Shreveport Offsite Workforce Configuration Consulting Partner

Expanding your at-home workforce can have a major effect on IT architecture, cybersecurity, and corporate culture. Progent has two decades of background helping small and mid-size businesses to plan, configure, administer, optimize, and debug IT environments that incorporate work-from-home employees. Progent can assist your Shreveport organization to pick the appropriate tools and adhere to leading practices in creating and operating a secure virtual solution for telecommuters that promotes teamwork and delivers maximum business value. Progent can provide services that go from as-needed expertise for helping you over challenging technical bottlenecks to full project management or co-management to help you carry out mission-critical initiatives.

Progent can assist Shreveport, Louisiana organizations to succeed with any facet of creating a high-functioning remote work ecosystem by delivering infrastructure design and configuration services, IP voice expertise, video conferencing integration, collaboration platform selection and deployment, public cloud integration, helpdesk outsourcing, security monitoring, backup/restore solutions, and streamlined management.

Infrastructure for an At-Home Workforce
Setting up the network infrastructure required to support an at-home work environment can be especially challenging if you must accommodate a mix of personal equipment such as PCs and laptops, Internet routers, and Wi-Fi APs from an assortment of vendors and with a mix of operating systems and firmware releases. Progent's experience delivering online support for both outdated and modern technologies in virtual office solutions allows you to make cost-effective use of your available infrastructure and provides you with ready access to top-tire consultants for making necessary updates. Services offered by Progent to help you to create a productive telecommuting ecosystem include:

• VPN technology allows you to create a safe connection for authorized remote employees to use IT resources situated at your corporate datacenter or in a public cloud. Progent can assist you to deploy and maintain VPN access between your at-home workforce and your key network resources by providing online VPN configuration consulting. For businesses with Cisco's ASA firewalls, Progent's Cisco ASA Firewall consultants can help your at-home workers to set up Cisco's AnyConnect client software to provide secure VPN connections for a wide range of endpoint devices including Microsoft Windows, macOS, Apple iOS, Linux, and Android.
• Virtual Desktop Infrastructure platforms allow an at-home worker to see and use a remote PC's desktop. This technology gives network managers significant control over the digital ecosystem of telecommuters and ensures remote users a consistent and more productive experience. Progent's virtual desktop consulting services include Windows Remote Desktop support and Citrix Virtual Apps and Desktops VDI consulting.
• Routers connect at-home computer networks to the Internet and typically support VPN connections, home Wi-Fi networks, and firewalls. Progent can provide expert online consulting for integrating home routers from a variety of manufacturers. See router integration services from Cisco-certified experts.
• Home Wireless networks, typically shared by an entire household and visitors, are commonly used by telecommuters to connect to their Internet router for work. This can create performance and cybersecurity problems. Progent can assist businesses to mitigate these problems by providing expertise that include Cisco Aironet configuration consulting, Cisco-certified Meraki wireless installation consulting, and Ubiquiti Unifi wireless access point integration help.
• Internet access solutions affect the performance and reliability of connections between at-home workers and the corporate network. Vital processes might demand backup Internet connections in the event the primary connection fails. Progent offers expertise for picking Internet service providers, choosing appropriate bandwidth and data volume bundles, and configuring fault-tolerant Internet connections. Refer to Internet access solutions.

IP Voice Solutions for Remote Workers
Expanding the business phone system to accommodate remote users is critical to supporting a productive at-home workforce. A variety of cloud-based digital PBX platforms are used by SMBs to support teleworkers. Many enterprises depend on Cisco's modern or legacy products for VoIP management. Progent can help organizations of any size to design or maintain a remote IP voice service that delivers the flexibility, transparency and security required for at-home workers. Progent's Cisco-certified CCIE Voice experts can provide high-level support to help businesses optimize their current Cisco IP voice environments to handle a growing remote workforce.

• Cisco Unified Communications Manager (Cisco Unified CM) extends high-end telephony capabilities to devices such as IP phones, media processing platforms, VoIP gateways, and multimedia apps used across the network. CUCM manages other combined media services such as unified messaging, video conferencing, and customer interaction networks. For more information about Progent's CUCM support, refer to Cisco Unified Communications Manager consultants.
• Cisco CallManager is Cisco's legacy call-processing agent and has been superseded by CUCM. Progent's consultants can assist you to support your existing CallManager environment or upgrade smoothly to Cisco's modern IP telephony solutions. For details about Progent's support services for Cisco CallManager and Cisco's other older VoIP platforms, refer to CallManager consulting services.
• Cisco IP Gateways enable connectivity with PSTN networks and with clients working beyond the corporate perimeter like telecommuters. Progent offers expert support for Cisco's earlier generation IP gateways including the UC520, UC540 and UC560 series and for current Cisco Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) gateways. See Cisco SIP gateway integration expertise.
• Additional VoIP Platforms supported by Progent's consultants include Vonage, RingCentral and 8x8. Progent can assist you to enhance your wide area network architecture to work with these solutions and deliver as-needed integration and troubleshooting expertise.

