- 3 “Gotchas” Most IT Pros Won’t Tell You About Their Cloud Solutions
- How To Make Yourself ‘Invisible’ To Hackers
- The Ultimate Guide to Setting Up A Work-From-Home System
- I'll introduce you to the Shiny new gadget of the month
- Our guest piece by Mark Sanborn, president of Sanborn and Associates, goes over "4 Ways to get More Performance, Productivity and Profits from your team"
- How To Know When An Employee Is About To Quit
- Lost In Translation: Advertising Blunders
- They aren’t responsible for keeping a backup of your data. If you read the small print of your contract, you’ll see that in every way possible, your cloud provider is NOT responsible for data loss or backups – even if it’s their fault. In fact, Office 365 will only keep 3 days’ backup of your data; so if you delete or overwrite a file and don’t notice it until 4-5 days later, it’s GONE. If your data is important, you need to implement a backup solution that works with cloud applications.
- What you see may NOT be what you get. There’s nothing more frustrating than an incredibly slow application when you’re trying to work; and the salesperson demo’ing the application or platform is going to make sure you only see the BEST-case scenarios for performance. But there are a lot of things that can determine how fast your cloud applications run, such as the file size you’re working on, CPUs and RAM and storage, time of day, day of the week, your Internet connection and the number of users accessing the application. Make sure you get some verification of the speed in YOUR specific environment before spending a lot of money, time and aggravation moving to a new cloud application.
- What if they cancel you? Here’s a scary situation: what if your cloud provider decides to shut down your account because they go out of business or simply decide not to service you anymore? Or what if YOU want out? Make sure you have in writing what happens if YOU cancel your contract AND what your cloud provider can and cannot do if they go out of business, cancel your account or have any other issues that would cause service interruption. Moving a network from a cloud platform is NOT a simple task and you need to make sure you can get your data and that you’ll be given sufficient time to make the transition.
- Lock your network. While WIRED networks make you invisible to WiFi snoops because you have to access them by plugging into physical outlets or hacking modem ports, you can create a hidden or cloaked network on a wireless network. Simply disable the service set identifier (SSID) broadcasting function on the wireless router, and only users with the exact network name will have access. Small businesses like coffeehouses can also do this—just periodically change the network’s information and place a small sign near the register with the current network name and passcode.
- Encrypt your data. On your desktops, turn on the full-disk encryption tools that come standard on most operating systems: BitLocker on Windows-based PCs and FileVault on Macs. There is no noticeable performance lag; however, the encryption only applies when users are logged out of the system. So setting computers to automatically log out after 15 minutes without use is a good idea. And for mobile devices, use a VPN (virtual private network) to encrypt data traveling to and from your mobile devices and limit your employees’ access to only the company data that they must have to do their jobs.
- Install firewall and anti-malware applications on all of your equipment, including mobile devices.
- Disable features that automatically connect your mobile devices to any available network.
- Disable printer and file-sharing options on mobile devices before connecting to a hotspot.
- Check before connecting to hotspots. If there is an unusual variation in the logo or name on the login page, beware…this could mean it’s a fake hotspot designed to steal your data.
- What telecommuting is and why so many small businesses are rapidly implementing work-from-home programs.
- The single most important thing you MUST have in place before starting any work-from-home or remote office initiative.
- How one company slashed its turnover rate from 33% to nearly 0%—and increased productivity by 18%—by implementing a work-from-home program.
- How to get a FREE “Home Office Action Pack” (a $97 value).
- Clairol introduced a new curling iron they called the “Mist Stick” to the German market, only to find out that “mist” is slang for manure in German. Not too many people had use for the “manure stick.”
- When Gerber started selling baby food in Africa, they used the same packaging as in the US that featured the “Gerber baby” on the front. Later they learned that in Africa, companies put pictures of what’s inside the package on the label since most people can’t read, thereby causing African consumers to think there was pureed baby inside.
- Colgate introduced a toothpaste in France called “Cue,” the name of a notorious porno mag.
- Pepsi’s “Come alive with the Pepsi Generation” translated in Chinese into “Pepsi brings your ancestors back from the grave.”
