How To Start User Testing At Your Company

There will come a time where your business will need to operate on more than just a gut feeling and some industry experience. User testing goes beyond just reason, it takes a deeper look at the motivations of users to create something that resonates with their wants and needs. User testing will help you sneak up on an idea, although it’s advantageous to set out with some parameters in place before you start your research and testing. Understand what segment of your business you are looking to enhance or create, and which target audience your users identify as.

If you’re ready to undertake testing and implement authentic change in your business, here is how you can get started.

Define your different customer types.

Successful user testing is all about carefully defining your customer groups. Whether you already use a customer segmentation framework or simply segment based on purchase behaviour, make sure you have a strong understanding of your customer groups. User testing is all about understanding what your customer does and how you can innovate or improve their experience based on their actual behaviour. By starting with a clearly defined customer segmentation model, you can recruit a good cross-section of customers to take part in your user testing. If you only focus on one type of customer, you can only hope to understand a small sub-section of your customers. It won’t mean you can’t improve your experience, but overall you will miss a larger opportunity.

Watch your customers, don’t just listen.

User testing is a powerful way of understanding how your customers use your service or product and why they use it in particular ways. Even the very best customer experience designers will only ever be able to design an experience as good as the information they have available. That is what makes user testing so advantageous. It is crucial to success that you observe your customers in real life. Simply asking a customer how they use your service or product will only ever yield a certain view of the experience. Instead, design your user testing so you can observe your customers in their own homes, workplaces or wherever they might use your products or services. By observing a user in their own environment it helps replicate the truest version of their experience. Then as they go through their process, you can get a much deeper understanding of the areas you can improve.

Equipped with the right tools.

User testing can lead to some potentially groundbreaking insights into your process design and service offerings. Before you go ahead and start changing the game forever, make sure you are equipped with the right tools. One of the best tools you will need to truly take advantage of user testing is a framework for prioritisation and planning the roadmap of changes. A great tool for this exact job is the Implementation vs Benefits realisation scale. This tool is a simple four-quadrant diagram which allows you to plot all of the potential improvements you may find through your user testing. The tool then challenges those in the business who will be taking the changes forward, to plot the changes on two axis. The first is against the ease with which a change can be implemented, and the second is against the perceived benefit to the business of making the change. Agreeing what format of this tool you will be using before you commence user testing will give you a clear path forward for prioritising any potential changes.

User testing has the potential to radically change the face of your business and how that business resonates with the market. While the testing and research phase is free form, it is important that you have some clear parameters that will keep you to account at each stage.

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Top 5 Lessons Learned From Tax Season 2018

by Steve Moskowitz, founding partner of Moskowitz LLP

If the 2018 tax season left you reeling, you are not alone. Taxpayers and professionals are still working to make sense of the sweeping changes brought about by the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (TCJA). The TCJA implemented the broadest reforms in decades, leaving many Americans wondering how to adjust.

Here arefive key ways to get ahead for next year:

1. Revisit tax withholdings. 

The Government Accountability Office reports nearly 33 million taxpayers did not withhold enough taxes in 2018. As a result, 21% were responsible for paying even more at year’s end. This discrepancy is due, in part, to caps on state and local tax deductions and the elimination of the personal exemption. A qualified tax attorney can help calculate the tax liability and determine the needed withholding.

2. Understand how family size affects standard deductions.

The TCJA nearly doubled the standard deduction amounts, raising them to $12,000 for singles, $24,000 for joint-filing married couples, and $18,000 for heads of households. This means larger families with several dependents could end up paying more in taxes, and the Child Tax Credit – increased to $2,000 – may not be enough to offset the loss. Seek help from a tax attorney to determine the best possible strategy, such as taking advantage of other applicable sections of the new tax law.

3. Make good use of allowed, itemized deductions.

Taxpayers who rely heavily on itemizing may be in for a shock, as the TCJA significantly altered which items are deductible. In the event that these changes increase the year’s tax bill, a qualified tax attorney can help explore other avenues, such as deducting the interest from mortgage debt, charitable contributions made, medical expenses paid, and other qualified benefits.

4. Be aware of changes to the SALT deduction that could affect itemization.

Many Americans in higher cost-of-living areas rely on the State and Local Tax deduction (SALT) to reduce their tax burden. Married couples may find, however, that the standard $10,000 cap is not enough to offset liabilities for a dual-income household. Filing separately does not affect this cap, as couples are still limited to a total $10,000 deduction ($5,000 each). A seasoned tax attorney can help married couples decide whether or not to itemize, based on these abrupt changes.

5. Re-think charitable deductions.

The TCJA allows for charitable deductions on cash donations of up to 60% of a person’s adjusted gross income (AGI) – a change that will largely benefit wealthier taxpayers who can afford to give more. Instead of depending on charitable deductions, a tax attorney can explore alternate strategies, such as reducing tax liabilities by transferring appreciated stock or assets to a charity, or “bunching”: consolidating charitable donations and deductions into certain years so the standard deduction is exceeded.

The TCJA will continue to impact many taxpayers so now is the time to take a look at the complex changes and consider effective strategies.

 

Tax attorney Steve Moskowitz founded what would becomeMoskowitz LLP over 30 years ago, offering clients a full variety of services that include domestic, international, and criminal tax law representation, tax planning, and tax preparation of current and delinquent filings. Steve has served as an expert legal analyst for top media outlets, where he has appeared daily on the radio and weekly on TV as well as guest appearances on various TV and radio stations.

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How Not To Kill A Good Idea: 4 Secrets From Inside Improv Comedy

by Norm Laviolette, author of “The Art of Making Sh!t Up: Using the Principles of Improv to Become an Unstoppable Powerhouse“

Coming up with dazzling and novel ideas isn’t an innate ability, but can be a learned skill that you and your team develop. It’s actually possible to train your mental radar to repeatedly sweep back and forth in search of those blips of inspiration that have a possibility of turning into something exciting and concrete. With this acquired mindset, it’s possible to begin seeing possibilities for everywhere.

I’ve learned from 20 years of performing, directing and producing live improvisational comedy to open my mind to what’s around me. A broadened perspective leads to more opportunity for original ideas. Cultivating the same outlook also allows organizational teams to develop innovative ideas.

Part of the joy of doing improv comes from the fact that, as a performer, I’m allowed to follow wherever the scene goes without any real expectation to end up anywhere in particular. The unknown, far from being scary, becomes limitless opportunity. The ability to build off of the other actors’ ideas invariably leads to unexpected places. Sure, my comments and directives morph or become contorted along the way. But suspending my judgment and trusting in the creative process takes a scene that starts from the rawest of materials and somehow leads to a neat resolution.

Whether on stage or in idea-generation sessions with staff, no idea is created perfectly and fully formed right out of the gate. It doesn’t matter if it’s a joke, a concept or a product, everything needs to be looked at, edited and iterated. This is the process we use to go from a basic or starter concept, to bigger and more expansive ideas – and, with some risk and a measure of effort, to full-blown realization and success.

Here are some ways to apply the techniques of improv to successfully come up with good ideas that can lead to innovation.

