Now, more than ever, collaboration has become a critical aspect of our everyday lives. As more companies and organizations continue to adopt remote, work-from-home policies, we’ve found ourselves communicating behind a screen more than in-person interactions. Collaboration and effective communication will be the key to success for the foreseeable future. With that comes the need for a platform that seamlessly unifies the workplace necessities we all depend on – chat, file sharing and storage, video conferencing, calendar organization, and integration of applications. Microsoft Teams connects virtual teams to one another on a single platform helping to make remote collaboration easier than ever.
Continue ReadingIn response to the recent COVID-19 pandemic unfolding in the United States, the federal government recently implemented a stimulus plan, the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, which goes into effect April 1, 2020. See what you need to know about customizing Viewpoint to meet the reporting needs.
Continue ReadingBusiness Information Group announced the organization recently earned its Cisco Advanced Security Architecture Specialization in the U.S. This certifies Business Information Group has completed the training requirements and program prerequisites to sell, design, and deploy comprehensive Security Architecture solutions.
Continue ReadingWhat do you think of when you hear the word “insight”? Dictionary.com defines the word as “an instance of apprehending the true nature of a thing, especially through intuitive understanding”. Intuition and understanding are key characteristics to gaining and providing insight, and having that knowledge means you can share important information to those who need it. Hence, Cisco Meraki introduced Meraki Insight, created to gather data, share their insight, and provide complete visibility into all aspects of the end-user’s network experience.
Continue ReadingThe workplace as we once knew it is changing. More and more companies are beginning to adopt work-from-home policies and providing office spaces on an as-need basis. The term for this is office hoteling, or hoteling, and it’s allowing companies to optimize their office space and ultimately reduce costs.
Continue ReadingIn February of 2018, Kari’s Law was passed into federal law. The law, which was named for Kari Hunt who was tragically murdered in her hotel after several failed attempts to dial 9-1-1, requires all MLTS systems in the U.S. be configured to directly dial 9-1-1. Businesses out of compliance can expect penalties and fines from the FCC if they do not update their systems immediately.
Continue ReadingYork, PA– Business Information Group announced two new additions to the Professional Services Department. Last month, Seth Belt joined the team as a Software Consultant and Kaela Hill joined as a Project Manager.
Continue ReadingThe capabilities of Microsoft applications go further than you may know, incorporating thousands of functionalities to help make your business processes more streamlined. A lot of times, businesses may not realize the full potential of Microsoft applications. They may use Outlook for email, Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint for documenting, but are unaware of the other powerful tools available to them. Within an organization, collaboration and sharing are extremely important, but sending Word files back and forth is inefficient and can get confusing. That’s why it’s time to unlock Microsoft OneDrive’s full sharing potential and begin collaborating more effectively.
Continue ReadingAs we embark on a new decade, wireless technology continues to grow and evolve at a rapid pace. With the increasing number of users heavily relying on Wi-Fi and other wireless solutions, today’s means of communication may look completely different by the end of the 2020 decade. New and emerging wireless technologies will play key roles and contribute to the way we communicate in the future including self-driving cars, artificial intelligence, robots, and drones. With the fresh start of 2020, we compiled a list of the major trends in wireless technology you will want to be aware of.
Continue ReadingRecently, the IRS released a new and improved Form W-4 for the 2020 calendar year. According to the IRS, the updated form, used by payroll departments across the nation, is designed to “[reduce] the form’s complexity and [increase] the transparency and accuracy of the withholding system.” Ultimately the new form requests the same information as the old version, but in a simpler fashion. As tax season approaches, you might be thinking, “Is this going to affect me?” That depends. If you work in a payroll department and rely heavily on Viewpoint Vista software, you will want to keep reading.
Continue ReadingThe term “dark web” may ring some negative bells, as you have probably heard or read about the dangers of it. While the dark web has many complicated facets to it, Investopedia defines the term as “encrypted online content that is not indexed by conventional search engines. Nowadays, cyber criminals on the dark web are going beyond stealing social security and credit card numbers. Digital credentials such as usernames and passwords of you, your employees, and your clients that are critical to your business operations are hot commodities on the dark web.
