Infinity Network Solutions Brings Strategic IT to Small Businesses
Wednesday, August 27th, 2014
Security. The cloud. Mobile access. Many small businesses struggle with these IT-related issues and are looking for the right software, hardware or integrated solution. Rob Betzel, CEO of Infinity Network Solutions, believes that before a business leader buys any IT solution, they first need to define their business strategy.
"Lots of times companies want to talk about what PCs, servers or software they should install when the conversation should be about what they're trying to accomplish," Betzel said.
"For example, companies are concerned that their systems aren't as secure as they need to be but in many cases, more secure means access will be less convenient. So we need to understand a company's risk tolerance versus their need for access."
Founded by Betzel in 2000, Infinity Network Solutions is an IT services company that offers support to businesses in various industries throughout Georgia. It focuses on small businesses with 25 to 150 employees located in and around its main office in Macon and a satellite office in Covington. The firm also serves public-sector entities such as school districts, and city and county governments.
Providing a custom IT team
"We can provide an hour of engineering support, six hours of help desk support and quarterly CIO-level strategic consulting support to a small business that doesn't have an in-house IT team. We give them the pieces of the team that they need," Betzel said.
"We charge a fixed fee per employee so it's easy for our clients to budget for our services. And that enables us to focus on preventive and strategic work and keep the firefighting work to a minimum."
In addition to security, cloud computing and mobile access are top-of-mind issues for many small business, according to Betzel. Cloud computing helps companies turn capital expenditures for servers and software into operating expenditures for cloud-based services. While that is appealing on the surface, Betzel believes businesses need to think carefully about how to best leverage cloud-computing services.
"Questions businesses should be asking include what systems should go to the cloud and how will they be integrated with the company's onsite systems and daily work processes. And should the cloud be a on-premise private cloud or public like Amazon Web Services," Betzel said.
"It's a little more complex than many people realize. We do a lot of education and typically offer six to seven events each year on current IT issues."
A focus on leadership and culture
As the founder of a small business and a consultant to small-business clients, Betzel has an appreciation for what it takes to build a successful organization with a winning culture. He works regularly with a CEO coach to become a better leader. Two years ago, Betzel and his coach, David Russell, published a book titled "The Company Culture Challenge," which details a seven-step process to engage employees with a winning company culture.
"The book describes how you start from zero and build a culture of engagement. I've done all these things in building my business," Betzel said.
Betzel talks regularly to groups in the community about company culture. He has led sessions at the University of Georgia Small Business Development Center and the local Chamber of Commerce.
"The response has been very positive. All the small businesses we work with want to be great," Betzel said.
More information on Infinity Network Solutions is available at www.infinitynetworks.net. "The Company Culture Challenge" is available on Amazon.