1. Learn to listen.

Too often in conversations, we talk at each other instead of with each other, which keeps us in our own heads. Instead of responding and creating a give and take of ideas, we get caught in a loop where individuals keep restating the same idea or versions of it. Nothing original is created – or if it is, it’s either one-sided or in competition with another idea.

In improv, we’re trained to actively listen to what the other actors are saying, and then to respond to what we’ve heard. We’re trained to listen and positively accept our scene partner’s “offers” or ideas. If we didn’t actively listen all the way through, we’d miss critical information and the story line would falter. We listen to somebody else’s idea and associate with and become inspired by what they say.

The ability to listen and build off of each other’s ideas allows the group to quickly access many different concepts. It heightens the original ideas and gives the group much more material to consider.

When a team employs active listening, individuals in the group feel like they’re being heard and have a higher level of engagement and buy-in to the resulting ideas.

2. Change “No” or “Yes, but” to “Yes, and”.

In improvisational theater, the actors are trained to use the concept of “yes, and” to quickly move ideas forward and build completely new and unexpected concepts of which each member of the scene can claim ownership. If an improv actor offers an idea, and the scene partner immediately says “No” to it, then the scene is effectively over.

As a basic practice, we always positively accept our scene partner’s ideas. The plus side of this is that, instead of having to separately come up with entirely new ideas of our own, we’re listening to another’s idea and associating with or taking inspiration from it. An improv actor knows that the other actors will do the same, so each has the confidence to add on and build off the initial concept.

If, instead, an idea is immediately attacked with a “No” or a “Yes, but,” we never discover what the full potential of an idea might be. Human nature drives us to point out flaws or to try to out-do another’s ideas. But that leads to an antagonistic environment where we aren’t able to share and build on different ideas. We operate disjointedly and are only concerned with offering our own thoughts or arguments.

It’s worth pointing out that staying open to and building on each idea that’s offered is especially important in the “ideation stage.” Once we get to the execution stage, then we’ll need to start eliminating concepts that are unlikely to work. However, by listening and encouraging team members to offer ideas in the initial stages, members will be more likely to understand if their idea isn’t selected and be more inclined to buy into the final decision.

Practice the improv technique of using “Yes, and” to move team ideas forward in your organization and build to completely new and unexpectedly original ideas.

3. Open up to being wrong.

Self-judgment, criticism, lack of confidence and self-esteem all contribute to the ability or lack thereof to think creatively. The fear of being wrong is one of the biggest reasons we don’t put our ideas forward. Especially in today’s connected world where millions of digital opinion warriors are poised to tear down anyone for anything, putting our original ideas out into the world can be intimidating.

Improvisational comedians become practiced at thinking quickly and decisively without spending time worrying about whether they’re wrong. Developing the ability to push through the fear of failure is necessary to being able to create onstage. Our ability to build up a tolerance to risk and failure allows us to practice and grow in our professions.

One realization we come to is that being “wrong” is different from failing. A decision can still be right even if it fails. Think in terms of making a final push in a sporting event that, even if we fail to win, was worth trying. Being wrong, however, feels much like a critique of our talent, intelligence or moral compass. If we had to do it over again, we’d do something differently. Yet we can learn from our mistakes and improve from this new knowledge.

The important thing is to admit when we’re wrong. Saying “I was wrong” completely diffuses the situation and allows a way forward toward a new solution. Owning our mistakes helps us become more comfortable with the idea of not always having to be right.

4. Pay attention to unexpected connections.

In improv comedy, the actors make up scenes and stories from nothing. Without any preplanned thoughts or conversations, they take the rawest of material and weave a tale with multiple layers, characters, twists and turns — all somehow leading to a completely original story. By just making the small decisions that they need to make in the moment, they follow wherever the scene goes without worrying about how the entire piece will look.

Similarly, when we allow our imaginations to go in new, exciting and original directions, unfettered by practicality or reality at the moment, we start to see all kinds of unexpected connections or possibilities. For example, associating a passion for rescuing abandoned dogs with a passion for Kesar Kasturi, and playing out different scenarios, it’s possible to end up with an idea for a brewing a beverage whose profits help save rescue dogs.

It’s on the edges and in the fringes that the magic and unseen connections start to happen. Such unexpected connections are often what lead to innovation.

 

Norm Laviolette is the co-founder and CEO of Improv Asylum, IA Innovation and Asylum Gaming and Esports (AGE). He has performed, directed or produced more than 10,000 improvisational comedy shows on three continents. He brings the experience of building companies from the ground up into multi-million dollar businesses. His new book “The Art of Making Sh!t Up: Using the Principles of Improv to Become an Unstoppable Powerhouse” describes how the techniques of improv can transform teams into more powerful, creative and healthy organizations.

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How To Deal With Unexpected Expenses When You’re Self-Employed

Self-employment is rarely easy, but it can be rewarding and has obvious benefits, such as being able to pick the jobs you want to work on and the hours you want to work. In fact, more and more of us are choosing this way of working — there were 4.8 million self-employed Brits in 2017, according to figures by the Office for National Statistics.

However, one of the main drawbacks of self-employment is that it can make financial planning tricky. Unlike being employed, you’re unlikely to be paid regularly. And what you do get paid can vary from month to month. People who are self-employed either have to wait for invoices to be paid, or what they can take as a salary depends on how well their business is doing.

Consequently, if a surprise expense crops up, you might not have the funds to pay for it. So, to make sure you stay financially organised, follow our guide to dealing with unexpected expenses when you’re self-employed.

Save while you can.

If you don’t have an emergency fund, you should start building one now. True, this will mean that you sacrifice some of your disposable income. But the sooner you start to save, the less you’ll need to regularly put aside.

You could decide on a fixed amount each month. This will help you with your financial planning for your business going forward.

Reduce company spending.

Very often, there’s a simple way to respond to surprise costs: reduce company spending.

Try starting with your suppliers. You might be able to negotiate a fairer deal on items you buy from them regularly. You’ll be more likely to achieve this if you speak directly with them. Phone conversations can be very effective. Even if you don’t plan to, saying that you’re going to cancel your contract can be a good negotiating tool and can encourage your provider to offer you a better, cheaper deal.

Put your savings into your emergency expenses fund.

Borrow from family or friends.

When a surprise bill or expense appears that your bank account can’t cover, it can be tempting to go to a lender. But, especially if you’re a young business, you may not be able to get a loan or overdraft facility.

As a last resort, you could consider asking family or friends for help. They’re likely to be more lenient with payback periods than a creditor. This could be particularly useful if your enterprise is still young and in its early days of profit turnover.

Before you approach them, you should work out exactly how much you need to borrow and when you will be able to pay them back. You could even offer to pay them back a low rate of interest as an incentive.

Surprise costs needn’t leave your business struggling. But once you know how, you’ll be able to deal with any unexpected expense effectively. You’ve no doubt worked hard to build your own business. With these tips, you can protect it.

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How An Email Verification Service Works

Email verification has gotten lots of attention in the past few years. As email is becoming an increasingly prominent marketing channel, organizations need to ensure they use accurate email lists. So, they turn to an email verification service to clean up bad signups and maintain regular email hygiene.

But what exactly does an email verifier do? We’ll discuss this below and outline the importance of keeping a clean list as an email marketer.