Continue ReadingBusiness Information Group partnered with Lancaster’s digital marketing agency, YDOP to help collect toys and books for 92 children in the SWAN 4 Kids music program. Each child received a toy and a book carefully selected by either a BIG or YDOP employee. These special presents were delivered to the children of SWAN at their various school Holiday parties throughout last week. A representative from both BIG and YDOP were at 11 different schools in Lancaster to meet with the children and hand out gifts.
Continue ReadingYork, PA– Business Information Group announced more growth to BIG and BIG Wireless. Last month, Kevin Barry joined the Sales & Marketing department as a Business Development Associate, Tenniel Cordae-Bentley joined BIG Wireless as a Project Coordinator, Tim McNally joined the Software Consulting division as the Director of Software Consulting.
Continue ReadingLEM tickets tend to pile up quickly and can be difficult to organize. Not to mention, keeping track of each and every ticket number is a full-time job within itself. BIG eliminates the duplication and triplication, making job billing, job costing, and payroll ten times easier than traditional methods.
Continue ReadingWi-Fi is becoming the fourth utility, and people expect easy access to it while they’re out and about. They expect fast, reliable Wi-Fi while they are shopping for groceries, waiting in line for coffee, or sitting at the doctor’s office. If you’re a business owner still on the fence about offering free Wi-Fi for customers, here’s why doing so will benefit your business.
Continue ReadingBIG and BIG Wireless announces more growth to several departments.
Continue ReadingBy now, you’ve probably heard the term Wi-Fi 6, or 802.11ax, and how it’s going to change the world. If you haven’t, you can catch up on the basics of Wi-Fi 6 on our blog post. Essentially, it will drastically improve the current wireless world by delivering superior connection, reliability, better battery life for devices, and perform better in real-world scenarios where Wi-Fi often lags (i.e., in airports and stadiums). As Wi-Fi continues to be the most efficient way to deliver a dependable wireless connection, and as more businesses begin to support Wi-Fi 6, it’s important to embrace this new age of connectivity. That’s why Cisco Meraki released Wi-Fi 6 compatible access points (APs).
Continue ReadingAs the wireless world embarks on it’s 20th year of existence, it’s easy to say it has been a great success. Due to that success, Wi-Fi has grown exponentially, and it will only continue to do so. With that comes a need for better performing Wi-Fi and more spectrum, thus the FCC will be allocating between 800 to 1,200 MHz of spectrum to Wi-Fi in the 6 Gigahertz (GHz) range. Doing so will allow for new channel sizes of 160 MHz, speeds approaching 9 GB, and will free up additional unlicensed spectrum, helping to bring Wi-Fi technology into a new era.
Continue ReadingOrganizations with multiple companies, multiple payrolls, and multiple processes can now streamline their payroll processes on one, customized app that is created to fit their business.
Continue ReadingRecently, business’ voice mailboxes have been an easy target for hackers due to outdated or unsupported PBXs. Hackers gain access and reroute business’ mailboxes to other countries, resulting in toll fraud, and exuberantly high long distance and international charges. While the 3CX Phone System is built to handle attacks such as these, thanks to its built-in Anti-Hacking Modules and the ability to restrict calls by country code, older PBXs are susceptible to these extremely expensive attacks.
Continue ReadingThe Purchasing team at BIG has announced their newest addition, Michelle Hoke, Purchasing Assistant.
Continue ReadingWhen it comes to cyber security, organizations often lack the resources and manpower necessary to manage such operations. However, not acting on security will leave businesses in extremely vulnerable positions for cyber-attacks. For businesses where hiring a team of security experts is unrealistic, there are still options. AlienVault USM Anywhere is a platform that detects threats, responds quickly to incidents, and manages security compliance.
Continue ReadingIt’s no secret that the construction industry lacks technological advancement while most other industries are taking full advantage of it. According to Constructible, the industry has only grown about 1 percent per year over the course of the last several decades, while manufacturing has grown 3.6 percent and the entire world economy by 2.8 percent. It’s also infamous for its poor planning and budgeting, miscalculations, and cost overruns. New and emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI) will help the industry overcome challenges, keep up with the global economy, and improve construction sites.
