A Quick Note From AlignLayerNine
Welcome!
Our team is excited to be working with you.
Here at AlignLayerNine, we love technology—and we love helping people use it effectively. Our mission is simple: to help you and your team work smarter, stay secure, and focus on what matters most to your organization. We believe that technology should empower your business, not complicate it.
We've put together this short guide to give you everything you need to know about working with us. It's designed to be a quick read that you can reference whenever you need help. Take a few minutes to read through it so that when you need assistance, you'll know exactly how to reach us and what to expect.
We're looking forward to working with you and being a trusted partner in your technology journey. Whether you have a simple question or need help with a complex project, we're here to support you every step of the way.
How Our Support Team Works
The CORE Connection
At the center of our IT operations is your CORE Team (Client Oriented Responsive Engineering). This is a dedicated group of engineers assigned specifically to your organization who know your environment, your systems, and your business inside and out.
Your CORE Team is the hub that coordinates across all of our specialized divisions to provide you with comprehensive IT support:
Technology Assistance Center (TAC)
Your IT support hub when your CORE Team is unavailable. TAC provides expert assistance and resolves technical issues around the clock to keep your technology running smoothly.
Security Operations Center (SOC)
The frontline defense of your IT infrastructure. The SOC actively monitors and analyzes your network for security threats 24/7 to keep your business protected from evolving cyber threats.
Network Operations Center (NOC)
The central point for managing, monitoring, and maintaining your network systems to ensure high availability, optimal performance, and minimal downtime.
Technology Alignment Manager (TAM)
Your strategic guide who ensures your technology is aligned with your business goals. Your TAM is your primary contact for strategic planning, budgeting, and long-term IT decisions.
This integrated approach means you always have access to the right expertise at the right time. Whether it's a simple password reset or a complex security incident, our team structure ensures you get the support you need efficiently and effectively.
Business Hours
What this means for you:
- Support is always available. You can submit tickets, call, text, or chat any time—24/7/365. Our TAC, NOC, and SOC operate around the clock.
- Your CORE Team works during Business Hours. Requests that require your CORE Team's specific knowledge of your environment are handled during Business Hours.
Your CORE Team operates during Business Hours, defined as 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM in the time zone of your organization's primary United States location.
Requests That Need Approval
Some requests require sign-off from your organization's designated IT contacts before we can proceed. This helps protect your organization and ensures proper authorization for changes that affect security, access, or resources.
Common examples include:
- New user accounts or account changes
- Software installations
- Access to shared folders, drives, or systems
- Permission or security group changes
- Hardware orders
When you submit one of these requests, it's automatically routed to your designated IT contacts for approval. Approvals are processed during US Business Hours, so you may see a brief delay if you submit a request outside those hours. Don't worry—we'll keep you updated on the status and move forward as soon as we receive approval.
Technology Planning
We Can Help Find Solutions
One of our core strengths is helping organizations like yours use technology to solve real business problems. Whether you're struggling with inefficient processes, looking to scale operations, or exploring new capabilities, there's a good chance we can help.
Talk to your TAM about your challenges and goals. We've worked with hundreds of organizations across diverse industries and have likely seen similar situations before. We can share what's worked well for others and help you avoid common pitfalls.
Technology Business Reviews (TBRs)
We schedule regular Technology Business Reviews (TBRs) with your leadership team to discuss your environment, upcoming needs, budgets, and recommendations. These sessions are an opportunity to step back from day-to-day operations and focus on strategic alignment.
Your TAM will coordinate these meetings and prepare materials in advance. We'll review system health, discuss any concerns, present recommendations for improvements, and help you plan for future technology investments.
Strategic Alignment
Ensuring your technology supports your business goals
Performance Review
Analyzing system health and service metrics
Budget Planning
Forecasting costs and planning investments
Innovation
Exploring new technologies and opportunities
Billing Questions
Our invoicing can be complex—we often roll up many services, count users across multiple systems, and handle tax jurisdictions across multiple locations. Most of our accounting is automated to ensure accuracy, but if something looks off or you have questions, please don't hesitate to reach out.
We want our billing to be transparent and easy to understand. If anything on an invoice is unclear, we're happy to walk you through it line by line.
Questions about an invoice?
Email billing@aln.co with your question or concern. Include the invoice number for fastest response.
View invoices and payment history
Log into the portal at aln.support (designated accounting contacts only). You can download current and past invoices anytime.
Set up or modify auto-pay
Email billing@aln.co to set up automatic payment via ACH or credit card. This ensures you never miss a payment and simplifies your accounting processes.
Tax exemptions
Submit exemption certificates to billing@aln.co before invoice processing. We'll apply exemptions to future invoices once documentation is verified.
Partnership
We see ourselves as a partner and part of your team—not just a vendor.
This distinction is important to us. Vendors simply provide services and move on. Partners invest in understanding your business, care about your success, and work proactively to help you achieve your goals.
We celebrate your wins, and we learn from challenges together. When you grow, we grow. When you face obstacles, we face them with you.
If anything comes up that doesn't meet your expectations, or if there's something we could do better, please reach out to your TAM or contact us directly. We genuinely want to know so we can make it right.
Your feedback—both positive and constructive—helps us improve and ensures we're delivering the value you deserve. We're committed to continuous improvement and to being the kind of partner you can rely on for the long term.