Syntax Check.

An email verification system checks whether an email address is correctly spelled and has a proper structure. It verifies that there are no spaces, commas, restricted characters, and the domain extensions are correct. As a user, you’ll be notified if by mistake you have incorrectly spelled the email address and prompted with a suggestion to correct it. Otherwise, you may miss major updates or it might be sent to someone else, which would result in leakage of user’s data.

MX Records Checking.

After the syntax check, this function verifies if the domain name with the stated email address actually exists and functions properly. It’s an extra-step that ensures you are dealing with a valid contact, so you can send your emails to a real inbox.

Mailbox Validation.

This step ensures that the email address is actually the correct one and is capable to receive messages. That means that at the receiving end, there is a real human being who will get and open your emails.

These are the three simple and major steps which are beneficial to both, users and website owners to keep their data safe and restricted.

Email verification helps remove other risky email addresses.

For marketers, misspelled and fake email addresses are not the only concern. There are other types of risky email addresses that can end up on a mailing list and spoil it. For example:

• Spam traps: they don’t belong to real humans and their only purpose is to lure in and block spammers.
• Abuse emails: these are known email complainers who have a history of marking emails as spam.
• Catch-all emails: their mission is to receive all email sent to a certain domain, even when the ID is incorrect.
• Temporary emails: they autodestruct after a short period of time and are useless in email marketing

All of these addresses may bounce and ruin your sender reputation. That will cause more of your emails to bounce or land in the spam folder, where people won’t see them.

Why email verification is important.

Email verification helps you stay free of fake and spam users and maintain good data quality. Also, it tells you who your inactive users are. An email verifier will remove dormant accounts or users who aren’t engaging with your emails. As a result, your open and click-through rates will increase, which will encourage more conversions.

Email verification also doesn’t allow people to create multiple accounts by using the same email address. It’s a very efficient filter on your website and helps you engage in genuine, transparent communication with your customers.

Choosing the right email verifier isn’t hard – there are plenty of options on the market and the cost is insignificant compared to the benefits you get.

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Top Tips For Staff Retention

When you’ve invested considerable time, effort, and money into recruiting, training, and paying staff, it can be immensely frustrating to see them quit for a better offer elsewhere. Staff retention is the art and science of holding onto your valuable team and avoiding the cost of rehiring, which doesn’t just consist of the immediate cost implications.

Why is staff retention so important?

When staff leaves your business, you have a whole raft of costs affecting your bottom line, and some of the most significant may not be easily quantifiable. There are the costs of advertising for, interviewing and training new members of staff, which aren’t simply expenses like placing a job ad in your trade publication, but the impact on your existing staff of having to spend time training and assisting new recruits.

You could well lose sales if your new hire doesn’t know enough or hasn’t developed the skills to close a deal, and if you lose a productive member of staff, they’re taking with them all the knowledge and skills that would have brought increased profitability to the business in both the short and long term. It’s not easy to put a figure on such losses, but they could be considerable.

What’s the secret of staff retention?

If you’re assuming staff retention is all about paying the highest wages, you’ll be pleasantly surprised to learn that’s very far from the case. There’s been a great deal of research over the years into what makes staff want to stay in their job, and although pay is an important factor, it’s generally not the deciding one. Providing you’re paying a decent remuneration; staff won’t leave just for higher pay in most cases.

Far more important to staff is how much they enjoy their work and whether they feel appreciated for what they do. Most people want to feel that the work they do has value, that it’s making a contribution, and that that contribution is acknowledged by the people around them – especially the boss. One of the best tactics in your efforts to retain staff is simply to value them, tell them when they’ve done a good job, and support them if they’re struggling for any reason.

Many businesses have found that employee benefits schemes work very well as a way of keeping hold of staff. For example, by providing additional health benefits, insurances, pension provision, and sickness cover. You may not relish the prospect of administering such a scheme, but you can outsource your scheme with benefits administration from TriNet. Using a specialist service to manage employee benefits relieves you of the time and effort of trying to handle it yourself, and ensures you get the best value for money.

You can also aid retention by investing in staff training. Enabling staff to attend training courses, work towards relevant qualifications, and advance their knowledge is not only beneficial to the business from the point of view that staff gain skills that help them perform their jobs more productively; you’re also showing them that you value them and believe in them, which for most employees is more rewarding than anything else.

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7 Tips On How To Repay Your Payday Loan On Time

We understand that there were unexpected expenses this month for which you had to opt for the last resort- payday loan. However, it’s imperative that you keep your loan repayments in check. Loans make people comfortable as they provide instant money, and who doesn’t always love to have a reasonable sum of money available?

So that you don’t feel any repayment stress when your loans are due, here is a list of pointers which will assist you in preparing you to develop good debt habits for a better financial life.

Prioritise the debts.

If you have several debts, it’s time to put the ‘let’s make it work’ shoes on and get started with the process right away. Make a list of all your loans and prioritise them in order of payment priority. The best way to pay off a short-term loan is by paying it back in one instalment and be done with it. Since payday credit has higher interest rates, keep them at priority and use the following tips to make a good sum to say goodbye to the credit in one go.

Plan to make it work.

Without planning and efficient financial management, paying off such a loan can be extremely daunting with time. Keep your options open and start working your way towards them to getting them paid off as planned.

Discuss your needs with your employer.

Many managers are considerate of their employee’s financial standing and are willing to extend a helping hand in times of need. One of the ways to make payment on the payday loan is by asking your employer for financial aid. From cash advances which can be deducted from your monthly pay checks to cash advances against extra work hours; have a detailed discussion with your manager so you can pin down a plan which works well for both of you.

Ask for an extended plan.

If you don’t want to involve anyone in this matter, then why not have a chat with the firm who gave you the loan in the first place? While many loan companies are rigid on their policies, you might be lucky enough to be dealing with a firm which has a window of possibility open for you. Ask the company for an extended payment plan explaining your current situations and hope for the best.

Sell what you don’t need.

Well, admit it. We all have a pile of used and unused items at our home, which we barely use. Make the most of such products by selling it off at decent prices. Find the right sites to ensure that the products sell off soon and you get the money ASAP. Add the collected funds to your final payment for the payday loans, and who knows, you just might make it without any other assistance needed.

PALs to your aid.

PALs or payday alternative loans can be an excellent solution to your problem. These are small loans which are given to pay off the payday credit without much struggle. Unlike the same day loans, PALs come with an EMI tenure of one to six months which allows you to get this debt off your shoulders quickly as well. Such loans are made available by credit unions so get your search engine running now!

Get the experts involved.

When nothing seems to work, it’s time to bring out the big guns and get the industry experts involved in the game. Credit professionals deal with all sorts of financial issues almost every day, and they can get you out of the mess with their knowledge and expertise. Follow their advice and make sure you don’t hide any detail from them.

Paying off a loan can be very stressful, but with the right assistance and knowledge, you can pay off your loan. Use these tips to your advantage and enjoy a low loan debt life ahead.

