EF Fall 07.indd - National Association of Professional Allstate ...
EF Fall 07.indd - National Association of Professional Allstate ... EF Fall 07.indd - National Association of Professional Allstate ...
technologyExclusive Interviewwith Mr. Al L. State,Super Secret Insurance AgentExclusivefocus has recently received numerousquestions regarding the upcomingchange of Technology support from Allstate.We were fortunate to receive wordfrom one of our secret agents regardinghow they solved this dilemma. We wereable to catch up with him long enough toobtain the following interview.Exclusivefocus magazine: Thank youfor agreeing to do this exclusive interviewwith me today, Mr. State.AS: Call me by my secret agent designation;24-7.EFM: Interesting code name.AS: Well, since I am available for myclients 24 hours a day, 7 days a week…EFM: …I see…AS: …like all great Allstate agents.EFM: Uh huh. Well, that’s all well andgood, Mr. 24-7, but let’s get to the reasonyou contacted us.AS: I have knowledge that as of January2008, IT support from Allstate corporatewill no longer be available. Thiswill mean that all other agents, like me,will have to fend for themselves whenit comes to managing and maintainingtheir office computers and laptops.EFM: That could spell the end of lifeas we know it!AS: No, not necessarily. There’s hope.I have a solution, a plan, a strategy, ameans to an end, a way out, a salvation,a …EFM: I get it. You have a way to dealwith the upcoming situation.AS: That’s what I said.EFM: I agreed with you.AS: You did?EFM: So, what is it?AS: What’s what?EFM: Your answer.AS: My answer?EFM: To your question…AS: I asked a question?EFM: About the change.AS: I don’t need change. I only use acredit card.EFM: You’re not a very good secretagent, are you?AS: Not really. But I am a really goodAllstate agent.EFM: So, what do we do about the lossof IT support come January?AS: Ah yes, I have a solution, a plan, astrategy, a means to an end, a way out, asalvation, a …EFM: We’ve gone down this path before.What do we do?AS: I have determined through myextensive network of contacts, there isa force out there that’s dedicated to thepreservation of good, the fight againstevil, vigilant at all times, always therewhen needed, all seeing, all knowing…EFM: Some kind of…superheroes?AS: To me, they are.EFM: Who are these guys?AS: They call themselves the MSPs!EFM: The MSPs?AS: Yes, the MSPs.EFM: Who are the MSPs?AS: They are the Managed ServicesProviders.EFM: What do they do?AS: They act as your IT departmentwithout you having to hire one.EFM: Will they take care of desktopsand laptops?AS: Sure, and a whole lot more.26 — Exclusivefocus Fall 2007
EFM: Like what?AS: They can and will support yournetwork; no matter how large or small.This includes all of your PCs, laptops, internetconnections, and servers, whatever.EFM: What falls under the whatever?AS: Whatever is part of your businesswhen it comes to IT needs.EFM: Like getting rid of the computerviruses?AS: Now that agents must fend forthemselves, making sure that the properprotection is in place against viruses,spyware, all types of malware, Trojans, iscritical. MSPs build a defensive perimeteraround your network environmentthat protects you even when you aresleeping.EFM: Like Allstate, protecting yourhome, auto and everything else that isprecious?AS: In a way. Good MSPs providepro-active support providing remediesbefore something fails.EFM: How do they do that?AS: By placing software probes or“agents” on key devices to view what ishappening on your network.EFM: Sounds intrusive.AS: Not at all. The only things thatcan be “seen” are how optimally theserver, switches, etc. are working. Nevercan what you are doing be viewed. Thebenefit of monitoring performance isthat before anything starts to go wrong,a technician is dispatched on-site or remotelyto fix the problem before you areever aware that it ever existed.EFM: Wow!AS: Think of it as an MSP’s X-ray vision.EFM: Interesting.AS: And when there is a problem thatneeds someone on-site, they are therequickly.EFM: Like the power of super speed!AS: Exactly.EFM: What other super powers dothey have?AS: You know that they don’t reallyhave super powers, just like I am not reallya super secret agent.EFM: I had a vague idea.AS: But, they are super dedicatedto ensuring that you have the tools youneed to operate and build your business.Good MSPs are not simply service providers;they also act as a strategic partnerin your agency. After all, they realize thatit benefits everyone when agents can dothe things to grow their businesses withouthaving to worry if the underlying infrastructureis there when they need it.EFM: Like all Allstate agents look toensure that the right policies and coverageis in place to protect our clients?AS: Now you got it! My relationshipwith my customers is more than justwriting a policy and walking away. I getinvited to