— The Brief
Writing on the practice of shipping.
The Cybersecurity Risks of Former Employees
Most former employees are not trying to harm the company. The real cybersecurity problem is often simpler: access survives because nobody remembered it existed. This guide explains how businesses can offboard identities, SaaS accounts, sessions, tokens, devices, files, privileged access, cloud systems, repositories, and shared credentials without turning every routine departure into an incident investigation.
What Is a Customer Portal and Does Your Business Need One?
Customers keep asking for invoices, documents, project updates, approvals, payment links, and support status. A customer portal can give them a secure place to handle some of those tasks themselves - but that does not mean every business needs one. Here’s how to decide what belongs in a portal, what should stay human, and whether to build, integrate, or use software you already have.
When Should a Business Replace an Aging Server?
A server should not be replaced just because it reached a certain birthday. But it should not stay in production simply because it still powers on. Here’s how to evaluate hardware support, operating-system lifecycle, storage, performance, backups, recovery, capacity, dependencies, and business risk before deciding whether to repair, upgrade, replace, migrate, or retire an aging server.
Should Security Cameras Be on a Separate Network?
In most business environments, IP security cameras should not have unrestricted access to the same network as employee computers and sensitive systems. A dedicated camera VLAN with carefully designed firewall rules can create a cleaner security boundary without breaking the NVR, remote viewing, cloud services, or other functions the camera system actually needs.
You Have 37 SaaS Subscriptions. How Many Do You Actually Need?
Your company may have 12 SaaS tools or 80. Neither number tells you whether the environment is healthy. The real question is whether every application has a clear purpose, owner, user base, cost, security posture, integration role, renewal plan, and exit strategy.
10 Signs Your Business Software Needs a UX Redesign
Your software can technically have every feature the business asked for and still make everyday work unnecessarily difficult. Here are 10 practical signs that the problem may be the user experience—and how to tell whether you need a targeted improvement, broader redesign, or deeper application modernization.
Why Mobile Apps Get Rejected by Apple or Google
Your app can work perfectly on the founder’s iPhone and still fail App Store review. Apple and Google review more than whether a binary launches: they also look at completeness, privacy, permissions, account flows, payments, store metadata, user safety, technical requirements, and whether reviewers can actually understand and use the product. This guide explains the problems that catch teams off guard and how to prepare before clicking Submit.
How Often Should a Business Website Be Updated?
There is no single schedule for updating an entire business website. Contact information may need to change today, a security patch may need prompt attention, content may deserve a quarterly review, and a full redesign might not be necessary for years. This guide explains what to check, when to check it, and how to tell the difference between normal maintenance and a real redesign project.
What Is an API and How Can APIs Automate Your Business?
An API gives one software system a controlled way to request information or actions from another. That sounds technical, but the business use is straightforward: APIs can reduce the copy-and-paste work employees do between websites, CRMs, accounting systems, project tools, help desks, HR platforms, and other software. This guide explains how API automation works, where it makes sense, and what has to happen when something fails.