WIXLIB

2dD I A L E R ’ SSPRINGSUMMER 2014D I G E S TProtectingYour BusinessAlso in this issue:Data Security, System Monitoring and more.Read more about Business Technology in ourexclusive interview with CTCIT on page 3.Q&A WITH CTCIT (pg. 3) CTC SMART HOME (pg. 5) 2014 ANNUAL MEETING INFO (pg. 6)

p. 2 - 3OUR COOPERATIVE UPDATENews and NotesHigh Speed Highlightsfrom Kevin Larson and John LuceWe hope this issue of the Dialer’s Digestfinds you’re doing well after this, long harshwinter we just went through.Kevin T. LarsonCEO/General ManagerCTCT V Prime With the introduction ofour CTCTV product and the positive feedback we’ve received, last year we committed ourselves to converting all of our TVcustomers over to our new CTCTV Primeservice. Our past TV product had fallenshort of our expectations and our previoussystem was unable to provide the featureswe expect for our members so we partneredwith Microsoft to offer CTCTV Prime. Wethank you for your patience and workingwith us to accomplish this goal. Today allof our members are now on our new TVproduct and we are receiving rave reviewsfrom both our members and employees:I recently signed up for CTCTV Prime“andit is fantastic! I was with DirecTV forJohn LucePresidentsixteen years and I haven’t had a betterpicture than I have with CTC. Our computer runs great on CTC Internet andevery time I contact their office I receivesuch great service.CTC Member - Mark - Pillager”“I like that there are very few troublecalls with CTCTV. It’s nice to know thatwhen you spend a lot of time installinga system, it will work. The faster channelchanges and faster guide is great. I’vehad a lot of good comments about theother features like the bigger hard drivefor the DVR and being able to record upto four channels while watching one. The‘last channel’ button showing the last 5channels and the ‘go interactive’ buttonis also a nice feature.CTC Technician - Mike”Fiber Optic Construction UpdateAs we anticipate the warmer weatherreturning to our area, we look forward tocontinuing our fiber optic expansion inOuting. See page 7 of this issue for a detailedexplanation of what to expect at the time ofyour fiber optic conversion. As a top priority this year, your Board of Directors andI will be working diligently applying foranother RUS (Rural Utility Services) loanto expand our fiber build to more of ourexchanges. This loan would cover the costof construction of fiber networks to folks inLeader, Freedhem, and Rural Randall. Weare working to have the loan applicationcompleted and filed this year with hopes ofapproval in order to begin construction asearly as 2015. Like I said, we will be makingthis a top priority and will keep you postedon our progress.I’m pleased to announce that CTC hasconverted over 5160 members to our fiberoptics since the beginning of this project.As impressive as these numbers are, wehave an opportunity to expand this stateof-the-art network to reach even more ofour cooperative members.T V Rate Increases/Sales Tax onTelecommunications EquipmentYour Cooperative also continues to workwith our local legislators, the FCC andthe NTCA (National TelecommunicationsCooperative Association) to bring attention to challenges facing our members andour Coop. TV programmers continuallyincrease our costs to provide TV serviceto our members. You may hear on thenews that providers like Dish Network andDirecTV are often in contract disputes withContinued on Page 6

Technology UpdateQ&A with CTCITToday we’re talking with Ty Goeman, Account Managerfor CTCIT. CTCIT provides local, professional IT servicestailored to manage, maintain, and improve businessnetwork infrastructures. CTCIT offers expert management and installation of critical network systems, aswell as systems monitoring, security, backup solutions,and more.the recent troubles concerningQ: Withorganizations data security, what advicewould you have for area businesses to addresstheir data security?Hardware and software companies are constantlymaking newer versions of their software or hardwareavailable. Businesses need to be proactive and consistent in maintaining and applying these updates ontheir systems. Much like personal health, it’s importantto have a consistent game plan for maintaining andmonitoring the performance and stability of your datasystems so you’re not hit with a surprise down the road.QPayment Card Industry (PCI): Theholds companies that process creditand debit card payments to certain securitystandards. How does a business know if theyare PCI compliant?You must take the proper steps to make sure you’recompliant. We have firsthand experience in preparingour customers to meet HIPPA and PCI compliancestandards. The rules are very stringent and complex,so businesses need to make sure that whoever theyare entrusting with this process has the experience,knowledge, and expertise to keep them and theirbusiness protected.seems like network software and hardQ: Itwareare always changing. How do I knowthat the technology I own today is going to berelevant for my future needs and how shouldI make purchasing decisions for new technology that I need?It’s difficult to predict exactly what the future holds. Forexample, who could have predicted four years ago howimportant tablets would be today? The most importantthing is creating short-term and long-term plans, butwith the flexibility to help you to adapt to changes.Ty Goeman CTCIT Account ManagerThere may be ways to maximize and improve what youcurrently have, but it’s important to have a three-yearor even five-year plan.are you seeing as the best practicesQ: Whatfor data backup?Data backup is one of the most critical elements ofowning a business today. There is not a “one size fitsall approach for this” but there are best practices thatcan be followed. Tailoring data handling with someonewho listens to your specific needs of the way your business needs to run is the key. Data backup is critical foryour business, but being able to restore lost data aftera failure can be overlooked. You need to be sure thereis a plan in place for recovery of your data in additionto a backup plan so that down time is minimal.is CTCIT helping area businessesQ: Howwith security and network support today?Our first step is to find out how our customers businesses need to operate and in doing so develop apartnership with our customer. Technology systemsgo unnoticed until there is a problem. Businesseswant and need to know that things are running safelyand efficiently and that they have a plan in place ifsomething goes wrong. We see a strong need for systemmonitoring to prevent problems before they occur.There is monitoring available for businesses to haveseveral of their critical devices monitored for less than 100 per month.

