Business owners in the digital age face a new truth: the most innovative products and even the best employees must all be supported by a state-of-the-art IT infrastructure to succeed. Byars Wright Insurance, a highly regarded commercial property and casualty broker, discovered this when partnering with Evolv I.T., the leading Managed Service Provider (MSP) in the Southeast, to optimize its information technology processes in 2021. Mitchell Garnett, the Chief Financial Officer at Byars Wright Insurance, says, “Evolv [I.T.] just really blew it out of the park. They did a great job of understanding us, and then they found really the pain points for us and showed us exactly how they would fix those.”
Below, Garnett and Byars Wright’s producer, Whitt Luker, discuss what they’ve gained from partnering with Evolv I.T.
1. The benefits of Multi-factor Authentication are far-reaching.
Multi-factor authentication (MFA) has become a vital part of cybersecurity. It can help prevent a hacker from accessing valuable company data, as even if they do manage to steal a password, they must still type in a texted or emailed security code to access the account. No code, no access, and the account’s owner will be alerted to the attempt and can change their password. Given its value, this additional cybersecurity step can be required by vendors, as was the case for Byars Wright Insurance.
“[Our] cyber insurance/liability carrier was going to non-renew our own insurance for not having multi-factor authentication,” Luker explains. “Evolv I.T. came in and resolved that MFA issue. Evolv I.T. installed multi-factor authentication on all of our devices, which then, in turn, made us eligible for the cyber liability policy that we needed to cover our company. Not only did [this] help us grow as a company and get the coverage we needed, but we were also able to add that as a resource for our own customers. A rampant issue [for them] right now, specifically in cyber liability, is multi-factor authentication, and we are able to now refer [them to] Evolv I.T. to solve those same problems.”
Whitt Luker, Producer, Byars Wright Insurance
The lesson for all businesses is that MFA is extremely useful; one simple step implemented across offices can strengthen cybersecurity and satisfy crucial insurance requirements.
2. Outsourcing IT increases productivity.
While Evolv I.T. was primarily focused on mitigating tech issues for Byars Wright Insurance, it also benefited the company by speeding up network connection times, decreasing network downtime, enhancing communication between their multiple office locations, and decreasing the workload of their operations team. Evolv I.T. also took on a vendor management role, eliminating lengthy employee phone calls. All of this combined helped Byars Wright to have more time to do what they do best: grow their company. Their team can now take on more tasks and projects simply because they no longer deal with time-consuming tech issues.
3. Evolv I.T. can spot hidden threats that may cause issues if not addressed.
Technology issues that can hinder the growth of a company are not unlike diseases – they may be hard to see, but they are still there. If not discovered early enough, they can result in serious issues that are difficult to correct down the line.
Evolv I.T. uncovered the pain points Byars Wright Insurance had within its technology infrastructure, and they proactively identified multiple issues, created a plan for solving each one, and got to work implementing it.
Garnett says, “They make sure everything is as secure as possible. They’re in the back end, looking at things that we didn’t even know were going on [and] making sure that our systems aren’t getting penetrated or that any attacks are coming in. If anything happens, they’re letting us know, but are also handling it before we even know about it.”
With Evolv I.T. uncovering and mitigating issues, Byars Wright Insurance is free from the burden of technology pain points and frustrations.
Mitchell Garnett, CEO of Byars Wright Insurance, and Pete Sansing, Evolv I.T.’s Director of Procurement
4. Evolv I.T. can unify all office locations and bring them under one technological umbrella.
Byars Wright Insurance has seven offices, all of which must seamlessly communicate with each other and be up-to-date on software licenses. Evolv I.T. stepped in to optimize connectivity and properly maintain the licenses for their productivity suites, such as O365, Teams, and Google.
Garnett says, “We work on a program that is web-based. All employees are in at the same time and in seven different locations. [Evolv I.T.] makes sure all of those [offices] are up and running. Evolv I.T. also provides on-site support as needed for them.”
Technology empowers all Byars Wright Insurance locations to function as one cohesive team despite being miles apart.
5. Evolv I.T. conducts employee training and offers custom in-app features for clients, leading to fewer errors, increased cybersecurity, and more money saved.
Byars Wright Insurance has excellent team members, but mistakes and knowledge gaps are inevitable without training, so Evolv I.T. helps its employees understand cybersecurity risks and compliance. Employees continuously learn about phishing, malware, ransomware, MFA, and other recommended cybersecurity protocols, which fortify the digital perimeter of Byars Wright Insurance. If employees find an email suspicious, they simply flag it for Evolv I.T.’s review by clicking a custom in-app icon. This icon Evolv I.T. installed allows employees to quickly report an email for review, which will also remove this email from every inbox in the company. Once Evolv I.T. reviews it, it will either be sent back to their inboxes if found legitimate or wholly removed from the company’s system if found to be malicious.
On top of this manual employee reporting, Evolv I.T. monitors Byars Wright’s network 24/7/365 with its best-in-class detection tools, staying ahead of any malicious hacking or phishing attempts. This proactive monitoring allows Evolv I.T. to remove many of the malicious emails before Byars Wright employees receive them.
With Evolv I.T.’s employee training, custom in-app icons, and 24/7 monitoring, employees at Byars Wright Insurance are much less likely to fall for online scams, which decreases the risk of costly cybersecurity breaches. Evolv I.T. is available to support Byars Wright in any technology emergency 24/7/365, adding an extra layer of peace of mind. Byars Wright knows Evolv I.T. is there to help, no matter the day or time.
Evolv I.T.: the technology partner businesses need in the digital age
After enjoying such success with Evolv I.T., Byars Wright Insurance now refers its own clients so that they, too, can meet cybersecurity compliance guidelines, have their staff be trained in cyber risk mitigation, enjoy custom in-app icons, and be sure that their information technology infrastructure is efficient and functioning correctly. The successful transition of Byars Wright Insurance to the age of AI and business is evidence that the outsourcing of I.T. needs can be a wise move, one that leads to security, scalability, and productivity.
About Evolv I.T.
Headquartered in Birmingham, AL, Evolv I.T. is a leading end-to-end Managed Services Provider with one of the industry’s highest client satisfaction ratings (99.8%). Evolv I.T. offers revolutionary technology solutions to companies, such as technology lifecycle planning, asset management, 24/7/365 breach prevention, in-app shortcuts that reduce the risk of suspicious emails, ERP systems, software management, IT support, and more. Its national services increase the efficiency, productivity, security, scalability, and productivity of its clients. Evolv I.T. has been included in the Birmingham Business Journal’s Best Places to Work two years in a row. For more information, please see Evolv I.T.’s website.
