🔒 Patreon Special

IT Pros: exclusive shows await you on Patreon, focusing on the more challenging aspects of running your practice and working with clients and employees.

520: My Precious

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Topics:

-Jerry takes issue with the way Joe & Sam covet their calendars.

-Each of us either use Calendly or Harmonizely.

-We discuss the latest in Apple certifications and listing on the ACN locator.

-The two courses and exams are Apple Device Support and Deployment & Management.

-All of us are intrigued with Apple Messages for Business. Cost seems to be a barrier for entry.

-You can have SMS hosted by a different company than you use for voice.

519: Interview With Jason Dettbarn / Founder & CEO of Addigy - Watchdog & RSR Updates

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Topics:

-Jason Dettbarn, founder and CEO of Addigy joins us once again.

-We dive right into updates on macOS being problematic and how Addigy deals with this issue.

-With Apple’s first Rapid Security Response, they did not receive any disclosures to provide details.

-Addigy released a new MDM Watchdog to mitigate macOS update issues.

-Addigy made their MDM Watchdog available to everyone.

-We discuss the tools that are out there that try and guide the users to updates as another alternative when MDM is not completing its task.

-Finding out what is next on Apple’s radar can sometimes be a guessing game.

-At Addigy they try to focus on three things: Security first, scalability, and Apple expertise.

-Jason speaks about sticking to what they know and using the tools that are already out there like InTune for device compliance and Okta identity management.

-He gives us his 5-10 year predictions.


518: The Sin Eater

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Topics:

-What is a sin-eater?

-Jerry talked about which level of Microsoft to move to from Rackspace.

-He used Emailchemy to convert the data.

-Dealing with customers that purchase the wrong hardware to save a buck.

-What to do when you have additional storage needs with Microsoft accounts. Jerry finds out.

-After an automated Synology alert, Jerry finds out that a client moved and unplugged it without a proper shutdown.

-Sam & Joe differ on their Amazon return experience at Whole Foods.

-UPS Store experiences are another level of customer service.

514: The Fix Is In

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Thank you to our VIP sponsors!

Topics:

-Archiving/Deleting in Apple Mail is inconsistent.

-Jerry has been seeing issues on multiple computers when upgrading from macOS Ventura 13.2.1 to 13.3.1. Reinstalling the OS still creates data issues.

-“That’s a lot of nanas to deal with”.

-Pro tip about using the Option key when clicking About This Mac to reveal System Information.

-Thanks to Guillaume Gete for 80 Shades of the Option key

-Joe talks about his use of Nudge as well as an AppleScript automation with the help of sudoade.

-We discuss end user perception as Sam talks about a story upgrading Wi-Fi for a new customer.

-Jerry mentions The Hawthorne Effect, which discusses how people increase efficiency when they feel like they are being watched.

-Joe had been recommending a mail server upgrade to a client until finally one day, their provider went down. They still did not learn their lesson.

-We get into how to quote email migration projects and the economy of scale.

513: Pricing Your Device Management Stack

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Topics:

-Jerry & Joe talk about their monthly MSP offerings and the services it includes.

-Jerry uses Square for automated credit card payments and invoices.

-Joe talks about competing on quality as opposed to pricing.

-Offering a lower starting point without important services can put both you and the customer in a bad position.

-How do you handle consultants in your area that offer extremely low rates?

-The hosts speak to the benefits of monthly fees.

-Priority scheduling and unattended remote support are big selling points for Joe’s plan.

-We spoke with Tim Pearson on Patreon Episode 471 to discuss some great tips on managed services pricing.

-One of Jerry’s clients uses a Remote Desktop tool called NuoRDS.

-Jerry was able to remotely assist a customer while in an Uber in Belgium.

-The tool that Jerry uses to manage scheduled restarts is called Power Manager.