- The Coca-Cola name in China was first read as “Ke-kou-ke-la,” meaning “Bite the wax tadpole” or “female horse stuffed with wax,” depending on the dialect. Coke then researched 40,000 characters to find the phonetic equivalent “ko-kou-ko-le,” translating into “happiness in the mouth.”
- The 5 most dangerous pieces of information to give out in en e-mail
- Urgent security warning for Microsoft server 2003 users
- Free download of the month: introduction to cloud computing
- I'll introduce you to the Shiny new gadget of the month
- And mark sanborn returns for our guest piece, "It never hurts to ask"
- Great starting salary
- The answer to this episodes trivia question
- Vacation alert! The one thing you and your employees should never do when on vacation
In this episode of Technology Today…
This is “Technology Today” Insider tips to make your business run
faster, easier and more profitably.
This is episode 2 and is recorded on June 6th, 2015
I’m your host, Alan Feldman and ”as a business owner, you don’t have
time to waste on technical and operational issues. That’s where my company
shines! Call us and put an end to your IT problems finally and forever!” visit
us online at http://virtualoctober.com or call 717-553-2614.
3 “Gotchas” Most IT Pros
Won’t Tell You When Selling You Their Cloud Solution
Are you using any cloud applications to store data? Then
listen up! There are a few “gotchas” you need to know about 3rd-party cloud apps that most sales reps
will NEVER tell you.
Need help interpreting any of these scenarios? Give
us a call at 717-553-2614 and
we’ll help you put in place a solid “Plan B” for any of the above issues.
Shiny New Gadget Of The Month:
InfiniteUSB
As laptops grow thinner, USB ports become scarcer, forcing you to
carry around a multiport hub to plug in various devices. But Jiange has
created a USB plug that is based on a daisy chain, allowing you to plug
multiple devices into one USB port.
The design won an IF Concept Award from one of the most prestigious
design competitions in the world. Jiange has a lot more design inventions
underway. InfiniteUSB cables start at $10, and will also come in varieties
that support microUSB and Lightning connectors.
Check http://link.voct.com/infinateusb
for more information
How To Make Yourself
‘Invisible’ To Hackers
There’s an old joke about two men hiking in the woods when
they come across a big, grumpy black bear. Scared silly, one of the guys
starts to run but notices his buddy stopped, bent-over, changing his shoes. He
shouts to him, “Dude! What are you doing?!?! Why aren’t you running?” to which
his friend replies, “I’m changing my shoes because I don’t need to outrun the
bear – I only need to outrun YOU.”
This is a perfect analogy for what’s going on in small
businesses: the “slow,” easy targets are getting nailed by fast-growing
cybercrime rings that are getting more sophisticated and aggressive in
attacking small businesses. Last year, the average cyber-attack cost a small
business $20,752, a substantial increase from 2013, when the average was
$8,699. That’s because most small businesses don’t have the security protocols
in place or the manpower and budget to implement sophisticated security
systems. While there’s absolutely no way to completely protect yourself other
than disconnecting entirely from the Internet, there are several things you
can do to avoid being easy pickings. Here’s how:
Can you guarantee that the person
across the hotel lobby isn’t looking at your data? Not really, but the chances
of them being able to do that are greatly reduced if you take precautions to
protect your business.
FREE DOWNLOAD
OF THE MONTH:
The Ultimate Small
Business Guide To Setting Up A Work-From-Home System For Your Staff
In it… You will learn:
Claim Your FREE Copy Today at http://virtualoctober.com/WorkFromHome
And now our guest article…
|
|
|
Mark Sanborn, is president of Sanborn & Associates, Inc., an
idea studio dedicated to developing leaders in business and in life. Mark is
an international best-selling author and noted authority on leadership,
team-building, customer service and change. Mark is the author of 8 books,
including the best seller The Fred Factor: How Passion in Your Work and Life
Can Turn the Ordinary into the Extraordinary, which has sold more than 1.6
million copies internationally. Learn more about Mark at www.marksanborn.com
|
Four Ways To Get More Performance,
Productivity And Profit From Your Team
1. Your Team Needs To Learn Together
Rarely do teams learn together. Too often, increases
in skill are confined to individuals. Sometimes that can become a barrier to
teamwork: because there are dramatically different knowledge and skill levels,
some team members aren’t able to keep up. When an individual attends a course
or discovers a useful practice, he or she should be encouraged to share it
with the team. And periodically putting the entire team into a learning
environment is critical.