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Why Successful Product Management Involves More Than Spectacular Specs

by Will Koffel, head of the Google Cloud Startup Program in the Americas

In 2013, I left a CTO job overseeing a 50-person product engineering team for the same job at a four-person startup. Upon arrival, I incorporated a few elements from my previous stop into this new endeavor, including a battle-tested Agile Scrum process and the corresponding technology.

Though the new team embraced me, the same wasn’t true for my cumbersome processes. Eventually, we compromised on a lightweight process that aligned with my new team’s size and its UX-focused way of designing and prioritizing new features. This learning experience left me with one seemingly obvious takeaway: The two trickiest variables of early product management are the “product” and the “management.”

Most early startups don’t understand the distinction between the two. Great product teams need vision, experimentation, competitive analysis, and a deep understanding of the pain points they’re trying to eradicate. Management, meanwhile, must remain focused on key features while leveraging a small team and limited resources to efficiently and authentically build a product.

While each side has its priorities, both work toward a positive and user-focused product experience. Keeping this philosophy top of mind during the product management phase is crucial for early stage CTOs, especially when working through backlogs and other barriers that can undermine the user experience.

Manage Your Workflow — Or Else.

For CTOs to properly oversee product management, bottlenecks must never turn into backlogs. When they do, teams lose efficacy in three vital areas that can ultimately hurt the customer: focus, transparency, and predictability.

Most effective teams know that multitasking is actually serial tasking, which leads to lost focus regardless of what you call it. Nothing should trump the task at hand, especially when the mismanagement or underdevelopment of any part of the product can lead to its overall downfall.

I try to remind my teams of one thing: “Today is the dumbest day of your project.” Every day that follows, you’ll know more about your users, your market, your skills, and your competition. If you let your backlogs bloom a thousand wishlist features today, you will inevitably fall victim to multitasking and lose your focus.

Transparency keeps teams in sync. This is an especially important trait for small companies where it’s easy for everyone (including executives) to express their opinions. CTOs, often acting as VPs of product capacity, must develop product specs and then provide them to developers and engineers. As an added benefit of a public (and focused) backlog, business stakeholders know that valuable work is being prioritized and that they can see where their requests sit in the work queue.

Early stage CTOs often overlook predictability, but it’s a valuable asset in thwarting brewing internal conflicts. Without the delivery of features at a predictable pace, it’s natural for sales, marketing, and fundraising teams to struggle to produce. Development teams must build a muscle for reliable estimation and delivery, whether through Scrum velocity metrics or their own approach. Aim for accuracy when items are predictable, and ensure stakeholders understand what’s still in the “discovery” phase.

A well-oiled, user-centric approach to product management requires a careful balance of focus, transparency, and predictability. CTOs must discern between features where a first impression is critical and those that teams can improve iteratively. Customers will always ask for the world, but an effective CTO can fend off potential disruptions — and customer dissatisfaction — by prioritizing features that customers use rather than the ones they request.

Maintain User-Centricity in Product Management.

To ensure that tasks are prioritized, workflows stay organized, and development teams remain productive, early stage CTOs should keep these four strategies in mind:

1. Rely on a monthly hyperfocus theme. 

Internal and external feedback is constant for young companies. CTOs should gather that feedback, break it down into digestible bits, and respond accordingly.

Pick a theme and make sure it’s readily visible, whether you write it on a whiteboard or set it as the desktop wallpapers of your team members’ computers. That theme should be your team’s focus for that week, month, or quarter; every task you tackle should advance that theme while streamlining your processes and customer experiences.

2. Conduct regular and ruthless backlog grooming.

At least once per week, your core team should work through a portion of the backlog. Discuss relative priority, effort, and whether all the backlog items meet the INVESTcriteria for great features.

Be ruthless about maintaining focus regarding the most important theme of the month, and aggressively archive items that aren’t likely to happen in the next six months. They’ll resurface later if they’re still relevant, and archiving them eliminates unnecessary distractions.

3. Use lightweight product management tools.

Numerous collaboration tools are on the market, and they exist for a good reason. If short-term product goals aren’t front and center in your daily dashboards and chat, they might as well be nonexistent.

Identify a lightweight tool that allows you to track requests and keep your product backlog in one trusted system. From here, your team should be able to see the task at hand and focus on it to accomplish your goals at a predictable pace. Sound familiar?

4. Maintain great release notes. 

Release notes are an engineering team’s “sales gong.” They celebrate progress, boost morale, and provide a valuable record of activity. Release notes hold just as much value because they act as a predictability indicator for your stakeholders. Your team members promise in the backlog and deliver in the product, but they get credit in the release notes.

Product management should always keep the stakeholders (external and internal) in mind, whether you’re working on the “product” portion or the “management” stage. These two steps require vastly different skill sets, but they’re complementary. The best-designed product in the world does you no good if you can’t manage toward a great execution and delivery.

With a user-centric view and the above strategies, CTOs can transform struggling development teams at early stage startups into productivity powerhouses.

 

Will Koffel leads the Google Cloud Startup Program in the Americas. With more than 20 years of experience as a startup founder, CTO, advisor, developer, and serial entrepreneur, Koffel specializes in working with small- to medium-size teams and focusing on agile product development and technology best practices. Koffel previously served as the CTO of Qwiklabs before it was purchased by Google in 2016. A graduate of MIT, Koffel and his family reside in the greater Boston area.

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5 Things To Consider Before Starting A Mobile App-Based Startup

by Colin Simpson, project manager at BlueKite Apps

We live in an era where mobile apps have become essential for us. Whether it is about an app for health and fitness that helps out to achieve fitness goals or an on-demand taxi booking app like Uber, there’s an application for everything to get things easier for daily lives.

If you are reading this post and one of those, who are going to launch an app across diverse App Stores in the same week or month, then we can help you out that will meet your long-term goals.

Before moving ahead, it is worth to watch important stats on the global app revenue.

According to the report from Sensor Tower’s Intelligence, “The mobile app users spent an estimated $19.5 billion globally on the Apple App Store and Google Play during the first quarter of 2019.”

It is safe to say that the mobile app users are keep growing and there are bright chances to grow for startups only if you have a clear app idea in your mind.

As a startup, especially with a non-technical background, you might have a plethora of questions, especially if you are planning to dive right into the mobile app development.  The questions might be like this:

• I have an app idea, but what is the right way to start with?
• How to launch an app idea?
• How to launch an app on Android or iPhone?
• How to test my app idea?
• How to make money with an app idea?

If you are having such queries or beyond this, you are at the right place. Let’s take a look at a few important steps which can help your mobile-based startup thrive.

1. Generate & Test Your App Idea.

According to the report from Statista, “There are 2.1 million apps available in the Google’s Play Store and 1.8 million available apps in the Apple’s App Store as of Q1 (first quarter) of 2019.” And, the following data, you can check in the image below.

Well, these figures are pretty high, but coming up with an app idea in a specific niche, plus manage to deliver the product is a big challenge. So, before doing anything, it is important to head to the idea generation process. Generating an app idea will help you out to make a space in an already cluttered space of mobile apps.

So, here are a few important things which will help you to make a firm decision about your application:

Problem-Solving App Idea Can Take a Long Way.

