Questions we hear a lot.
Real answers, grounded in the questions our actual clients ask—no vague marketing-speak. If you don’t see yours here, just ask us directly.
Working with Emerald.
Do you work with organizations our size?
We work with organizations ranging from about seven users to 800 users, including small businesses, local government, and independent schools. We supplement or fully replace an existing IT setup, whatever fits.
What happens during the free consultation?
It’s a real conversation, not a sales pitch—we talk through where your IT stands today, what’s working, what isn’t, and whether we’re a good fit. There’s no pressure and no obligation.
Do we need to sign a long-term contract?
All of our work is done through regular recurring relationships rather than one-off break-fix jobs, with a straightforward 90-day out built into the agreement—no multi-year lock-in. We’ll walk through the exact terms during your consultation.
IT staff transitions.
Our IT person just quit or is leaving—how fast can you step in?
This is one of the situations we handle most often. We can step in with no gap in coverage, even when a department has shrunk to a single person who then gives notice. We focus on a smooth handoff—documenting systems and passwords that often weren’t documented before.
We have an employee doing IT as a side duty—can you take that over?
Very often, yes—this is one of the most common situations we see: someone whose real job is something else (often finance or admin) ends up fixing IT problems on the side. We take that burden off them so they can get back to their actual job.
Can you work alongside our existing IT staff instead of replacing them?
Yes. If you have IT staff you want to keep, we can help you decide what to keep in-house versus outsource, and support your team through our ticketing systems and processes rather than replacing them outright.
How support actually works.
How do we submit a support request?
Through our ticketing system, by phone, or by email—whatever’s easiest for your team. Every ticket is tracked from open to close so nothing falls through the cracks.
Is support remote, onsite, or both?
Both. Most day-to-day issues are resolved remotely, which is usually the fastest path. When a problem needs hands-on work—hardware, network equipment, a new device—we come onsite.
Do you offer after-hours or emergency support?
Yes, for active outages and urgent issues outside normal business hours. The specifics depend on your agreement, and we’ll walk through exactly what’s covered during your consultation.
Keeping your data safe.
How do you make sure our backups actually work?
We monitor every client backup job daily through automated SLA alerting. If a job fails or runs behind schedule, our team is alerted immediately and starts working the fix—backup and disaster recovery alerts are one of the most common things we handle.
Do you handle ransomware or active security incidents?
Yes. Our 24/7 security operations center monitors for threats around the clock, and our team responds quickly when something looks wrong, keeping you informed throughout.
Do you support HIPAA, PCI, CJIS, or SOX compliance requirements?
Yes, we do well in PCI, HIPAA, CJIS, and SOX environments, and regularly support clients with those compliance requirements as part of regular managed services.
Do you offer penetration testing?
No—our security services are designed to be blue team, focused on protecting your assets through monitoring, detection, and response. We do not offer penetration testing.
Platforms & migrations.
Which is better, Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace?
It depends on what your organization already uses and needs—we support both fully and don’t push one over the other. We’ll help you evaluate honestly rather than steer you toward whichever we’d rather sell.
Do you handle cloud migrations?
Yes. We design and deploy complete cloud and hybrid-cloud environments using Microsoft Azure and Amazon Web Services, plus full Google Workspace and Microsoft 365 setup, including billing and license management.
Using AI without the risk.
Can you help us adopt AI tools securely?
Yes—this is a growing part of what we do. Your team is probably already using generative AI tools, sanctioned or not. We help set clear usage policies, data privacy safeguards, and secure integration with your existing systems.
Is it safe for our team to use tools like ChatGPT at work?
It can be, with the right guardrails—clear rules about what data can and can’t be entered into a public AI tool, and secure configuration where a business plan or enterprise controls are available. We help organizations put that structure in place instead of banning AI outright or ignoring the risk.
The straightforward stuff.
How is pricing structured?
Managed IT plans generally run between $120 and $225 per employee per month, depending on your environment and what’s included. The free consultation is where we figure out exactly where your organization falls in that range.
Can we cancel if it's not a good fit?
Yes—our agreements include a 90-day out, so you’re never locked in indefinitely. We’d rather earn the relationship every quarter than trap you in a contract.
Still have a question?
Skip the guesswork—ask us directly and we’ll give you a straight answer.