Continue ReadingAs the “Baby Boomer” generation continues to age, the assisted and senior living industries are seeing substantial growth. Due to improved quality of life and longer life expediencies, the population of Americans aged 65 and older is projected to reach 98 million by 2060. As more and more tech-savvy seniors move into these multi-dwelling units (MDUs), the demand for wireless connectivity becomes apparent. By implementing managed WiFi and providing a reliable internet connection to residents and workers, MDU operators can increase revenue, deliver a superior amenity, and set themselves apart from the competition.
Continue ReadingBIG announces more growth to Software Consulting team with two more additions, a Software Consultant and a Development Consultant.
Continue ReadingAre you attending Collaborate 2019? Viewpoint’s user conference is September 22-26, 2019 in Portland, OR. Meet BIG’s team of software consultants there!
Continue ReadingIt’s extremely important to perform backups to prevent losing data such as files, folders, applications, or images in the event of operator error, hard drive failure, or an unexpected disaster. Microsoft Azure provides three distinct tiers of backup capabilities that appeal to businesses of all sizes with different needs, making sure backed-up data is available when you need it.
Continue ReadingNowadays, educating, training, and engaging employees on the continuous problem of social engineering prevents more cyber attacks from happening. The security company, KnowBe4, is the largest security awareness platform that educates and enables users to make smart security decisions that prevent social engineering from occurring. Business Information Group, a partner of KnowBe4 facilitates these capabilities for organizations, allowing them peace of mind their information is safe.
Continue ReadingWi-Fi 6 is, the latest and greatest generation of W-Fi, is on it’s way. Before it arrives, it’s important to understand the basics and how it will change the way we use the Internet. This new Wi-Fi promises to be better and faster, improving battery life and increasing the number of people who can connect to a network, while reducing latency.
Continue ReadingFor today’s computing landscape, Cisco has created a solution that will adapt to meet new IT challenges as they continue to evolve. Since computing happens anywhere data lives, businesses need to recognize the need for multi-site, distributed computing. By deploying Cisco HyperFlex systems, businesses can power any application, anywhere, on a hyperconverged infrastructure.
Continue ReadingBIG adds Jr. Development Consultant to Software Consulting team, as well as Marketing Coordinator to Sales & Marketing team.
Continue ReadingSecurity cameras aren’t a new concept as a form of physical security for your business and workforce. They help you keep a watchful eye on where money is kept, where transactions are made, areas with high levels of foot traffic, inventory areas, etc. Find out how the latest technology can protect you and your business.
Continue ReadingBusiness Information Group proudly held their premier Cybersecurity & IT Conference, BIG University, for the third year on June 6, 2019. Each year, BIG University brings cybersecurity awareness and IT technology trends to Business & IT professionals from Central Pennsylvania and the surrounding areas.
Continue ReadingWi-Fi has reached its newest milestone in the form of the Wi-Fi 6 standard. Find out how Cisco Meraki is keeping you ahead of the technology curve with their new MR45 and MR 55 access points.
Continue ReadingCitizens Broadband Radio Service (CBRS) is a revolutionary Long-Term Evolution (LTE) based wireless technology. CBRS utilizes a 3-tier shared spectrum model to generate new opportunity with the use and distribution of wireless access.
Continue ReadingBIG adds Senior Consultant and Intern to the Software Consulting Team
Continue ReadingBusiness Information Group (www.businessinformationgroup.com) announced that their premier Cybersecurity & IT Conference, BIG University 2019, will be held on June 6, 2019, at the York College of Pennsylvania in York, PA. Registration is now open for the event (www.BIGuniversity2019.com).
Continue ReadingProtecting our investments is something we often consider when buying anything. But how are you protecting your business infrastructure, files, emails, and personal and client information?
Continue ReadingIt might be a habit at this point to use what’s around us, especially with how common it’s become, but you may want to reconsider using that public WiFi connection.
Continue ReadingMicrosoft has just revealed its next iteration of the HoloLens, named HoloLens 2, in February, at the 2019 Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain. “What is HoloLens?” you may be wondering.