Yes, that’s true! A problem-solving app idea can help your targeted audience to cope situation as what they have been suffering from the past times. If we’re taking an example of workout apps like 8fit, which enables users to achieve their fitness goals with customized meal and workout plans. All top of it, your app idea must be a problem solver, which can add value to your users’ lives.

Analyze The Market.

The next important thing is to analyze the market before launching your app. In-depth market research can help you to figure out the existing market offerings. Within the market, every particular audience has different demands. So, you need to create an app that must meet the users’ expectations.

Now, the thing is that how to test your app idea? Well, before moving ahead, you must ensure that your app idea is a good one? All you need to take a hard look at your mobile app startup concept and getting feedback from a variety of sources before moving further. Additionally, don’t miss to get some feedback from the users beyond the circle of peers.

2. Choose Between Native, Hybrid or Web App.

Before building an app, the first important step, which you need to take is what type of app, which you are going to build. In the world of apps, where everything is going mobile, it is important to move the web app. The web app can work if you want to bring your website into the mobile. The web app works fine for your startup business.

If you’re having a good budget and enough time, it is highly recommended to develop a native app to get started. Native app allows developers to create an app with total functionality, user experience, and design.

On the other hand, if you have a little time with a low budget, then it is better to go with the hybrid app, which can do as what native app does. In a hybrid app, the development time is less as compared to develop native apps.

3. Select The Right Technology Partner or Hire a Developer.

In the competitive mobile industry, choosing the right technology or hiring an elite developer can make a big difference. Well, this is one of the most important decisions, which you need to make. However, the success rate of your mobile app is totally dependent on the technology partner or developers hired by you.

Again, if you are in a dilemma of choosing between the technology partner or hiring freelance developers then I’d suggest you go with the technology partner who has a dedicated app development team, designing team and other resources.

There are a number of advantages of hiring the mobile app development company as they have the design, development, testing, and marketing teams. In short, you will get the whole package of hiring a mobile app development company for your mobile-based startup. On the other side, if you have a low-budget, then choosing or hiring a developer is another way to go.

4. Choose The Right Monetization Strategy.

What does app monetization do? Enabling mobile apps to make money is called as mobile app monetization. All you just need to effectively monetize your mobile app. But, the question is, how will you do that? Generating revenue from the app can do in many ways, but choosing the right monetization strategy can take you a long way. There are a few app monetization models, which you can effectively generate revenues such as:

Freemium Apps: In this category, mobile apps are free to use. However, some of the features are locked and can be accessed via purchase.

Paid or Premium Apps: In this category, users need to purchase the apps to use it. Due to its cost barrier model, it is complicated to demonstrate as compared to freemium apps.

In-App Purchases: This model of monetization works by using the app for selling digital and physical products. 

In-App Ads: It is one of the simplest models because there is no cost barrier for mobile app users. Well, all you need to keep in mind is that never sacrifice the user experience in order to gain space for more advertisements. 

Subscriptions: This model is similar to freemium apps, but it brings the benefit of recurring a stream of revenue.

5. Include Features That Add Value & Stand Out From Your Rivals.

The core thing, which will decide the success of your mobile app, is to embrace features, which can add value to your users’ lives. The first and foremost thing, which you need to do is to analyze your rivals, who are established in their respective markets. If you are having the same concept, then you need to be different and unique with your app idea and its features.

• Analyze the pain points of your customers and provide solutions for the same.
• If your rivals are not able to provide solutions to the pain points of users, then you can improve and elaborate on those points.
• If you would like any functionality, design or layout from the app of your rivals, then you can also consider those points.
• Make a list of things of lists, where you’ll require improvements. Also, make sure not to frustrate your users.

What’s Next?

I’ve outlined a few important steps, which you as a startup, can follow before getting started with the app development idea. Well, the App Stores are already crowded. To grow your user base and stand out from your rivals, follow these steps that could potentially build you a successful mobile-based startup business.

 

Colin Simpson is a competent project management professional with rich experience in the IT industry. He is currently working as a project manager at BlueKite Apps, an app development company in San Diego. Over the years, he’s worked with startups and business owners to transform their ideas into digital solutions, and that experience has helped him to start writing about the startup ecosystem and the IT industry.

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[Interview] Mark C. Perna, Founder And CEO Of TFS, Cleveland, Ohio

Mark C. Perna heads a strategic consulting firm dedicated to making a difference in education and workforce development. He is a dynamic and motivational speaker, and a recognized voice in student engagement and success.

His book, “Answering Why: Unleashing Passion, Purpose, and Performance in Younger Generations“, offers a new paradigm for parents, teachers and employers through re-envisioned education and workforce development. The book won Silver in the 2019 Independent Publisher Book Awards (IPPY) and Silver in the 2018 Nautilus Book Awards, recognizing books that “make a difference and inspire.”

Describe your professional background and how it led you to create TFS?

I’ve always loved people — engaging them, discovering what makes them tick, and finding common ground. When I graduated with a degree in communications from John Carroll University in 1984, I went to work in the printing business as a sales representative. It was a tough market and I soon learned that the successful salesperson is more than just an extrovert; he or she has to understand the psychology of sales, create a genuine connection with the prospect, and accept a non-sale without taking it personally. I adopted the SW4 philosophy that simply says, “some will, some won’t; so what — someone’s waiting.” This mantra is highly motivating in those moments when discouragement hits. Go out and make that pitch — and keep on making it, because sooner or later it will reach the right person.

TFS came into being when I was selling marketing services to local educational organizations and realized their desperate need for specialized marketing, communications, strategic planning, and professional development services. Since I founded TFS more than 20 years ago, it has grown from a small business to an internationally known organization that has helped thousands of administrators, teachers, and support staff in the education market. Our mission is to share and support every client’s passion for making a difference, and it’s thrilling to see our clients being empowered to do that every day in their communities.

How do you explain the paradox of our country’s labor shortage while millions of people are unemployed?

It’s a mismatch between what employers need and what the workforce has been equipped to deliver. We’re just not preparing the next generation with the skills they will actually need in our globalizing, automating world.

As a nation we’ve exalted the traditional college pathway as the only way to a successful life and career, to the detriment of other postsecondary educational options. This has caused a shortage of qualified workers in critical industries like aviation, healthcare, construction, advanced manufacturing, transportation and logistics, engineering, and others. Meanwhile, young people are going to college in droves because of this narrative they’ve been told, regardless of whether or not the university is the right choice for them.

College debt is rising faster than any other form of debt in the U.S., and a surprisingly high number of college students never finish their degree. So they’re left unskilled, un-degreed, and saddled with student loans they may never pay off. All this, while major industries are scrambling to find workers with the right skills, credentials, certifications, and licensures that would make them successful in that field.

Explain the work attitudes of the population you refer to as the “Why Generation.”

The Why Generation is the term I’ve created to refer to both the millennial and Z generations. They have distinct differences, but also much in common when it comes to their working lives and what they’re trying to achieve. The biggest defining trait is that they want to know the reason behind everything they’re asked to do. This often comes across to older generations as disrespect or even insubordination, but in most cases nothing could be further from the truth. Today’s younger workers ask why because they are invested. They are not arguing or challenging authority; they are trying to understand the big picture so they can see if there is a way to improve the process and final product.

