Author: Howard M. Cohen Microsoft Learn is a singular resource providing valuable and necessary training to virtually all users of all Microsoft products and platforms. When you visit the Microsoft Learn site for Azure and click the button to “Browse all Azure training”, you’ll find yourself immediately presented with 1,940 modules, courses, learning paths, and more. …

What Small to Medium Companies Can Learn from Microsoft Learn Plans Read More »

Author: Howard M. Cohen Business critical applications require the best possible security, non-stop reliability and availability. Here are some of the ways Idenxt leverages the Azure service to assure all these and more. Azure is well known as one of the top three “hyperscaler” cloud computing services, a description which emphasizes its sheer scale. Hundreds of …

Azure Application Protection Read More »

Author: Howard M. Cohen All too often, those migrating to Azure concentrate on preparing and executing the migration procedurally. By beginning with the end in mind you shift the focus to the desired future state of your workloads, where they will reside, how they will be managed, and how you can best leverage Azure’s many advantages. …

When Migrating to Azure Begin with the End in Mind Read More »

Author: Howard M. Cohen When you assign someone to do something, what do you want them to focus on; the operation of the tools they’ll use, or the outcome of the work itself? The obvious answer suggests that what we most value from tools is their transparency. The user doesn’t think about the tools. They just …

The Great Goals of Transparency & Abstraction Read More »

Author: Howard M. Cohen From the perspective of professional prowess, there’s really very little difference between your doctor who keeps your body healthy and your MSP who keeps your workloads healthy. Just as the “general practitioner” has evolved into many specializations, you can expect your MSP to follow the same path. As they do, you’ll want …

The Future of Your Managed Service Provider (MSP) Read More »

Author: Howard M. Cohen You’ve decided to use Azure to run the workloads that run your business. But when you researched the costs of Azure services you may not have also researched the cost of the people you’ll need to get your applications running and keep them running well. Before you go back and add to …

The Concept of Fractional Expertise Read More »

Author: Howard M. Cohen We touched upon this in a recent blogpost, but it bears repeating and expanding upon. It’s an old, old axiom in the IT industry but its as true today than ever, perhaps even moreso. You really don’t want to be all things to all people. The fact is that customers seldom benefit …

You Really DON’T Want to Be All Things to All People – Customers Seldom Benefit When You Do Read More »

Author: Howard M. Cohen In earlier days, computer salespeople talked to their customers about which server, which storage, which network, and from which manufacturers. Customers didn’t really have a foundation for using what they were being told to make a decision.The conversation is all about the better business outcomes you’re seeking and how to assure that …

Don’t Care How It Works… Care How Well It Does Its Job Read More »

Author: Howard M. Cohen You love it. You can already see how the new application you just invested in will revolutionize your operations and drive up your profitability. Your IT department sees an enormous new challenge that will bring sleepless nights and potentially career-changing issues. Your best strategy be to let them keep doing what they’re …

Application Beauty is in the Eye of the Beholder Read More »

The most important question you need to answer is what your customers measure you on. Everything else can be contracted out to the right resources and should be. Here’s a great example that is core to your operations but invisible to your customers. Author: Howard M. Cohen “If you want something done right, do it yourself!” …

If You Want It Done Right, Find the Right Resource to Do It Read More »