Our technicians report day-to-day to your managers, observing your hours and policies.  They receive ongoing mentoring, career development and training from Tech Networks of Boston.

Here are just a few examples of issues our technicians resolve in a typical day.

8:57    Client manager needs a loaner laptop hooked up to the projector in the conference room for a meeting, starting at 10:30.

9:00    User can’t access e-mail.  Couldn’t access company wireless network.  Laptop froze and could only be shut down by removing the battery.

10:51  User can’t watch streaming videos on webpages, but YouTube works. Some videos appear briefly, then disappear.

12:44  New temporary employee arrives.
Provided employee a spare laptop; set up Outlook e-mail account, network drives and drivers.

1:19    User needs an account on an internal restricted-access network.

2:56    Update internal e-mail distribution lists by removing and adding users.

4:10    User is having trouble creating a table in Word.

Our Deskside Support technicians solve problems in client offices every day.  To learn more, please call us at 617.269.0299.

Click here to read the full June newsletter.

TNB client Supporting Strategies uses Lync to tie its workforce together.  Steve Schultz, COO, praises its ease of use and integration with Microsoft Office.  He also likes Lync’s simple “presence” feature.  Presence means “when clients call, I can take a quick look and see who’s working,” Schultz explains, “rather than sending a caller into voicemail.”  Presence is especially useful for employees working from outside the office.

The core of Lync is instant messaging (IM), in which on-screen messages offer more immediacy than e-mail, without the interruption of a phone call.  But Lync offers significant value added beyond its IM core, such as the powerful screen sharing feature.  “I can share my screen in Lync,” Schultz says, “so I don’t need GoToMeeting.  That saves me money.  It’s also very simple: I hit a button and I’m sharing my screen, not necessarily just one-on-one but with a group.”

Lync also makes it easy to create online meetings, whether they be group IM sessions, audio calls or videoconferences.  Lync users can set up meeting times via Microsoft Outlook as they would with any other meeting.  Participants can join the online meeting by clicking a simple link in Outlook.

Lync works with all major mobile devices for seamless business connectivity.  Microsoft offers mobile apps for the iPhone, Android, Windows Phone, iPad and more.  Move from your mobile device to your office workstation, and keep your conversation going without interruption.

At your desktop or on the road, Microsoft Lync’s powerful collaboration features have yet to be discovered for many organizations.  To learn more about Lync or about Office 365, call Tech Networks at 617.269.0299 today.

Click here to read the full June newsletter.

Cordaryll is a Tech Networks employee working full-time out of CCA’s office as a Deskside Support Technician.  He functions as part of CCA’s IT team, reporting day-to-day to a CCA IT manager.  Cordaryll helps CCA employees resolve the many computer issues that inevitably come up—like those in our cover story.  Cordaryll came to TNB from the Shriver Job Corps with the CompTIA++, MCP Windows XP, and MCTS: Network Infrastructure and Configuration certificates.  He completed a six-week internship followed by full-time work at TNB’s Help Desk on Demand prior to taking on his role at CCA.

Click here to read the full June newsletter.

Click here to read the full June newsletter.

Russell Jennings, TNB Vice President of Finance and HR (left) and Junior Accountant Avi Wolfson pick up trash outside Andrew Square Station.

On Friday, April 27, TNB staff participated in the citywide Boston Shines cleanup and beautification event.   Partnering with Southie Trees, TNB staff worked three hours to clean up the area around Andrew Square, South Boston.

We purchased and planted flowers, removed weeds, and filled several large bags with litter from the street.  As a result, Andrew Square shines a little brighter.

As an urban business, Tech Networks has accepted a responsibility for urban beautification, not just because it makes the city a more pleasant place to live and work, but also because these efforts help protect the environment in and around our cities.

Click here to read the full June newsletter.

Where in South Boston are these trees?

In the city and in natural ecosystems, trees die for various reasons. It could have to do with hydration, trauma, tree disease, or other factors. Southie Trees, a project of TNB, has applied for a grant to track urban tree outcomes using open-source software called iTree.