They’ve grown up being told that they’re unique, special, and important, and so they believe they have something significant to bring to their place of work. They want to be part of something bigger than themselves. They want to be associated with an enterprise with a worthwhile purpose in the world that they can contribute to in a meaningful way.

How off-putting it is when, asked “why?” by a younger worker, older-gen managers come back with the classic all-American answer: “Because I said so.” This shuts down the young person’s motivation and creativity and communicates that he/she has nothing valuable or different to bring to the work at hand. It’s no wonder that so many younger-gen workers change jobs so frequently. They’re looking for a supportive, purpose-driven workplace that recognizes what they have to offer and allows opportunities for those contributions to take place.

Is there a disconnect between how we educate students and the skills that today’s employers are seeking?

Absolutely. I’ve mentioned the “college for all” narrative that has led countless young people away from viable and rewarding career fields that don’t require a college degree. America rates its educational system based on how many graduates a school can send off to college, so there’s additional pressure to keep this narrative alive.

In addition, we rely far too heavily on a lecture teaching format that leaves little room for hands-on learning and engagement. We do not adequately prepare young people in the K–12 system to make intelligent choices about their future careers and plan for the advanced training they will need. And we don’t do a good enough job teaching all three types of skills necessary for success today: academic, technical, and professional (soft) skills.

How can our society better equip the next generation of workers for the changing economy?

We can first open our own eyes to the many high-demand, high-paying careers that don’t require a college degree and then tell that story to the next generation. College can be a great option if your career requires it, but it’s not if you’re going just to go.

We can also focus more on the soft skills (or as I call them, professional skills) that never expire and cannot be replicated by artificial intelligence. Professional skills are the personal attributes to succeed in the workplace, such as work ethic, communication, ability to accept feedback, confidence, leadership, flexibility, integrity, work-life balance, punctuality, stress management, and many more. According to a 2016 Wall Street Journal survey of more than 900 executives, 89 percent stated they have a very difficult or somewhat difficult time finding hires with these skills and traits. By developing and enhancing professional skills, candidates can create a significant competitive advantage in our changing workplace.

What are some overlooked pathways for pursuing high-paying, in-demand careers?

Career exploration should start as young as middle school, encouraging young people to start thinking about what they love and what they’re good at. In high school, they should have the opportunity to experience a variety of interests through career-focused courses and programs. Some of these programs lead to industry certifications that can help young people earn a higher wage after graduation to fund their higher education.

Apprenticeships are coming back as a modern mentorship option in many fields. Stackable credentials and licensures vary by industry and can often be fast-tracked to get the young person working and earning in the field sooner.

It all starts with a realistic, big-picture view of all the options out there, and a willingness to embrace less traditional pathways to arrive at the desired destination.

Learn more at MarkCPerna.com.

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Navigating Seasonality While Keeping Cashflow Healthy

by Aditya Narula, head of customer success at Kabbage

Ask five people how seasonality affects their business and you’ll get five different answers. From a tourism business in the summer to a retailer during the holidays, every business has to deal with seasonal ups and downs and the cash flow challenges that come with them.

As Kabbage customers explain, managing seasonal impact on revenue requires preparation – and if possible, alternate ways to bring money in the door.

Launching new services for traditionally slow seasons.

In the winter, homeowners don’t do much landscaping. At the end of the year, Carson Browning, owner of ITM Landscapes in Jackson, Georgia, shifts to maintenance services. He recently added a crew that only handles landscape maintenance, such as pruning plants, repairing patios and cleaning stonework.

“That’s good cash flow in the winter when installations are slow,” Carson says. “As we tell our customers, if you’re hiring us to transform your property, then you should trust us to take care of it forever.” If cash flow runs low in the winter, he uses a Kabbage line of credit to pay for supplies and salaries.

Like Carson, Joe Lanzi, the owner of Always Positive Group in Sicklerville, N.J., generates income in the slow months with testing innovative business ideas. For Lanzi’s home improvement expos, winter and spring are peak seasons, while summer is sleepy.

To even out cash flow, he recently decided to stage some summer home expos on the New Jersey shore, aimed at vacation home owners. “The new shows will help me with cash flow in the summer when I don’t usually have much,” says Joe.

Taking advantage of football season’s downtime.

For Jason Sheetz, owner of Atlanta-area restaurant group Succulent Hospitality, football has the biggest effect on business. His restaurants are busy in the spring and summer, but get quiet in the fall and winter — especially when the beloved Georgia Bulldogs are playing.

“If you’re not a straight-up sports bar with wings, burgers and beer, it’s tough to bring in customers,” says Jason, whose two restaurants, Hammocks Trading Company and Under the Cork Tree, focus on seafood and tapas respectively. The pattern is so predictable that Jason plans for it. “It’s like clockwork. As soon as the championships are over, our business picks right up,” he says.

Jason takes advantage of the downtime to spruce up the restaurants for the region’s balmy spring and summer weather when customers flock to the patios. “We invest money in painting, buying new chairs and umbrellas, and doing some landscaping,” says Jason. These are tasks that are easier to do when the restaurants aren’t crowded.

Jason also invests in people during the quiet seasons, even though it costs money to pay servers and chefs when the restaurants aren’t very busy. “We’re very chef-driven; we’re not fast food,” he says. “When people fall in love with the lamb ribs at Under the Cork Tree, you need to keep people who can execute on that.” To retain talent, Jason uses his Kabbage line of credit to cover the cost of salaries for experienced staff.

To bring in more revenue year-round, Jason recently launched three new delivery-only businesses, selling meat dishes, burgers and grain bowls. “Maybe only 20 percent of people in our market like to go out to full-service restaurants – but 100 percent of people have to eat,” Jason says. “So with delivery, we can appeal to a larger audience.”

It’s clear that diverse sources of revenue help businesses weather seasonal changes in income – as does the availability of a line of credit to cover costs. As Jason, Joe and Carson know, managing cash flow is a necessary skill for business success.

 

Aditya Narula is the head of customer success at Kabbage, a FinTech company helping small  businesses get access to working capital. Prior to that, Aditya was a Leader in Bain’s Digital Practice where he focused on digital transformations, innovation and automation, serving clients in CPG, Financial Services, Real Estate and Private Equity.

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The Perks Of Studying In Rotterdam

Everyone can ascertain to the fact that the benefits of studying in a conducive and favourable environment cannot be overemphasized. It makes learning and skill acquisition effortless and worthwhile. Why don’t you study in Rotterdam: “the Gateway to the world”.

Rotterdam, the second largest city of the Netherlands houses Europe’s largest city port and ranks tenth in the world as a prominent center of economics situated in the province of South Hollands. Rotterdam is at close proximity with the Nieuwe-Maas channel which leads to the North Sea.

The ancient city of Rotterdam could be historically traced back to 1270 with the construction of a dam in Rotte which had people settling around it because of safety. Rotterdam was given the city right grant by the court of Hollands in 1340.

Rotterdam has a frame-mind of openness towards the rest of the world, offering global services hereby making it’s environment safe and ideally suitable for international students；a reason why Rotterdam is an option for a good place of study.

Why Study in Rotterdam?