Video Conferencing for Remote Workers
A broad range of video conferencing products from leading technology companies enable online meetings, video and voice conferencing, chat sessions, and screen sharing for both local workers and teleworkers. Many companies use multiple products to accommodate their different partners and clients. Progent's communications experts can assist your organization to manage your existing conferencing environment and optimize the productivity of your remote workforce.

• Skype for Business is Microsoft's popular unified communications product that enables real-time presence, IM, voice and video conferencing plus the transparent integration of these functions within Office desktop and Microsoft 365 productivity software such as PowerPoint, Word, Excel and Outlook. Progent offers the expertise of Microsoft-certified specialists who can help your company to set up and manage Skype for Business client software to support your remote workforce. To learn more about Progent's support expertise for Skype for Business, see Skype for Business integration experts.
• FaceTime is Apple's multiuser video phone app for iOS, iPadOS, iPod and macOS devices. FaceTime works over Wi-Fi or cellular Internet connections. Newer versions of FaceTime allow as many as 32 concurrent users for video calls. To learn more about Progent's consulting services for FaceTime, see Progent's FaceTime configuration expertise.
• Webex Meeting Center supports online conferencing for virtually all desktop or mobile devices. Delivered via Cisco's Webex Cloud platform, Webex capabilities include sharing specific content or computer screens, presentations that incorporate rich media including Microsoft PowerPoint and Flash videos, network-based capture, plus revision and playback for future reference and training. To learn more about Progent's consulting expertise for Webex as well as for other video conferencing solutions from Cisco, visit Progent's Webex Meeting Center support services.
• Teams is Microsoft's next-generation replacement for Skype for Business. Teams acts as a portal for conversations, contacts, and information with features such as IP voice and video calling, persistent chat, plus file sharing. For details about Progent's support services for Microsoft Teams as well as for other Microsoft 365 apps, visit Progent's Microsoft Teams consulting services.
• Other Conferencing Platforms supported by Progent's conferencing experts include Google Meet, Amazon Chime, Zoom, and Slack. Progent can provide integration and troubleshooting services for these products and assist your business to tune your network architecture to host them.

Microsoft Integrated Collaboration Software for Telecommuters
Microsoft's collaboration platforms are closely integrated with Microsoft's familiar Office and Microsoft 365 families, offering a rich ecosystem of applications that deliver a cohesive user interface for exchanging data and ideas across multiple sites and on a wide range of endpoint computers. Progent has delivered online consulting support for Microsoft SharePoint and Exchange Server since their first publication and can help businesses to configure these critical collaboration platforms to maximize the effectiveness of your remote workers.

Microsoft's collaboration platforms are tightly integrated with Microsoft's popular Office suite, providing a rich ecosystem of applications that deliver a consistent user experience for sharing information across multiple sites and on a wide variety of endpoint devices. Progent has provided remote consulting services for SharePoint and Exchange since their initial releases and can help at-home workers set up and use these flagship collaboration platforms to maximize productivity.

Microsoft Teams works on top of Microsoft 365 and supports third-party cloud services to provide real-time collaboration. Designed as a substitute for Skype for Business Online, Microsoft Teams can enable chat, video meetings with screen sharing, calling, cloud voicemail, group email, as well as file and application sharing. Teams is closely integrated with Microsoft 365 and relies on Exchange Online, SharePoint Online, OneDrive for Business, and Microsoft Entra (formerly called Azure Active Directory) for supporting its full range of features. For details about Progent's support services for Microsoft Teams and Teams Premium, see planning and configuration expertise for Microsoft Teams.

SharePoint uses web sites to allow collaboration and information delivery by offering policy-based access to content, business processes, and tools for searching through enterprise-wide business data. SharePoint permits you to build protected portals that permits remote workforce to see and edit consolidated corporate intelligence via Intranets (Wikis), Blogs, social web sites, and Web Parts. For details about Progent's SharePoint consulting expertise, see SharePoint integration and development consulting.

