Buying IT the Smart Way: A Non-Technical Buyer’s Guide to Networks, Wi-Fi, and Managed Services

Buying IT services can feel like learning a new language—especially when proposals include terms like “managed firewall,” “cloud controller,” “VLANs,” or “proactive monitoring.” The challenge isn’t that technology is mysterious; it’s that many IT purchases are framed around tools rather than outcomes. That makes it hard for executives and operations leaders to compare options, set expectations, and avoid surprises.

This guide is designed for non-technical buyers who want practical clarity. You’ll learn what questions to ask before you sign.

Documentation Is a Security Control: The Missing Deliverable in Most IT Projects

Most IT projects are judged by one question: Does it work? Users can log in, the new system is live, the network is stable, the migration is “done.” 

Everyone moves on—often with relief. But there’s a second question that matters just as much, and it’s the one that determines whether the solution holds up under stress: Can we operate it safely and consistently when something goes wrong? 

That’s why we say this plainly at AVT Solutions: documentation is a security control. Not a “nice-to-have.” Not “admin busywork.” A real control that reduces risk, speeds recovery, strengthens continuity, and prevents your environment from becoming dependent on tribal knowledge.

County Clerk offices run one of the most time-sensitive, compliance-driven operational programs in local government. The work isn’t hard because people don’t care—it’s hard because the operating environment is relentless:

• Thousands of interdependent tasks across multiple teams

• Deadlines that don’t negotiate

• Staffing and resource constraints that shift week to week

• A constant need for visibility: “What’s at risk, who owns it, and what changed?”

Most offices still manage this reality.... 

Government didn’t choose to speed-run digital transformation; the last few years chose it for us. Many agencies responded heroically—standing up remote work, expanding online services, and modernizing core platforms at a pace that would’ve sounded impossible in 2019. But there’s a hard truth behind the progress:

• Digitizing what you already do is not the same thing as becoming a digital government.

• The roadmap that inspired this piece makes the same distinction—many organizations improved digital services quickly, yet struggled to scale digital capability across the enterprise and confuse “momentum” with “maturity.”