Policy before connection
Nothing gets wired in before your AI Use Policy exists and your leadership has adopted it. Every engagement opens there.
About
Technology management from North Carolina.
Third Shift Group LLC is a technology management firm based in North Carolina. We serve as your part-time CIO, owning the technology plan, the vendor relationships, the budget, and the recommendations. AI management, Microsoft 365 work, and selecting a help desk when you have none are how that role is delivered. We do not provide daily support.
Third Shift Group LLC
North Carolina
What we areTechnology management
What we specialize inAI, spend, Microsoft 365
What we do not runHelp desk
Who owns the dashboardYou
Named afterThe overnight watch
Each of these commitments is repeated in the FAQ.
The name
Why "Third Shift"
In a plant, the third shift is the overnight watch. The day crews build; the third shift keeps the line running, catches what drifts, and hands the plant back in working order at dawn.
That is the role we took on for technology. Consultants deliver a project and leave. Vendors sell a license and move on. Someone still has to own the plan, the spend, and the recommendations, and stay accountable after go-live. That is our role.
We write up how we think about this work on the blog.
How we operate
Three commitments from a technology management firm
You own the setup
The dashboard runs in your own Microsoft cloud account, on your subscription. If we part ways, everything stays with you, licenses and data included.
Standard, then sharpened
Every client starts from the same proven sequence and base dashboard. Automation is then added based on how your own operations actually run.
Leadership
The people behind Third Shift
Third Shift Group LLC was founded by George Hayner and Derek Schott, who have run an IT services firm together in the Charlotte area since 2003. When you work with Third Shift, you work with one of them.
George Hayner
Co-founder
George has worked in information technology for more than 30 years. In 2003 he founded NetSafe Solutions, a managed IT and security firm in the Charlotte area that he has led for more than two decades.
At Third Shift he leads technology strategy, security, and Microsoft 365 work, along with the AI assistants and automation we build for clients.
Derek Schott
Co-founder
Derek co-founded NetSafe Solutions with George in 2003 and leads its operations, vendor management, and service delivery across more than 100 client relationships.
At Third Shift he leads vendor management, technology spend reviews, and the process that keeps every engagement on schedule and accountable.
The facts
On the record
- —Legal entity: Third Shift Group LLC, North Carolina
- —Office: clients can meet at 720 Matthews Township Pkwy Suite 103, Matthews, NC 28105, by asking when they request the first meeting.
- —What we are: a technology management firm
- —Where the dashboard runs: your own Microsoft cloud account, always
- —Billing: One monthly bill for subscriptions; our work billed monthly or by the hour
- —Partners: Pax8, Intuit QuickBooks, and Apple Developer Program
- —Contact: inquiries@thirdshift.group
- —Legal: Privacy notice and terms of use
How engagements are staffed
Every engagement is staffed by one senior person.
Third Shift works with a small number of companies at a time. The principal who writes the policy and reviews your environment is the person you deal with: there is no sales queue, no account layer, and no handoff to a junior team after signing.
If you have no help desk or no IT provider, we select that firm. They contract with you and bill you directly, and we direct their work and report on it. We replace neither your tools nor your IT firm, and we do not take on the ticket queue.
Ask what is behind a recommendation. Every review names what we looked at, what we would do first, and what it costs. The plan is yours to keep either way.
What does Third Shift actually do?
Third Shift is a technology management firm. We serve as the part-time CIO for a small number of companies, owning the plan, the vendors, the spend, and the recommendations. We specialize in AI (the rules, the tools already running, and automation built into what you own), technology spend you can see monthly, and Microsoft 365 tenant work. If you have no help desk or no MSP, we find that firm and stay on the process. We do not run tickets, devices, or day-to-day administration. People still search for “AI management company”, and AI management is one of our specialties.
Can you find us a help desk or an MSP?
Yes. If your company has no help desk or no MSP, we select a firm that can do that day-to-day work, set the priorities they work against, and manage the process. They contract with you and bill you. We may earn a referral under our agreement with the provider. We do not claim the recommendation is vendor-independent, and we do not publish a list of the firms we appoint.
Do you replace our IT team or MSP?
No. Third Shift does not replace your IT team or your IT firm. They keep the network, the computers, the email, and the help desk running. We own the plan they work against: vendors, spend, AI rules, and Microsoft 365. If you have no IT firm or no help desk, we find that company and manage the process, and that company bills you directly. We do not take the ticket queue.
The glossary defines the terms we use.
Next step
Put someone in charge of the technology plan.
If AI is already in use across your company and no one owns it, that is the conversation to have.