IT support for accounting and tax practices in New Jersey.
A season where nothing can go down, client financial data on every desk, and tax software that has opinions about the server it runs on.
Three things we set up first.
A freeze on changes from February to April
Patches and projects are scheduled around the season. Help desk priority goes up when the deadline is close.
Secure client file handling
Encrypted storage, a portal instead of email attachments, and audit-ready backups that are restored on a schedule.
Tax software kept happy
We know what the common packages want from a server and a network, and we keep them there.
What it looks like in practice
Accounting practices run on a calendar, and IT has to run on the same one. From February through April nothing changes unless it is broken, help desk priority goes up, and the people who answer the phone know the deadline is real. The rest of the year is when servers get replaced, tax software gets moved to the version the vendor wants, and the file handling gets fixed: encrypted storage, a client portal instead of email attachments, and a backup that has been restored on a schedule rather than assumed. Every one of those is also something your insurer will ask about at renewal.
What accounting and tax practices get.
Managed IT
Help desk, patching with SuperOps, SentinelOne endpoint protection, tested backups, a managed firewall and a quarterly review, for one monthly number. Managed IT plans
Microsoft 365
Migrations off Google Workspace, GoDaddy or an old Exchange server, and cleanup of tenants somebody else set up. Microsoft 365 migration
Phones on 3CX
One number on the desk phone, the cell and the laptop, with your existing numbers ported. Phone systems
Cyber insurance requirements
MFA, endpoint detection and response, tested backups and the written evidence your insurer asks for at renewal. Insurance-ready IT
Backup and recovery
Servers and Microsoft 365 backed up offsite and restore-tested on a schedule. We can tell you the date of the last test. Backup and disaster recovery
Where we work
On site across Hunterdon, Somerset, Mercer, Morris and Middlesex counties. Flemington, Somerville, Bridgewater, Hillsborough, Princeton, Clinton.
Questions from accounting and tax practices
Do you have a change freeze during tax season?
Yes. Patches and projects are scheduled around the season and the freeze dates are agreed with you in advance. Emergency fixes still happen; planned changes wait.
Can you support preparers working from home during season?
Yes. Secure remote access to the office systems, MFA on every account, and the same help desk whether someone is at a desk in the office or at a kitchen table.
We send client documents by email. Is that a problem?
It is a risk and increasingly a compliance issue. A portal or a secure sharing tool such as our own Squawk Secret replaces attachments with expiring links and a record of who opened what.
Which tax and accounting software do you support?
The common desktop and hosted packages. We know what they want from a server, a network and a workstation, and we keep them there.
Tell us about your practice.
Thirty minutes. What you do, how many people, what has been going wrong. We tell you what we would charge and what it would include.