As Cyber Threats Accelerate, Noah Mehl Shares Why Supportive IT Partnerships Matter More Than Ever for Growing Businesses

Cyber risks are rising, and small IT teams are overwhelmed. Noah Mehl explains how accessible support empowers businesses to stay secure, reduce downtime, and focus on growth.  

Across today’s digital landscape, small and medium-sized businesses are finding themselves under growing pressure as cyber incidents continue to evolve in scale and sophistication. Threat reports increasingly point to rising financial losses and extended disruptions, while security analysts note that attackers now draw from a wider set of tools, including newer forms of automation. According to Noah Mehl, founder and CEO of Reperio, these forces combine to create conditions that many smaller organizations simply aren’t prepared to navigate. He explains that internal teams, often consisting of one overextended IT generalist, are being asked to shoulder responsibilities that exceed what any single person can manage effectively.

From his perspective, the challenge is not only the risk of an incident itself but the operational impact that follows. Recent research suggests that around 50% of small firms report recovery taking 24 hours or more after an attack, underscoring how even short disruptions can stretch far beyond a business day. Mehl notes that many leaders underestimate what even a few days of operational interruption could mean for customer relationships and long-term continuity. “One cybersecurity issue can stop everything,” he says. “Organizations often assume they can absorb such disruption far more easily than reality suggests.”

According to Mehl, the emergence of advanced technologies has only widened the gap. “While these tools offer extraordinary benefits for organizations pursuing efficiency, they also equip attackers with greater speed and sophistication,” he notes. Recent studies indicate that a significant portion of small and midsize businesses, ranging from roughly 40% to more than 70%, experienced some form of security incident during the past year, with ransomware and phishing appearing frequently among reported causes.

Mehl explains that this creates a dual-pressure environment in which innovation accelerates opportunity, yet threat surfaces expand just as quickly. For many small and midsize teams, he says, the result is a sense of being outpaced on both fronts, unable to address security demands and struggling to prioritize strategic projects that could move the business forward.

From Mehl’s experience, some organizations believe their current ad-hoc approach is good simply because they have not yet encountered an incident. He explains scenarios in which businesses rely on consumer-grade hardware, fragmented processes, or expectations that an internal staff member can serve as system administrator, security lead, compliance specialist, and help desk, all simultaneously. “Someone is doing IT who shouldn’t be,” Mehl says, “Even skilled internal professionals are rarely positioned to cover this wide a scope.”

This is where external support can shift outcomes. Mehl explains that many organizations don’t realize they can access structured, enterprise-level support in a way that fits their scale. He notes that some clients come to Reperio not looking for a full replacement of internal IT, but a partnership that frees existing staff to focus on higher-value initiatives. “It’s not always about replacing someone,” he says. “Sometimes it’s about giving them the space to actually move the business forward.”

According to Mehl, that principle guided the creation of Reperio’s model. He emphasizes that the company designed its structure to make support approachable, predictable, and easy to trial. He explains that many prospective clients initially struggle to conceptualize how an external partner could fit into their workflow. “Once they get on it, they realize all the benefits,” Mehl says. He adds that having a dependable point of contact, someone to answer questions, handle issues, or proactively monitor systems so internal staff can prioritize growth, innovation, and customer needs.

Mehl also emphasized that Reperio’s approach centers on helping organizations make the most of the tools they already have. He refers to everyday situations, integrating services, resolving password problems, and configuring systems, tasks that may collectively consume hours for internal teams. From his perspective, even modest time savings can create measurable improvements. “If we save a few hours each month per person, the support has essentially paid for itself,” he explains.

As technology advances and cybersecurity continues to command global attention, Mehl believes the convergence of risk and opportunity will only grow more pronounced. The organizations that thrive, he says, can be those that ensure their teams have the support to innovate rather than remain stuck in reactive mode. “Technology is changing every day,” Mehl says. “But when people know they are not facing it alone, they are free to focus on building the business they believe in.”