Written By: Frank Saulsbery
THE LATEST THOUGHTS FROM THE FOUNDER
A running column from Frank Saulsbery. Not a sales pitch, just the way he’d explain it if you pulled up a stool next to him. Meet Frank →
A SNEAK PEEK…
“If you’re not able to work, that’s a problem we take personally.”
There is the day-to-day support but what happens if everything goes down? I mean really down. Internet is out, server crashes, phones aren’t working, and my team can’t do their jobs.
And that’s a fair question. Because in that moment, it’s not just an IT issue. It’s lost productivity, stressed employees, and money slipping away by the minute.
If you’ve ever had even a short outage, you know the feeling. People are standing around, asking what to do next, and your customers are waiting. You’re trying to get answers, and just do your job so it doesn’t take long before frustration turns into real concern.
For our company when something critical happens, the response is immediate and focused. It’s not a we’ll get to it in a few hours, the goal is to stabilize things as quickly as possible. That might mean getting one technician on it right away, or several, depending on the situation. It’s all hands on deck until there’s a clear path forward.
Sometimes the fix is remote and quick, other times it’s more involved. Hardware can fail, internet providers can go down, equipment can simply quit after years of doing its job. In those cases, having access to replacement parts or backup systems matters. That’s why we keep spare equipment on hand. It allows us to swap things out and get you moving again rather than waiting days for shipping.
There’s also the reality that not every problem can be solved instantly. An internet outage, for example, may depend on your provider. We stay involved, escalate when needed, and keep you informed, but we don’t control the utility itself. That’s an important distinction to be honest about. We do have access to a mobile internet service when restoration of the service could be days away.
What happens if your office itself becomes unusable? It doesn’t have to be dramatic like a fire or flood. It could be something as simple as a building issue or extended outage that keeps your team from working there. In those situations, having a fallback option makes a big difference. Even something as simple as a temporary workspace where a few key people can keep operations going can help you avoid a complete shutdown.
If you’re running a server in your office, you should have a backup plan for that server. Not a we think it’s backed up situation, but a tested, reliable backup that can be restored. Ideally, something that allows you to keep working even if that original server is no longer available.
Not every business needs the same level of redundancy. A small office might not need a full duplicate environment sitting idle. But every business does need to think through one simple question. If something critical stopped working tomorrow, how long could we realistically afford to be down? That answer usually tells you everything you need to know about how much protection you should have in place.
From our side, the mindset is simple. If you’re not able to work, that’s a problem we take personally. Because if you’re not productive, it impacts your business, your clients, and yes, eventually your ability to keep investing in support. Getting you back up and running is always the priority.
So if you haven’t walked through this before, it’s worth taking a few minutes to think it through. If your internet went down, your server failed, or your office wasn’t usable, what would your team do in the next hour?
If that answer feels a little unclear, that’s usually a good place to start a conversation. Not a sales conversation, just a practical one. You should map out what would actually happen and make sure there aren’t any surprises when it matters most.
That’s how I see it, anyway, and I’d enjoy hearing how you see it. None of this is a sales pitch. It’s just the kind of thing I’d talk through with you if we were sitting across the table. If it raised a question, or you think I have it wrong, I want to hear about it.
My door is always open. Whether you want to talk this through or just say hello, you can reach me anytime.
Network Solutions Unlimited is a generational managed IT services provider based in Decatur, Illinois, serving businesses and nonprofits with genuine support and decades of trusted relationships. Led by Baily Saulsbery and founded by her father Frank, we're not just your IT provider; we're your neighbors who happen to be really good at technology. Contact us today to experience IT support that actually cares.
