7 Features Of A Successful Social Media App

by Harnil Oza, CEO of Hyperlink Infosystem

Social media today is an integral part of the internet, and some may even argue it is the current climate of the internet as a whole. Think of the last time you used a mobile or PC device; chances are you were probably on one or more of the popular social media apps, WhatsApp, Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Snapchat, or YouTube.

The numbers are also there to support this theory, according to the Pew research center, social media use among Americans have risen from 5% in 2005 to 69% in 2016. The Digital in 2017 Global Overview research done by We Are Social, and Hootsuite also reveal that approximately 2.80 billion people now use social media frequently, this equals 37% of the worldwide population.

The numbers are staggering and aren’t likely to slow down anytime soon. Social media is taking over, and the only way for a business to remain relevant is to adapt to the climate. A strategic social media app developed for your business can give you an edge over the competition. For aspiring app developers, social media app development is only in its beginning stages and has a lot of room for improvements.

To begin, it is important to know the basics of what makes a successful social media app. What features are users looking for? What do the Big social media platforms have in common? While this answer is not entirely straightforward and can only be answered by individual experimenting, it still holds that the successful social media apps of today have some basic features that app developers need to adopt in building their social media apps.

1. Ease of Connectivity.

The entire point of social media is a way to bring internet users together. Before the invention of the concept, the internet was just one vast “planet” of sorts that everyone navigated alone. Of course, our innate human need for connection found this to be extremely uncomfortable and ever since have discovered new ways to create convenient and quick connectivity between users. Social media allows you to keep in touch with friends, family, and idols all over the world.

To build a successful social media app you will need to maintain or build upon this ease of connectivity. Your app would need seamless navigation features. There should be little or no stress in signing up, login in or socialize as it is. All the major social media apps require little effort from users to connect, and your app would have to follow suit to attract a fanbase.

2. Ability to Extensively Customize Individual Profiles.

One significant advancement experts have come to observe in social media is the gradual ability for users to create customized profiles in other to stand out.

Once upon a time, chat rooms allowed users only to use avatars in their image displays. Today, apps allow and expect you to use an image of yourself on their platforms. In addition, users now have the ability to upload image or videos of their personal lives, where they have been, what they ate, or who they are with. Of course, the latest in this trend is live videos; Facebook live, Instagram live, Snapchat and Twitter Periscope allow users to give live updates of what they are doing. It seems the more ability users have to customize their social media pages the happier they are.

To this effect, it may be work in your best interest to add filters, special fonts, or other groundbreaking effects to your app that will help users create unique and exciting profiles.

3. Ability to Expand User Following.

This is one of the primary reasons Instagram has experienced so much success with its app. Instagram gives you the easiest access to millions of people all over the world. As a result, it is easy to build a following on the platform, and anyone can gather thousands of fans in a relatively short period compared to other social media apps.

Mobile app developers should take a cue or two from Instagram and make it as simple as possible for users to find a following on their platform at least at the beginning. This will not only enhance the social image of the app but also encourage users to post content which keeps the app relevant.

4. Choosing the Right Platform.

Mobile app developers now have the option of launching their apps on several popular platforms such as Windows, iOS, Android, and more. It is not exactly advisable to launch on all platforms particularly in the beginning stages of your app development.

Choose a platform that supports your features best, especially one that affords the best interactive medium for your social media app. Also, choose a platform that supports various devices so as to enhance the performance of the app.

5. Easy Integration With Other Social Media Platforms.

For your social media app to quickly become popular it is important to integrate it with other top social apps like LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook. Outbound sharing not only increases the popularity of your app, but also grow users organically, and drive adoption. In addition to this users should be able to directly invite their friends to use personal messaging channels like Email, Whatsapp, SMS, Facebook and more. Deferred deep linking should also be used to develop a personalized experience for each invitee.

6. Privacy and Security.

As much as social media revolves around interaction, without the proper level of privacy and security lines can be crossed. People can end up losing their personal information to other users with the wrong motives. As such, advanced levels of privacy and security must be provided to keep users trust. Any breach in this can completely destroy the reputation of a social media app, especially at its beginning stages. Therefore, using the best methods for maintaining security is highly essential.

7. Notification and News Feed.

Any successful social media app must have the ability to compress all of a user’s many activities into a single view. Allow easy discovery of other users contents, and must be powerful for retention. As for news feed, it is important for any social media app to generate a constant flow of relevant content including photos, videos, and articles to enhance discovery and interaction between users.

There are several other important features that a social media app must have. A great example is adequate user support and consistent updates. Updating the app will fix bugs and give users advanced features that will keep their interests long term. Users should also be able to post reviews, update their status, share various forms of content, leave comments, suggestions, and feedback, and like or dislike content.

 

Harnil Oza is a CEO of Hyperlink Infosystem, a mobile app development company having a team of best Indian app developers who delivers best mobile solutions mainly on Android and iOS platform. He regularly contributes his knowledge on the leading blogging sites.

from Young Upstarts http://ift.tt/2rrjWB9 via website design phoenix

The UK’s New Generation Of Young Business Leaders

The United Kingdom is seeing a surge of creative energy from young entrepreneurs bubble up from all corners of the island. The new generation is made up of a diverse set of creative minds with a vision. Although their industries are different what defines most young entrepreneurs across the UK is a desire to recreate and reinvent, hashing out their own idea of what the future is for their markets and attracting widespread success with it.

Here but a few of the many of Britain’s young business leaders worthy of note:

Jamie Potter and Flexciton.

Jamie Potter is founder of Flexciton, a company that is breaking into the new potential offered by artificial intelligence and using it at that to take a crack at the persistent problem of environment waste and emissions. Rather than attack the oil and gas industry or power generating methods, Potter sees the answer not in reinventing the wheel but how much it produces with each turn through optimizing efficiency. Flexciton utilizes machine learning to chart data from machine production and develop applications from it to optimize energy consumption. This technology has the potential to reduce global energy consumption by 25%.

Louise Leolin and DinoByte Labs.

You might expect most gamer enthusiasts to be male, but Lousie Leolin, alongside her cofounder, is breaking the mold with her indie-gaming company called DinoByte Labs. As a gaming addict herself, she knows what makes a good idea into a profitable game experience and offers consultancy as well as game design with the cool, discerning eye of her start-up dedicated to producing success through diverse game and unique UX design.

Sebastian Cox Studio.

Sebastian Cox is a furniture designer dedicated to reviving British craft traditions. Founding his studio in 2010, he and his team work almost exclusively with British hardwoods to hand craft their designer furniture. The furniture also revives ancient techniques known as coppicing, a woodland management technique where saps and shoots of young trees are cut close to the ground so they can continue growing, and swilling, where long strips of green wood are moistened and weaved into strong wicker patterns. The results are beautiful, natural wood furnishings that have earned a good reputation for the studio.

Tommy Williams and All Shades Covered.

Tommy Williams is a young entrepreneur that followed a familiar path by many like him, he wanted to solve a simple problem he noticed. With a Nigerian family background, he became aware of the enormous cost of hair care products and extensions for black women when he heard his sister complaining about it. Using his financial background working as an investment banker for Goldman Sachs, he launched All Shades Covered in 2016. The company uses only real and natural hair that meets strict quality controls at a price below that of the middle man.

Jonny Grubin and SoPost.

Jonny Grubin followed another familiar path to young entreprenuers, turning a good conversation into real action that has seen him through to success. In our connected world, real, quality product feedback shouldn’t be such a problem right? It is and this is exactly what led Grubin to make product testing viral via the targeting of the friend circles of the best customers particular to each brand. Simple apps drive engagement with the delivered samples to test new products with targeted sampling with his service SoPost.

Archie Hewett and Duke and Dexter.

Archie Hewett is only in his early-twenties and founded his luxury shoe brand Duke and Dexter, as many young entrepreneurs have, when he identified a gap in the market from personal experience. Needing a pair of loafers for a black-tie event as a teenager, he searched high and low for something contemporary but traditional and found nothing. Commissioning a bespoke pair of shoes, he received compliments everywhere he went and slowly scaled his personal pair into a line of shoes now growing in worldwide sales and prized by celebrities.

