IT Infrastructure and Support for Small Consultancy Business

[Bodger]

After some discussion with my current client, we are honing in on a proposal to supply and manage a team of 4 consultants (plus me).

Leaving aside all discussion of the how and why of the recruitment / accounting / margins etc for other forums, I'd like to focus on the technical aspects.

I'm now beginning to try and scope equipment / infrastructure etc.

Hardware:

The consultants will be primarily working through the clients citrix desktop portal, so for the work they do for the client their needs should be pretty basic.
I'd also need them to have access to microsoft suite for access to office, teams etc for working internally.

So I know I'll need laptops, screens, docs, mice, keyboards, headsets. So far so easy.

Software:

Office 365 Business seems to cover most of my needs here. Email, Office Suite, Teams

Managing Devices:

Here's where I come out of my comfort zone. Given the relatively small number of users, whats the best approach for managing those laptops? How do I ensure they aren't installing unsafe applications, that their data is secure, and support the devices? Backups if the device is damaged / lost?
Should I look at the MSP route, or could I manage this comfortably with someting like inTune?


Any hints or advice would be appreciated. Googling gets me a lot of ad's, and thousands of 'top 100 uk MSP's' lists, but little in the way of solid advice.

[ladymuck]

Have a look at the MS Action Pack - this will give you 5 office 365 licenses and 5 azure AD licenses which I *think* might allow you to manage the registered devices via the likes of intune.

I haven't looked at it in much detail so do check out what exactly you get but at ~£350 it's a pretty cost effective way to get up and running if there is only going to be five of you

[Bodger]

Have a look at the MS Action Pack - this will give you 5 office 365 licenses and 5 azure AD licenses which I *think* might allow you to manage the registered devices via the likes of intune.

I haven't looked at it in much detail so do check out what exactly you get but at ~£350 it's a pretty cost effective way to get up and running if there is only going to be five of you

Thank you, that gives me some reading to start with.

It's an interesting approach. Joining the Microsoft Partner Network doesn't seem to come with any strings attached, or require selling anything microsoft related, but comes with cheap access to licenses via the action pack.

[ladymuck]

Thank you, that gives me some reading to start with.

It's an interesting approach. Joining the Microsoft Partner Network doesn't seem to come with any strings attached, or require selling anything microsoft related, but comes with cheap access to licenses via the action pack.

Yep. I've had it for years. Back in the day they used to ship a HUGE folder of CDs (then DVDs) with all the software you were entitled to use.

I only use it for email hosting and O365 for me and my family but it contains a heck of a lot of useful stuff.

[northernladuk]

Managing Devices:

Here's where I come out of my comfort zone. Given the relatively small number of users, whats the best approach for managing those laptops? How do I ensure they aren't installing unsafe applications, that their data is secure, and support the devices? Backups if the device is damaged / lost?
Should I look at the MSP route, or could I manage this comfortably with someting like inTune?

My question would be manage what? You've highlighted some of the requirements and there will be more. IMO you've got to set the position out clearly in your contract. There needs to be an agreement on the base build and who owns that. Details about level of lockdown, admin, data retention, backups, version control all need to be understood to baseline the situation before you offer support. Policies on cloud storage, lockdown build, product versions and so on so both you and the client know exactly what the situation is before you start supporting it. If that's out of your control or unknown then you could be shafted later down the line when the worst happens or you can't fulfil the contract. Also RACI's and processes to define who is responsible for what and clear security policies with ownership about what the users can and can't do and who is responsible for situations falling outside policy i.e. someone storing all their data on a laptop when policy says in the cloud.

Might be easier with the low number of users but I'd say doing the work upfront and having it all documented before you start supporting is going to make the whole engagement much smoother. Maybe not so important if you've a good relationship and, as you say, few users but you need to make sure your back is covered.

[Bodger]

northernlanduk - Reading what you've put, I think you've misunderstood what I'm asking.

This isn't about what I'm supporting or delivering for the client.

This is for my business and my potential five employees. I want to provide them with laptops and be able to manage what we have installed on those laptops, as well as backups and security.

Everything client side is done on virtual desktop via citrix, so as long as Citrix Workspace is installed, there should be no issues there.

[MonkeysUncle]

Instead of going for Office 365 go for M365 Small Business premium.
Gives you all of O365 (Outlook, Teams etc) aswell as the security aspects so Intune management for windows devices. MDM or MAM for mobile devices.
Lets you control app installs, patching etc

Edit: Its Endpoint Manager now, not Intune