Exchange and Exchange Online offer secure collaboration features including public folders, shared mailboxes, and shared calendars and contacts. Progent's Microsoft certified Exchange experts can show you how to activate and utilize these features for your at-home workers. For information about Progent's Exchange consulting services, visit integration consulting services for Exchange.

OneDrive is Microsoft�s shared cloud-based file hosting and synchronization service, similar to GoogleDrive. Remote users can store files to the OneDrive service, and co-workers anywhere can access them securely through a browser. Included with Microsoft 365, OneDrive allows home workers to co-author files. Revisions created offline are automatically uploaded when you reconnect to the Internet. To find out about Progent's support services for Microsoft OneDrive, go to Onedrive configuration experts.

Cloud Integration for Remote Workers
Progent can provide affordable online support for enabling businesses to build, maintain and troubleshoot integrated hybrid network models that incorporate physical data centers, teleworkers, branch offices, plus cloud services. Progent offers top-tier consultant for all modes of public cloud service delivery such as Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), and Software as a Service. Progent can help telecommuters fix problems with cloud connectivity, identity, and cybersecurity.

Microsoft Azure is a popular platform for public cloud services that enables you to utilize IT infrastructure, virtual servers, and critical apps hosted on Microsoft's extensive cloud. Microsoft Azure offers over 100 services services including the ability to host Windows and Linux-powered VMs, on-demand cloud storage, messaging, app development with Visual Studio, and backup/restore. Progent can assist your organization to deploy VMs on Azure Virtual Machines, integrate storage on Azure Storage services, unify identity management with Azure Active Directory, and plan data backup and recovery solutions with Azure Backup. Progent's cloud experts can also show you how to establish protected connections to Azure for at-home workers by configuring and debugging firewalls and VPN IPsec tunnels. For details about Progent's support services for Azure, go to Microsoft Azure expertise.

Microsoft 365, formerly branded Office 365, is Microsoft's growing family of business productivity applications and cloud-based services available by subscription. Microsoft applications and cloud services are provided in a selection of plans intended for users ranging from students and households to major corporations. Progent can provide fast and affordable remote access to consultants familiar with Microsoft 365-compatible endpoint devices based on Windows, Mac, iOS, and Google Android operating systems. Progent's experts can assist your business to evaluate the various subscription plans offered with Microsoft 365 and deploy 365 applications for your at-home workers in a way that delivers maximum business value. For details about Progent's expertise for Microsoft 365, see Microsoft 365 integration expertise.

Microsoft 365 Exchange Online is one of the most popular cloud-based applications in Azure-hosted Microsoft 365 product suite. Exchange Online offers the advantages of lower costs for data center infrastructure, easier management, on-demand scaling, high reliability, and additional advantages associated with public clouds. Microsoft has designed Microsoft 365 Exchange Online to operate smoothly with on-premises Exchange environments, allowing you to create hybrid cloud/onsite networks. Progent's Exchange experts can provide occasional assistance to guide you through tough technical bottlenecks and can also provide comprehensive project management services to make sure your teleworkers have convenient and safe access to your Exchange Online environment. To find out Progent's consulting services for Microsoft 365 Exchange Online, refer to Microsoft 365 Exchange Online configuration and troubleshooting consulting.

Amazon Web Services (AWS) is a trailblazer in the public cloud market and is the industry's top provider of cloud services. Progent offers quick and affordable online access to cloud integration experts who can assist your business to plan, deploy, maintain, and troubleshoot hybrid information networks that integrate Amazon AWS cloud-based services with on-premises resources and with other public clouds such as Azure. Progent also offers access to Cisco-certified CCIE networking consultants to help your company to build a high-uptime network architecture to make sure your employees have a productive computing experience whether they are working from your headquarters, a remote branch, from home, or on the move. For details about Progent's consulting services for Amazon AWS, go to Amazon AWS consulting services.

Google Cloud (GCP) is a leading suite of cloud computing services that provides Infrastructure-as-a-Service and Platform-as-a-Service products. Progent's certified Microsoft, Linux, and Cisco experts can assist you to scale your current IT resources with the Google Cloud, and Progent's DBA experts can show you how to make your key applications cloud friendly so your at-home workers can take full advantage of Google Cloud services. Progent's consultants can help your business to set up virtual machines on GCP Compute Engine, plan a cost-effective storage system with Google Cloud Storage services, and streamline access management for teleworkers with GCP Cloud Identity services. Progent can also help you to use GCP's unified management technology to administer and monitor your Google Cloud environment. For details, refer to Google Cloud Platform (GCP) consulting expertise.