Continue ReadingOn March 25th, 2019, Motherboard released an article highlighting a recent Supply Chain Attack, discovered by Kaspersky Lab in January 2019. At the time the article was written the scope and purpose of the attack was still being investigated, however it has since been independently verified by cybersecurity software provider, Symantec. The estimated number of systems infected by the trojan is around a half a million machines.
Continue ReadingPrivacy is paramount for both our personal and business lives. We rely on passwords to maintain that privacy on the devices and accounts we use every day. If we are doing our due diligence, these passwords will be strong; using a complex variety or letters, capitalization, numbers, special characters or through the use of phrases. We also should not be using the same password for all of our devices or accounts because if one of them is compromised, it no longer matters how complex it was. Sometimes though, all of our careful planning may not be enough and a breach can occur anyway, so it’s important to be proactive in ways to defend ourselves.
Continue ReadingThere are a lot of buzz words floating around the tech world, words like 5G and Wi-Fi 6. What do they actually mean? What are the differences? Why should you care?
Continue ReadingMarch is Asset Management Awareness Month and we are here to offer some insight and tips to help you maintain this data. Asset management is the process of tracking what you and your company define as an asset and documenting its usage from the start of its life cycle until it is retired. It serves as a way to store detailed information for individual hardware, software, recurring services, or other designated items. You should make each entry unique by adding information like serial numbers, license keys, detailed descriptions, who it’s assigned to, dates of activation or expiration, and any related documentation.
Continue ReadingBusiness Information Group announced that Craig Rutter has joined the company’s Software Consulting team as a Development Consultant.
Continue ReadingData capture and entry while in the field can be a time-consuming process that often requires the transposing of physical documents into your enterprise resource planning (ERP) software, and constant filing and looking up of paperwork. Finding ways to streamline the way you record and access your data in the field can help you focus more on getting the job done. The Business Information Group, Inc. (BIG) application development team has created a solution by integrating tools into the Viewpoint Vista ERP to help automate your day-to-day processes.
Continue ReadingBusiness Information Group kicked off the new year by hiring eight new employees, further developing their vast skill sets in networking, project management, software development, and wireless services.
Continue ReadingFor the past decade or so, Intel’s flagship processor has been the Intel i7 product line. It has been touted as the best cost for performance processor in the industry time and time again, starting with the i7 2600K what seems like a century ago.
Continue ReadingWe use phones all-day every-day, but we may not always stop to think about what it takes to keep us all connected. Behind the scenes, there are various providers, technologies, and services to consider when making the best choice for you.
Continue ReadingThe BIG Wireless team continues to grow.
Continue ReadingBIGs’ Sales & Marketing and Software Consulting teams are growing.
Continue ReadingSecurity is our number one focus area not only internally but for our clients as well. With the ever-growing number of threats, security should be every business’s number one concern for all internal and external information that it holds.
Continue ReadingSubstantial growth lead to new positions at BIG.
Continue ReadingSpear phishing and Cyber fraud are gaining traction as the most significant security threats and are causing detrimental damage to individuals and businesses. What is Spear Phishing and Cyber Fraud and how do they work?
Continue ReadingInternet security is more important than ever before. Malware and internet attacks have become more prevalent and difficult to combat with confidence. Any internet accessible device can be affected by these attacks and can cost a company or individual an exuberant amount of money to recover.
Continue ReadingThe construction industry employs about 7 percent of the world’s working-age population and is one of the world economy’s largest sectors, with $10 trillion spent on construction-related goods and services every year…. But the industry has an intractable productivity problem.
Continue ReadingThe world of technology is rapidly growing and so are social engineering attacks. In 2016, over 638 million users were affected by ransomware, and the number of attacks continue to increase. According to the FBI, it’s estimated nearly $3.1 billion has been stolen from over 27,000 victims of CEO fraud. Because social engineering attacks are evolving and becoming harder and harder to detect, Business Information Group, Inc. has chosen not only to partner with KnowBe4 to provide their clients with a valuable and necessary service, but has also adopted KnowBe4 internally.
Continue ReadingBusiness Information Group (BIG) welcomed 8 year old Fiona Myers, and her mother Jen Myers, for an afternoon to learn about application development and answer her questions on how to create a mobile app.
