Frequently Asked Questions

In some cases, the same day.

That’s if you’re using Microsoft 365 Business Premium with the build process automated. Through this, your employees can sign into the new device with their 365 credentials, and the automation will install the apps that you have approved for that user, as well as assign and configure all appropriate security controls and any other required settings.

Through the ‘traditional’ method (where we manually set the laptop up), we quote 3-5 working days, with the option of expediting this in an emergency.

We have local offices in:

• Barlborough, Chesterfield
• London
• Leeds
• Doncaster
• Sheffield
• Lincoln

We have clients all over the UK, from the south coast to Glasgow.

Yes! As an MSP, we’re committed to the highest information security and data protection standards. Holding ISO 27001 accreditation demonstrates that we follow the best practices and standards for managing your sensitive information.

It also means that we have a robust framework for identifying and mitigating any potential risks or threats to your data.

Your MSP should also be Cyber Essentials Plus accredited (we are) as this demonstrates a high level of cyber awareness and that they can protect you from common cyber attacks.

Yes we are Cyber Essentials Plus accredited.

Cyber Essentials Plus is a government-backed scheme that requires an independent assessment of a company’s technical controls, such as firewalls, antivirus, patch management, and secure configuration. By having this accreditation, it demonstrates that we have taken the necessary steps to safeguard our systems and data, as well as yours.

We can also help you achieve this valuable accreditation.

AAG truly believes IT shouldn’t be seen as a cost, it should deliver to the bottom line.

That’s why we work with all our clients on a partnership basis. Our highly trained IT professionals are ready to deal with any day-to-day issues, but we’re not just a set of firefighters. For all of our clients, we build a long-term relationship and ensure IT adds value to their business.

We onboard new prospects through our proven partnership process. This process involves getting to know your people, understanding their day-to-day jobs, and understanding your business processes. Using this knowledge, we make recommendations for how technology can drive efficiency, improve security, and ultimately improve your profitability.

Our proven partnership process also enables us to create your 3-year IT strategy, ensuring that all technology investments deliver value as your business grows. Quarterly strategic meetings ensure our knowledge of your business goals and challenges remains up-to-date.

We continue to spend time with your staff, so we understand how they interact with IT on a day-to-day basis as part of a continuous improvement strategy.

We know that multiple invoices written in opaque language are frustrating. That’s why we invoice you on a single monthly invoice where possible.

We support clients from a wide range of sectors using many different ERP software, so have experience supporting hundreds of different applications. We act as your IT Department, so we “own” any issues with errors or performance with software and ensure that things are resolved in a timely manner.

Once a project has been approved, it will be assigned a project lead. They will arrange a call with the main point of contact to go through the scope, timescales, and outline any risks and impact to the business. A detailed plan will be provided with clear milestones documented. We will bill you in stages as each milestone is completed.

This varies depending on the project itself, but typically we start new projects within a few weeks.

Onsite days are unique for each client, so at the start of onboarding we will agree on any objectives. Generally, onsite days are used for dealing with day-to-day issues such as desk moves, and planned / scheduled work, but can also include staff training and development. It could also include system developments, such as getting better use out of Microsoft 365 or other applications.

We are a Microsoft Partner, meaning all our engineers are Microsoft trained and qualified in Microsoft technologies ranging from server support to Microsoft Azure Solution Architects.

Barlborough, Chesterfield.

We normally quote a 6 week lead time to onboard new clients. While our process ensures that the switch happens as smoothly as possible, unfortunately no transition is ever seamless.

Onboarding takes around 6 weeks as it’s vital that we fully understand and document all of your systems prior to going live. This means that we can ensure that our Service Desk is fully trained and aware of your network and individual intricacies. From day one, when one of your colleagues logs a ticket, they get a great experience that demonstrates why we aren’t just another IT support company.

As mentioned, no transition is seamless. What we do ensure is that your onboarding is treated as a project in its own right. Having done over 100 onboardings, we’ve refined our process, so you can be assured that you’re in safe hands.

