IT Direct Named TINYpulse’s “Happiest Company in CT”

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We are proud to announce that we have been ranked as TINYpulse’s Happiest Company in Connecticut! (as tiny as it is on the map)

Part of our mission is ensuring that we provide the best environment for our team, and truly make this one of the greatest places to work.

One of the best ways we invest in our employees is simply by asking for their feedback! By utilizing weekly anonymous surveys through TINYpulse, we give our team members the chance to fully voice their concerns, suggestions, ideas, success stories, and general feedback.

We treat all of the information we receive with equal importance, and use it to implement positive change! We are thrilled to be the happiest company in Connecticut, and will strive to keep it that way!

For more information or to view the whole listing, click here!

IT Direct Ranks on MSPmentor’s Top 501 Managed Service Providers

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IT Direct Ranks No. 242 Among MSPmentor’s

Top 501 Managed Service Providers

IT Direct ranks among the world’s most progressive 501 Managed Service Providers (MSPs), according to Penton Technology’s 9th-annual MSP 501 list and study. The top MSP 501 companies ranked this year include organizations from around the world and from diverse technology and business backgrounds. Collectively, they amassed $9.82 billion in sales in 2015 and increased their oversight of technology devices to more than 5.6 million.

“To be recognized as one of the leading Managed Service Providers in the world, for the third year in a row, is a great honor,” said founder and President of IT Direct, Ari Santiago. “This award reflects the amazing support we receive from our clients, and the consistent dedication of our employees. We are excited to have surpassed our rankings from last year, and are looking forward to further growth in the years to come.”

“On behalf of Penton and MSPmentor, I would like to congratulate IT Direct for its recognition as an MSP 501 honoree,” said Aldrin Brown, Editor in Chief, MSPmentor. “The managed service provider market is evolving at a rapid pace and the companies showcased on the 2016 MSP 501 list represent the most agile, flexible and innovative organizations in the industry.”

The 2016 MSP 501 list is based on data collected by MSPmentor and its partner, Clarity Channel Advisors. Data was collected online from March through April 2016. The MSP 501 list recognizes top managed service providers based on metrics including recurring revenue, growth and other factors. In addition to a ranking on the MSP 501 list, every company that participated in the study has been assigned a score reflecting its intrinsic value. The measure, known as the Total Service Provider (TSP) score, evaluates an MSP’s mix of revenue from various activities, including consulting, cloud, reselling and managed services. 

The complete 2016 MSP Top 501 list, and more details about this award can be found here! 

IT Direct Receives Local Recognition

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News of our Inc.’s 50 Best Workplaces award has reached all of the business newspapers in our local area of Hartford/West Hartford, CT, and we were absolutely thrilled to come across the article printed in the West Hartford News Newspaper!

Once again, we could not have achieved this without our hard-working, dedicated, and truly unique team. We will continue in striving to build a place that you are proud to be a part of, and are looking forward to growing with you in the months and years ahead.

To view the full article, click here!

 

IT Direct Places on Inc.’s Best Workplaces Award

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We are proud to announce that IT Direct has been listed to Inc.’s inaugural 50 Best Workplaces, the first such measurement of American companies with up to 500 employees that deploy state-of-the-art techniques to keep their staff happy and productive.

 
Working with employee engagement and culture experts Quantum Workplace of Omaha, Nebraska, Inc.’s list is a magnifying glass on how innovative companies can truly raise the bar in hiring and keeping the best talent.

 
“We are thrilled and honored to have been named one of the 50 Best Workplaces in America.  The work we do and the value we deliver to our clients all starts with the amazing people that make up the IT Direct team, so continually striving to build a place that they are proud to be a part of is critically important.  We look forward to continuing to make our company a wonderful place to work and grow in the months and years ahead.” said founder and President of IT Direct, Ari Santiago.

 
“We hear it over and over again from the fast-growing businesses we cover: The biggest challenge that any business owner faces is finding and keeping the best people. That’s why building a workplace culture that allows your staff to grow with your company is absolutely crucial,” explains Inc.’s President and Editor-In-Chief Eric Schurenberg. “Recipients of the Inc. Best Workplaces Awards have done so in spades. They should be celebrated and emulated.”

 
The 2016 Inc. Best Workplaces Awards assessed applicants on a collection of multiple choice, scaled, and open-ended items. Responses were evaluated by the research team at Quantum Workplace. Core components of the scoring include company practices around management, employee recognition, performance communication, benefits, and other elements of the employee experience. To qualify, companies had to be U.S.-based, privately held, and independent–not subsidiaries or divisions of other companies. The minimum revenue required for 2015 is $2 million, in business at least three years, with full time employees count ranging between 5 and 500.

