Hello and Happy New Year! 2011 is already proving to be a real exciting time for business. We have heard from so many clients stating that they are noticing a real rebound in the economy and things are looking up. Here’s to a very happy and prosperous year to come for all.

We are proud to announce that we have just come off of our most successful disaster recovery test ever. We rolled a full production environment consisting of 19 servers to full failover with access to current data in only three hours. This is truly amazing stuff. Imagine taking your business from a potential catastrophe to a fully productive environment with virtually no down time? Think you can’t afford it? Think again. Businesses without access to data for more than 48 hours are 85% less likely to remain in business, yet only 10% of American companies actually plan for and actually test their disaster recovery plan. Let us help you sleep at night knowing you are in the top 10%. Call me at 203-431-1341 ext. 101 or email us help@corcystems.com today to see how easy it is to get started.

Tony DeMarco
President
CorCystems, Inc.

When working with our clients and prospects, we often find that their overall computing and network environment is out of alignment with industry standards in one or more of the following key areas:

Our experience shows us that even small variances in these metrics prevent many businesses from maximizing their Information Technology ROI. We also see that many businesses are happy with their current approach to technology and may be out of alignment without realizing it.

When we work with our clients, we show them how to look at these 4 key areas in a different way. The out come is a set of mutually agreed upon actions which when implemented result in maximized availability at a predictable cost.

Are you out of alignment? Contact us today to schedule a 30 minute meeting to find out!

Three Ways to Thrive in an Uncertain
Economic Upturn
reprinted with permission from the HP Enterprise Center

Signs of a possible upturn are reenergizing businesses. However, this recession isn't ending in a sharp economic upturn.

"We know that the fall has stopped, but we are not yet sure whether the economy is going to grow again fast," said Olivier Chatain, assistant professor of management at The Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. Because consumers have lost money and are still worried about their jobs, "it's not clear that demand will bounce back very fast."   Read more

Thinking About Hiring Your Own Internal IT Staff – Think Again!
Outsourcing your IT brings additional business value
by Stuart R. Crawford, V.P., IT Matters, Inc.

Businesses today wrestle and grapple with the thought of hiring their own technology support staff to support their daily need for IT support without fully understanding the risks and the costs associated with having their own team of technology professionals.

Business owners, C level execs and Managers are attracted to the idea of having a team or a consultant readily available within shouting distance down the hall, basically having an IT resource committed to them 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. However, many of today's business owners across the country are not aware of the total risks their business is exposed to by electing to bring their technology support in-house.  Read more

January 2011
In this issue:

Cloud computing is not pie in the sky. It offers tangible benefits that real-world businesses need to meet the demands—and take advantage of the opportunities—of today's instrumented, interconnected and intelligent world. As the world grows smarter, cloud computing offers ways your midsize organization can work more efficiently and more productively, simultaneously saving money and enhancing your business and IT operations.

Consider what two companies have accomplished. In one instance, an engineering firm typically required two weeks to run simulations for a project using its installed servers. The firm wanted to speed up its work, but buying additional processing power seemed an unwise choice as such massive requirements were not an everyday occurrence. Instead, the firm moved its simulations to a cloud-based computing model, buying ten times the power it had in-house, paying only for the processing time it used, and reducing the time required for its simulations from two weeks to two days.

The second company normally adhered to a three-year refresh cycle for its desktop PCs and was incurring substantial expense for new equipment. So one year it decided not to make the purchases. Instead, it invested in servers, software and network devices to build a cloud computing system. Because data and applications now live "in the cloud" rather than on users' machines, the company can slow its desktop purchases, get more life from its existing equipment, and accrue continued savings—all while giving users better performance and greater security.

Read more

Reap the benefits.

We talk about the importance of creating a comprehensive and actionable recovery plan. It will come as no surprise, that most plans are built with the worst-case-scenario in mind. But the reality is that most business interruptions are not major "smoking hole" events. Employee illness, transit strikes, religious holidays or even scheduled events like the recent G20 in Toronto are just a few examples of the many things that can keep people out of work throughout the year.

A comprehensive recovery plan takes these "minor" interruptions into account. For example, if you have a large group of employees out of town for a tradeshow, who will function as their backup? What's the impact on your customers? How will external audiences be notified? What's the procedure for handling increased workload? Is your current process efficient? You back up your data every night, but have you made the same accommodations for your people?  A robust recovery plan will help you address these concerns throughout the year.

Today's Quote

"An optimist stays up until midnight to see the new year in. A pessimist stays up to make sure the old year leaves."

– Bill Vaughn