Tech Networks of Boston supports the preservation of mature urban trees, which make neighborhoods more pleasant, filter our air and water, and moderate temperatures.  We hope you’ll use this contest as a fun way to get to know your city’s trees!

Click here to read the full June newsletter.

Successfully implementing BYOD requires investment.  It takes time and money for employees to procure devices, obtain in-warranty and out-of-warranty service, change devices, plans or carriers, and integrate devices into the organization’s systems.  Tech Networks can reduce employee time spent managing mobile devices and streamline the procurement process.

TNB’s Mobile Device Management service provides full life-cycle support for employee mobile devices.  We order devices from a set of carriers selected by the customer and provision them according to the needs of the customer’s employees. TNB configures e-mail and calendar on the mobile device along with other features selected by the customer.  Once we have shipped the device to the end user, we continue to provide full support on the devices, including troubleshooting and help desk support.

Mobile Device Management can include ongoing inventory and expense tracking, with monthly reports provided to the customer.  Our customers set policies on how frequently employees may upgrade their devices and when software updates are deployed.  At the end of the device life cycle, we provide secure disposal and recycling.

Would you like to know more?  Contact us at 617.269.0299 today!

Click here to view the full May 2012 Boston Techie newsletter.

“I couldn’t live without my smartphone,” says Nancy Watterson-Diorio, Executive Director of Boston VA Research Institute (BVARI).  Watterson-Diorio chooses not to check her work e-mail on her smartphone, but has established a Google Mail account just for the phone.  She uses her phone for text messaging, e-mail, Facebook, LinkedIn, maps, Google search, and the list goes on.  “I once went to a meeting in Las Vegas and they gave me an app for the meeting,” Watterson-Diorio says, in what has become a conference planning trend.

One only has to think of the many e-mail messages we all receive that end with a “please excuse my brevity” to appreciate how ubiquitous mobile device e-mail has become.  At TNB, we have a mobile workforce of IT consultants, many of whom stay connected using their phones while on the road.

Text messaging, too, has changed the face and pace of business.  Watterson-Diorio explains that her organization now routinely collects a number for text messaging along with other contact information.  “The number of phone calls has plummeted,” she says. “You know you’re not bothering someone” with text messaging because the person does not need to interrupt what they’re doing to have a phone conversation.  Watterson-Diorio finds that texting gets people’s attention faster than e-mail, but is less of an interruption than the phone.

Increasingly, employees are using their personal cell phones for work, in highly productive but unexpected ways.  As technology improves, we expect this trend to accelerate.  That’s why TNB offers Mobile Device Management to help our clients integrate employee’s personal phones into their IT systems.  Contact us today to find out more!

Click here to view the full May 2012 Boston Techie newsletter.

Tom manages our IT Consultants, matching them to jobs and scheduled visits at client sites.  He also handles service for our Mobile Device Management clients, ensuring success, quality and excellent customer service in troubleshooting client issues.

Before joining TNB, Tom developed a long record in technical project management, including stints at IBM, John Hancock, and over 20 years at Harvard. In his spare time, he enjoys fly fishing, photography and amateur radio.

Click here to view the full May 2012 Boston Techie newsletter.

The City of Boston has implemented Citizens Connect, a tool that lets citizens report problems and see other citizens’ reports using their mobile devices.  Using Citizens Connect, Tech Networks CEO Susan Labandibar took care of a municipal issue in her South Boston neighborhood and became one of the examples in the Governing article.

As reported in the article, Susan was browsing Citizens Connect on a cold winter night when she saw this message: “Possum in my trash can.  Can’t tell if it’s dead.  Barrel in back of 168 W. 9th.  How do I get this removed?”  Susan saw that the site was a short distance from her home.  She walked over, turned the trash can on its side, resolved the ticket and tweeted “Good night, sweet possum.”

Mobile devices are increasing efficiency and bringing people together.  They improve our lives—and those of opossums—in unexpected ways.

Click here to view the full May 2012 Boston Techie newsletter.