 
For more information on this meaningful award, find the official article here!

 

 

January 2016 Tech Tips – New Year, New Passwords!

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Here are your Tech Tips for the month of January to help you be more productive. As always, reach out anytime! We are here to help. 

It’s a new year, time to re-vamp things! Why not make strengthening your online security a priority? As cyber-criminal activity evolves at the same rate as our technology, it is never a bad idea to change up your passwords. Below we have highlighted the most important things to keep in mind when updating your passwords, and maintaining your security: 

  • Never give your password to anyone. One of the best things about a brand new password, is the peace of mind in knowing that only you have it.
  • Use a minimum of 8-12 characters, and be sure to include numbers, symbols, and capital letters.
  • Don’t fall for phishing attacks! Be extremely cautious before clicking on a link that asks you to log in, change your password, or provide any other personal information.
  • Use multi-factor authentication when it is available. Many websites offer an option that requires you to further verify your identity after logging in from an unrecognized device.
  • Don’t use one password for everything!
  • Utilize a password manager. Keeping track of multiple passwords can get confusing, using a secure password manager is a great solution for this problem. Check out some of the best ones currently on the market, here.

These are some of the most basic, yet important, tips to remember for staying safe and creating new passwords. For more, check out what TIME Magazine has deemed as the top 25 worst and most commonly used passwords of 2015, here.

Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions! 

 

December 2015 Tech Tips – Outlook Calendar Tricks

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Here are your Tech Tips for the month of December to help you be more productive! As always, reach out anytime! We are here to help.

Your Microsoft Outlook Calendar; it stresses you out, yet you can’t live without it. Before entering a new year, take a look at these incredibly handy tips and shortcuts for your Outlook Calendar, and take one step closer to making 2016 your most productive year yet!

 

Opening the Calendar in a New Window
    Sometimes bouncing back and forth between the Mail and Calendar tabs can get                   repetitive and frustrating, especially when making an entry on the calendar. To open the     calendar in a separate window, hold down the Shift Key and right-click on the Calendar       tab.
    

     Dragging & Dropping
     You most likely already know that you can rearrange things on your Outlook Calendar          by dragging and dropping. What you may not know, is that while using multiple                    windows (using tip above) you have the ability to drag items from your Inbox to your            Calendar, which will then auto-schedule an appointment using the information in the           subject and body of the email.

Color Categorizing
Adding color categories to calendar appointments allows you to scan, search, and                  visually associate similar items with total ease – AND it makes your calendar easy on the      eyes! Once your categories are set up, simply click on the Categorize button when
     scheduling an appointment, and select which category you would like to use.
     

We hope you’ll welcome the New Year with your most tech-savvy foot forward, and that these tips for using your Outlook Calendar will aid you in making 2016 one of your most efficient years!

Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions!

November 2015 Tech Tips – Creating an Outlook Contact Group

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Here’s your quick Tech Tip for the month of November to help you be more productive. As always, reach out anytime! We are here to help.

Microsoft Outlook is by far the most widely-used business email program. With countless features and customization capabilities, Outlook provides everything needed for high efficiency. One Outlook tool that is frequently used in our office, is the ability to create Contact Groups/Distribution Lists. Creating a Contact Group can be done in a matter of minutes, and can save you worlds of time when trying to send emails to specific sets of contacts. In order to create one in Outlook 2013, use the following instructions:

 

On the Navigation Bar, select “People”
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Under “My Contacts“, select where you would like to add the group (“Contacts” is            usually pre-selected)

Under “Home“, select “New Contact Group”

Type the name you would like to choose for the group in the “Name” bar

Click the “Add Members” icon
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From here, you will be prompted to select which of your Outlook contacts you would            like to add to this group

 

Using a Contact Group/Distribution list makes sending team emails simple, and ensures that no one is forgotten! For a quick refresher on how to send an email to a Contact Group, click here.

Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions!

 

 

IT Direct Makes The Inc. 5000 for 2015

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Inc. magazine today ranked IT Direct No. 2,985 on its 34th annual Inc. 5000, an exclusive ranking of the nation’s fastest-growing private companies. The list represents the most comprehensive look at the most important segment of the economy—America’s independent entrepreneurs. Companies such as Yelp, Pandora, Timberland, Dell, Domino’s Pizza, LinkedIn, Zillow, and many other well-known names gained early exposure as members of the Inc. 5000.

