sme

Connectivity for UK SMEs: FTTP vs Leased Line, SLAs, and 4G/5G Failover

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Choosing the right connectivity involves weighing performance, resilience, and cost. In the UK, gigabit-capable networks are increasingly accessible, with 87% of homes covered. Full-fibre availability is at 78%, impacting speed and pricing for SMEs. Ofcom’s guidelines emphasize service level agreements (SLAs) on speed and repair times, urging clarity for consumers. Businesses should evaluate FTTP for lower costs and variable speeds, whereas leased lines offer consistent performance for critical applications, albeit at higher costs. Understanding connectivity options is crucial for effective decision-making.

Wi‑Fi & VoIP That Don’t Break: Practical QoS for Small Offices

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Clear QoS rules help maintain predictable voice and video performance in environments with competing bandwidth demands. Employing techniques such as DSCP marking, WMM, and WAN queueing can prioritize real-time traffic effectively. The guidelines outline steps for marking at the source, preserving DSCP, shaping traffic, isolating guest Wi-Fi, and monitoring performance, ensuring optimized network conditions for communication applications.

SME Backup & DR Sanity Checks: 10 Quick Tests That Actually Matter

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This checklist assists UK SMEs in validating backup and disaster recovery setups to ensure effective data recovery. It outlines practical tests to confirm the restoration of critical data within acceptable timeframes. The guidance spans micro to medium-sized businesses, aligning with best practices for backups and ransomware resilience, emphasizing the importance of regular testing and proper separation from live systems.

Delegated IT Services for SMEs & Professional Offices

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Many SMEs (solicitors, real‑estate, creative studios, factories) need ongoing IT oversight yet do not justify a full‑time internal role. A delegated IT cadence delivers quiet reliability: routine monitoring (backups, logs, core health), minor ticket handling, and pragmatic advisory for projects (office moves, upgrades, new software). The result: fewer disruptions, peace of mind for management, and access to senior competence without permanent staffing.

IT Migration & Harmonisation for a Swiss Design School

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A Swiss design and architecture school — administratively attached to a French group — needed a structured migration and harmonisation into the group’s environment. This was not a crisis, nor a hardware refresh. It was competence‑led: assessment, standardisation, VPN integration, centralised apps (TSE/Citrix), and secure, accountable printing—delivered with no hardware sales. The cutover was smooth; users (faculty, students, admin) experienced a consistent workspace and management gained visibility without disruption.

Microsoft Licensing Audit & Compliance

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A regional real‑estate network faced an unexpected Microsoft licensing audit. Daily use of Microsoft products had grown over time without full visibility of licensing models, historical purchases and rights of use. I provided end‑to‑end support: discovery across offices, reconciliation of deployments vs. entitlements, review of legacy contracts/OEM keys/renewals, a clear compliance report for management, liaison with the audit representatives, and a practical remediation plan with a simplified, cost‑effective licensing approach. Outcome: avoided unnecessary penalties, restored clarity and reduced future admin overhead.

Delegated IT for a Regional Occupational Health Group

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Following the audit, the organisation chose delegated IT instead of hiring full‑time. With two on‑site visits per month, I handled user support, migration follow‑ups, backup verification, ticket triage and decision support for leadership (new site visits, supplier interviews, concise cost/benefit notes). Result: predictable operations, fewer complaints and confident decisions — coverage matched to workload, no unnecessary headcount.

IT Audit for a Regional Occupational Health Group

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A regional occupational health organisation operating several medical sites struggled with slow systems, unclear costs and minimal visibility. A newly appointed director requested an independent audit with a clear mandate: restore transparency, modernise core services and simplify the daily experience for non‑technical medical staff. The audit exposed systemic issues (heterogeneous workstations, weak processes, legacy infrastructure, under‑optimised inter‑site links, and wasteful contracts). We delivered a structured, phased modernisation plan that improved login times from 10–15 minutes to a few seconds, reduced unnecessary spend, and re‑established governance.