Author name: Jan O'Mahoney​

Audio Visual

Improve your Business with Videoconferencing

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Whilst the economy is now on the up for many companies, money’s still tight, and businesses are looking for ways to cut costs without negatively influencing their productivity. This is particularly true amongst SMEs who find they’re struggling to stay connected to remote workers and clients. Working from home is on the rise, and companies are having to go further afield for clients. This means that, above all, good communications are needed to hit deadlines and make sales.

Cost Effective

A lot of companies, when the concept of videoconferencing is raised, will dismiss it because they consider it too expensive. In reality, videoconferencing can save businesses huge amounts of money. Whilst the upfront costs do mean an initial outlay for business grade products, the rising price of travel means that you will swiftly recoup that spending after a few months of centralised communication.

Reducing the amount your employees travel will also have a positive impact on your business’s carbon footprint, making your business more environmentally responsible AND saving you money. These alone are good enough reasons alone to consider videoconferencing, but there’s more.

The Personal Touch

It’s been suggested that centralising many of your business communications through videoconferencing means that you can save that money for the big, important face-to-face meetings that a business manager needs to have once or twice a year. This is certainly true, but it does videoconferencing a disservice in that it suggests you cannot have a personal experience without being in the same room.

Gadgets

Future Gazing: Where Will The Internet of Things Take Us

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Buzzwords are synonymous with the technology world and it seems that the list is ever growing. From growth hacking to responsive design, technology and its applications are constantly adapting. In this transient online world it can be hard to keep abreast of all the emerging technologies.

One such buzzword (or perhaps buzz-phrase) is the Internet of Things (IoT). This is something that vendors are arguing has arrived and is important to the future of internet networking. However, other industry thought leaders and analysts suggest that the IoT may not be quite so prevalent or influential as some thought.

So, then, lets consider the Internet of Things and look at its applications. Perhaps a point of warning here: there are difficult to remedy complications that come along with the Internet of Things.

What is the Internet of Things

Business

Cloud Computing Models Explained

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Cloud computing is becoming much more well known and many businesses and even homes are starting to utilise its services. Cloud computing uses the web and provides users with online storage options and services such as web-based email and video services. Businesses have either implemented cloud computing practices or are considering doing so.

Although cloud-computing practices have been around for some time now they have yet to receive full-blown recognition. Many services utilise cloud-computing practices and perhaps the best example is in free, web-based email services such as Gmail (how long it’s been around will give you more of a sense that cloud is nothing new).

Computer users, likely unknowingly, use the cloud when they contact friends through instant-messaging, video-messaging mediums, and voice-over-IP. Data-backup services also use the cloud and let users store data and files on a public or private online cloud account.

Cloud is increasingly popular

With cloud computing becoming so saturated it seems increasingly prevalent for businesses to utilise its services. However before that happens it’s a good idea to understand as thoroughly as possible the service that your business wishes to adopt. So, to help you get to grips with cloud-based principles, here’s an explanation of the three main categories of cloud computing.

Business

[VIDEO] What is Cloud Computing?

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Cloud computing has been around for some time but it’s only really in the past couple of years that the technology has really taken off. We’re now seeing more and more businesses adopting cloud services and many are now even moving beyond the most popular Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) model into Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) and Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS). However, with technology comes jargon that many people find difficult to understand or define and this is as true of cloud as anything else.

Networks

How to Prepare for SDN

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Software defined networking is a new buzzword-related practice that requires a lot of work to implement successfully. So if you are planning to make the jump to SDN, let’s firstly consider its benefits to your business.

For a business implementing SDN practices it’s wise to understand how it all works. There are a number of different services offered by a wide variety of providers and those options alone require a lot of hard work and time. There’s the potential to opt for open source and bare metal switching but the point is that there’s loads of routes that a business could exploit. The final and most important consideration is factoring in time to truly learn your own network and discover if it’ll support SDN as is or if there’s also the task of upgrading it for SDN support.

A guide to help you prepare for SDN implementation.