So how are so many Millenial’s embarking on a journey of entrepreneurship? Of course one of the major reasons is advanced technologies, this in itself has created a vast array of new industries to be explored. Information is also so much more accessible, research can be done in the comfort of your own home through various platforms and around existing careers. There is also so much emphasis on business mentoring and there are many government initiatives in place to nurture and advise start up businesses.

Some business centres and university campus’ offer incubation centres or shared space where like minded people can bounce idea’s off each other.

With the growing popularity of shows like Dragons Den and Shark Tank, coupled with the confidence that the Millenials exude, they are more inspired than ever to give it a go and with so many succeeding the trend of these young entrepreneurs is sure to rise!

 

from Young Upstarts http://ift.tt/2rpCguF via website design phoenix

Padlock Priorities – 7 Ways To Boost The Security Of Your Business

Owning a business is a big commitment, you want your assets and employees safe and you want everything to run smoothly. Key to keeping on top of your business is taking care of security both in the physical space your business occupies and also online.

Physical Security.

1. Surveillance.

If you run a business out of a location that isn’t your home, or a building that has security included in your lease, you should seriously consider installing some kind of surveillance system. Especially if you keep expensive merchandise, equipment or significant amounts of cash on site. Obsec cctv monitoring can help give you peace of mind because the mere presence of cameras can deter theft and vandalism. If any crime should occur, cctv can aid in the justice process. Plus, it can help you get more efficient results if your insurance policy comes into play.

2. Lock and Key Systems.

There are several choices when it comes to how you secure your building physically.

The materials used on windows and doors can make a difference to how easy it is to break into your premises. You also need to decide if you want an analogue or an electronic locking system or some combination of both. Each have their own benefits.

3. After Hours Security Presence.

If you have a large property it may also be a good idea to hire on a security guard or two to monitor your place of business after hours. This adds peace of mind and will further discourage any trespassing or vandalism. Many companies that provide cctv equipment and security plans will also offer this service for an additional fee.

Online Security. 

1. Virus, Spyware and Malware Protection.

Online protection can be even more important than physical security in some cases, because if the wrong virus or malware gets into your system, the time and monetary cost to repair everything can be huge. Additionally, the risk that someone can data mine your system with spyware and gain access to all of your business’ passwords and accounts details is reason enough to invest in a great security network for you and your employers. It is always a good idea to have an expert come in and set up your online security initially so you can be sure your network is protected.

2. Regularly Update Passwords. 

Making it policy for all of your employees to change their network login passwords regularly is another great preventative measure against system break-ins. Additionally, you should use different passwords for each thing that requires password setup. That way if one password is compromised whoever has it can not automatically access all of your online accounts.

3. Keep Software Up to Date.

Whilst software updates can be inconvenient and time consuming they are worth it because often when a new update is released part of the improvements will be to holes in security and vulnerabilities to new malware technology.

4. Provide the Equipment if Employees Work on Mobile Devices (phones, laptops, tablets, etc.).

If your employees have the option to work outside of the office on networks that you don’t have control over like public wifi or their private home networks you may want to consider providing the tech. This was you can ensure that there is adequate security measures being taken and you can block access to potentially harmful sites.

from Young Upstarts http://ift.tt/2seFor9 via website design phoenix

Measure Your Website Performance With Alexa Rating Application

In today’s world, Alexa rating is one of the great application for calculating your personal website’s rating or performance. The application also helps to determine the backlinks that your website has earned. Having a website and staying at the top getting the best rating is a tough job, as the competition is very high. In every field whether it may be personal, commercial or some moneymaking site, your site has to face a tough competition and win over the others. If your website is not seen by others or your website is password protected, then you are not counted for Alexa Rating.

Many SEO professionals ignore the Alexa Rating as they consider this rating inaccurate and inconsistent. The SEO experts do not believe in this rating for the reason they are being generated by toolbars and not by actual visits to your website. Alexa Rating actually does not contribute much, but still it has some advantages.

People who have created new websites need popularity. The Alexa Rating would help them to be recognized globally in a very less time. Alexa Rating is a most important feature that many individuals are looking forward at. The websites having a higher rating can be seen they actually are very popular and well known. The Alexa Rating helps you to increase your website’s value. The higher the traffic your website is getting, the higher would be its Alexa Rating. A website which has a good Google PR would also have a good Alexa Rating. For improving your Alexa rating, a regular monitoring of certain areas is required.

Tips to improve your website’s Alexa Rating.

There must be a regular monitoring of your website for knowing the areas which requires improvement. Here are some steps and tips for improving your website’s Alexa Rating:

• The first step you must install the Alexa tool or widget for your website.
• After downloading the Alexa widget, you must install the Alexa toolbar for your browser too. This would be very beneficial for increasing web traffic to your website.
• You can write a post, review or an article about Alexa in your website. This would boost your website’s performance and visibility in Alexa.
• The main factor which helps to increase the Alexa rating is the content in your website. A fresh and new website would fetch you a higher rating in Alexa.
• If spending more for your website is not a problem, then you can subscribe the Alexa paid version for a time period. The paid subscriber’s website is analyzed and they are given tips for improving the website’s traffic and performance. With this you would be certified by Alexa which would be displayed on your website.
• It is recommended to be always connected to social media sites such as Facebook, Twitter, google plus and many more, which would increase the chances of getting more viewers for your website. More the viewers, more the traffic and better the performance.
• Guest posting is also an effective way for increasing the Alexa Rating very quickly.

from Young Upstarts http://ift.tt/2sew7zq via website design phoenix

The Employee Benefits Startups Should Consider

Running a startup is often like a juggling act. You need the best talents to join you but don’t really have the resources to attract and keep them within the organization. It’s a genuine challenge almost all new businesses face.

As with any other challenge, you need to get pretty creative to solve it. One way to get potential employees to pick you over some corporate behemoth is to offer attractive perks and benefits. As a startup you need to go beyond expectations and offer something unique to get the most talented team possible.

Here’s what you should consider:

The Basics.

Start off by ensuring you’ve covered the basics. Get a quote on insurance for your employees and set up a clear policy on their 401K. Although most of your employees will be younger than average, they probably already know what to expect from a full-time job, so it’s important to meet expectations.

Flexible work.

One of the key benefits most startups can provide is flexible working hours and work-from-home policies. Bigger companies may struggle to give their employees free reign over their work hours and office location, so you can easily implement this when your company is smaller and still growing. Being flexible with work structure is a cheap and easy way to boost morale and productivity.

Build the culture.

Quirky and eccentric work benefits can do more than just attract talent, it can help you build the organization’s culture. You can shape the perks according to your vision of what your business believes in. For example, allow a dress down day once a month and collect money for a specific charity for dressing down on that day. Get everyone free pizza once a month, or leave a gaming console in the office for employees to unwind after a hard day’s work.

Personalize.

Another advantage of being small is you can offer customized benefits to individual employees. One size never fits all, so let your employees pick and choose what benefits they want. Set aside a fixed budget to fund the perks and let your team decide what they value most. This way you never have to pick between flexible work hours, better office decor, game rooms, free food, or gym memberships. Your employees can simply tell you what they need and you can try to give them what they want.

Unique benefits and an attractive work environment will help you get the team you need. Take advantage of being small and nimble by offering benefits your corporate competitors cannot match.

from Young Upstarts http://ift.tt/2qBbbRW via website design phoenix

Key Facts You Should Know About Short Selling

If you ever watched or read The Big Short, you might have found the story interesting and wondered how those traders got short. You might have even thought about shorting some stocks yourself, but did know what to look for.

There are some things you’ll need to be mindful of when you’re shorting stocks, such as margin, short interest, floating shares and days to cover.

Margin account.

First things first, if you’re looking to short stocks, you should have an adequate amount of capital lying around, and you should understand that you could lose more than you intended to. Now, when you short stocks, you’re going to need a margin account, as this is the only type of account that could be used to short sell stocks due to regulations.

Now, under Regulation T, short sellers must place at least 150% of the value of the short position when the short is held in a margin account. Don’t worry, the 150% consists of the full value of the short position, or 100%, but you’ll need to put up an additional 50%. A margin account is required since you would be selling something you do not currently own by borrowing shares from someone else.