Help Desk Call Center Services for Teleworkers
An emergency, company-wide changeover to a telecommuter workforce, which might be driven by an epidemic or as a component of a business continuity process, can overstretch even a high-performing internal Support Desk. Progent's Help Desk services make it possible for organizations of any size to outsource or augment their Help Desk with Progent's online Technical Response Center services.

• Progent's Standard Call Center services utilize Progent's extensive team of online IT support specialists combined with world-class trouble ticketing and tracking software to offer an economical, state-of-the-art Call Desk. Progent's Standard Help Desk Services provide a comprehensive solution that addresses all facets of remote Level 1 desktop technical support from initial service requests through ticket generation, screen sharing, issue resolution, and reporting. A browser-based User's Service Portal enables from-home workers to track or revise the status of their current trouble tickets, enter information, and append screen captures and relevant files. Desktop support services are provided at a significant price reduction off Progent's ordinary Level 1 desktop service rates, and Progent makes available optional rapid escalation to Level 2 and Level 3 support specialists to resolve complex problems. For more information, refer to Progent's Standard Helpdesk Services for small companies.
• Progent's Help Desk Call Center Supplemental Service enables your business to augment your existing Call Center team by sharing delivery of Help Desk Call Center support transparently between your regular IT support organization and Progent's nationwide team of desktop support technicians and subject matter specialists. Progent's shared Help Desk service is based on a co-sourcing support model based on the leading professional services automation (PSA) tool for handling service requests and ticketing, establishing ownership, monitoring progress, and producing reports. To find out how Progent's Support Desk Augmentation Services can help your business to deliver best-in-class desktop support to your teleworkers, see Progent's Help Desk supplementation Services.

Security for Teleworkers
Work-from-Home (WFH) employees commonly utilize their personal computing devices and often work in a poorly secured physical space. This multiplies their vulnerability to cyber threats and requires careful configuration of firewalls, AV tools, MFA-based identity verification, remote monitoring, intensive end-user education, and the development of policies built on leading practices. Progent's seasoned team of IT security solutions experts can help your business to design, configure and maintain an effective security solution that protects vital information resources in environments that include remote workers.

Firewalls allow you to build a network that can be securely accessed by on-premises users and by at-home workers, mobile workers, vendors, customers, and other stakeholders. Modern firewall appliances permit you to configure and control different permissions to various classes of users and to expand your IT network and adjust your cybersecurity posture as your business evolves and as cyber threats become increasingly complex. Progent works with both new and older firewall appliances from all major vendors including Cisco, Palo Alto Networks, WatchGuard, Juniper, SonicWall and Fortinet. To learn more about Progent's firewall support expertise, see firewall integration and support expertise.

Online Endpoint Monitoring makes it easy to track the disparate computers utilized by at-home workers and either reject or identify and mitigate the latest threats like ransomware. With ProSight Active Security Monitoring services, a small-footprint software agent is put on every protected endpoint device, monitoring all activity and utilizing advanced AI technology from SentinelOne to detect zero-day threats on arrival. When a cyberattack is spotted, ProSight Active Security Monitoring instantly isolates the impacted endpoint device from the corporate network to contain the threat. Because the ProSight ASM software agent is autonomous, endpoints stay secure even if they are disconnected from the Internet. Progent is a SentinelOne Partner, dealer, and integrator. To find out more about ProSight ASM, visit remote endpoint monitoring for an at-home workforce.

Progent's Duo MFA Services incorporate Cisco's Duo cloud technology to protect against password theft by using two-factor authentication. Duo enables single-tap identity verification on iOS, Android, and other personal devices. Using Duo 2FA, when you log into a secured online account and give your password you are asked to verify who you are on a unit that only you have and that is accessed using a different ("out-of-band") network channel. A wide selection of out-of-band devices can be utilized for this second means of ID validation such as an iPhone or Android or wearable, a hardware token, a landline telephone, etc. You can register multiple verification devices. To learn more about Duo identity validation services, visit Duo MFA two-factor authentication services for telecommuters.

Security Audits can evaluate the exposure of your information system to all classes of outside and internal security attacks for a network that incorporates teleworkers. Progent can deploy online, automated security inventory software for rapidly and affordably uncovering a broad range of security holes that can be surfaced via the Internet. Progent's endpoint security audit consulting services, which can be provided by security professionals with advanced credentials such as CISA, CISSP, and GIAC, can assist your business to evaluate your operations and policies and review your WAN architecture to enable you to design the highest level of security for your teleworkers.

