Your Business Alignment Review (BAR) - Schedule & FAQ

Business Alignment (BAR)

Your Business Alignment Review is a scheduled time for us to focus on the technology in your office and work to realign it with best practices.

Let's be honest, no one looks forward to calling IT for help. If we can fix a problem ourselves, we will. However, today, with technology changes moving at a rapid pace, it is more critical than ever for employees to communicate with IT so we can help each other. One of the best ways to start a conversation is face-to-face, either in-person or over a video meeting.

Our Business Alignment Reviews are an excellent way to start a conversation and keep it going. Below is the typical schedule we follow for each review, followed by common questions we receive. 

Schedule

Below is a typical schedule for both Onsite and Remote BARs. Although your review may be customized and differ from the one below, nearly all reviews include the following:

• A kick-off meeting between the Ntiva technician assigned to the review and the designated Primary Contact in your office. This is a time for both parties to...
  • Compare notes and listen to feedback;
  • Discuss any priority item (s);
  • Confirm the time and location of an open "Genius Bar" session (if one will be held).
• We then work through our checklist of items that include auditing app licenses and accounts, reviewing support requests, updating documentation, and reaching out to individuals as needed.
• We wrap up by saying goodbye to the Primary Contact, providing a summary of all work and confirming the date of our next review.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

Q: How are BARs scheduled?
A: BARs are pre-scheduled and recurring based on your support package and the number of devices in our system.

Q: How many reviews do we get?
A: The number of BARs delivered to your office is based on a combination of your support package and the number of devices in our system. 

Q: Do we need these reviews? 
A: Absolutely! These reviews are a time to focus on maintaining and improving the technology in your office. These reviews are a time to make a connection with your team — the people using technology — so they feel comfortable reaching out to us for assistance. These reviews are essential to staying ahead of issues and concerns surrounding the support we provide.

Q: How disruptive are these reviews?
A: Not disruptive at all. We start by checking in with our Primary Contact. We then check in with any available employees. If someone is at their desk, we say hi and ask if there are any issues we should address. If they are too busy or not at their desk, we move on. 

Q: Will we have to step away from our Mac during the review? 
A: We may review only a few Macs or none at all. Our modern management and security tools have eliminated the need to ask people to step away from their Mac — unless specific assistance is requested.

Q: Some people will be out of the office. Should we reschedule?
A: There's a good chance someone will always be out during a review. Therefore we recommend only rescheduling if our Primary Contact will be unavailable. 

Q: What will you accomplish during these reviews?
A: Although every office — and every office review — is unique, we have developed an internal checklist to guide us. Additionally, we have found that being onsite is sometimes the only time people will bring issues to our attention! A few of the main tasks we look to accomplish include:

• Review the status of supported devices in our system.
• Physically inspect hardware.
• Review support requests. What can we do to move forward or resolve them?
• Check-in with several people to ensure needs are met.
• Basically, check-in with all items we simply can't see remotely.

Q: We have too many employees for you to review. How do you handle this?
A: In large offices, we often use a combination of personal visits and a "Genius Bar" set up in a designated area — or remote — where anyone can stop by to ask questions and get face-to-face, personal assistance.

Q: Should we collect a list of technology issues to address during these reviews?
A: BARs are not the best time to address and resolve accumulated issues. Please encourage people to reach out to our Support Desk for assistance. It's best for all requests to be sent to us immediately so we can address them as soon as possible.

Please contact us for any additional or clarifying questions. Thanks!