At FIBERTOWN, we believe extraordinary should be ordinary.
What wows people in customer service is what we strive to do every single day.
For us, that means that we treat our customers just the same way we want to be treated.
Here are a few examples of the services we provide for our customers.
From building stats to site visits, researching a new colocation provider can be overwhelming.
There are a lot of moving parts and people from multiple departments who need to be involved in a project of this level.
It’s up to your team to plan it well and give it due diligence.
Here are our top tips to making sure your team keeps everyone informed while evaluating potential data centers.
When you’re making big decisions about technology, it’s not something you can decide in a day and make a change.
You must make sure the decision is fully vetted throughout your organization and goes through the proper channels.
Project management. From the very beginning, you should include your company’s project management team. Discovering the scope of the project from the very beginning saves time, money and effort down the line. You don’t want to be three months in and have a change in budget or timeline. Project managers are trained to ensure that everyone up and down the ladder is included at the proper time in the planning.
Planning. When you’re considering a new colocation provider, there are a lot of valuable questions to ask. Make sure you have the subject matter experts (SMEs) included during the planning stages. But be cautious about a huge invite list. Not everyone needs to be included in every planning meeting — don’t waste people’s time by inviting everyone to everything. It can be more helpful to send an after-meeting summary, and direct questions to specific attendees.
Finance team. During the planning stages, make sure the finance team is represented. When you’re just starting information gathering, it’s important that the finance team understands the viability of company options. They should be in the know about what your SMEs are recommending. Is it more cost-effective to use a rented facility, or one that’s owned? It’s also important to fully understand the pros and cons of buying or leasing colocation space.
Network team. The network team can offer specific insight about how colocation and your internet connectivity will intersect. Make sure to include important conversations around what you currently do, and what colocation can offer. How does your company connect its IT structure and people? Where are they going to connect? What are the secondary effects of your decisions?
Before contacting a potential vendor, make sure you understand your own timeline to go live. Work backward from your “go live” date.
You’ll need to consider the physical move, carrier circuit moves, the backup/testing period, and vendor installs in order to make your space ready.
Some data centers can quickly accomplish their own tasks and in some instances, may even assist with referrals and leverage relationships they may have with other providers.
Moving your organization’s IT infrastructure can be daunting, but knowing you’ve selected the right provider can bring some peace of mind to the project.
You can learn more by downloading our Top 9 Considerations When Shopping for a Data Center.
Want to see if FIBERTOWN is a good fit for your organization? Contact us today to set up a site visit.
Now that we’re into October, most businesses are in the middle of strategic planning for 2022.
Evaluating company and employee performance.
Checking the actual numbers versus projections.
Allocating resources.
Prioritizing next year’s objectives.
But as we look ahead to the winter season, make sure that your IT goals and emergency preparedness are both a consideration in your company’s planning.
While the next year will undoubtedly bring its own set of challenges, one thing that shouldn’t be a surprise is how your IT plans align with business goals.
Where are the areas that your competition is ahead of you?
Can you catch up with help from your IT group? Considerations must be made for IT spend and how its long-term payoffs ultimately marry with business objectives.
Clear direction helps everyone involved to see the big picture. Those small steps toward the end goal seem incremental, but are crucial to success.
Technology plays an important role in being effective and lean within the business.
Every aspect of a proper IT strategy should support the goals of your business.
As you look to next year, FIBERTOWN can help. If you’d like to see how we can help you hit your IT goals with a strategy session, give us a call.
If your base of operations is in Texas, you are well aware of Winter Storm Uri from February of 2021.
The storm and resulting freeze and local disasters were devastating. Uri was unique because it blanketed the entire state of Texas for several days.
And as we all know, Texas is not prepared for that level of winter weather.
Some estimates put the damage at up to $200 billion. That includes property damage, disrupted oil and gas production, stopped food processing facilities and manufacturing plants as well as agricultural losses.
During Uri, FIBERTOWN was able to maintain its 100% uptime service-level agreement for all customers. No services were lost or affected. In fact, not only did we keep everyone up and running, we added a new client who couldn’t afford to be down during the freeze.
The supply chain has been so disrupted, we are still feeling the effects even today.
Planning for a business disruption and implementing disaster recovery procedures is critical for any company, especially for organizations along the Gulf Coast.
While Uri power outages were extensive, Texas is normally hit with some severe weather during the winter months that the state is not equipped for (be it 1-2 days or a full week like we had with Uri).
Without any remediation to the power grid, it leaves us just as vulnerable if not more so than we were last winter.
Now we’re looking ahead to 2022, and getting ready for a new year.
As a result of last winter’s storms, has your company changed how you look at emergency plans?
Instead of deciding that Uri was a fluke and that it won’t happen again, responsible businesses will look to learn from the storm.
What action items have you added to your plans for 2022?
Disaster recovery should figure prominently into your list.
At FIBERTOWN, we help companies address two key factors: maintaining the availability of critical technical systems at our colocation facilities, and work area recovery office space.
Our office spaces are adjacent to each data center location with backup power, blended internet solutions and connection to the customer colocation space available to ensure our customers always stay connected.
We always want to help our clients be ahead of any severe weather or natural disaster, no matter what comes our way.
For more information about disaster recovery planning for your business, contact a FIBERTOWN expert today.
Hurricane and tropical depression hazards come in a variety of forms, including storm surges, high winds, tornadoes and flooding.
The steps you take before the storm are critical.
Having an emergency weather plan in place is imperative to handle the disaster — as well as your recovery.
The most important part of your plan is being prepared. Consider these steps before a hurricane threatens your area:
Time becomes a critical factor when you know you’re in the path of a hurricane. Be decisive and heed the warnings of local emergency management officials.
When the skies clear and all emergency issues are resolved, you enter the recovery stage.
The best preparations will help your team be ready for any storm.
FIBERTOWN data centers are built to withstand winds of 135 MPH, have generator backup in case utilities shutdown, and have personnel in our NOC 24/7/365 — even during a hurricane.
We’re always there to help whenever you need.
If you’re looking for disaster recovery office space, call FIBERTOWN today.