Continue ReadingNVMe, though having been around for nearly a decade; most have not heard of or those that have are likely not utilizing it in their environment due to cost. As it relates to Information Technology, costs are always coming down and NVMe is no different and if implemented in a hybrid mode, initial costs can be decreased as well.
Continue ReadingTraditional security camera solutions pose some challenges such as increasing cost of video storage for each additional camera, central storage that causes single point failure, and software that is commonly never updated. Years go by and these devices connected to the internet for remote viewing become targets of malware attacks and create easy points of entry into your network. Business Information Group recently deployed a new security offering from Cisco Meraki that has created a new solution for this generation of job site camera security.
Continue ReadingTo enable security for clients and to help mitigate risk, Business Information Group has established a partnership with Duo, a cloud-based, two-factor authentication that verifies the identity of users and the health of their devices before allowing them access to their applications.
Continue ReadingThe first consideration for information systems in any company is how to keep your data secure. The threats to get company data are always present and it is up to the Information Security team to minimize these risks. Social engineering is a great threat to a company. Most social engineering attacks are targeted to a single person. These attacks focus on a single person’s willingness to help, greed, need for connection, fear tactics, or sense of responsibility. These manipulated attacks can be used to get employees to release company information if the employee isn’t properly trained to be on the lookout for these threats.
Continue ReadingEnterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems and Business Intelligence (BI) platforms generally take a large chunk of the IT budget at many organizations. What tends to get overlooked in these efforts, however, is the quality of the data being generated and consumed.
Continue ReadingAs part of its yearlong Give BIG, Give Back campaign, Business Information Group (BIG), a leading IT consulting firm based in York, Pennsylvania, has partnered with Community Progress Council for a Holiday Item Drive for five local families.
Continue Reading… undertaking large IT development projects can be a daunting undertaking. When approached properly, these efforts can have a positive impact on the organization’s bottom line, and as such require the attention they deserve to be successful. By bringing IT and business users together under one umbrella to tackle the challenge, risks can be more easily managed and the delivered product can help the organization meet its strategic goals.
Continue ReadingBIG’s client expansion leads to additional internal and external support.
Continue ReadingEmbracing employees to further their careers and improve BIG’s services
Continue ReadingBIG will host a chili cook-off and corn hole tournament among its staff to raise funds for Making Strides Against Breast Cancer
Continue ReadingBIG expands Project Management Staffing to accommodate client needs
Continue ReadingTechnology has allowed organizations to conduct their business more efficiently than ever before. However, that efficiency has come with additional risks to their infrastructure, clients, and employees. Data breaches and other forms of cyber-attacks will continue to occur, and no organization is immune to these threats.
Continue ReadingYORK, PA. (20 September 2017) — Business Information Group (BIG), a leading IT consulting firm based in York, Pennsylvania, is pleased to participate in a fall clean-up day for Leg Up Farm, a nonprofit therapy center in York County for children with special needs.
Continue ReadingYork, PA– Business Information Group announced that they have hired eight employees in the month of August and are anticipating additional hires in September.
Continue ReadingImplementing an Enterprise Resource Planning platform can be a daunting challenge. The investment in time and resources is usually something that most large organizations only undertake in rare occasions, and fairly infrequently. Now that the system is Live and the organization is using the new tools available, many organizations simply return to focus on their core business, and the project team that implemented the new software returns to their “day jobs”.
Continue ReadingIn 1989, Eastman Kodak made a bold and revolutionary business decision: rather than figuring out how to build a new data processing center, they partnered with IBM who would design, build, and then manage Kodak’s new facility. This decision, while criticized heavily at the time, is widely regarded as the deal that kick-started the IT outsourcing frenzy.
Continue ReadingGet the quick facts and best practices of the new 717/223 Area Code Overlay
Continue ReadingBIG is hosting a back-to-school Book Bag Drive for Northeastern School District.
Continue ReadingIt is described as integrating communications in order to optimize business processes. That means that a company is able to unify its typical business processes of both real-time (phone calls, conference calls, videoconferencing) and non real-time (voicemail, email) communications.
Continue ReadingThe “Cloud”: the wonderful, magical buzz-word that aims to solve all of IT’s cost issues and ease of access to business data. Depending on what side of the IT organization one falls The Cloud can either be a worthwhile way to save on IT expenditures and maintenance costs or yet another third-party service that requires management, recurring service charges, and worry about the security of the organization’s data.