Trader Jason Bond noted, “When you’re looking to short sell stocks, you should keep in mind that you could lose a lot more than you invested. If you’re short a stock that is in a short squeeze, and you do not fulfill the minimum margin requirement, your broker will most likely close out your short at an unfavorable price.”

Floating Shares.

The next thing you’ll want to know about short selling is that the lower the number of floating shares, the more volatile the stock could be. Additionally, if there is a low number of floating shares, coupled with a high number of shares short, that stock could be in for a short squeeze. A short squeeze simply occurs when there is a sharp move to the upside, and short sellers close out their positions and add to the buying pressure, and in turn, the stock continues to run higher. Floating shares is the number of shares available to trade. The lower the number of shares available to trade, the more the stock fluctuates due to supply and demand aspects.

Short Interest.

Now, short interest is one key metric you would need to take into account when shorting. If there is a high short interest and the stock has been beaten down, you might not want to initiate a short position. Short interest is the ratio of the number of shares short to the number of floating shares. When there is a high short interest and a positive catalyst, traders may know the stock could undergo a short squeeze and could rise significantly.

Days to Cover.

Days to cover is a ratio that could give you an idea of when the buying pressure may be in the cards. Days to cover is the number of shares short divided by the average daily share volume. Therefore, if the days to cover ratio is high, it could be an indication that traders may start to close their short positions, thus increasing buying pressure.

The Bottom Line.

These are only a few metrics that you would need to take into account when short selling. There’s a lot more that goes into finding short plays, but looking at these metrics will give you a jump start. Keep in mind, you shouldn’t trade solely off of these metrics, rather you should use them as learning tools before you develop a strategy to short stocks.

from Young Upstarts http://ift.tt/2qBDEXP via website design phoenix

Top 3 Skills You Need To Be A Successful IT Executive

Every business needs a good IT executive, whether it is for planning the company’s IT roadmap or helping to maintain smooth operations through the use of information technology. More youngsters are dreaming of becoming a Chief Information Officer or CIO. It is a very rewarding position – and career – and it is definitely worth pursuing.

If you are one of those people who want to be a top IT executive, there are several key skills you need to have. In this article, we are going to go over the top three skills you need to be a successful IT executive and, further down the line, CIO.

Business Understanding.

There are reasons why top universities such as UAB Collat School of Business are adding critical business classes to their online bachelor of science in information systems programs. A good understanding of business workflows is one of the most important skills to have as an IT executive.

Today’s online BSIS degree holders are required to be able to translate business processes into system workflows and suitable IT solutions. The ability to translate parts of the business’s operations into IT implementation guidelines will make you a valuable IT specialist for the company.

Another reason why business knowledge is critical is the evolving nature of IT itself. Even a well-implemented IT solution will need to be adjusted or modified over time, especially as the business grows. Only those who understand the necessary adjustments to be made upon seeing changes in the business workflow can succeed in this field.

Communication.

Good communication skills are another critical skill to have as a CIO. Knowing the needs of the business and the kind of IT solutions required is just the start. The next step is communicating those needs to two important parties in the business: the business owner or decision makers, and the team that will be implementing the IT solutions.

You have to be able to communicate the benefits of IT implementation before the projects get the approval they need. This means breaking down those advantages into numbers; sometimes, you also need to know the impact of IT implementations on the company’s bottom line.

On the other hand, ensuring the success of IT implementation projects requires the ability to communicate the ideas you have in mind clearly. Even a simple miscommunication can lead to a costly mistake.

Organizational Leadership.

If your goal is to become CIO, then you need to show strong leadership throughout your career. IT teams can be difficult to organize, but a strong leader has the ability to transform the strong individuals inside the team into a well-oiled machine that supports the business fully. The process involves having a clear vision, the ability to plan ahead, and taking the time to understand the strengths of each team member.

Leadership skills will also help you connect with other parts of the company. It is not uncommon for IT to have tense relationships with other departments. A good leader must be able to bridge the gap between IT and marketing, finance, and other parts of the business’s operations. Combined with the previous two key skills, leadership skills are the ingredient that makes you the best CIO that you can be.

from Young Upstarts http://ift.tt/2rUPhNz via website design phoenix

5 Company Initiatives That Reduce Employee Burnout

by Jessica Thiefels, owner of Honest Body Fitness

Employee burnout is on the rise thanks to our digital lives — it’s easy to answer an email at 9p.m. when you’re in bed because your phone is likely already in your hands, or on your bed stand. This burnout, otherwise known as stress, impacts employee performance, the quality of their work and relationships with coworkers and management, according to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America.

Instead of letting burnout affect your bottom line, stop it in its tracks with these five company initiatives. Bonus: Employees will love them too, boosting their loyality to the company.

1. Weekly Work From Home Day.

One of the most important ways to reduce burnout is to provide employees with more autonomy and flexibility in their schedule, according to a recent workplace burnout study. To provide employees with more autonomy, start allowing employees to work from home one day a week.

This shows that you trust them to do their work, and also provides them with more work-life balance. Perhaps this allows someone to have breakfast with their kids, when normally they’d have to rush to the office. In the end, employees are happier and likely more productive.

2. Provide Relaxing Down Time.

Your employees are less likely to get burned out if they enjoy coming to work. Many organizations make this a priority in their offices, like Edelman Financial Services, “In addition to an annual holiday party, we stage smaller events throughout the year, from ‘Glop Day’ when we serve ice cream with lots of toppings to Stress Down Day. And we look for excuses (like the completion of big projects or celebrating an award) to cater breakfast and lunch for the entire firm,” explains Ric Edelman, founder and executive chairman.

Start an “Operation Fun” initiative, where you cater breakfast or lunch, bring in expert speakers or host fun competitions at least once a month. Whatever your employees will like is best for your organization.

3. Welcome Side Projects.

Side projects don’t take away from company productivity. Some of the best, most innovative ideas have come from employees working on side projects, sometimes during working hours.

This is a practice widely accepted and encouraged at Microsoft, LinkedIn and DropBox, the latter of which has regular dates on the calendar for their employees to work on side projects and new ideas.

Instituting a “Side Project Initiative” may sound trivial, but it gives your employees a break from their normal job duties, allowing them to return with fresh eyes. If you’re worried about managing distraction and ideas that could be valuable to the company, take at look at these logistics tips from Redbooth.

4. Give More Paternity Time for Dads.

Paternity and maternity leave are topics of discussion frequently in the business world. And in 2016, some of the largest companies implemented 6-month long new parental leave for both moms and dads, including IKEA, Twitter, Etsy and American Express, according to Forbes.

Having a newborn is exhausting, and without this much-needed time off, Dads are going to burnout faster and harder than normal. Implementing this initiative would allow you to reduce burnout among new dads and show both them and their spouses that you care about their family and needs.

5. Create a Culture of Teamwork.

Encouraging employees to work collaboratively as a team can help prevent burnout. When people are encouraged to share a challenging project, they’re reminded that they don’t have to do everything on their own—which is a quick road to burnout.

To get people working together, you have to make building a culture of collaboration in your office a priority. To do that, keep a few tips in mind: encourage autonomy and decision-making, set clearly defined team objectives, and make individual progress visible to the entire team, according to How to Promote Effective Teamwork in the Workplace.

Burnout doesn’t have to reduce productivity or drive your employees away. Use one or all of these five simple ideas to reduce burnout and boost overall happiness. In the end, everyone wins, including your bottom line.

 

Jessica Thiefels, owner of Honest Body Fitness, has been writing and editing for more than 10 years and spent the last six years in marketing. She recently stepped down from a senior marketing position to focus on growing her own startup and consulting for small businesses. She’s worked for businesses both big and small, including a 12-person education startup and well-known organizations like Business.com and Active.com. 

from Young Upstarts http://ift.tt/2qBiBV2 via website design phoenix

Artificial Intelligence And Global Ethics

by Shane Cragun, founding partner at SweetmanCragun Group and coauthor of “Reinvention: Accelerating Results in the Age of Disruption“

Two years ago, Boston Dynamics released a video showing a 6’ tall, 320 lb. humanoid robot named Atlas running freely through the woods. Imagine the reaction of those out picnicking trying to escape worldly cares. This is one of many artificial intelligence innovations being developed throughout the world that would take your breath away, but often fly under the radar.

