Why You Shouldn't Rely on One Person to Manage I.T.

At The IT Company we believe it is important not to solely rely on one individual IT person. We find it important that more than one person has access to the tools and credentials that secure your company. Or if the best option for your company isto have only one person with credentials to high security systems, The IT Company finds it critical that companies have an IT company that backs that one person.

Bottom line, as a company you should not rely on one person alone to know everything from an IT perspective.

There are a multitude of reasons we at The IT Company are encouraging this. But in a recent article regarding an IT scandal, we felt called to highlight this topic and discuss the importance.

Back in 2016, Steffan Needham was fired from his IT position at a company called Voova. Out of hostility toward the company, Needham used another employee’s credentials to gain back access the company’s server and torched 23 Amazon Web Servers that hosted the company’s main applications and data. The company was unable to recover the data lost and fix the damage Needham caused. In Inc’s article, it confirms that Needham was sentenced for the crime last month.

While this situation is tragic for Voova, it can be used a powerful lesson to other companies. This incident brings to our attention a serious concern- what happens when something happens to your company’s IT person? Do you have a plan in place for if the IT person is fired? Will there be someone who can gain access to systems if an unexpected tragedy happens to your IT person? What about if they turn on you as Needham did, do you have a plan then?

By placing full reliance on an individual IT person, The IT Company foresees it being a problem specifically in three types of situations regarding that individual IT person:

1. Death
2. Leaving the company or being let go.
3. Going against the company.

No one wants to think of themselves as being in one of these positions. As business leaders, you want to believe the best in your employees and in circumstances. But companies need to switch their mindset from “what will we do if this happens?” to “what will we do when it happens.” By doing so, they prepare themselves for recovering stronger.

If a tragedy were to take place with an individual IT person and they were no longer there to access the company’s systems or unable to verbally pass on the needed credentials, would your company be able to continue its daily tasks? By having multiple people with IT access or having an IT Company that backs your IT person, you ensure that there’s not chance of being locked out of your systems or the required access points.

When someone is no longer with a company, it is pertinent that there is someone who has the same knowledge and access as the IT person. If not, there may be delays in the functioning of the company. No company can afford down time. Save yourself by not fully relying on one individual.

And finally, if you were to find yourself in a situation like Voova, by having a back up for your individual IT person, you lessen the risk of this person taking your company down. If there is someone with as much knowledge and power as them, it will add an extra layer of security.

We encourage you to not wait until it is too late to think about this topic. It is too much on one person and it is far too risky to rely solely on a single IT person. There are controls that can be put in place, such as two-factor authentication, to provide extra security for this topic.

But we at The IT Company cannot stress to you enough how important it is to have a company back your IT person or to have more than one IT person. If you are reading this and realizing you are putting all your confidence and security in one person, reach out to us. We would like to help you find the best and most secure option for your company, leaving room for your happiness and success.