of MFA, improper configuration and management of MFA can lead to more damaging pitfalls and lockouts. Your ability to work can take days to recover.

The MFA Pitfalls 

Most of us are not using a separate security key; we authenticate using our smartphones. Whether by Authenticator app, SMS text, one-time passwords/codes, or local app login, we need our smartphone to access our apps and services.

Imagine this scenario:

  • Your iPhone is lost, stolen, or damaged.
  • On your laptop, you need to login to check email and the authentication goes to the Authenticator app on your phone.
  • You could opt to have a one-time password emailed to you, but you cannot access your email.
  • You could send it to your recovery email, which you rarely use, is logged out and the MFA also goes to your phone.

You get the picture. You are stuck, but you still have other means of access. Depending on your configuration, restoring access may be complex and take too much time.

And while this scenario may seem unlikely to happen, we see online forums where over 80% of help requests relate to account lockout and recovery. Almost all of the problems were avoidable with proper configuration and management.

Tips to Avoid MFA Pitfalls

To help you avoid MFA pitfalls and lockouts, we created a list of things to consider when configuring management of your MFA services.

  • Use a Sustainable Phone Number for MFA and for Recovery: MFA texts and messages should only go to a phone number that can remain in use if you switch phones or phone systems. Whether to a physical phone or a VoIP service, make sure that you will not lose your number if things change in the future.
  • Have a Separate Recovery Phone Number: If your phone is not available for MFA calls or texts, it is not going to work for recovery codes, calls, or texts. If at all possible, use different phone numbers for MFA and recovery. If your MFA phone number is your smartphone, your recovery phone number could be your business’ VoIP phone number, or the number of a trusted coworker or spouse.
  • Use a Separate Recovery Email: If the email account that receives MFA messages is inaccessible, you will not be able to use it for recovery. Use an alternate email address. This could be a personal (@gmail.com) account or a one belonging to somebody you trust. When setting up your recovery email account, make sure that account is not reliant on the same methods and devices.
  • Stop Before You Drop: Before you give up, abandon, or change a phone number or email address, review the MFA setup across all of your apps and systems. Make sure you move them to your new number and/or email address before you give up the old ones.
  • Backup Your Authenticator Apps: Both Microsoft Authenticator and Google Authenticator let you backup your Authenticator App data. This lets you reinstall and recover your Authenticator settings and accounts on a new or different device. Make sure, however, that the backup location does not require the Authenticator App for access.
  • Create, Print, and Save Recovery Codes: Many systems, apps, and security tools let you create emergency recovery codes. If available, create the codes, print them, and keep them in a safe location (“Put it with your Passport”). Having these codes can reduce account recovery time by hours or days.
  • Use a Password Manager: Password managers provide a single, secure login to allow access to complex passwords and validation for the connected apps. Using a password manager reduces the risk of account lockout.
  • Do Not Buy Direct: Buy your cloud apps and services through authorized partners. For most SaaS and cloud solutions, your partner has administrative access to your account. They can reset passwords and recover accounts. If needed to expedite access or recovery, your partner can change MFA configuration and/or temporarily remove MFA from an account.

These steps require some planning. As MFA settings and preference can often be set individually, you will need to communicate and coordinate with your employees. 

We Will Help

Our Cloud Advisors are here to assist. We can:

  • Review your current MFA services and configurations
  • Identify risks and recommend changes
  • Assist your team members with settings and recovery codes
  • Provide your with Password Manager services
  • Provide license and account co-management for your cloud services

Schedule time with one of our Cloud Advisors now to discuss your next steps.

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.

Don’t Fall for the Call

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Don't Fall for the Call

IT support scams are back and on the rise. Over the past few weeks, the reports of vendor phone calls and emails claiming to contact people about suspicious activity in their accounts have skyrocketed.  

Do Not Fall for the Scam

Google, and Microsoft, will NEVER call your or email you to start a service or support call.  Let me repeat that, but this time in bold. Google, and Microsoft, will NEVER call your or email you to start a service or support call.

Some of these calls and emails attempt to get you to enter your username and password into a fake web page. 

Many of these attacks request the multi-factor authentication (MFA) code. The attackers initiate a password reset. If given the MFA code, they access the account and can change credentials, access other services, and exfiltrate information.