On the eve of AI commercialization, we’d like to put forth a bold proposition. And that is, if some of tomorrow’s AI innovations are used unwisely, there will be unintended consequences that could have been avoided if we had entered into informed dialogue.

Stephen Hawking, Elon Musk, and Bill Gates are on the same page when talking about the pros and cons of AI. In recent discussions, all three pondered the implications on humanity if some artificial intelligence applications actually become more intelligent than humans.

The Pentagon is currently studying the repercussions of AI missile systems being developed that can make life and death decisions on their own. Perhaps there’s a chance that, in some cases, we won’t be able to control our own AI creations in the future. What happens if army robots call in drone strikes in civilian areas based upon incorrect quantitative data algorithms?

But there are other unsettling implications of AI applications to ponder. One is watching artificial intelligence solutions replace jobs at such a rate that the United States becomes a welfare state.

A recent Los Angeles Times article suggested there is great likelihood that robots – or driverless trucks – will eventually replace 1.7 million truckers over the next decade. This technology is being tested now, as I experienced a few months ago while driving north on Highway 101 from Los Angeles to San Jose.

I approached an 18-wheeler in the fast lane that was going a bit slower than the traffic around it and flashed my lights. The truck immediately and too quickly swerved to the right to change lanes, but it went too far and off onto the shoulder, causing smoke and dust to fly. It then settled into the right lane.

My initial thought was to call the 1-800 number on the back trailer and report that the company had a potentially drunk driver on the road. But as I pulled up to the side of the big semi-truck, I noticed that the driver’s seat was empty. There was no human driving the truck. It felt like a “twilight zone” moment and left me feeling queasy.

To those currently working on AI solutions and applications, with the hopes of commercializing them globally, I’d like you to think deeply on the following question: Just because you have the technological prowess to create your awesome AI solution, when you take a step back and ponder its implications, do you think you should?

There are countless examples of the notion, “just because we can, it doesn’t mean we should:”

• Nuclear weapons: The U.S. and Russia have a combined 13,800 nuclear bombs, many 10x more powerful than those dropped on Japan. Entire civilized countries could be wiped out and whole continents contaminated with radiation.
• Human cloning: This capability exists, but the ethical question participants are asking is this: is it morally correct to program the type of child we want in absolutely every facet of their DNA and their being?
• Geo-engineering: These solutions will be able to manipulate large-scale, global environmental processes that affect the entire earth’s climate.
• Cyberbug drones: As small as an insect, these drones will be able to enter any location unnoticed, and record sounds, gather information, and create privacy nightmares.

Let’s assume AI replaces almost 2 million hardworking truck drivers in America. Who wins? Truck driving companies and shareholders win financially. And, we assume, Silicon Valley oligarchs responsible for AI creations will applaud themselves for their technological prowess. But millions of Americans will go on the dole.

Elon Musk just announced a $1 billion crusade to influence the right use of AI because of his fear around the path this is all taking. And he has inside knowledge. He suggests an AI apocalypse could happen if new technologies aren’t used wisely.

Robotics and artificial intelligence is a wonderful thing when it is paired with humans in the attempt to offer better solutions and address global problems. A team approach, if you will. Think doctors and AI robots operating on patients in tandem and the improvement in surgery outcomes.

Let’s remember that humans will always possess “genuine intelligence” that their “artificial intelligence” friends won’t. And humans will always have a few things machines won’t – a heart, a conscience, and a sense of the human condition.

Perhaps there’s an additional question that those involved in AI commercialization ought to ask themselves before committing to launch: to what degree will our new AI product improve the human condition around the world and benefit humanity as a whole?

Stephen Hawking said that, in the end, “artificial intelligences will be either the best or worst thing for humanity.” Let’s begin engaging in honest discussions while we still have choices and can still influence the best outcomes.

 

Shane Cragun is a founding partner at SweetmanCragun Group, a global management consulting, training, and coaching firm, and co-author of “Reinvention: Accelerating Results in the Age of Disruption” with Kate Sweetman. Cragun has worked as an internal change agent within a Fortune 500 High Tech Firm, a line executive at FranklinCovey, and a global external management consultant. He also co-authored “The Employee Engagement Mindset“, has presented a TEDx talk in Silicon Valley, and has spoken at business conferences worldwide.

from Young Upstarts http://ift.tt/2rSYnu4 via website design phoenix

How To Get The Right CDN Service

Content Delivery Networks or CDNs are pretty much standard for websites that want to be relevant anywhere beyond their zip code. The amount of utility and improvement that a CDN provider is able to add to a website’s functionality is amazing but there are a lot of solutions for CDNs. That’s not a bad thing since it’s always great to have a lot of options, but it’s useful to know which one is actually going to treat your website right. There are certain factors that you need to weigh in considerably before making the decision of getting a CDN provider.

Depending on what you choose, you are going to get a different experience obviously. Most CDN providers are going to do fine, but those fine details are what really matter in this sort of situation. So if you’re serious about managing that website make sure to turn into CDN wiki investigation mode.

So without delaying it any further, it’s time to see what you need to look at in a good CDN provider. If the one you’re eyeing has these characteristics, you might want to proceed with that one. Here we go, the top qualities of a CDN provider:

Loading speeds.

This is the bread and butter of any CDN provider. If your website isn’t able to load fast enough, it’s going to have a problem in the eyes of the potential millions of visitors waiting outside your virtual doorstep. Loading speeds of course refer to how quick the website can load since the moment that a user typed in that address and hit Enter. The faster you can make this happen, the better it’s going to be for your website’s popularity. People love everything snappy now. If something can go any faster than it already is, then it should.

Response times.

This is also another variety of bread and button that also pertain to the CDN list of characteristics that are essential. Basically, response times make sure that your website responds quickly to the requests that other user browsers make. Imagine someone standing in front of you. And you throw a paper ball at them. If they catch it just as it reaches them, it’s all good. But if it just hits them in the face as they stare blankly, only extending their hand to grab it moments later, that’s bad. You would probably be a little frustrated with the latter version as would internet users be with a website that doesn’t do or show them something when they request it.

Reach.

The whole point of implementing CDN is to make sure that your website will function properly in faraway lands and distant places. If the CDN provider is able to give you an underwhelming experience that only extends your reach to the neighboring country, you should probably look for another provider.

from Young Upstarts http://ift.tt/2qwEmts via website design phoenix

Why First Aid Training Should Feature In Your CV

First aid training is something most of us will have experienced at some point – we’ve all met Annie and had to half heartedly give her mouth to mouth – but what if we told you it could actually benefit your job role and enhance your career path?

Every workforce has a first aider, and the amount in each workplace varies depending on the number of people and hazard level in your industry – the standard, according to the HSE, is one first aider per 25 people in a low hazard environment and one first aider per five people in a high hazard environment.

Therefore, in the manufacturing industry for every five people you’re going to need one competent individual who has been trained in first aid. This could be you and here’s why you should go for it:

You can ensure you and your colleagues are protected.

As a first aider, you have more sway over health and safety practices as you are able to spot risks and have precautionary safety measures put in place around the workplace. This could be everything from recommending higher quality PPE, to ensuring those working with chemicals are in an environment where there is plenty of ventilation, to keeping the necessary medical supplies available well stocked and in good order.

It can benefit your career.

An individual with first aid experience is beneficial in any working environment, especially if they proactively undertake regular training. It also indicates that they are an excellent team player and are able to take on extra responsibility on top of their every day work. Having first aid training under your belt can also push you to the front of the line if you decided to go for another job in a high hazard environment.

You can save the business time and money.

Workplace accidents are costly, but if there is a competent first aider such as yourself providing immediate treatment before professionals arrive, you could save the business time and money. Recovery time can be made shorter if the injured individual is seen to immediately, so they can get back to work and not cause delays or upset in projects or with clients during their absence.

It can boost confidence.

Knowing how to effectively manage an emergency situation is something that can boost your confidence across all aspects of your job role. You will feel confident working to tight deadlines, be more efficient when dealing with problems and cope well under pressure all because of your first aid training.

