Fuelled Networks isn’t your average IT services provider. And that’s good news for its small and mid-size business (SMB) customers throughout Ottawa and the National Capital Region. The company plans, manages, and services networks with a constant eye on how IT and security align with a customer’s business strategy.
As President Ernie Sherman explains, the team acts as both an IT expert to its customers and a business partner. “Adding value to our customer’s business is what really inspires us and we always go above and beyond what is expected,” he says. “That means we not only ensure customers have the best technology in place for strong and secure operating environments, but also have a strategic plan for evolving this to meet their future business needs. We take the time to build trusted relationships and have the conversations that are going to result in better outcomes for our customers.”
Ernie adds, “We also set the bar very high in terms of who we hire and who we partner with for our services portfolio. We hire the right people and we only work with specific solution vendors.”
As cybercriminals continue to advance their attacks on SMB networks, cybersecurity is front and center for Fuelled Networks.
“People usually don’t think about security until there is an incident or security breach. And this is always too late,” says Ernie. “We advise on what comprehensive security should look like for our clients and how it should be managed and incorporated.”
“We take a very strategic approach to cybersecurity and this includes partnering with cybersecurity solution vendors that will complement our tools and services,” he adds. “Equally important, we put the necessary security pieces together for customers and help them with the critical day-to-day management and ongoing strategy. Our true value is helping customers understand the elements needed and then managing the best security framework for their needs.”
Ernie recently partnered with Field Effect, a managed detection and response (MDR) provider, as well as incident response services, to enhance Fuelled Networks’ security services portfolio.
Prior to this, he had an opportunity to see Field Effect MDR in action.
“We were working with a new client in the healthcare services space that had recently experienced a ransomware attack. We needed to build a secure network and design a strategy for comprehensive IT and security support from the ground up after the attack,” explains Ernie. “The client had already retained Field Effect to do incident forensics and analysis on how the ransomware attack occurred and identify vulnerable access points in their network.”
He and his team were immediately impressed. “Once we saw the depth of Field Effect MDR and the company’s unique process of alerting and reporting, we knew this was the company we wanted to partner with.”
In contrast to other solutions, Field Effect MDR consolidates security events into actionable alerts—a proprietary alert and reporting process called Actions, Recommendations, and Observations (AROs). AROs provide clear, practical information with specific remediation steps.
“Field Effect takes the mystery out of security monitoring through a proven process that starts with Field Effect MDR. Field Effect MDR finds the issues, the analysis is reviewed by the Field Effect team, then we review the AROs and discuss any recommendations or next steps with our clients,” he shares. “Our role as an MSP becomes one of remediation instead of taking on the role of security expert. Our clients also have access to the Field Effect MDR platform and can view the AROs, ensuring our accountability.”
For Ernie, partnering with Field Effect has delivered multiple advantages. “This has been a great relationship from the beginning and a valuable complement to the security services we have been providing,” he says.
“We have quickly reached the point where we are using the Field Effect MDR platform for every new client.”
“Through our partnership with Field Effect, we are also in a much better position to have effective security conversations with our clients. We can confidently talk about the security tools we provide and how we have a team of world-class security experts on our side, staying ahead of threats and taking the actions to keep them secure.”
Ernie has not only gained 24/7 continual visibility to potential threats and vulnerabilities across the customer networks his team manages, he has driven adoption of cybersecurity monitoring by 80%.
“After we perform a security audit, clients are often faced with expensive tasks and may not have the budget for full compliance. Now we can provide Field Effect MDR following an audit, bringing peace of mind that a measure is in place to continually identify new risks while we develop the best strategy for compliance within their budget.”