I was referred to a company this week with ''IT issues''.  What happened next floored me; they had recently lost about 6 months of data as their IT provider hadn't properly managed their disaster recovery; I was stunned - what numbskull could allow this to even happen given the array of back up options available today....?  This was the 'highlight' of the chat, but there were more which I won't go into - I'm still flabbergasted....  The upshot was: 

No one questioned what IT were doing, because no-one in the office knew anything about what IT were supposed to be doing.

Chief Information Officers (CIO)  are a luxury most businesses cannot afford.  I read a long time ago that the first rule of a CIO is to say "No!". CIOs have to be both forward thinking and exhibit quasi-Luddite behaviour at the same time. They are the overseers to match the company goals to solutions in the market that best serve those goals. 

"Techheads / Techies" on the other-hand are called such, because they love getting to grips with technology knowing the ins & outs of it and we all love and need them.  Ensuring that the right things are being done is also paramount for a business; what organisations do not need is technology that does not match the business requirements or technology for the sake of it.

In the past 12 months, I have been involved in a head spinning array of scenarios for my clients from the simplest level of a local cafe looking for software & payment systems, practice & document management software for boutique and top ranked Australian accounting firms to the heady heights of global discussions on international tax / transfer pricing software with multi billion dollar turnover corporations.  I been asked to source alternate accounting providers for companies when they wanted an independent selection and referred accounting firms looking to expand with partners from firms looking to make a move.

Do I have all the answers? probably not, but over the past 17 or so years in the tax & accounting compliance world, I have a solid and growing network to get those answers for you, which is equally as valuable, if not more.  I can assist in making decision processes shorter, open up solutions you may not have considered and make sure the basics are covered.  I can keep an eye on things for you too if you'd like - a lot cheaper than employing a full time CIO.

Contact me for a no obligation chat on 0423 139 404, but do me one favour in the interim: get an ironclad guarantee NOW from your IT person / provider that your systems are being backed up.....PLEASE?!

Alan