It is more difficult to spot fake landing and sign in pages

While historically easy to spot, attackers use generative AI to create sophisticated fake login pages. 

Attackers are also using legitimate landing page, marketing, or document tools. The link in the email may open a validly hosted page or document with instructions and another link that, in turn, takes you to the fake login page. 

As the hackers take you through a legitimate service, as a pass-through, you may be less likely to notice that the page asking for your credentials is fake. This method is also more difficult to combat since the pass-through may require valid credentials for access.

Steps You Can Take

You can take a few simple steps to prevent these types of attacks from successfully damaging your business.

  • Education – Inform and educate your team about current and emerging cyber attack methods, what to look for, and how to handle suspicious activity.  Cyber Awareness Training, if well managed, is an affordable means to keep security top of mind.
  • Advanced Email Threat Protection – Email threat protection focused on sender domains, links, and attachments is not enough. Attackers use masking, images, and QR codes beyond the capabilities of many email protection services. Upgrading to a more robust service will provide better protections. Solutions that provide banners and “one-click response” better empower users to flag and manage suspect messages.

We Will Help

Our Cloud Advisors are here to assist. We will:

  • Assess your current security profile and protections
  • Prioritize options and recommendations for security improvements
  • Help you plan and budget for any changes
  • Deploy and co-manage your security solutions to keep you protected.

Schedule time with one of our Cloud Advisors now to begin your security review and improvements.

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.

5 Cyber Threat Trends You Should Know

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5 Security Cyber Threats You Should Know

Earlier this week, we shared CrowdStrike’s 2025 Global Threat Report which identified five (5) cyber threat trends that you should know. While cyber-fatigue is real, understanding the threat landscape helps you assess your risks and security posture and make informed decisions on how to prioritize security-related spending and investment.

5 Cyber Threat Trends

Here are the 5 cyber threat trends you should know.

1 China on the Rise

Cyber attacks originating in China – both nation-state and organized crime – jumped 130% over the prior 12 months. At the enterprise-level, China-nexus attackers focus on telecommunication systems. For most businesses, the increase in attacks on unmanaged devices should be of concern. 

Unmanaged devices lack detection and response capabilities that allow attackers to lurk, monitor, and capture credentials for greater access to your systems, applications, and data.

2 Hands-On-Keyboard Attacks are Making a Comeback

The best way for cyber attackers to avoid modern malware protection, such next-gen endpoint protection and managed detection and response (MDR) services, is for the attacker or a surrogate to use the keyboard. These manual, interactive attacks are up 27% over the prior year.

We may imagine hands–on-keyboard attacks as movie-like scenarios of corporate spies posing as custodians sneaking onto computers while avoiding the security guards making their rounds. In reality, the hands-on-attack may be your employee responding to somebody they think is IT support or a vendor helping them solve a problem.

3 Rapid Ransomware Reach

The speed at which cyber attackers can launch ransomware attacks after an initial breach is accelerating. From breach to spread, attacks are up to 32% faster than previously known.

This speed gives cybersecurity systems less time to identify behaviors and patterns that identify the cyber attack, weakening the effectiveness of the protections.

4 AI for Evil

With the help of AI, certain types of cyber attacks have jumped 220% over the prior year. Cyber attackers are using generative artificial intelligence (Gen AI) technologies to power more-effective attacks.  

Using GenAI, attackers create more realistic fakes – emails, documents, phone calls, and videos – to trigger responses and reactions that enable and facilitate access and breaches.

At the same time, cyber attackers are using security vulnerabilities in the platforms and tools businesses use to build AI agents, just as they use vulnerabilities in web, application, and office productivity platforms.

5 Cloud Attacks Gain Altitude

Cloud intrusions – successful cyber attacks on cloud systems and services – jumped 136% during the first half of 2025 compared to all of 2024. These attacks vector through compromised identities, improper security configurations, API vulnerabilities, lax security and permissions governance.

Steps You Can Take

To ensure your security footprint protects your business appropriately:

  • Conduct IT and Security Assessments that benchmark your security posture.
  • Prioritize your risks based on the nature and size of your business, industry standards and expectations, and regulatory requirements.
  • Level our Security CPR® model and managed services to plan, prioritize, and implement appropriate security and business resilience solutions that:
    • Address your prioritized risks as your budget allows
    • Protect from the most common and the most damaging/costly types of attacks.

