Blog & News

One of the common problems we see at companies is user education. To empower users and enable productivity, users need to be educated on the specific...

Email filters and security software (formerly known as anti-virus) do their best to protect computer users from scams, viruses and malware. However, they...

Your IT infrastructure can either be an impediment to reaching your goals for 2016 or it can be a strategic advantage. When you do not invest in the right...

Is your business growing enough that you need to find more space? This is the time of year where many companies are considering their needs for the year....

For Skyriver IT, 2015 has been a year of growth and change: many new hires, a new website, and a new office. It was a great year. I hope it has been for...

If you are considering using a new IT Service Provider, it can be easy to get caught up listening to their pitches and only hearing about what they do...

It’s always interesting to me when people know what they should do but don’t do it. That is often the case with IT security. Companies know they should...

Does your physical location match your values? For fast growing companies, space is often a challenge. However, it is worth the effort to match your space...

While it is good to approach life with a thankful mindset, Thanksgiving is a great time to reflect on specific reasons to give thanks. As I reflect on...

Dedicated servers are a cost effective way to control a server without having to manage it. However, some companies are taking unnecessary risks with this...

Custom-built software can often look like a great solution to the specific needs of a growing company. The challenge is that most companies dramatically...

Passwords play an important part of your network. If you do not have them documented, your business could be at risk. No matter whether you use in-house...

Do you expect your technology to work reliably 100% of the time? The problem is that technology relies on the interaction between multiple complicated...

“Who is in charge of your IT network?” seems like it would have an obvious answer. However, companies that do not have a full-time IT team often do not...

Once companies get large enough to justify the cost of a full-time IT professional, business managers assume that the logical thing to do is to hire...

When you find a company has provided good service to you, it’s natural to want to work with them again. However, that does not mean they are a good choice...

For companies with an internal IT professional or team, it often seems that IT projects take a very long time to get done. This is caused by two different...

Is your company backing up its files? Most companies have a backup plan. Unfortunately, these backup plans can fail due to human error, hardware failure...

As life sciences companies grow, they need to move to new facilities. For new spaces, business managers look at cost per square foot, amenities, location,...

Have you experienced the communication and knowledge gap between business leaders and IT professionals? Business leaders talk about margins, return on...

Is someone actively managing your network? Far too often, I talk with companies where no one is managing their networks. Networks are set up and then just...

Are you an expert in IT? I would guess not, since that is not your business, and you probably do not want to be one. However, as IT is now an integral...

Many organizations put their business and customers at risk due to poor data security. Financial, HR, and customer data on an open network is not secure....

Please join us, August 12th, at the San Diego Venture Group (SDVG) Annual Party. It’s a lot of fun and a way to meet entrepreneurs, investors and business...

If your business is large enough to hire a full-time IT professional, it can be difficult to find someone with all of the IT skills needed for your...

Many companies are unhappy with their current IT solution, but they stick with their current situation nonetheless. Why? They expect that switching is...

When many business people look at whether to outsource IT or hire someone in-house, they typically compare the monthly cost of the IT service provider...

With Windows 10 launching at the end of July, we often get asked if an upgrade is worth it. In general, upgrading to cutting edge technology is a poor...

Many growing businesses  produce a lot of data. However, many of the companies we see do not pay attention to it until it becomes a problem: data is in...

Cloud services are typically sold as “worry free” and they certainly take a lot of the IT concerns off of your IT team. However, there are still risks...

Unfortunately, most advice companies receive from their IT service provider is biased. Why? Many IT service providers resell products and services that...

In advertising, they have a saying: “sell the sizzle, not the steak.” And while that may be good advice for advertising, you want to do the opposite when...

Since the Great Recession, many companies have been in survival mode or slow growth mode. And that has meant they have put many investments on hold,...

As businesses grow, there comes a point where you can no longer manage by instinct and need to move to manage by data. That is because it becomes...

Your network is not 100% secure, but that does not mean that you should stop trying to improve security. With cloud computing and more business activity...

Many organizations are spending a suboptimal amount on IT infrastructure. Some are spending too little which leads to a loss of productivity due to system...

If your organization is hiring a full-time IT professional, you face a dilemma: (1) hire a more seasoned IT professional who will be underutilized for...

A lack of project management skills is the biggest hurdle to keeping IT projects on schedule. However, the second biggest hurdle is vendor management....

Avoiding IT disasters should be one of your IT team’s top priorities. And no matter how good your security and proactive maintenance, problems will...

When you do not consult with your IT team about major business decisions, it can lead to unnecessary business frustration. We have seen it far too often:...

As companies grow, they often want to hire a full-time IT professional. It is often at a point of significant frustration around IT. They figure this...

There are few topics that elicit more yawns than documenting IT policies and procedures. So, most small and midsize businesses never bother with them. And...

Does your organization have a wide range of computers, servers, operating systems, and software? This happens in a lot of organizations, particularly...

Skyriver IT is proud to announce that Biocept, an innovative cancer diagnostic company, has chosen Skyriver IT as its IT service provider. Skyriver IT...

Hughes Marino, Inc. “During the past three years, our team has worked directly with Brett Cattell, Director of Operations, as well as many others at...

Lavine, Lofgren, Morris & Engelberg, LLP Alex and Seth, Thank you for the great job you did on the Engagement update. I spoke with Sandy this morning....

Medical Center for Clinical Research Dear Siyamak and Brett, I wanted to make sure you knew how happy we are with the service we have received and...

There seems to be confusion among business people about the benefits of using an outsourced IT team over having someone in-house. And while running an...

Can better IT support really improve company culture? Well, let’s look at the current situation in many companies. Users think of IT support as something...