“We are honored to be among the fastest growing private companies in America. Thank you to our growing list of clients who trust us with their I.T. networks and computer support needs. We look forward to continuing to grow with you and helping you use technology to reach your goals. I am also extremely proud of the talented team here at IT Direct. The lion’s share of this honor goes to them for their dedication to our clients and for their help in making IT Direct a fun and rewarding place to work.” said founder, and President of IT Direct, Ari Santiago.

The 2015 Inc. 5000, unveiled online at Inc.com and with the top 500 companies featured in the September issue of Inc. (available on newsstands August 18 to September 22) is the most competitive crop in the list’s history. The average company on the list achieved a mind-boggling three-year growth of 490%. The Inc. 5000’s aggregate revenue is $205 billion, generating 647,000 jobs over the past three years. Complete results of the Inc. 5000, including company profiles and an interactive database that can be sorted by industry, region, and other criteria, can be found at www.inc.com/inc5000.

“The story of this year’s Inc. 5000 is the story of great leadership. In an incredibly competitive business landscape, it takes something extraordinary to take your company to the top,” says Inc. President and Editor-In-Chief Eric Schurenberg. “You have to remember that the average company on the Inc. 5000 grew nearly six-fold since 2012. Business owners don’t achieve that kind of success by accident.”

The annual Inc. 5000 event honoring all the companies on the list will be held from October 21 through 23, 2015 in Orlando. Speakers include some of the greatest entrepreneurs of this and past generations, such as Marcus Lemonis, host of the CNBC show “The Profit,” Robert Herjavec, one of the main “sharks” on ABC-TV’s “Shark Tank,” KIND Founder and CEO Daniel Lubetzky, and Co-Founder of Goodshop.com JJ Ramberg.

 

October 2015 Tech Tips – What to do with that Windows Key?!

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Here’s your quick Tech Tip for the month of October to help you be more productive. As always, reach out anytime! We are here to help.

The Windows Key – the key to unlocking many useful, hidden tricks in Microsoft Windows. Disguised with a flag icon, and banished to the lower corners of your keyboard, this button is often under-utilized considering the helpful shortcuts it can provide. We’ve highlighted the best Windows Key shortcuts below, as well as which version of Windows is required for each:

 

Windows 7 & Up
Win + D: Hides all windows, hit again to restore
Win + E: Opens Windows Explorer
Win + R: Opens the Run window
Win + L: Locks the Desktop
Win + Up: Maximizes current window
Win + Down: Minimizes current window
Win + Left: Docks current window to the left
Win + Right: Docks current window to the right
Win + #: Switches to the corresponding program in taskbar

Windows 10
Win + A: Opens the Action Center
Win + C: Activates Cortana listening mode
Win + I: Opens the Settings tab
Win + Tab: Opens the Task View, shows all open programs, allowing an easy switch

 

We hope you’ll find these shortcuts helpful! Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions! 

 

 

 

September 2015 Tech Tips – Windows 10 Woes

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Here’s your quick Tech Tip for the month of September to help you be more productive. As always, reach out anytime! We are here to help.

The Windows 10 upgrade was officially released in July; and ever since, Microsoft has been in the hot seat for many of the new privacy features. But what about all of the minor changes that came with the upgrade? How do we fix those? This month we’re going to highlight a few of the most common Windows 10 annoyances, and instruct you on how to fix them!
     

Stop the Forced Restarts
With the Windows 10 upgrade, the option to download your system updates manually and reboot at your own convenience has been revoked. Luckily, there is a way to schedule your reboots to a time of your choosing. 
Settings>Update & Security>Windows Update>Advanced Options>Choose How Updates Are Installed>Notify to Schedule

Reset the Default Programs
Microsoft replaced Internet Explorer with the Microsoft Edge browser, and you’ve probably noticed that they replaced your default browser with Edge as well. If you chose Express Settings with your upgrade, here’s how to reset your default programs.
Control Panel>Programs>Default Programs>Set Your Default Program 

Turn off Cortana
Cortana has been at the core of the Windows privacy issues. If you wish to stop Cortana from indexing all of your personal information, disabling her is quite simple.
Cortana Icon>Left Option Pane>Notebook Icon>Settings>Switch Off “Cortana can give you suggestions, ideas….”
   

We hope you’ll find these tips useful for any desktop woes you may have!

Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions!