Umbrella
Quarterly Update

About the Umbrella Quarterly Update:

Each quarter Umbrella creates an update of all the new services and enhancements that we will be adding in the next three months. In addition, we aggregate all the news and content we’ve created over the past three months. For the Q4 2021 update, we will continue to focus on cybersecurity and risk reduction. As always please forward on to friends and colleagues.

Umbrella Communication Recap:

In case you missed it, here are some of our favorite blog posts and important client communications from the last 90 days.

Umbrella is growing & looking to add great team players:

The secret is out, Umbrella is Kansas City’s favorite managed service provider (MSP) and our services are in high demand! We’re seeking qualified candidates for a variety of open positions to continue to uphold the quality professional IT services that you have come to expect. We know that great clients lead to great referrals and are asking for you to reach out to your family, friends, and network of professionals for potential candidates. We have five roles available and are looking for great team players.

Available Roles:

Virtual Chief Technology Officer (vCTO) | The vCTO is as strategist, a tactician, and a deployable business intelligence resource for Umbrella Managed Systems. This position is the strategic advisor, risk manager, and a long-term planner for our clients.
Inside Sales Representative | This inside business development role will be working directly with our senior exec team to schedule appointments with business owners, field questions, follow up on inquiries, send out information packages and assist in maintaining the integrity of the company’s contact database.
Cybersecurity Analyst | The Cybersecurity Analyst provides cybersecurity consulting services to Umbrella and clients. The core function of the role is to identify risks and prioritize the mitigation of risk.
Proactive Operations System Engineer | Proactive Operations System Administrators are the onsite, eyes on the ground resource for Umbrella clients. This position is the face of Umbrella to many clients’ userbase.
Professional Services System Engineer | The Professional Services System Administrator is a leader in technology and provides a high level of technical skills and experience for Umbrella clients and team members. This role thrives on learning, implementing, and documenting new solutions which drive technology issues down and business efficiency up.

Who we’re looking for:

As you’ve come to know Umbrella is committed to exhibiting exemplary customer service skills. Ideal candidates should aspire to excellence in both work and customer service and should show courtesy to all they encounter while representing Umbrella. We’re seeking out team players who can flourish in our culture and embody the characteristics of our Core Values.

Be Humble | Umbrella team players are humble. They lack excessive ego or concerns about status.
Be Hungry | Umbrella team players are hungry. They are always looking for more.
Be (People) Smart | Umbrella team players are smart. They have common sense about people.

Know a candidate that may be a fit? Visit Umbrella’s blog to learn more and find out how to apply.

Blog Recap:

Umbrella Ranks on Channel Futures MSP 501 List

Umbrella Managed Systems is dedicated to managing our clients’ technology needs effectively and efficiently. Our leadership team has worked hard this past year to plan, build, and rally our team to improve our services offerings while further enhancing our cybersecurity features. In July Umbrella was selected as one of the technology industry’s top-performing providers of managed services by the editors of Channel Futures. Our ranking of 280 on Channel Futures’ MSP 501 list is a testament to the commitment of the entire Umbrella team. Check out the full story here.

Top 10 IT Terms to know for Business Leaders and Managers

Technology is integral to every business, yet in our 14 years of business we have learned many business owners, executives, and managers can easily get lost when confronted with IT jargon. That’s why we’ve rounded up 10 of the most important IT terms for you to know. Familiarize yourself with these terms so you can better understand common technical terms used in the workplace. Check out the full list here.

6 Major Cybersecurity Breaches in 2021 (and what you can learn from them)

Recent data breaches have made it clear; no organization is safe from the threat of cyberattacks, and bad actors are constantly seeking vulnerabilities to exploit. As we enter the final quarter of 2021 the increase in cyber-attacks throughout the pandemic shows no signs of slowing. This quarter we looked at 6 major cybersecurity breaches among a variety of industries and highlighted what you can learn from them. Click here to read the full blog post.

Past Critical Communications:

DHS warns of cyberattack threat from Labor Day to 9/11

On August 13, 2021, the Department of Homeland Security issued a bulletin warning of a heightened threat environment across the United States. This threat environment includes the potential for increased cyberattacks and digital crime, and extends from the Labor Day weekend through to the 20th anniversary of the September 11th, 2001 attacks. Umbrella is constantly working to prevent cyber crime and educate our clients on what they need to do to avoid attacks. If you receive any suspicious communications or suspect an attempted attack please let us know. You can read the full communication here.

How does the recent LinkedIn breach impact your business

At the end of June it was reported that a hacker exposed the data of 700 million LinkedIn accounts, representing 92% of users. Luckily, there was no immediate reason to panic: Only publicly available information was breached, meaning private information, like user passwords, remains safe. While no immediate action was required, LinkedIn users should remain vigilant of advanced phishing attempts – not only via email but also by phone and text message. Read more about this breach here.

ITMS 3.0 Enhancements:

In our last quarterly update, we explained that cybersecurity breaches have grown from a minor disruption to a serious business threat. As you may recall for 2021, we are focused on putting new features in place to protect our clients from cybersecurity threats. Our goal is to ensure your organization has the best services & technologies to keep your data safe, your employees productive, and enable you to achieve your business goals. Here is an update on where we stand today.