It’s a skill you can use outside your role.

Let’s not forget, you may require first aid experience when out of work too and knowing the basics could save someone’s life.

First aid training is something that can truly benefit you and your job role. If you’ve been considering taking on further training don’t hesitate to sign up for a course or ask your employer to help with this.

from Young Upstarts http://ift.tt/2rgvgy1 via website design phoenix

Estimating App Development: What Small Businesses Need To Know?

by Julia Kravchenko, partner and VP of HR at Qubit Labs

“Why don’t we make an app?”

Obviously, if you open this article you are also interested in creating the one.

If we look through the statistics, it’ll show us that mobile phones are gradually becoming more and more popular. They follow the way of websites: a couple of decades ago having a page in the internet was considered to be luxury, though now you cannot surprise customers with online presence. I’d even say, it’s a must to care about your e-customers. The amount of e-commerce owners thinking about creating an app is also growing as almost any business can find its target audience via smartphone or tablet.

Idea vs. real app.

Software development companies face lots of different cases, but generally all of them fall into two main categories:

– Client has been nursing the idea of his/her mobile app for a long time but it takes months or even years to bring it to the stage of development estimation. In fact, you shouldn’t hesitate because consultation on budget doesn’t bind you to anything, and discussing technical details of the project implementation with an experienced specialist may influence not only the budget but also apps functions.

– Or vice versa, client has only a general idea of the app, without taking into account the needs of the target audience or what devices they use, and has no clue about engagement, customer acquisition and retention… So, nothing is ready but a person wants this “nothing” to be estimated, and the price becomes the main criterion for choosing a software development company. Savvy freelancers and some tricky IT companies are happy to promise the moon and provide such a client with a quote he/she wants to get.

A distinctive feature of professional custom software development company is that it will never tell you the price at once, without covering a long list of questions concerning both technical and business sides of your idea.

No matter what type of clients you belong to, you shouldn’t nibble at an idea how to estimate an app.

First, lots of companies provide an initial quote for free. All you need is to fill in a contact form and a company’s representative will get in touch with you shortly to discuss project details with you. But mind that it’s simply an initial estimation and the data is rather rough to fully rely on.

Second, consultation with a specialist can help you to make your mind concerning the key options and platforms, and the crucial issues to launch the first version.

How long and how much?

If clients want to get a roughly estimated cost to develop an app, company provides them with a quote in 1-3 days. More detailed estimation would take 3+ days and up to a week.

In average, price of a mobile app development from scratch will start from $5,000. An app developed to promote a special offer would cost about 5 times less while long-term projects with several app versions for different platforms can be estimated up to $20,000.

What factors affect estimation?

Budget depends not only on app’s functions but also on the following factors:

• Completeness.

Some clients approach companies only with an idea, and the others already have their design created. App cost can fall by 30% if your design is ready.

• Platforms (Operating Systems).

Take into account the OS (iOS, Android, tablets) of your app and their quantity. Let’s say, you want an app for Android but suddenly you come up with an idea to make a tablet version. It may increase your expenditures 15-60%. NB! Android apps are 10-20% more expensive than iOS.

• Integration.

What is obvious for a developer might be a discovery for a client. That’s exactly what companies usually face on the stage of integration. Almost all apps need a server, mind this. The second issue is a social network API. At first, it seems to be a piece of cake, but IRL it takes a week to develop such an integration because popular social networks servers follow their own principles. Think twice if you really need you customers to log in via, for instance, Twitter as it can cost you additional $1000. Choose only these social networks your target audience uses more.

Notice that an initial estimation is usually revised since there are lots of details that are impossible to forecast at first. You can add or refuse from some function in the course of development. Don’t worry about this, it’s a typical work process. So, keep calm and enjoy it!

 

Julia Kravchenko is a partner and a VP of HR in Qubit Labs, an innovative software development company with offices in Tallinn, Estonia and Kyiv, Ukraine. Diplomas in Psychology and HR and 10+ years of experience make her one of the top specialists in the field. She is passionate about technology, especially AI and IoT and digital marketing, and covers these topics in her articles.

from Young Upstarts http://ift.tt/2rQWSMR via website design phoenix

Startups – Integrating Security Mindset and Processes Early

by Quan Heng Lim, Cyber-Operations Consultant at Horangi

“The Lean Startup.”

“Fail Fast, Pivot.”

“Agile Methodology.”

The trend today is for teams and projects to be flexible, adaptable, continuously reassessed and developed to ensure that products and/or companies fit market demand.

In the chase to produce the best minimum viable product or to push out the next killer feature, security is often given the backseat. This stems from both market always craving for the new stuff and businesses wanting to be ahead of competitors. What many people have failed to realize, (including myself and some of the teams and projects I have previously worked on) is that in such an environment, taking security into consideration early in the process is even more critical than ever before. Let’s take the typical conditions, looking at cybersecurity both within the product and the environment it is operating in.

 Personal experience + some example starts here.

Security is often not given the consideration it should get early in the design or development process and it tends to be costlier to implement later on. Consider this:

• The team comes up with a brilliant idea for a product or to improve a process
• They come up with a fast, efficient plan to implement that idea.
• They pool their resources, gather a team, and roll out their first product.
• People love it, feedback is positive.
• The initial development rush slows.
• Team realizes there are many, many vulnerabilities that were not addressed, some of which require an overhaul of the entire system architecture or methods that are already closed.

I’m pretty sure this sounds familiar to many. So how do we go about solving it, efficiently?

Security, efficiently.

Modern frameworks and languages have many built in features for security, created on the assumption that every developer would take the time to look through the piles of documentation (or lack thereof). Combine this with the fact that third-party code or library integration is almost unavoidable these days. It is important from the onset to set simple rules to help ensure coding best practices are followed while dealing with the sheer number of technologies and languages that can be involved in a single project.

This might seem like it diverges from security, but factors such as maintainability, DRY (don’t repeat yourself), KISS (keep it simple stupid), the UNIX principle and clarity of code helps with security reviews and code revisions while assisting in avoiding logic errors and other issues. Hardcoding of credentials and other sensitive data prevents portability. It should be noted that writing good code is an art unto itself and we will not delving deeply into that for this article.

Best practices include: standardized use of libraries and methods where possible, avoiding using versions containing vulnerable methods, preferring API over system commands when interfacing with underlying system and deciding on proven modules and functions, such as “secure random” instead of “random” methods for a random seed.

Principles such as security of data in transit and at rest and knowledge of the common vulnerabilities in the market today help bring awareness to developers, allowing security to be built into the development process.

Today we will be focusing on this variation of the SDLC:

1. Requirements gathering
2. Design
3. Implementation/Development
4. Testing and Verification
5. Release and Maintenance

Requirements Gathering

In this phase, we will be gathering requirements for the project ie. the intended outcomes. As part of the SDLC, we should also establish the security requirements and objectives for the application.

Design

In this phase, we will be designing the architecture and depending on the development framework you are using, high level designs of the data models and methods. As part of the SDLC, we should introduce secure design review exercises. A high level security risk analysis and threat modeling should be performed and can include frameworks such as Microsoft’s ¹STRIDE. The main purpose of this is to assess risk, determine potential threats, and build mitigation factors or resolve the deficiencies.

Implementation/Development

In this phase, the developers will be getting their hands dirty and coding. Here, we will see the benefits of developer training, development of best practices and standards as suggested earlier. Static code review exercises should be completed with the partial objective being secure code and business logic.

Testing and Verification

In this phase, most development flows will be entering the user acceptance testing. In addition to this, it is a great phase to perform penetration testing and evaluation of security on a stable, release candidate code base.

Depending on the vulnerabilities found and the threat assessed, fixes might need to be pushed out and re-assessed before release.

Release and Maintenance

While most may assume that security takes a back seat on release, this is not true. Especially for newer application releases. The company must also be ready to perform incident response, react to user reports of vulnerabilities, and examine actual exploitation of vulnerabilities.

Depending on the criticality and state of these vulnerabilities, fixes could either be pushed to the next release cycle, require immediate fixes, or best suited with a call to a lawyer.

 Is agile & secure development a mismatch?