We Will Help

Plan Now; Act Soon. Our Cloud Advisors are here to assist. We will:

  • Review your current systems and services and prioritize your risks. 
  • Help you prioritize, plan, and budget for security changes and improvements that may be necessary or preferred
  • Deploy and co-manage your security solutions to keep you protected.

Schedule time with one of our Cloud Advisors now to begin your security review and improvements.

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 – AI Ultra for Business

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Google AI Ultra for BusinessGoogle 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 the Google AI Ultra add-on for Google Workspace.

Google AI Ultra for Business

Google AI Ultra for Business is an add-on for existing Google Workspace Business and Enterprise subscribers, offering enhanced capabilities.  Beyond the highest access to the Gemini app, Google AI Ultra for Business delivers advanced tools for deep reasoning, images, and videos.

Here are 4 reasons to consider Google Ultra for Business:

1 Gemini App
  • Dive deep with the most capable models, including Gemini 2.5 Pro and Deep Research.
  • Deep Think, with the ability to explore multiple scenarios and answers before responding, is coming soon.
2 Video Generation
  • AI Ultra for Business includes advanced filmmaking tools:
    • Veo 3 — Professional video production tool
    • Flow — Create cinematic scenes using Veo 3
    • Whisk — Image and text to 8-second videos, using Veo 2

3 Project Mariner

  • Research prototype for streamlined human-agent interaction
  • Allows AI agents to handle multiple tasks concurrently
  • Coming soon, initially to the US only

4 Individual YouTube Premium

  • Upgrade your video game with an individual YouTube Premium plan.

And More …

Google AI Ultra for Business also includes higher access and usage limits for:

  • Gemini App
  • Image Generation
  • NotebookLM
  • AI Credits (12,500 credits per month)
  • Storage (30 TB across Photos, Drive, and Gmail

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 – AppSheet

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Gemini AI in AppSheetGoogle 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 AppSheet.

AI in AppSheet

AppSheet is an add-on for Google Workspace and a Google Cloud service that empowers Google Workspace users to create custom apps and automations without writing code.

In addition to simplifying workflow creation and connecting your business data, AppSheet provides controls needed to remain secure and compliant.

Gemini AI in AppSheet helps you create and refine apps and better access and refine your data and information.

Here are 3 Gemini features in AppSheet you should know.

1 Create an App
  • Bring app ideas to life by simply describing them. Gemini AI in AppSheet can transform those concepts
    into a fully functional app for you to edit or publish.
2 Extract Information
  • Currently in preview, Gemini AI in AppSheet lets you populate forms and reports directly from images. Snap a photo of a receipt, invoice or document to capture data and match it to the right fields.
3 Connect External Services
  • Also in preview, AppSheet apps can connect to hundreds of Google Cloud and third-party services without custom code.

And More …

You can also:

  • Embed Gemini-powered AI tasks directly within your AppSheet automations.
  • Extract information from PDF files.
  • Automatically categorize information as it is input.
  • Route and prioritize items based on categorized content to streamline workflows.

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.

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

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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.

AI in Google Workspace – Vids

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Gemini AI in VidsGoogle 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 Vids.

AI in Vids

Vids is a relatively new addition to the Google Workspace family of apps. Google Vids is a cutting-edge video creation platform, powered by AI.

Gemini AI in Vids helps you generate your first draft and land your message with AI voiceovers. You are empowered to create polished videos in less time so you can tell more engaging stories.

Here are 3 Gemini features in Vids you should know.

1 Create Your Story
  • Create your video storyboard with suggested scenes, scripts, stock media, music, and more to jumpstart video storytelling. Start with only a prompt and a file from your Google Drive.
2 AI Voiceovers
  • Use Gemini in Vids to give your videos a fresh voice by choosing from a variety of preset, professional- sounding voiceovers.
3 Read-Along Teleprompter
  • Record your talk track with confidence using the teleprompter embedded directly in Vids’ recording studio, so you can stay on message.

And More …

You can also

Create Clips from Prompts
  • Turn ideas into video clips by providing a descriptive prompt.

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.