Horizon3.ai's NodeZero Penetration Testing Platform is a breakthrough penetration test (pentest) product family that can deliver autonomous testing of your at-home environment and your internal and perimeter networks so you can identify, rank, fix, and verify security vulnerabilities before threat actors can exploit them. Progent's pentest experts can assist you to deploy NodeZero to perform comprehensive pentests of your perimeter and your internal network in order to determine your present security posture. Progent's NodeZero experts can also assist you to harden your existing network security and can help you to design and implement a unified cybersecurity strategy that streamlines management and delivers maximum protection for on-premises, cloud-based, at-home, and perimeter IT assets. To learn additional information about Progent's threat assessment services based on on NodeZero's penetration test products, refer to Consulting Support for NodeZero's Pentest Products.

Download White Paper: Securing a Work-From-Home (WFH) Network
To view or download a white paper describing critical things to concentrate on for securing an IT environment that incorporates telecommuters, click:
Protecting a Work-From-Home (WFH) Network White Paper. (PDF - 2.4 MB)

Data Protection for Remote Workers
Data Protection involves backing up and recovering vital information in order to prevent data loss and minimize recovery time in case of storage problems due to hardware issues, software hiccups, user mistakes, cyber attack, or other causes. Dependable data protection strategies can be especially challenging to architect and maintain in hybrid networks that combine local data centers, public clouds, and at-home workers.

• Backup/Recovery strategies for teleworkers must address multiple kinds of user-owned endpoint devices. Progent can provide quick online help from experts familiar with a wide range of products for protection Microsoft Windows, Apple and Linux/UNIX powered servers and desktops as well as notebooks, iOS and Android tablets and handhelds. Popular backup/recovery products supported by Progent's backup/recovery consultants include Barracuda Backup, Azure Backup, Symantec Backup Exec, Acronis Backup and Recovery, Retrospect, and Time Machine. To back up resources distributed across a wide area network, Progent can provide ProSight Data Protection Services, a managed backup/recovery service that uses cloud storage and includes fine-grained recovery and centralized management capabilities.
• Disaster Recovery/Business Continuity strategies typically envision scenarios that require a rapid changeover to a work-at-home environment. Progent's expert disaster recovery preparedness consultants and business continuity specialists can assist you to produce, document and validate a DR/BC plan that includes the logistics of moving to an at-home workforce.

Unified Management for Teleworkers
Microsoft has rebranded and reshuffled its endpoint management products under the name Microsoft Endpoint Manager, which encompasses Intune for cloud-based management of mobile and remote endpoints and Configuration Manager for managing on-premises computers. Endpoint Manager offers a centralized platform for protecting corporate data by managing local, mobile, and at-home endpoint devices.

Microsoft Intune
Intune is part of Microsoft's Endpoint Management family that also includes Configuration Manager. Intune is a cloud-based service for managing and securing off-premises devices and software. Remote endpoint computers can be personally owned or company owned. Network administrators managing the enrolled endpoint devices of teleworkers can utilize Intune to provision and validate applications on devices, push patches and certificates, configure policies for accessing information and resources, set passwords, create VPN tunnels, control how home-based workers share data, set up threat defense, verify security compliance, and erase sensitive information from lost, stolen or decommissioned devices. Intune works with iOS, Google Android, Windows, and macOS/OS X computers. For details about Microsoft Intune and how Progent can assist you to use this platform to administer the devices of your teleworkers, refer to Intune mobile device management experts.

VMware Workspace ONE
VMware Workspace ONE is an advanced centralized Mobile Device Management (MDM) platform that helps network managers to keep remote endpoint devices current and protected. Workspace ONE uses VMware AirWatch for centralized endpoint administration plus VMware's Horizon virtual software delivery technology for authorization control, application management, and setup management of endpoint devices. Workspace ONE operates with devices powered by Windows 10, macOS, Apple iOS, Android, Chrome OS, or popular distros of Linux. VMware Workspace ONE is offered by subscription as a cloud service or as an on-site deployment through a perpetual license. Key capabilities of Workspace ONE include rapid remote deployment of new notebooks, quick onboarding of new employees, policy setting and enforcement for all classes of devices, unifies reporting and performance analytics, email encryption, and seamless integration with Microsoft applications and cloud services. To learn about Progent's support services for VMware Workspace ONE, see VMware Workspace ONE mobile endpoint management expertise.

Contact Progent for Remote Workforce Expertise
To get in touch with Progent about creating and managing a productive work-from-home environment for your Shreveport, Louisiana business, call 1-800-993-9400 or refer to Contact Progent.