²At first glance, agile development and security seem to be opposed to each other, with agile being focused on functionality driven, speed and flexibility in short cycles with limited documentation. Security on the other hand, concerns itself with stable code, and extensive analysis with non-functional objectives. This gap can be reconciled by dividing the tasks into three lists:

• One time tasks, such as high level risk assessments, baseline threat models and a response plan.
• Unavoidable checks done every sprint, such as input validation, output encoding, secure response headers, HTTPS settings, updating threat models, and hardcoded keys. Note that some of these tasks can be done cumulatively, depending on sprint length and changes made in that sprint.
• Bucket requirements containing security verification tests, design review and planning updates (response plans, threat models etc.)

As with the development cycle, ensure that there are security-savvy people providing some overwatch in the development process, managing the design, follow-up on issues and monitoring the risks.

Last words.

Implementing security early makes it easier to do in the long run, and I hope the above article has given you some insight on where to start.

• The STRIDE Threat Model. (n.d.). Retrieved May 03, 2017, from http://ift.tt/1QcjM7Z
• Win, B. (n.d.). Secure Development LifeCycles (SDLC) (Tech. No. SecAppDev 2014).

 

Quan Heng Lim is a Cyber Operations Consultant for Horangi.  He was the founder of 2 technology based startups before throwing himself into cybersecurity and penetration testing. These days he enjoys breaking stuff as much as making them, helping other companies discover security vulnerabilities and providing general technology consulting advice.

from Young Upstarts http://ift.tt/2rhxNdv via website design phoenix

A Primer On Google Primer

by Rhonda Adams, president and founder of PlanningShop and author of “Successful Business Plan: Secrets & Strategies“

Small business owners never seem to have enough hours in the day to complete all the tasks on our to-do lists — developing new products, searching for new customers, training employees, closing the sale. As busy as we are, we also need to keep up with small business and marketing trends — trends that change quickly.

Google Primer, a free app from Google, has developed a number of small business and marketing lessons — each of which you can complete in a manageable five minutes. Each interactive lesson breaks down a small business concept into bite-size pieces. Learn how to get found online, how to create effective email marketing campaigns, how to build an online presence, and much more.

My Google Primer lesson has just gone live: “Start Small and Grow on Your Own with Bootstrapping”.

“Bootstrapping” is the strategy of growing your business through income – sales – or other personal or short-term financing (like credit cards) rather than going out and looking for investors or taking on significant debt. So instead of relying on outsiders, you’re “pulling yourself up by your own bootstraps.”

When you have only your own resources, unfortunately that means you usually have less money, so you need to make sure every dollar counts.

One great way to do that is to “start small” – to get to market and start making sales with the leanest viable product or service you can get out the door. That’s what we call an “MVP” – or “minimal viable product.”

While you might not start out with as grand a project as what you might have initially imagined, focusing on getting a lean – but viable and workable – product or service launched and making sales is a great way to grow your business with the fewest outside dollars.

By “bootstrapping” and starting with an MVP, you’re not only reducing your need for outside investors or lenders, but by interacting with prospects and customers and making real sales, you gain insights about your product/service that you’d never know

You can learn more about bootstapping and MVP – minimal viable products – in my Google Primer lesson, that’s now live. To take my lesson now, click on this link from your smartphone or tablet: http://ift.tt/2qySFc6

But I’m not the only one creating Google Primer lessons. You’ll find a whole slew of small business lessons there, including a few from some other small business experts I respect, such as:

• John Jantsch: Foster Customer Relationships to Sell Your Product
• Anita Campbell: Small Business Budgeting: Track, Plan, Prepare
• Ramon Ray: Fight Fatigue and Stress While You Start a New Business

In small business, as in life, always be learning!

 

Author, entrepreneur, and nationally-syndicated columnist, Rhonda Abrams is widely recognized as one of the nation’s foremost experts on small business and entrepreneurship. Rhonda writes the nation’s most widely-distributed column on small business and entrepreneurship, appearing weekly in USA Today. She is the author of 19 books on business planning, small business and entrepreneurship, including the best-selling business plan guide “Successful Business Plan: Secrets & Strategies“.

from Young Upstarts http://ift.tt/2qz1cMb via website design phoenix

Start-Ups Of 2017 That Are Creating A New World Order

2017 started on a high note, with expectations from several industries that were buoyed by the technological inventions. It seems clearer every month of this year that anything is possible with enough resources and determination.

Tech lovers have started blogs and based them on cryptocurrency, Bitcoin leading in this area, but several other developments that may not have received such massive airtime. Still, they are likely to change the way we live so much that they will become the new world order.

These start-ups are using technology to deliver better services:

Graviky Labs.

This Indian company is taking something negative and turning it into an income-generating venture. Delhi has been voted for two years in a row as the most polluted city in the world, and so some smart-heads decided to do something about it. They are using the soot from engine exhaust and turning it into ink and paint. While this venture is still new, investors have funded it so that the company keeps cleaning up Delhi. The soot is collected from the exhaust without a possibility of damage to the engine.

Accompany.

This app is aimed at making the life of every executive so much easier. Proclaimed by its makers as your personal chief-of-staff, this app gets you all the information you will need to get through the day. It will recap conversations you had at a previous meeting with people you are about to meet and bring you up to speed with what you need to discuss in your meeting. It also gives you details of attendees’ lives. Amy Chang, the founder, has already raised $20 million, and so this project has taken shape. Meetings will never be the same again.

23andMe.

23andMe is a company that does tests and releases them to individuals so that they can get to know whether they are at risk of developing genetic diseases. FDA had previously prevented the company from releasing theses tests directly to people, but the ruling has been reversed. This test does not impede a genetic disorder, but they are more informed and able to make wiser decisions for the future regarding their condition. These diseases include Parkinson’s disease and Alzheimer’s.

Pindrop Security.

Identity theft has been an issue for a long time in the US, and Pindrop has decided to do something about it. The company has raised up to $122milllion in funding to help expand its services. The company has a fraud-prevention service where they identify the location of the person calling so that you can determine their authenticity. Three out of the four top financial institutions have used the service. Identity theft has been rampant in the recent past, and it is perpetrated through phones, thus identifying the location of the caller helps keep your identity safe.

Starry.

Want to supercharge your internet? Starry will do just that with their portable device, Starry Point that will help you to download a 2-hour movie in 2 minutes. With dizzying speeds of up to 1 GB per second, virtual meetings are possible more than ever. Being small with a broad base, you can take it anywhere. The company that launched in 2016 has raised $30 million to expand its services.

from Young Upstarts http://ift.tt/2qs3dhK via website design phoenix

7 Key Risk Areas During Optimization Of ERP Implementation

Businesses that use Enterprise Resource Planning, or ERP, are usually in a better position to manage all their critical operations under one platform. Often, the businesses will require optimizing the ERP if they have to make an impact on the operations. However, this optimization effort may draw other risks which limit the productivity of the business. Business solution experts advise that it is prudent to understand the possible risks and how to avoid them (for more details on how to tackle these business challenges, visit https://twbs.com).

In this article, we will discuss the seven common possible risks which make almost 75 percent of businesses fail in their efforts to optimize their ERP implementation:

Project governance.

Companies which don’t pay close attention to all ERP implementation factors may end up getting less than what the contract says. Therefore, it is prudent to take charge of the project timeline and budget. They also need to get involved in all implementation activities. This avoids delays and over expenditures or getting fewer services than agreed upon.

Business requirements.

Understanding the business requirements regarding the optimized ERP can only be possible if the company drafts the business requirements and tests them using the new upgraded ERP. It is only at this stage that the business can prevent several risks that can result if not well tested.

Regulatory needs, controls, and security.

The Payment Card Industry, Sarbanes–Oxley Act (SOX), and any other applicable regulatory requirements play a great role in the implementation of ERP. Additionally, the data privacy guidelines are a mandatory consideration to be made. Security of data is probably the most crucial, since the ERP uses Internet platforms. Some of the concerns include the cyber security as well as privacy and integrity. The company must scope and plan well to meet any regulatory controls and security needs after the system is live.

The data.

Data-related concerns include planned classification, data cleansing, mapping and moving processes. There should be no risk which will affect productivity even after the upgrades. All data must be matched with the right department, owner, date, and any other crucial parameter.