The city of Rotterdam is home to great academic higher institutions （like the Erasmus University in Rotterdam）which offers quality education, top-notch training, researches and a great student experience you can always bank on.

Universities at Rotterdam give quality education for a fairly good price and also offer personal attention and learning support. Higher institutions of learning in Rotterdam offers a range of degrees programmes；Bachelors, Masters or PhD in Health Sciences, Business Administration, Philosophy, Law, Economics, Social Sciences, and Cultural Studies. They are particularly known for their expertise in Engineering and Architecture. They also have state of the art modern facilities and great resource persons. There are very good and comfortable accommodations available in the city. You can easily rent a room in Rotterdam at affordable prices.

Universities in Rotterdam accelerate contact between student prodigy and prospective employers through profitable approaches like internship programs. Therefore, you can also consider residing in Rotterdam and enjoy the mind-blowing housing the city has got to offer at good prices.

Rotterdam is a place to be for lovers of amazing architectural designs with high rising building and great engineering. The 802-meters Erasmus Bridge and the ever-active port of Rotterdam are great sites to behold for a tourism loving scholar or explorer. Rotterdam also has an amazing cultural heritage. The museums （like Kunsthal museum and the Henk Chabot museum）are homes of beauty and all manner of pleasantness.

Rotterdam is also multi-ethnical, home to people from different parts of the world. Therefore, international students can be assured of experiencing the beauty of networking and establishing relationships with people from different race and culture. The English language is mostly spoken in Rotterdam so social integration is no problem. Rotterdam enjoys a serene and mild weather；beautiful and calm wind from the sea.

Rotterdam is also home to many multinationals like Unilever, Shell Downstream, Pfizer, Eneco, and more. Industrial bases include；manufacturing, logistics, tourism, commerce, and chemical industries. After studying in Rotterdam, starting up a career in the city is not much of an issue. There are several opportunities in this great city. Welcome to Rotterdam.

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Fastest Growing Green Startups In Florida

Can anyone get rich from practicing ecology in Florida? If you have a good idea and if you are ready to develop that idea and turn it into a business initiative that will be different and it will take care of the environmental protection – the answer is yes. Clearly, to become a green millionaire you have to be involved in the entrepreneurship in the field of a green economy.

The possibilities for startup ideas are of course endless; so let’s see what does fastest growing green startups in Florida really do.

It’s about the present moment with green startups in Florida.

When talking about green startups in Florida, you have to know that those who have a special relationship with the environment can only initiate this kind of work. And developing an awareness means your benefit is not only what you have in your wallet. This means that love for the environment will bring you to businesses in the green economy. And you can get ideas anywhere! From wanting to help use green resources in a better way of looking out the window when moving across the country and trying to figure out how to eliminate plastic waste. And there are many green startups that are specifically applicable in Florida. For example, startup SustainAbin wants to teach people how to practice a green lifestyle. On the other hand, startup Impossible Foods Inc. offers sustainable vegetarian products to people in the whole US.

How to profit from green startups in Florida?

Interests that can flourish in the green economy.

According to statistics, green professions and startups are well known in Florida. At the same time, some professions have a great opportunity to invent themselves. It is important to adapt the existing ones in the green economy and to answer different questions such as: What can I do, that can have a great effect? What is the role and power of urban forests? What health and climate services can they provide? How much money does it save? Do forests lower the temperature during the summer? Is air polluted? How much rain absorbs from waters that go into the sewers?

Architects can also have a big interest that can flourish in the green economy. They need to wonder how to build a building that can be environmentally passive: a closed system. Also, they can see which building will have a green roof and not lose heat. In this way, Florida has a lot of potential and profession change may result in relocation. Moving companies that follow the green principle can also have a lot of work and clients. That’s why some movers like Moving Kings Van Lines FL offer 100$ of your move. In this way they are expanding their business while following the basic ecology principles.

The way you are getting an idea for green startups in Florida depends exclusively on your creativity.

Creativity and connection with others.

You may think you know how to build a startup that doesn’t flop, but that may not be the case. There is no magic solution. The way you are getting an idea for green startups in Florida depends exclusively on your creativity. This means that it is actually the essence to talk to different profiles of people and get the idea of how your startup will look from different angles. Only in this way your startup can be different. If you walk on the same roads as anybody else, you will have an agricultural farm that will grow the classical types of cereals. These types of products won’t differentiate you in the market. The things that can be different are maybe to unite as tenants on one building. Then start to grow on the roof fruit and vegetable building for your needs. After a while, this production will overcome your needs, and thus you will be able to enter the market and make profits.

Sustainable green startups in the civil sector too.

It is important to have space where your idea can be tested, such as business incubators or hubs. Luckily, there are many of these spaces in Florida. In IT technology and the various app developments that monitor and study the environment, there is also an opportunity for profit. You can engrain smart protocols in startups from day one and develop business from a self-initiative, but also through activism in a civil society.

To become a green millionaire you have to be involved in the entrepreneurship in the field of a green economy.

Namely, you can rely on your responsibility to the environment, and you can launch ideas that are project-oriented and that will be business-sustaining. That, of course, depends on your natural sensitivity – whether you have the energy to do business plans and develop all those business segments. Of course, you can only be inspired by the green economy and create jobs that are not necessarily in the green sector, such as rural tourism or catering. Besides this, a trend in the green economy is to use everything you make use of. This means that part of your profits will be for environmental protection, to ensure that this resource is renewable.

Startups in Florida need initiative.

Of course, green startups in Florida should have an initiative from the individual. You cannot just wait for someone else to find a solution and put the responsibility on others. You do not need to look for a job, but to invent it yourself. The common misconception is that people often think that you need to have huge financial resources. But startups usually just need an idea and good energy. From that, you can build a sustainable business. All you need is to carefully balance plans, invest in them and slowly and safely build the product. Nowadays there is the advantage that you can have marketing for free through social networks so you do not have to pay for TV and billboards. If you have a good idea, try to create basic and work on it.

Finally, don’t limit yourself trying to become one of the fastest growing green startups in Florida. All green businesses are in balance with nature; so let your startup take time.

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There’s Plenty Of Risk In A Startup: Insurance Can Help Limit Liability

by Gary A. Barrera, partner with law firm Wendel Rosen Black & Dean LLP

Starting and running a successful and profitable business is the dream of every entrepreneur. It requires vital steps, such as development of a business plan, market research and working capital. However, one of the most important steps that can be overlooked is obtaining insurance.

Why Do Startups Need Insurance?

Having the right kind of insurance will provide a startup with peace of mind that its assets will be protected if it sustains a loss or a claim is filed against it by a third party. If a startup has adequate insurance, it can focus on growing its business and not have to exhaust its resources responding to claims. Having insurance is also key because most clients will not enter into contracts with an uninsured or underinsured startup, especially if the startup is providing goods and services that are marketed to third parties.

In addition, certain types of insurance are required by law, such as workers’ compensation if the startup has employees on its payroll.

What Types of Insurance Do Startups Need?

It can be difficult to know what insurance coverage a startup needs when getting off the ground. The following types of coverage are fundamental and typically comprise a startup’s insurance program.

General Liability Insurance.