p. 4 - 5CTC NEWSAround the CTC Office2014 Nominating CommitteeThank you to the 2014 Nominating Committee thatmet on March 6th to review and select candidatesfor the CTC Board of Directors positions that will bevoted on at this year’s Annual Meeting on June 4th.The following people were nominated for DirectorDistrict 4, Leader, Motley, Pillager, and Staples:Incumbent Chad Converse and Ken LaPorte. Thefollowing person was nominated for DirectorDistrict 5, Brainerd, Baxter, and Nisswa: IncumbentJohn Luce. If you have any questions regarding theprocess, please feel free to call our office.Front Row: Al Barrow, Tammy Barnett, Don WipplerBack Row: Gary Hebler, John ForrestGet to Know.Mike Service Assurance TechnicianMike became part of the CTC team just recently in the ServiceAssurance Technician position. He has a Computer NetworkAdministration AAS degree and over 2 years of experience incomputer hardware and software repair in addition to 10 years ofexperience in customer service.Mike’s interests outside of work primarily include cosmologyand physics, creative writing, and fishing.When asked what he likes about working at CTC, Mike replied,“Each day I work at CTC seems to bring me another learning experience and challenge of which no two are exactly alike. I really enjoybeing part of the good group of people that work at CTC.”Mike Service Assurance TechnicianCongratulationsEmployee Advancements at chaelSales EngineerTinaSales & MarketingCoordinator

Smart HomeStrictly BusinessFeatures that were once reserved for newsreels about “The Home of the Future!” arebecoming a reality as the sophistication ofour household appliances, fixtures, andthe Internet merge. From motion-sensinglighting systems to Wi-Fi enabled crock pots,the number and type of connected devicesoffered to the consumer electronics marketcontinues to grow each year.This spring, CTC is set to make home automation and monitoring services availableto our members through our CTC SmartHome product. CTC Smart Home offerspackage solutions installed by our professional technicians with modules availablefor thermostat and temperature control,lighting, door locks, moisture sensors, andmore - with the added convenience of onemonthly bill and 24/7 technical support.CTC Smart Home makes it convenientto set schedules for your home lighting orthermostat and to send alerts to your mobilephone when your door is opened or yourthermostat registers temperatures below orabove a preset level. With moisture monitoring, you’ll be alerted to the presence of wateranywhere you choose. The combinations arepractically limitless! See below for a full listof Smart Home features.The telephone system is at the heart of any business. Flexibility, features, and cost are keys to any decision when itcomes to choosing the primary source of communication ina business. With a traditional phone system, upfront cost andmaintenance can be challenging as a capital expenditure.The new hosted systems have much lower setup costs andfit more neatly into operating cost structures with ongoingsupport and maintenance built into the contract. With ourHPBX system, your costs are spread out over time.Support shouldn’t end with the sale. Our expert staff iswith you from start to finish with engineering, training, andongoing support. Disaster recovery and support are availabledirectly from our offices.Hosted phone system features allowmore flexibility than a traditionalsystem. With IP-based systems likeours, businesses finally have complete control over their own phonesystem. This includes potentialintegration with customer relationship management systems,mobile applications, conferencecalling, and improved options forbranch office connectivity.With HPBX, your phone systemand computer can work togetherwith a managed portal allowingfeature rich call routing, forwarding, and robust scheduling systemsfor call handling in an easy to useinterface. Calls can be made from thehandset or the soft phone. ContactLori or Eryk for more information.S M A R T H O M E F E AT U R E SHosted PBXCTC in the communityCTC employees held their Second Annual Food Drive Challenge this holiday season. The employees in both the Baxterand Brainerd locations held a friendly competition to seewhich office could donate the most food for the local foodshelf. On December 18th the items from both offices wereweighed and came in for a combined weight donation of2,404 pounds. The Baxter employees just edged out theBrainerd employees in this year’s challenge. Last year theBrainerd office won the challenge with both offices combining to donate 1,400 pounds of food.