Cloud Computing has moved from a lot of hype to more mainstream use in businesses. Yet, many business leaders are still not sure if it makes sense for...

Skyriver IT is growing and one of the biggest challenges we face is finding good IT people who are interested in helping us change the IT services...

A common mistake I see among growing businesses is they choose systems that serve their immediate need, and do not position them for growth. For example,...

Most business people want IT to be something you “set and forget”. Unfortunately, it does not happen that way. With bugs and security vulnerabilities...

Many businesses today deal with IT providers on a patchwork basis. This means instead of having a long-term IT partner that handles most of the...

For financial professionals, managing customer relationships, client based work and other communications can be very demanding. From prospecting to...

From SOX to PCI, HIPAA and OMB A-123, there’s an increasing “alphabet soup” of IT compliance that companies today need to know and comply with to stay...

CIO is an acronym for Chief Information Officer. This position didn’t even exist a few decades ago, so it’s not surprising that not everyone is...

With 2020 just a month away, it’s time for manufacturing companies to review compliance within their organizations. Being compliant with the latest...

In any business large enough to have an IT department, there are likely conflicting opinions over what projects, processes and components should be...

In honor of cybersecurity month, it is important to mention one of the leading factors in successful cyberattacks: phishing. 90% of breaches and...

Businesses of all sizes should consider outsourcing IT due to several key benefits. Whether you have a software-dependent business or not, having a...

Cybersecurity is always changing and evolving. New cybersecurity trends emerge based on the new cyber threats that have been developed, and based on...

During the rush of a normal work week, cybersecurity isn’t generally the first thing on your mind. While everyone knows cybersecurity is important...

You'll hear the term SaaS thrown around often when working with programs through the Internet or on your browser. Yet what exactly is SaaS? You'll be...

Savvy business owners have made the switch to outsourcing IT. In the past, in-house IT support was the only available option, no matter how small or...

Higher upfront cost investment: Packaged software solutions are much cheaper than building a custom solution for your business. If your business uses a...

Cyber criminals can use a variety of different tools, but one of the most dangerous is ransomware. Ransomware is a type of malicious software that...

Traditional passwords that most people in businesses use today are easy to guess, relatively weak and give external threat little to no resistance in...

The San Diego Business Journal held their annual '40 Next Top Business Leaders Under 40' event last night and we are proud to announce that Brett...

Days of chaos. Disgruntled employees and clients. Loss of capital at an exponential rate. Experiencing IT downtime can be one of the most costly and...

70% of small businesses go out of business within a year of a large data loss incident.

Chaos. Frustrated customers. Waiting employees. Thousands of dollars lost per hour. Having an IT failure can be one of the most stressful experiences a...

Most companies we talk to are looking for ways to grow their business. Sales and marketing are critical components to growing a business, however,...

Salespeople have a saying: “sell the sizzle, not the steak.” When selling IT, they often focus on the attractive features of a new technology. The problem...

Have you thought about hiring an IT professional internally? For companies that reach a certain size, it is common to want to hire a full-time IT...

Most business executives know that they should invest in IT security to protect their company from potential breaches. But, why is it that many companies...

Skyriver IT has not been acquired and continues rapid growth under existing ownership structure.

Are you using technology to its fullest potential? Far too often, we see businesses that just slap technology onto existing business processes without...

Have you ever thought about how IT support and infrastructure impacts company culture? They are more connected that you might think. Your company culture...

The internet is incredibly useful for both work and recreation, but it’s become a terrifying security threat in recent years. Articles seem to be coming...

We have had a few leadership changes recently as our CEO moves to Chairman of the Board and our CFO moves to CEO.

As 2017 comes to a close, we wanted to take a moment to wish you health, happiness and prosperity in the New Year.

“The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched. They must be felt with the heart.” -Helen Keller

Cyber security is as much about good habits as it is about having the right hardware and software in place. Here are five IT Security Tips For Life...

As we continue to grow, one of our challenges is finding experienced IT engineers who are interested in helping us change the IT services industry. So, we...

IT professionals should be considered trusted advisors as they are critical to helping companies build and maintain the right IT infrastructure. The...

Simply mentioning IT Policies and Procedures can generate a yawn from most business people. Not having IT Policies and Procedures can lead to unnecessary...

So many companies we meet are unhappy with their IT solution, whether in-house or a provider. However, they are not willing to make a change. Why? They...

Are you using cloud services, also known as software as a service (SaaS) or storage as a service? Cloud services are typically sold as “worry free” and...

While this threat is not new (we first wrote about it over a year ago), it is still happening. So, we wanted you to be aware of it. It’s called “whaling”...

When you walk into a Verizon store and ask about whether you should choose Verizon or Sprint, do you expect to get unbiased information? No, you get a...

Have you ever bought something that had a lot of cool features, but did not do the basic thing well? For example a toaster oven that has all kinds of cool...

Is your company in the habit of investing in your IT infrastructure? This is a common challenge we still see with growing companies. During the Great...

There is a lot of talk about IT security. However, we have found that a lot of business managers do not have an honest assessment of where their network...

One place where we see the most confusion around IT infrastructure is figuring out the right amount to spend for specific solutions and overall needs....

Simply mentioning IT Policies and Procedures can generate a yawn from most business people. And that is why many businesses never develop them. However,...

The more your company relies on technology, the more problematic IT disasters are for your company. Being proactive with IT security and maintenance...

Is IT a critical component of your business? It certainly is for most businesses. And one of the big challenges we see is that many IT teams are...

Is your organization looking for cost savings around IT? It’s a common strategy for businesses. Even fast growing companies sometimes need to rein in...

Many fast-growing companies have a lot of “variety” in their IT infrastructures. They think that flexibility around types of computers, operating...