https://hernansilva.com/blog/ Short pieces on AI and automation, IT and managed services, and the occasional personal reflection. en-us https://hernansilva.com/blog/it-maturity-curve/ https://hernansilva.com/blog/it-maturity-curve/ Thu, 09 Jul 2026 00:00:00 GMT IT & MSP Most companies sit somewhere on a curve from 'I.T. is something we deal with when it breaks' to 'I.T. is a planned part of how we run.' Knowing where you sit is useful. https://hernansilva.com/blog/ai-inside-job/ https://hernansilva.com/blog/ai-inside-job/ Mon, 29 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT AI & Automation Most AI rollouts fail before the software gets a fair chance. The technology works. The people around it don't buy in. https://hernansilva.com/blog/device-management-lost-laptop/ https://hernansilva.com/blog/device-management-lost-laptop/ Sat, 20 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT IT & MSP A laptop bag gets left on a train. The drive was not encrypted and there was no way to wipe it. Two controls keep a lost device costing you hardware and nothing more. https://hernansilva.com/blog/mfa-beyond-email/ https://hernansilva.com/blog/mfa-beyond-email/ Thu, 18 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT IT & MSP MFA on email blocked the attacker. The same password with no MFA on cloud storage let them in for two days. Why MFA belongs everywhere, and which method to use. https://hernansilva.com/blog/shadow-it/ https://hernansilva.com/blog/shadow-it/ Wed, 17 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT IT & MSP Ask any owner to list every app their company uses. The real list is always longer. How to find shadow I.T. and bring it under control without a crackdown. https://hernansilva.com/blog/union-station-25-years-ago/ https://hernansilva.com/blog/union-station-25-years-ago/ Tue, 16 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT Personal One of my first jobs in Chicago was making popcorn at Union Station. Twenty-five years later I went back and bought a bag. What that taught me about the long game. https://hernansilva.com/blog/swim-using-ai/ https://hernansilva.com/blog/swim-using-ai/ Mon, 15 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT AI & Automation Booking the pool was the most annoying part of my swim routine, so I pointed AI at it. The skill worth building is noticing the chores that run on a schedule. https://hernansilva.com/blog/wifi-security-for-small-business/ https://hernansilva.com/blog/wifi-security-for-small-business/ Fri, 12 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT IT & MSP That password on the sticky note has not changed since the router was installed. Former employees still have it, and they are on the same network as your server. https://hernansilva.com/blog/backups-green-does-not-mean-recoverable/ https://hernansilva.com/blog/backups-green-does-not-mean-recoverable/ Wed, 10 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT IT & MSP A backup had been failing silently for seven months. The dashboard showed green the whole time. Why green is not the same as recoverable, and what to check. https://hernansilva.com/blog/finding-my-people-as-a-business-owner/ https://hernansilva.com/blog/finding-my-people-as-a-business-owner/ Wed, 10 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT Personal Before I joined EO, I thought asking for help meant I had not figured things out. I was wrong. What Forum changed for me. https://hernansilva.com/blog/annual-it-review/ https://hernansilva.com/blog/annual-it-review/ Sun, 07 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT IT & MSP Every annual review turns up the same surprises: software nobody uses, accounts for people who left, a backup that quietly stopped working. Here is what to check. https://hernansilva.com/blog/dyslexic-at-44/ https://hernansilva.com/blog/dyslexic-at-44/ Sat, 06 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT Personal A speech therapist suggested I get tested. The diagnosis explained a lot, and it changed how I work and how I run my business. https://hernansilva.com/blog/email-that-almost-cost-47000/ https://hernansilva.com/blog/email-that-almost-cost-47000/ Fri, 05 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT IT & MSP The email looked perfect, one letter off from the real vendor's domain. How business email compromise works, and how to train your team to catch it. https://hernansilva.com/blog/hidden-cost-of-free-tools/ https://hernansilva.com/blog/hidden-cost-of-free-tools/ Thu, 04 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT IT & MSP A law firm sent court documents through a free PDF tool for almost a year. The terms of service gave that data away. Here is how to avoid the trap. https://hernansilva.com/blog/google-cloud-billing-incident/ https://hernansilva.com/blog/google-cloud-billing-incident/ Wed, 03 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT AI & Automation I assumed our credit card limit would protect us from a runaway API bill. It did not. Here is what actually stops the meter. https://hernansilva.com/blog/optimism-over-ai-fear/ https://hernansilva.com/blog/optimism-over-ai-fear/ Tue, 02 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT Personal Staying optimistic is hard work. Turning negative comes easy. Why I still look for the news nobody watches. https://hernansilva.com/blog/key-person-it-risk/ https://hernansilva.com/blog/key-person-it-risk/ Mon, 01 Jun 2026 00:00:00 GMT IT & MSP In most small companies the I.T. knowledge lives in one person's head. That is one resignation away from a crisis. https://hernansilva.com/blog/family-first-scheduling-decision/ https://hernansilva.com/blog/family-first-scheduling-decision/ Fri, 29 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT Personal Family first is not a slogan. It is a fixed block on my calendar, same as a client meeting. Here is why that is good for the business too. https://hernansilva.com/blog/secure-offboarding/ https://hernansilva.com/blog/secure-offboarding/ Thu, 28 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT IT & MSP A former employee kept full access for four months after leaving. Nobody meant for it to happen. That is exactly the problem. https://hernansilva.com/blog/too-small-to-be-a-target/ https://hernansilva.com/blog/too-small-to-be-a-target/ Wed, 27 May 2026 00:00:00 GMT IT & MSP A 30-person company assumes it is too small to be a target. That assumption is the target.