1st Quarter 2021

Core Enhancement: Business Email Compromise (BEC) Protection - Complete

Last Quarter we explained that in 2021, we expect Business Email Compromise (BEC) to continue as the most financially damaging online crimes. This is part of the reason why umbrella made the decision to further increase email security. Throughout the month of April our Professional Services Engineers will be deploying the following features during their onsite visits:

2nd Quarter 2021

Core Enhancement: Managed Detection and Response (MDR) - Complete

Managed Detection and Response (MDR) from Umbrella is a collection of technology and services that actively hunts threats and responds to threats once they are discovered. Umbrella’s MDR works in conjunction with Umbrella’s End-Point Protection (EPP) system to create another layer of cybersecurity protection.

3rd Quarter 2021

Core Enhancement: Enhanced End-Point Protection (EPP) - Wrapping Up

Umbrella’s Enhanced EPP, paired with Umbrella’s MDR solution will be rolling out soon. This technology is far more than the traditional “anti-virus” and creates a comprehensive Detect/Protect/Respond end- point security solution. Read more about MDR/EPP solutions here.

4th Quarter 2021

Core Enhancement: Microsoft 365 Password Manager - In Progress

A password manager offers convenience and, more importantly, helps you create better passwords, which makes your online existence less vulnerable to password-based attacks. Microsoft is currently in Beta phase of the Microsoft 365 Password Manager development which might push out delivery times.

Microsoft’s initial release is missing core features that are impeding useability. Umbrella is currently monitoring progress but may delay the release timeline.

Security Awareness Training Updates:

It was recently reported in Fortinet’s FortiGuard Labs 1H 2021 Global Threat Landscape report that over the past 12 months there has been a 10.7x increase in ransomware attacks. Now more than ever before, Security Awareness Training is important for your organization. The leadership team at Umbrella takes cybersecurity very seriously and has made security awareness training part of the ITMS program. Every month we send mock phishing tests to our staff and our clients to help them become more aware of suspicious emails.

We're happy to report that this quarter an average of 96.57% of users phished passed their monthly test.

Don’t forget we relaunch Annual Training at the end of every quarter for new staff and existing staff that have not completed it. Make sure you’re encouraging your users to complete their Annual Training; the next round goes live on 12/30/2021.

Critical KPI’s:

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Customer Satisfaction (CSTAT)

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Met Resolution SLA

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% of Hours Proactive vs Reactive

Humble, Hungry, Smart Winner!

Every team member at Umbrella strives to be an ideal team player. The ideal team player embodies three virtues: humility, hunger, and people smarts. The power of this combination drastically accelerates and improves the process of building high-performing teams. Throughout the quarter our staff continually submits votes for colleagues that exemplify the HHS traits and at the end of the quarter, a winner is selected.

Congratulations to Nick Stebbins, our Quarterly HHS winner.

Nick is a valuable team player at Umbrella. As a Client Services Coordinator, his main duties include creating quotes via our Design Desk, managing our DarkWeb ID program, and assisting clients. Nick often goes above and beyond to use his smarts to help clients and colleagues. He is quick to volunteer for any task and often takes on the less than glamorous work. He is a true asset to our team.

Top Client Feedback:

The Umbrella team works hard to delight clients daily with professional expert IT support. We love to receive feedback and highlight when we have done an excellent job ‐ here are some most recent favorite comments:

Kim gave a WOW rating to Matt Skowbo for Communication, Friendliness, Knowledge, Helpfulness, Resolution Time, and Response Time.

“It turned out that the issue I opened the ticket for must have been an isolated event because I couldn’t replicate it when Matt called me. But the willingness to help is consistently offered in a professional manner and staff goes the extra mile to make sure the customer is satisfied.”

Jane gave a WOW rating to Brian Scroggs for Response Time, Resolution Time, helpfulness, Friendliness, Communication, and Knowledge.

“Brian is pleasant and has good follow through. I appreciate his helpfulness to our team.”

Sarah gave a WOW rating to James Butcher for Communication, Knowledge, Friendliness, Resolution Time, Helpfulness, and Response Time.

“Thank you for making a call over to AireSpring tech support for confirmation that equipment wasn’t needed. Appreciated that very much. Have a great day!”

Let’s Grow Together:

Prior to the delta variant spike, the Umbrella team got to enjoy our first company outing in over a year. We celebrated surviving 2020, thriving in 2021 and embracing Umbrella’s future growth. Our evening was packed with fellowship, food, beverages, and some perfectly curated raffle prizes.

Our executive team declared Umbrella is a “BIG.DAMN.DEAL.” and shared some exciting news!

100% of employees’ benefits are covered by Umbrella.
Salary increases for staff.
An additional profit-sharing contribution.
Cold hard cash.

Umbrella truly rallied during one of the most challenging years for any business and came out on top. We couldn’t be prouder of our success and look forward to the future!

Umbrella has been in business for 14 years, providing high‐value IT services to the Kansas City metro area and beyond. Do you know anybody who is facing IT problems? Do you have a friend in your professional network who could use our services or products?

Without a doubt, referrals are the most effective way to generate new business. Who better to tell our story than our clients! In the spirit of growing together, please consider referring your industry colleagues to Umbrella. You’ll receive Karma and a discount off your monthly ITMS 3.0 Bill.

Know someone that would benefit from our services or interested in finding out more for yourself? Please get in touch with us to learn more!