The Solution Builders blog
Plain language IT advice for growing Minnesota companies.
Cybersecurity, compliance, cloud, Microsoft 365, AI and the business side of technology, written for owners, finance leaders and IT managers at companies with 25 to 500 people across Minneapolis, St. Paul and the Twin Cities. Every article comes with a free PDF you can take to your leadership team.
Playbooks
Playbooks.
PlaybookThe SMB Cyber Resilience PlaybookThe five layers every defense needs, plus a 30 day hardening checklist you can run today.
PlaybookThe Continuous Compliance PlaybookReplace audit season panic with a calm, always ready compliance program.
PlaybookThe Manufacturer's CMMC PlaybookWhat CMMC 2.0 means for your shop floor and how to get certified before the deadline.
PlaybookThe IT Project Success PlaybookHow to scope, staff and ship technology projects that land on time and get used.
PlaybookThe Co-Managed IT PlaybookGive your internal IT team a 40 person bench without adding headcount.
PlaybookThe Practical AI Adoption PlaybookCapture the productivity of AI without the hype, the wasted spend, or the data risk.
PlaybookThe Microsoft 365 Done Right PlaybookMigrate, secure and actually use Microsoft 365, from tenant hardening to Teams.
PlaybookThe Business Continuity PlaybookWhy backups fail when you need them, RTO and RPO in plain language, and a recovery test you can run this week.
PlaybookThe Smart Cloud Migration PlaybookSix migration paths decoded, a cost model with no missing lines, and a zero downtime cutover checklist.
PlaybookThe Technology Roadmap PlaybookWhy reactive IT costs more, what a virtual CIO really does, and a budget your CFO will defend.
PlaybookThe Copilot Readiness PlaybookWhy permissions come before licenses, the oversharing risk in plain language, and a 90 day adoption plan.
PlaybookThe Modern Network PlaybookMPLS versus SD-WAN decoded, how application aware routing keeps calls clear, and a failover design that works at 2 a.m.
eBooks and field guides
eBooks and field guides.
eBookRISE: The New Era of Business Technology, Complete EditionThe full RISE framework in one volume: Resilient, Integrated, Secure and Evolving.
eBookRISE: ResilientCloud, business continuity and backup, so your business can operate under any circumstance.
eBookRISE: IntegratedIntegrations, infrastructure and professional services that connect the tools, data and people that drive growth.
eBookRISE: SecureLayered cybersecurity for growing businesses, from identity to 24/7 detection and response.
eBookThe AI AdvantageHow growing businesses put AI to work safely, with the governance to match.
Field guideField Guide to the Cybersecurity ApocalypseSeven monsters hunting your business, from Count Phishula to the Shadow AI Ghost, each with a plain English survival plan.
Whitepapers, briefs and articles
Whitepapers, briefs and articles.
ArticleCybersecurity Best Practices for Manufacturing CompaniesThe shop floor is the new attack surface. Here is how to defend it without slowing production.
ArticleHow to Improve Cybersecurity in ManufacturingLegacy machines, flat networks, and tribal knowledge, the three gaps attackers love most.
WhitepaperThe IT Director's Guide to Supporting Multiple LocationsArchitecture, connectivity, and support models that scale cleanly past your second site.
WhitepaperThe Integrated BusinessOnly 27% of business applications talk to each other. What connecting the other 73% looks like in practice.
WhitepaperThe IT Leader's Guide to Co-Managed ITThe models, the math, and how to add cybersecurity, cloud and AI depth to your team without giving up control.
BriefThe CMMC Pause BriefWhat paused, what did not, and five smart moves to make with the extra time before assessments resume.
Case studies
Case studies.
Case studyEliminated 100+ hours of monthly downtime after a complete IT overhaulCo-managed IT, Azure migration, layered XDR and a 24/7 help desk cut ticket volume 60% in 90 days.
Case studyDefeated a ransomware attack with zero data loss, and zero ransom paidContained in 22 minutes, restored overnight from tamper proof backups, fully operational by Monday.
Case studyCut infrastructure costs 38% with a cloud native migrationLegacy servers to Microsoft 365 and Azure, MFA and ITDR, real time collaboration from anywhere.
Infographics
Infographics.
InfographicWhat Resilient Work Looks LikeA one page picture of a business that keeps running through outages, attacks and growth.
InfographicWhere Limits Show Up FirstThe early warning signs that your technology is holding your growth back.
Infographic250 HoursFive small AI plays that hand each person more than 250 hours a year back, with the math behind it.
InfographicQuestions Leaders Ask When Growth Hits LimitsThe questions worth asking before the next hire, office or system.
InfographicWork Anywhere, Win EverywhereThe business case for flexible, cloud first work: why flexibility pays for itself, with the numbers behind it.
InfographicResilient by Design90% of leaders are confident they can recover from an attack. 28% actually did. What Resilient looks like, layer by layer, with a checklist.
InfographicThe Real Cost of IT HeadachesWorkers lose 7.9 hours a week to technology friction. The numbers, plus a simple way to estimate what it costs your business.
InfographicCo-Managed IT: What Comes Off Your PlateExactly which work moves to our team and which stays firmly with yours, on one page.
InfographicYour First 90 DaysWeek by week, what switching to Managed IT Support looks like, plus the questions to ask any IT partner before you sign.
InfographicPart 1: The ProblemThe scariest numbers from this year's breach reports, and what they mean for a business like yours.
InfographicPart 2: The AlternativesThe five ways businesses try to handle cyber risk, held up against the data. Only one checks every box.
InfographicPart 3: The SolutionThe basics that actually work: MFA, patching, tested backups and 24/7 monitoring, with the numbers behind each.