Webcasts

Five Things Your IT Provider Should be Telling You

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(06/20/2023) – We tend to wait for our IT service providers to raise warning flags, and the periodic review with our IT provider can feel like a subtle sales call. Reacting to IT problems is not enough, and adding more IT services may not be the answer.

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The High Cost of Low Adoption

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(05/23/2023) – Beyond core features in Google Workspace and Microsoft 365, cloud adoption tends to be fairly low. Better cloud adoption improves productivity, communication, and security. And, it can save you money.

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Cloud Cover: Strategies for Small Businesses

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(04/18/2023) – As small businesses, we can do more with the cloud then Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace. But if we want to take advantage of the benefits of managed cloud services, we need better cloud strategies.

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Cyber Security: 3 Questions and Shared Responsibility

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(03/21/2023) – The cloud’s Shared Responsibility Model places most of the security and data protection burden on you. Our webcast explores 3 key questions and the shared responsibility model to help you plan, deploy, and manage effective, and cost-effective, security..

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Hybrid IT for SMBs

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(02/21/2023) – A sound Hybrid IT strategy creates better collaboration, cost efficiencies, security, and resiliency. Review your hybrid business strategy and supporting IT services. Address your business, technology, security, and cost challenges.

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Security CPR®

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(01/24/2022) – Cybersecurity requires policies, procedures, supporting technologies, and a culture of awareness. This webcast is a deep dive into our Security CPR® model for preventing and surviving cyber attacks.

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2022 Wrap Up

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(01/03/2022) – Hopefully our plans for the new year are nearly complete and we will jump into January ready to execute and succeed. It is a great time of year to review and look forward to the new year. Let’s close out the year with new ideas and information.

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Lower the Price of Productivity

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(11/15/2022) – Our IT solutions serve a purpose: to help us operate our businesses as efficiently and effectively as possible. Are you paying for duplicate IT services? Reviewing and streamlining IT services supports productivity at a lower price.

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Cloud Cover – Manage IT All

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(9/20/2022) – The right IT management and services add value and save money. Learn IT management strategies for small and midsize businesses that can better match current and evolving business needs and priorities.

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Cloud Cover – Hybrid Work

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(8/16/2022) – Successful businesses will adapt to changing expectations. You can, affordably, adapt your IT to hybrid work while improving security and resilience. This webcast covers the IT strategies and solutions to help you adjust your IT services to better support hybrid work.

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library

Crash Course in Office 365

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eBook | Source: Microsoft —
You already know the productivity power of Office applications like Word, PowerPoint, and Excel. Full adoption empowers you to access your …

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Global Year in Breach – 2021

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eBook | Source: ID Agent —
2020 saw a cybercrime boom that included record-breaking phishing and ransomware threats. This report provides insights into the rapidly changing cybersecurity landscape; forecasts cybersecurity trends for 2021; and provides helpful advice about smart risk mitigations that fit every business and every budget.

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Google Workspace Security

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eBook | Source: Google —
Google started in the cloud and runs on the cloud, so it’s no surprise that we fully understand the security implications of powering your business in the cloud.

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Make it Work: The Future of Collaboration and Productivity

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eBook | Source: Google —
The future of work is here – it’s just not evenly distributed. This report identifies three changes businesses  can make to work in the future

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Unblocking Workplace Collaboration

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eBook | Source: Microsoft —
Poor workplace collaboration is 1 of 5 top reasons people quit their jobs. Break down collaboration blockers so that teams …

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Google Workspace Migration Guide

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eBook | Source: Google — What are your goals, and what makes one technology solution the best fit? Here are some insights that can help facilitate a smooth transition to new workplace productivity tools at all stages — with specifics on Google Workspace — from decision to preparation to deployment to upkeep.

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Six Types of Remote Workers and How to Support Them

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eBook | Source: Microsoft —
Great teams build great companies. Understand the six types of remote workers who impact your team, evaluate their technical needs, assess their …

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The Ultimate Meeting Guide

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eBook | Source: Microsoft —
Many businesses experience a sizable gap between the increasing number of meetings and the value derived from the time spent in these meetings. What can you do? The simple answer for better meetings is to …

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Securing Your Digital Transformation

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eBook | Source: Cumulus Global

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Simplify Security with Microsoft

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Infographic | Source: Microsoft

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