The Issue…
For many of our clients, networking with Ubiquiti has been a great option to help them save money, while providing a solid network to meet their needs. This includes WISPs (wireless internet service providers), churches, schools, event venues, farms, estates, small offices, warehouses, and more. Not everyone can afford (nor do they need) Cisco, Aruba, Meraki, HP, Juniper, Ruckus, Dell, or other premium brands.
The problem for many smaller businesses is they often lack solid technical resources to manage and maintain their networks. If you do not maintain the network by testing and updating firmware, managing wireless settings, or monitoring usage patterns, your network will suffer performance and security issues. Then it will usually end up costing more to repair when you factor in unplanned downtime.
A full time network administrator for a smaller company could run $40-90K depending on the area and skills. A full time CTO or CIO level advisor could be $100-300K. On the very low end, a network administrator to handle basic tasks would likely run around $50,000 per year with benefits and taxes factored in. This works out to roughly $4,200 per month.
Where things tend to go sideways…
Many smaller firms will not hire someone to cover IT work because there isn’t enough of it to keep them busy. Or they give it to the “smartest” person in the room. Or a friend. Or friend of a friend. Sometimes it is a member / volunteer. Nothing wrong with this, and sometimes it works well. However, with increasing needs to be compliant with regulations, data safety and protection, and the increasing demands on folks to earn better money, this often becomes a position that is in constant churn. Even if you do hire, they do not last. They get bored, seek better money, bigger challenges, etc.
This churn usually causes many projects to go unfinished or partly finished, important details get overlooked, you end up spending more on outside services to cover gaps in staffing, nothing is consistent.
The solution…
We welcome volunteers or staff from your firm that want to help and learn. We will help mentor them and be the glue that brings together a great team. Or we can go it alone. Our focus is on network management. Not end user desktops, laptops, phones, tablets, etc. We can help you acquire those services as needed through our partner relationships with other large firms.
Besides taking over network administration and engineering for you, we also provide technical consulting at the CIO/CTO level. Our team will monitor the network around the clock and respond accordingly to issues that come up. Based on the options you select, they will also put eyes on the network for preemptive maintenance and checks. You will have consistent service, documentation, and a person to call when you have needs.
The things we take off your plate…
- Documentation.
- Staffing the position. IT has high turn over at the lower levels.
- Solid documentation of the various device configurations needed to recover from a catastrophic event.
- In-depth review and testing of all firmware updates before they are applied.
- System auditing to ensure “auto-update” never gets turned back on by an update.
- Periodic review of wireless performance and adjustments as needed.
- Password changes as needed.
- Checking outage notices to see if they are real or false positives, then letting you know.
- Assisting with return to service when it involves outside issues (where we can).
- Helping you restore systems when needed.
- Providing technical advice and insights into the industry and new things coming down the pike.
We can manage all Ubiquiti product lines: UniFi, Protect, Talk, Access, AirMax, AirFiber, Wave, EdgeMax.
Affordability
For a smaller business, $4,200 a month is a lot to spend on a resource that will likely not stick around long term. The cost of position churn is hard to calculate, but on average, a candidate search can cost up to 20-25% of annual loaded salary. Not to mention it can take months to find the right person sometimes. Suddenly the real cost is starting to creep up into the $6000+ per month range. Plus all you are getting is that junior to mid-level network administrator. Not a full fledged network engineer, wireless engineer, project management team, and chief technical officer / senior level technical consultant.
We do not list out pricing online because every client has a different situation and we price these carefully. To give an example though, a typical church, small private school, medical office, small office, etc, might have a core router/firewall, 3 switches, 8 access points. Maybe they run UniFi Network, Protect (4 cams), Talk (3 phones). and a remote link to an outbuilding that has network service. Monthly service, with yearly visit to check outdoor items and wireless coverage updates, would run roughly $600-900 per month depending on location.
Our pricing is about 1/8 to 1/4 of what it would normally cost to staff this position and you are increasing the capability of your IT team considerably.