Organizational change management.

Imagine staff and everyone waking up to a new or upgraded ERP system and no one spoke a word about it. Well, the company must make plans for critical communication before and after implementation to all concerned parties including the stakeholders. In fact, training the staff on how to use the new version of the ERP is not optional but a must. Failure to do so will only result in unnecessary anxiety, rumors and will cause conflict as staff try to figure out on how to go about using the new ERP.

Operations.

As soon as the ERP goes live, the company is bound to face various emerging issues. Also, the service and solution providers that installed the system will need to be reviewed for adequacy. Other emerging issues include backup strategy and owners who are assigned to use the system. Assessing the business priorities against the system’s functionality is also paramount. All these will ensure that the system addresses the operational needs properly.

The technology.

A good ERP is the one which is designed to meet all needs of the company at the moment, and can accommodate any future advancements in technology. This includes the infrastructure needs. Again, this can entail frequent updates on software upgrades and data recovery processes.

from Young Upstarts http://ift.tt/2rbO2Xh via website design phoenix

How To Hire Great Employees

by Ross Kimbarovsky, founder of crowdSPRING

Building a great team is nearly always the difference between the success or failure of a business. But it’s not easy to build a great team that shares your vision.

What common habits do nearly all great employees have? Look for these habits when you interview and make hiring decisions.

Great employees have strong discipline.

The best employees have strong discipline. Talented people are effective when they’re in a good mood or excited about their work. But it’s rare that we can be in a good mood 100% of the time and the initial excitement about a project often dissipates as the project drags along. Even you won’t be 100% excited about your business at all times. That’s because a business is like a roller-coaster ride. There are many ups and downs – often in the same day. It’s important that employees stay disciplined during the ups and the downs.

Great employees welcome criticism.

We all make mistakes. The most effective employees seek constructive criticism rather than avoid it (especially when they’ve made a mistake). Winston Churchill famously said, “Criticism may not be agreeable, but it is necessary. It fulfills the same function as pain in the human body. It calls attention to an unhealthy state of things.”

Average employees typically become defensive and hostile when receiving constructive feedback. Highly effective employees know that without constructive feedback, it’s difficult to improve.

Think about your own employees or if you’re working for someone else, your colleagues. When you or another person provide constructive criticism, do your employees or colleagues listen and act on that criticism? Or do they instead choose to argue and quickly become defensive?

Great employees embrace opportunities.

The most effective employees look for weaknesses within an organization both to correct those weaknesses and to show skill and leadership. Highly effective employees don’t sit and wait for opportunities to come to them.

Great employees are persistent.

True innovation requires hard work and focus, not just great ideas. We tend to be excited about end goals, but not prepared for the hard work and persistence. Even with careful planning, some projects can take much longer to complete than expected.

Great employees are decisive.

Don’t hire people at any position if you don’t believe they can be decisive. To scale your business, you want people to take risks and not worry about making mistakes. Most employees, especially at bigger companies, hold themselves back because they fear failure.

It’s true that some ideas and initiatives will fail. Maybe even most will fail. Think of those ideas and initiatives as experiments and follow Thomas Edison’s perspective: “I haven’t failed, I’ve found 10,000 ways that don’t work.”

You’ll rarely have complete information when running a business or making decisions, but indecision is paralyzing, especially to startups and small businesses.

Great employees listen first.

Most people talk too much. The most effective employees (and leaders) are people who listen first and talk when they have something meaningful to add to the conversation. Such employees are effective because they don’t need to hear themselves talk. They consider the facts, ask questions, and then share an opinion. Silence is golden.

But that invites them to talk – not to listen, you say. True. Yet, by asking questions, you’re exploring whether they take cues from your answers to ask follow-up questions. If they simply walk in and ask three pre-written questions, it’s doubtful they care much about what you have to say – they’re simply asking questions because most job candidates are expected to ask questions during an interview.

Pay attention to HOW they’re asking the questions. Are they asking WHY questions or WHAT questions? A person who knows how to listen first generally asks WHY questions – why do you need something done, for example.

People who lack good listening skills generally ask WHAT questions – what do you need done. Even though the questions seem similar, they’re not. A person who understand the answer to the WHY question can be creative and might find a much better way to solve a problem. A person who asks WHAT questions will typically do what needs to be done, but since they won’t know why you need it done, they’ll have little room or reason to be creative.

Great employees know their limits.

The most effective employees are experts in their key areas, but recognize when a project is over their head, and bring in others to help. They generously share credit with others to make sure that in the future, others would continue to lend a helping hand. This conveys great judgment and leadership. You don’t want employees that take on projects they can’t complete, waste months on those projects, and then leave or come to tell you that they are in over their head. You also don’t want people to take 100% of the credit and dish out 100% of the blame.

Interview Tips.

When interviewing, ask about the candidate’s most favorite project and also about their least favorite project. Compare the passion with which they describe each project, the effort they brought to each project, and the results they achieved. Highly effective employees will, naturally, be more passionate about projects they loved, but they’ll demonstrate a good deal of self-discipline talking about projects they did not like – and what they did to achieve great results despite a lack of strong interest.

Ask about a time when the candidate made a mistake in their job and how they dealt with it. What did their boss do/say? Did the candidate agree with the feedback? How did they respond? Did they respond promptly?

Ask candidates about longer projects on which they worked. Talk about the details, how they maintained their motivation, focus and excitement over a long period of time. How did they deal with teammates who were not as motivated or focused?

Ask candidates about projects in their prior jobs where they took big risks. How did that project originate? Was it self-driven or assigned?

One good way to measure a person’s listening skills is to give them opportunities to ask questions.

Ask about especially difficult projects that required collaboration with others. Was the collaboration required or did the candidate bring in other people after the project started to fill in expertise gaps? How did the teams work together? How was credit (and blame) shared.

 

Ross Kimbarovsky is founder and CEO at crowdSPRING and Startup Foundry. In 2007, Ross left a successful 13-year career as a trial lawyer to pursue his dream of founding a technology company (in part so that he could wear shorts and sandals to work every day) by founding crowdSPRING – one of the world’s leading marketplaces for crowdsourced logo design, web design, graphic design, product design, and company naming services. You can learn more in his e-book.

from Young Upstarts http://ift.tt/2scA2vS via website design phoenix

Working To Your Full Potential – How To Make It Happen

Work is something that takes up a considerable amount of time for most people. You may not always love the job that you do, but you can still make the most of it. If you want to make your job enjoyable, it’s a good idea to try and work to your full potential each day. This may not always be possible, we all have bad days; but if you can aim to make it happen on most days, you should find that the day goes quicker and that you get a sense of achievement.

There are other possible benefits to be had from working to your full potential, such as management recognition, bonuses and promotion. It’s certainly worth taking a look at how you can work to your full potential, on a regular basis.

Looking at your lifestyle.

The life that you live outside of work can have a direct effect on how you perform when you are working. Here are some lifestyle considerations that you may want to think about:

• Make sure that you get enough sleep.

If you are having trouble sleeping think about whether you need a new mattress to give you better support. Take a look at this Avocado mattress review to see if a new mattress could be of benefit. You should also have a look at this advice on how to get a good night’s sleep.

• Think about what you eat and drink.

If you want to be productive, it’s a good idea to adopt a healthy diet. Of course, you can still eat less healthy products in moderation. You should avoid eating too much sugar or drinking too many stimulants in drinks such as coffee. You should also moderate your alcohol intake.

• The positive effect of exercise.

You should aim to do at least half an hour of exercise, five times a week. That being said, any amount of exercise can do you good, especially if you currently do not do any. Exercise makes you feel good, and it helps to improve your health. Both of these factors are important if you want to perform well in work.

You can see how external factors can affect the way you work, but what can you do within the workplace, in order to work to your full potential.

Paying attention to time management.

One of the most important things you can do, to optimise your work performance, is make sure your time management skills are up to scratch. If you are able to successfully juggle a heavy workload, you should be well on the way to reaching your full potential. You need to learn how to use “to do” lists to your benefit and how to be realistic with deadlines. Time management skills take some time to acquire, but it’s worth the effort in the long term.