Continue ReadingStrategically placing employees to further improve their team
Continue ReadingBIG’s Full Service Networking, Wireless, and Application Development teams are expanding. In 9 weeks they have grown by 11 employees.
Continue ReadingThe data that we create every day is what we rely on to keep business moving forward. What if one day the data is no longer available? This may be due to ransomware, natural disaster, infrastructure failure or theft. How can your company recover from an incident like this? There are many different directions we can take this conversation but for right now let’s just focus on how we are backing the data up.
Continue ReadingBusiness Intelligence (BI) entered the popular business lexicon in the late 1990s, and has grown to such prominence that there are entire careers and service industries centered around business intelligence, and how it can give any organization with the resources a huge competitive advantage.
Continue ReadingYORK, PA. (19 June 2017) — Employees from Business Information Group (BIG), a leading IT consulting firm based in York, Pennsylvania, volunteered on June 9, 2017, with Home Helps. Operated through Servants, Inc., the Home Helps program provides repair and maintenance services for low-income older adults, disabled individuals and single-parent homeowners who are living in an unsafe or unhealthy home in York and Lancaster counties.
Continue ReadingEnterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems are often the keystone by which all business processes are built around. Modern ERP systems are tailored to the specific industries they support, ranging from construction, retail, manufacturing, or even agriculture.
Continue ReadingTechnology has been advancing rapidly in the last few years and we are now seeing such futuristic things like driverless cars, augmented reality and artificial intelligence. We are all familiar with poor mobile phone coverage, dropped calls and slow data speeds. However we are now moving into a world where everything will be connected together, creating a world where billions of devices communicate with each other in real time, fully automating our lives. We will all live in Smart Cities…
Continue ReadingThe realm of the traditional IT department and related staff used to be in a back corner of the office, emerging only when a business user ran into a problem, or the network or a critical server suddenly stopped working. In traditionally conservative industries like the Engineering and Construction space, this delegation of IT to the background who only becomes useful when something stops working is even more prevalent.
Continue ReadingIt’s the company’s core values that keep BIG and its employees grounded and determined to give back to the locale that provided its start. Those values emphasize continuous learning, open communication, honesty, change and excellence. These are key to BIG’s mission and to the way the firm serves its clients.
Continue ReadingThe traditional model of acquiring technology services is time and material; your server broke and your provider showed up to repair with no end in sight on what the dreaded bill was going to be. The longer it took to diagnose and repair the more money it cost you, the consumer. This often left clients feeling frustrated and vulnerable. More recently technology providers have started to offer a more comprehensive acquisition model that is proving to be mutually beneficial, leaving clients satisfied, while providing the insight necessary to affordably remediate in a timely manner. Many technology firms refer to this offering as Managed IT Services.
Continue ReadingLifePath Christian Ministries is thrilled to be the first partner in GIVE BIG GIVE BACK, a yearlong initiative of York-based Business Information Group (BIG) as it celebrates its 25th anniversary.
Continue ReadingNetwork & IT security is a topic that we hear about everywhere, from big box stores like Target to the Presidential Election. Security is something that every company should be evaluating and planning for, so why aren’t they, because security is inconvenient.
Continue ReadingBusiness Information Group announced today they have entered into a partnership with Citrix.
Continue ReadingYears ago data backups were great insurance in the case of a catastrophic hardware failure. However, the need to restore from those backups was relatively infrequent. Many folks would question the value of expensive data backup systems because it was insurance that was rarely or never needed. Those days are long gone.
Continue ReadingAlthough the Construction Industry is not top of mind when thinking about the industries that fall victim to most cyber-attacks it is still a critical threat to any business that is connected to the internet. Based on the way a construction company and its associated partners access and share data; Cyber Security should be a component of risk mitigation for every company.
Continue ReadingCloud revenue is estimated to be $149.12B by 2019*. I think it’s safe to say that cloud services and applications are here to stay; 59% of companies indicate that they are using some sort of cloud service for at least 1 or 2 applications*.
Continue Reading