Yes! We understand the importance of staying ahead of regulation and compliance, and pride ourselves on working closely with our clients to ensure they have peace of mind that their systems are compliant.

Here’s just some of the ways we help our clients stay on the right side of compliance:

We establish strict policies on software installations to prevent unauthorised or harmful programs from being introduced into your system, as suggested by the ISO/IEC 27002:2013 IT Security Techniques Code of Practice.

This includes applying the principle of least privilege, where users are only given the minimum level of access necessary to perform their jobs. We set up robust access controls to exclude sensitive data from general access and train your team to ensure those standards are maintained

Additionally, we use Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) systems to centralise security notifications from your technologies, making it easier to manage and monitor threat detection. SIEM also provides logging and reporting capabilities, a crucial factor in compliance.

Our risk assessment and treatment process is also aligned with international standards to help identify and address potential risks to your systems.

We support customers from a huge variety of different industries, so it’s entirely possible! Professional Services, Legal IT Support, Financial IT Support, Hospitality IT Support, and Manufacturing IT Support are just a few of the industries we’re experienced in supporting.

The simple answer is yes. However, there is a caution attached:

Old technology normally brings security risks as systems are no longer updated or patched by the manufacturer. We will let you know of these risks, and these would be included in your IT strategy so you are fully aware and informed of what options you have available.

We do understand that some old technology needs to stay in place. This isn’t a problem, and we mitigate any risks by implementing additional technical controls.

Ideally (if you’re working with a proactive provider like AAG), you’ll already be aware of the limitations and risks of old technology, with a plan to mitigate any issues. If you don’t, we’re here to help.

Yes, we’re experienced supporting the needs of clients with nationwide locations. We even support global businesses – one of our current clients has RIGs in different countries. Our support remains consistent across locations, nationally or internationally.

Part of that support is ensuring clients can work while travelling, so we provide the correct technology to enable that.

We have a few backup solutions that we recommend, but ultimately, it comes down to 2 key factors.

• How long can your system be down for?
• What is your budget?

One solution provides you with instant restore capabilities through an offsite cloud provider, but we also offer basic solutions that provide simple file level restoration. Your individual requirements determine which backup solution we recommend.

That’s why we ask the right questions to understand those requirements, after which we will present you with available options.

Yes! It’s what we live for. Strategic guidance is an essential part of modern business, so we cover the entire spectrum to tailor advice to your specific needs. The list includes (but is certainly not limited to):

• IT Working Groups – these are department led.
• Understanding your 3-year business plan, so we can present an IT strategy that aligns and supports it.
• Ensuring your IT infrastructure supports your goals.
• 1-2-1 sessions with users to understand their individual roles and how they interact with IT on a day-to-day basis.
• Understanding the business, the departmental challenges and how users interact with IT daily, which allows us to look at ways technology can make processes more efficient.

Yes! We provide you with a clear 3-year IT strategy document containing clear and easy to understand budgets. This ensures that you never get hit with any unexpected costs and includes:

• Hardware Replacement RAG (red, amber, green) rated reports with budgetary cost.
• 3-year IT Strategic plan, with timelines and budgetary costs.

Yes! Many businesses come to us with the issue of having ‘outgrown’ their current provider. That’s why we create 3-year IT strategies for our clients – we ensure that technology and our services continue to align with business goals as operations develop and grow.

If you’d like more information, read about the work we have done with WB Power, who joined us with 50 users and now have over 300 users.

Our 1st response on a critical issue is 15 minutes. For a high priority ticket is 1 hr.

As part of our onboarding we define what is critical and what is high based on your needs, as we know these vary from business to business.

For example, if you are a logistics business and the despatch printer isn’t working, this stops a lorry from leaving and is therefore critical. In other businesses, a printer being down wouldn’t be a major concern.

We don’t identify critical tickets as just servers being down. We identify what is critical to your business.

Not necessarily.

We work with businesses on a partnership basis, so our recommendations support your business goals, improve your security and enhance your efficiency. If we believe that moving to the cloud achieves those goals, we will present the case for this investment. IT should never be just a cost – it should drive greater profitability for your business.