Working as part of a team.

It’s difficult to work to your full potential, without having the support of those around you. You should never think that you need to do everything on your own, in order to truly be reaching your full potential. Often, the best results in business come from the fact that people can work well as a team. Learning to work as part of a team is not something that comes easily to everyone, but it’s a skill that you should do your best to acquire.

You are capable of making sure that you work to your full potential. It takes effort on your part, but the results make it worthwhile.

from Young Upstarts http://ift.tt/2s1qHHV via website design phoenix

Should You Outsource Your Company’s Mobile App Development? Here’s Why You Should

Mobile applications are paramount for the success of marketing campaigns today. While the existence of a company app is not something that has gotten to the level of the website, where not having one is instant marketing doom, it’s not far from it. While not having an app is still something you can get away with as a company, it’s something that will keep you from gaining a considerable amount of extra profit. Mobile devices are one of the leading industries on the planet and through affiliation, mobile applications are one of the most popular means of deploying marketing efforts.

If you’re hindered in your attempt to create a mobile app for your business by the fact that you don’t have a mobile division, you should consider sourcing the project to an experience company that can do the job for you. There are quite a few benefits when it comes to outsourcing your app to another company. The way you do it is even easier, as you just need a sourcing company like https://www.icrfq.com/ for example, which can put you in relations with the company that will be developing the app.

Here are some of the benefits that come with taking this kind of decision for your business:

You gain the advantage of having skilled developers on your team (without them being on the team).

By hiring a company to develop your app, you are ensuring its quality through the skilled developers which are assigned to work on it. What this means is that you can expect a quality product which will each its goals and won’t get bogged down in technical difficulties or even design contradictions.

Maintenance.

Keeping track of all the problems that have been reported with the app since it was launched as well as finding new problems yourself will lead to a lot of headaches if you handle it yourself. If you also add that you aren’t nearly as well equipped to deal with the threat of losing users due to the app not being up to par, you’re looking at a pretty grim situation. Luckily, a sourced company is able to continue offering support for your app and intervene with technical support as well as regular updates that will keep your company app well oiled and up to date.

Exposure and marketing.

Just like any other product, the app must be marketed if you are to have any people know about its existence. A company that often does work with mobile apps is not just able to accurately pinpoint the best ways to go about promoting the app but also knows the right channels through which to do it. Their experience in the field has landed them quite some contacts that can now work in your favor thanks to outsourcing.

from Young Upstarts http://ift.tt/2qpJRGl via website design phoenix

Pitch 4 Success

by Edmund Buckley, co-founder & CEO of CampusSafe

Your pitch deck is the most important assets your business will have, arguably more than the business plan itself. After several years of creating my own pitch decks and helping teach other startups how to build their own, I’ve seen what works and gets results.

Based off the “Pitch then Plan” template originated by Silicon Valley venture capitalist Guy Kawasaki, I believe in creating a strong pitch first and then building a business plan based on it. Why? Because if you get the pitch right, you’ll get the plan right.

Think of your business as a house you’re building. To build a house, you need a blueprint. And although a blueprint is merely an outline of what the final product should be, what seems simple is truly imperative if you want to create a viable product from the start. It shows that you’ve thought it through and figured out how all the moving pieces will work together to make a successful project.

If you don’t have a sound blueprint for a house, chances are you won’t find a construction company who will help you build that house. Likewise with your business pitch, its will determine whether you will generate further interest from potential investors. If you can’t hook them with your pitch, then there’s no way they’re going to dive into the minutiae of your business plan.

Focusing on your pitch first also saves you time. While you may never get feedback on a business plan, you get immediate reactions to your pitch. Considering a pitch is a lot shorter and contains less text than a business plan, it will be a lot quicker to fix. From there, you will have a solid foundation for your business plan.

Here are 4 things you should do when creating your pitch deck:

1. Explain Yourself in the First Minute.

Make it clear what your organization does, what pain you’re solving, and why you’re the person to do it. Keep it short and to the point to engage your audience. You will not impress investors with a complicated deck; it should be something they can read through and understand in under 10 minutes.

2. Answer the Little Man.

Often, engineers will talk about technology and won’t explain in layman’s’ terms what that means to the average person. If you say, “We provide 128-bit encryption in a portable device,” the little man’s going to ask, “So what?” Always include the answer to that question in your pitch. While nobody might care about the 128-bit encryption, they will care when you tell them it means super secure phone calls for companies that deal with highly sensitive information.

3. Use a Bottom-Up Model.

A common mistake is using a top-down model to forecast financials. When you do that, you look at the overall market and use this information to define your target demographic and determine what percentage you think you can capture. This model tends to be way too optimistic, and ultimately unrealistic. Using the bottom-down model, you use your current situation and capabilities to see where you can reasonably go from there. With bottom-down forecasting, you predict what company activities will drive results, which leads to money in the bank.

4. Observe the 10/20/30 Rule.

The 10/20/30/ rule is to cover your pitch with 10 slides in 20 minutes and 30-point font text. But really, your pitch should be covered in 7 minutes, allowing 13 minutes for questions and discussion. By allowing it to be more of a conversation, you’re able to see what part of the pitch isn’t landing and explain any holes that might be discovered in your pitch.

As for the 10 slides of your business pitch, consider each slide as an element of your blueprint. Blueprints cover what aspects and expertise go into building a house: first the general structure and layout, then placing plumbing, appliances and fixtures, and electrical wiring. Some show as detailed as where pieces of furniture will go. With your pitch, start general and dig deeper into details with each slide. Here’s what I recommend:

• Introduction slide: Include Organization Name, Your Name, Title, and Contact Information. During this slide, introduce yourself and discuss quickly what traction your organization has gained. If you’re just starting out, talk about how you’ve established credibility (i.e., education, specialization, etc.)
• Slide 1: Describe the pain your organization is taking away. Try to personalize that pain.
• Slide 2: Explain how you take away this pain. This is your value proposition. If your product is physical, include an image of it on this slide.
• Slide 3: Introduce your business model. How you make money, who pays you, your channels of distribution, and your gross margins. This is what investors look for.
• Slide 4: Underlying magic. Describe the technology, secret sauce or magic behind your product. Specifically, how does it create value for the customer?
• Slide 5: Describe your position in the marketplace. What story will you tell that makes you more important?
• Slide 6: Marketing & Sales. Convince the audience that you have an effective go-to-market strategy that won’t break the bank.
• Slide 7: Competition. Address your competitors, and explain what differentiates you from them that helps you dominate in your market.
• Slide 8: Management Team. Describe the key players, board of directors, advisors and major investors. Discuss how they complete the management trinity: production, marketing, and financial expertise. If you have any holes in the team, explain how you plan to fill them.
• Slide 9: Financial Projections. Include projected prospect and customer numbers, revenue, costs, and profits for years 1-3. Most businesses should be able to show turning a profit by year 3.
• Slide 10: Milestones. Explain the current status of your product or service, what the near term future looks like, any accomplishments to date, and how you’ll use any money that you are trying to raise. Even if you’ve been in the business for 3-4 months, tell them what you’ve done so far and your trajectory. You want to show momentum to investors.

Before presenting a pitch deck to potential investors, be sure to run it through a few times with your mentors and colleagues. Fix what doesn’t land, and see if you can reduce the number of words on slides. If you need notes, consider using a program that allows you to have presenter notes. Once you’ve presented a deck to investors, you’ll be able to continue revising it, as well as get started on a solid business plan. A solid pitch deck can also be used to create variations for different target audiences, such as one as a more general introduction to your business, and even one that can later be used for training future employees.

 

Edmund Buckley, co-founder & CEO of CampusSafe™, is a 20+ year Austin veteran entrepreneur, having founded and built 2 successful startups. He is passionate about revolutionizing the way campuses think of safety. Before joining the CampusSafe™ team, he was the Co-Founder & CEO of 360 Mortgage Group, Co-Founder of TrieverMedia. He is an alum of Austin’s Tech Ranch Venture Forth Program. He continues to stay involved in their Venture Builder program as a volunteer leader, where he teaches start-ups to how to build pitch decks.

from Young Upstarts http://ift.tt/2qjTPgh via website design phoenix