birthday parties, weddings andunfortunately life’s misfortunes.EFM: I get it. Just like you, MSPs areactively involved in the good times andthe bad. You hope the bad things don’thappen but, like everything that is inevitable,the test comes when a server fails,IT connectivity is lost, or a computer justdoes not work anymore.AS: Good MSPs anticipate the inevitableand have a process in place to minimizethe disruption in business, becausewe all know that time is money.EFM: That begs me to ask, what if theserver crashes or the computer dies? DoI lose the data I have stored; the pictures,files, correspondence, and the things thatare important to me?AS: Well, my MSP provides me witha backup solution for the things that Ican’t afford to lose.EFM: Really. Tell me more.AS: Happy to. My MSP offers off-sitebackup via the internet. Every night, myimportant data is transmitted to a secureremote facility where I don’t have to worryif something happens at my office.EFM: Over the internet? Is that safe?Can’t some unscrupulous super villainsintercept and use the information fortheir own nefarious schemes?AS: You’re really getting into this superhero shtick, aren’t you? The answer toyour question is that it can’t happen andhere’s why. Before the data is transmitted,it is encrypted on your computer orserver; wherever the data is stored. It isthen compressed and transmitted. Whenit gets the backup server at the securelocation, it stays encrypted. When youneed the data back, for whatever reason,it travels back to you still fully encrypted.Only with the encryption key, whichonly you; the owner of the data have, canyou turn it back to its original state. Soyou better not lose that key!EFM: Did you say “kryptonite key”?Fall 2007 Exclusivefocus — 27
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technologyExclusive Interviewwith Mr. Al L. State,Super Secret Insurance AgentExclusivefocus has recently received numerousquestions regarding the upcomingchange <strong>of</strong> Technology support from <strong>Allstate</strong>.We were fortunate to receive wordfrom one <strong>of</strong> our secret agents regardinghow they solved this dilemma. We wereable to catch up with him long enough toobtain the following interview.Exclusivefocus magazine: Thank youfor agreeing to do this exclusive interviewwith me today, Mr. State.AS: Call me by my secret agent designation;24-7.<strong>EF</strong>M: Interesting code name.AS: Well, since I am available for myclients 24 hours a day, 7 days a week…<strong>EF</strong>M: …I see…AS: …like all great <strong>Allstate</strong> agents.<strong>EF</strong>M: Uh huh. Well, that’s all well andgood, Mr. 24-7, but let’s get to the reasonyou contacted us.AS: I have knowledge that as <strong>of</strong> January2008, IT support from <strong>Allstate</strong> corporatewill no longer be available. Thiswill mean that all other agents, like me,will have to fend for themselves whenit comes to managing and maintainingtheir <strong>of</strong>fice computers and laptops.<strong>EF</strong>M: That could spell the end <strong>of</strong> lifeas we know it!AS: No, not necessarily. There’s hope.I have a solution, a plan, a strategy, ameans to an end, a way out, a salvation,a …<strong>EF</strong>M: I get it. You have a way to dealwith the upcoming situation.AS: That’s what I said.<strong>EF</strong>M: I agreed with you.AS: You did?<strong>EF</strong>M: So, what is it?AS: What’s what?<strong>EF</strong>M: Your answer.AS: My answer?<strong>EF</strong>M: To your question…AS: I asked a question?<strong>EF</strong>M: About the change.AS: I don’t need change. I only use acredit card.<strong>EF</strong>M: You’re not a very good secretagent, are you?AS: Not really. But I am a really good<strong>Allstate</strong> agent.<strong>EF</strong>M: So, what do we do about the loss<strong>of</strong> IT support come January?AS: Ah yes, I have a solution, a plan, astrategy, a means to an end, a way out, asalvation, a …<strong>EF</strong>M: We’ve gone down this path before.What do we do?AS: I have determined through myextensive network <strong>of</strong> contacts, there isa force out there that’s dedicated to thepreservation <strong>of</strong> good, the fight againstevil, vigilant at all times, always therewhen needed, all seeing, all knowing…<strong>EF</strong>M: Some kind <strong>of</strong>…superheroes?AS: To me, they are.<strong>EF</strong>M: Who are these guys?AS: They call themselves the MSPs!<strong>EF</strong>M: The MSPs?AS: Yes, the MSPs.<strong>EF</strong>M: Who are the MSPs?AS: They are the Managed ServicesProviders.<strong>EF</strong>M: What do they do?AS: They act as your IT departmentwithout you having to hire one.<strong>EF</strong>M: Will they take care <strong>of</strong> desktopsand laptops?AS: Sure, and a whole lot more.26 — Exclusivefocus <strong>Fall</strong> 2007
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