Business

5 Signs it’s Time to Move to the Cloud

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For many businesses, in-house servers have traditionally borne the brunt of its networking capabilities. However, there have been lots of innovations in this sector meaning that sticking with older methods is becoming increasingly counterproductive. It’s likely that most of you have heard of cloud computing, but it’s perhaps more likely that many of you have yet to apply those principles to your business infrastructures.

Cloud computing becomes more viable with each passing day and for a business an important first step is one backwards. It’s necessary to step back and analyse your in-house server options and consider why you’ve yet to upgrade to a cloud based alternative.

There are of course numerous reasons why the move towards the cloud should happen soon but we’ll limit ourselves slightly.

Here are five compelling reasons why it’s time you moved to the cloud.

Quadratek People

Technology Sector Jobs

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This excellent infographics from The Telegraph not only illustrates the growth witnessed by the technology sector over the last couple of years, but looks too at the effects of tech on other job sectors

The good news is for those working actually in tech is that between 2012 and 2013 alone the sector saw a 4.6% increase in IT jobs. According to the news site, 600,000 people work in tech and digital in London alone and in the city, there has been a 16.6% growth. This is for the most part due to the increased investment and funding that the sector has seen, with names such as Facebook, Google and Samsung all having a presence in the UK capital now.

The top five cities for tech jobs in the UK are:

Business

Fibre Optic Internet– why haven’t you upgraded yet?

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Businesses thrive on communication and bad connections that impede that communication need addressing. The internet has come a long way since the dial-up days and it’s advisable to start looking into upgrade options even from your current broadband connection. If you don’t have fibre optic internet connectivity at your business, it’s probably time you considered it. It’s not that new a technology and the price of an upgrade is likely to be nominal.

Now, it’s understandable to be cautious with money and upgrades aren’t always necessary. However in some cases early adoption can be the thing that sets you apart from your competitors. Every business hopes for speedy communications and it seeks good technology that facilitates an easy transfer of information; now there’s a simple solution, one that provides both of those advantages: fibre optic cabling.

What is Fibre Optic?

Fibre optic is an all-purpose solution that can positively affect all communication and information sharing practices that occur within your business. It provides faster and more reliable internet conditions that allows businesses to work remotely, to connect with their customers and to send information in a secure manner. It’s currently one of the most advanced systems on the market and your business will notice its great benefits right out of the box.

Business

What’s your Data Governance Plan?

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Big data is something that businesses are embracing in increased numbers, but not every business is prepared for the changes that accompany big data adoption. Information from a recent survey suggests that as many as 44% of businesses aren’t ready to implement data governance plans. 22% of these firms that don’t have a data policy have suggested that they have no plans to implement one.

These findings were released in a data governance survey from Rand Secure Data, which is a division of Rand Worldwide. The findings suggest that businesses simply aren’t prepared for the legacy of big data and it’s becoming apparent that many businesses are happy with the benefits of big data gathering, but are equally happy to ignore the dangers.

Businesses are aware of what needs to be done to safeguard its data but many seem loath to act or even address the problem. It seems that until there are consequences, many businesses simply won’t acknowledge or do the things that need to be done.

Here’s a quick list of things that businesses should be doing:

Business

Is Big Data Essential For Business?

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Data is more a part of our lives now than it has ever been. It’s woven into every sector of the global economy and the harnessing of that data by businesses and individual alike is becoming the norm.

Big Data is what we get when the data sets collected become too large and complex to analyse using standard methods. This data comes from all sorts of sources, including web browsers, social media and consumer information. By sifting through all of this information business managers are able to make much more informed decisions and therefore move their company forward with confidence.

The Benefits of Big Data

Future ready – The internet of things is a hot topic in 2014. As products begin to broadcast data to one another to improve their efficiency. The amount of data available to manufacturers and suppliers is going to grow even greater as a result. Investing in an infrastructure that can handle and analyse Big Data now will put your business in an excellent position for the future, even if you’re not concerned with the internet of things, Big Data is listed by Gartner as one of the technology trends you can’t afford to ignore.

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