2. Peer Recognition Is Powerful
If you’re a team leader, understand that despite your
best efforts, you will be incapable of adequately recognizing every team
member’s efforts and contributions. Good work will slip by and go
unrecognized. If this happens often, the team member may well become
disillusioned. Relieve yourself of the burden to be the sole dispenser of
recognition: ask team members to recognize each other. Make it a team
expectation to thank other team members for their assistance and to look for
opportunities to catch each other doing something praiseworthy.
3. To Win More Together, Think
Together More
Have you ever held a team retreat? When was the last
time your team came together for the express purpose of thinking about the
work you do? Do you periodically pause as a group to reflect on what you’ve
learned and internalize the lessons? Do you meet to consider opportunities,
and not just to solve problems? The team that thinks more wins more.
4. You’ve Got To Expect It And Not
Tolerate It If You Don’t Get It
Some managers, knowing how difficult it can be to
create great teamwork, undermine their efforts by making teamwork “optional.”
That is, they appreciate the people who are good team players but they
tolerate those who aren’t. As the old adage goes, what you allow, you condone.
Those on the same team should know that figuring out how to get along and work
with other teammates is their responsibility. Those who refuse to be team
players should at the very least not enjoy the same benefits, and at worst, should
be removed. It might sound harsh, but it is necessary if you want teamwork to
work.
Who Wants To Win A $25
Gift Card?
June was named after the Roman goddess Juno. She was
the goddess of what?
a) marriage and childbirth b) fruit and trees c) religion d) love and beauty
Send us your answer
right now! And from all the winning answers received we will randomly choose a
winner.
Send your answer
taped to the back of a Lenovo Thinkpad Yoga 15 inch ultrabook with the i7
processor and 256GB SSD Hard drive to Technology Today Podcast C/O Virtual
October, PO Box 20002, York (my strange city) PA 17402.
Or you can also
send your answer via electronic means to our spam free inbox at
podcast.2015@virtualoctober.com. Contest open to US residents only, must be 18
or older.
The Lighter Side: Lost In Translation: Advertising
Blunders
How To Know When An
Employee Is About To Quit
There’s nothing quite as devastating as losing a key
employee, especially if they give you no warning or notice. Often they’ll give
you subtle signs such as a lackadaisical approach to work, arriving and
leaving on time, not a minute sooner or later, long lunches or suddenly having
several appointments at the beginning or the end of the workday. But one of
the biggest giveaways is their Internet behavior at work.
We already know that employees spend personal time at work
on Facebook and other social media sites; but you know something’s going on if
they’ve added monster.com, Craigslist, LinkedIn and other local job sites to
the web pages they frequently visit.
That’s ONE of the reasons we recommend our clients install
an Internet monitoring software for their network. Not only will it reveal
when employees are looking for work somewhere else, it will also alert you to
employees who are wasting HOURS on social media, gambling, shopping and other
non-work-related web sites. It will also prevent employees from accessing porn
and file-sharing sites that could bring on a BIG lawsuit or nasty hacker
attack.
While some people fear this is too invasive, keep in mind
that you are paying those employees to perform a job with company-owned
devices and company-paid Internet. We’re not suggesting you monitor their
personal devices or what they do after hours on their own time. But it’s
perfectly reasonable to expect an employee to put in a full 8 hours if you’re
paying them for their time.
Of course, you should
provide notice that their computers are being monitored and set the
expectation that you want them working during company hours; you should also
detail what employees can and cannot do with company-owned devices in your
Acceptable Use Policy (AUP). If you want to give them the ability to check
personal e-mail and social media sites during work hours, you can limit it to
30 minutes a day during their lunch hour or break. Again, we don’t recommend
this since this can be an easy gateway for viruses and hackers—but these
options are available.
Need help designing an
employee monitoring system on your network? Give us a call. We can help you
put together an Acceptable Use Policy and put the right software in place to
enforce your policy.
Well that about does it for me, and You've wasted enough
time (ha!), thanks for joining me.
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