General liability insurance is the most basic type of coverage for businesses. It protects a business from claims by third parties of bodily injury, property damage. and personal and advertising injury. Third parties generally include customers and persons visiting the business’ offices or premises.

General liability coverage typically serves as the bread and butter of a business’ insurance program and is usually required in all commercial contracts, including vendor agreements and office leases. It also provides a defense in the event that a third party files a claim that potentially triggers coverage under the policy, which may save substantial sums that would otherwise be allocated to legal fees.

Property Insurance.

Property insurance provides coverage for physical damage to a business’ property, such as its buildings, fixtures, equipment, inventory and furniture. It typically covers damage caused by fire, vandalism, theft, windstorm and hail.

In the event of a covered loss, a property insurer will issue payment to the business so that it can make repairs or purchase new equipment to replace lost or damaged equipment.

Thus, a startup that foregoes property insurance risks the ability to repair or replace lost or damaged property – which may affect how the efficiency and operation of the business. To ensure that a startup purchases sufficient property insurance, it is important that it conduct a thorough and accurate appraisal of its assets and inventory to ascertain their value and avoid being underinsured in the event of a loss.

Directors and Officers Liability.

Director and officers liability insurance protects a business’ officers and directors from claims alleging that they breached their fiduciary duties or made wrongful business decisions that impacted the value of the business and its assets. It provides a defense to insureds under the policy by either paying legal defense fees and costs as they are incurred, or advancing defense costs to the insureds.

Cyber Liability.

Cyber liability insurance provides coverage for liability arising out of a data breach or hacking attack. It reimburses a business for expenses such as forensic investigations, customer notification costs, legal fees, data restoration costs, and marketing services to restore the company’s reputation.

Cyber insurance has become more of a necessity in the past few years due to the increased prevalence of cyber-attacks and compromising of trade secrets and clients’ personal and financial information. Startups that store personal or organizational information in their computer systems would be well-served in purchasing cyber insurance.

Employment Practices Liability.

Employment practices liability insurance covers claims resulting from a business’ interaction with its current and former employees. It covers events such as wrongful termination, sexual harassment, retaliation and discrimination. Startups that are planning to hire employees should consider purchasing employment practices liability insurance to protect themselves from liability arising out of employment-based acts.

Workers’ Compensation Insurance.

Workers compensation insurance pays for employees’ work-related illnesses and injuries. It covers medical bills, lost wages, and disability benefits if the employee is permanently disabled. Each state has its own requirements for workers’ compensation insurance. For example, California employers are required to have workers’ compensation insurance, even if the business has only one employee.

Important Tips to Keep In Mind.

Startups should refrain from taking a one-size-fits-all approach when purchasing insurance. Having the right type of insurance and adequate amount of coverage depends on the nature of the startup’s business and its size. A startup can ensure a smooth insurance procurement process by finding an insurance agent or broker that is familiar with the market and has a solid understanding of the startup’s operations and the risk it is trying to insure. In some instances, a startup should also consider hiring an experienced insurance coverage attorney to review its insurance policies, advise on the adequacy of coverage and address any ambiguities or gaps in coverage.

It is also important that a startup maintain transparency when purchasing insurance. The more information that an insurance agent or broker has about the startup and its operations, the easier it will be for the insurer to underwrite the risk and charge lower premiums.  Transparency also minimizes and eliminates unnecessary back and forth and piecemeal requests for information from underwriters.

Purchasing insurance should not be a burdensome task. Rather, it should be viewed as a necessary asset that serves as a security blanket that will protect the startup and contribute to its long-term success.

 

Gary A. Barrera is a partner with law firm Wendel Rosen Black & Dean LLP in Oakland, Calif. He may be reached at gbarrera@wendel.com.

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How To Identify Mobile App Opportunities Within Your Business

by Sam Furr, founder & Head of Product Strategy of Tappable

Businesses, no matter the shape and size, flourish by spotting new opportunities to solve problems. However, this doesn’t mean funding will be handed over to anyone with a bold idea. In fact, one of the most difficult obstacles for most businesses is convincing the main power houses (board members, directors, investors) to sign off on the budget needed to fully explore these opportunities; especially when it comes to investing in mobile technology, i.e. mobile app development.

Mobile app dependency has certainly grown in the world of business. From offering a better customer experience to streamlining internal operations, they have never been more crucial to satisfying the mobile-first customer and workforce. The world has gone mobile, and there is no turning back.

However, many businesses are still reluctant to make the first step into mobile apps. If you aren’t positioning your solution quite right, getting the final go-ahead from those in charge becomes almost impossible, stopping your idea in its tracks.

Yes, change is daunting, but the right change, partnered with experience of credible suppliers and partners, can help unlock the potential of mobile apps. From funded start-ups to large corporations, transforming a mobile app from a concept into a genuine product is just as achievable as building a website.

We’ll talk you through exactly how to identify a strong mobile app opportunity and make it irresistible to your company’s decision makers.

How Will Your Mobile App Opportunity Benefit the Business?

Opportunities in the business world originate from many places. Whether it’s streamlining in-house processes, new marketing possibilities, overcoming challenges or resolving pain points, all have one main purpose – to maximise revenue. Mobile apps can help you sell, improve communication channels, generate insightful metrics, or collect and process data more reliably than people could, the list of ways apps can contribute to your bottom line is endless.

For example, did you know 86% buyers are likely to pay more for a first-class customer experience? Well, introducing a mobile-first experience could maximise your chances of upselling to existing clients. This way, you’re getting true value out of your existing customer base.

In our (Tappable’s) experience, failing to establish this causal effect is one of, if not the biggest killer, for mobile app innovation. We’re not saying you can’t be emotionally invested in your opportunity, but you need to focus on exactly how it’ll benefit the business.

Researching Your Mobile App Opportunity.

To impress your company’s decision makers, how do you make sure your pitch is objective and professional? This is where your research comes in.

Start collating feedback from those who will actually be using the mobile app, i.e. customers or internal teams, so you know exactly what they struggle with. You could obtain this information by analysing support emails, reviewing live chats or conducting over-the-phone interviews. You might be shocked by the challenges and obstacles your audience has, and a mobile app could be the very solution to these problems.

You might find it particularly useful to focus on three core elements:

1. The scale of a problem/opportunity
2. The negative implications of not making a change
3. The positive results that could be achieved in the opportunity is seized, now and in the future

Focus on the Benefits Instead of Cost.

If your opportunity is thoroughly researched, and you can express the true rewards it could have for the business, cost shouldn’t matter to the board. Cost should only matter when it comes to calculating ROI. For example, if your mobile app opportunity will cost £1million, but the return is £10million, it’s merely a cash flow matter.

Remember, ROI (return on investment), appears in many forms, not just raw profit. Perhaps your mobile app opportunity could provide ROI in one of these ways:

Employee Retention.

95% of employees say a mobile-first workplace is vital for improving employee retention rates. A mobile app could not only reduce overheads by enabling employees to work remotely, but also ensure the mobile workforce is just as efficient and productive as if they were in the office.

Cost Saving by Automation.

Fewer resources needed for tasks, e.g. eliminating administrative tasks that are repetitive or tedious for employees, so they can concentrate on exactly what they’re employed to do, instead of what could be easily automated.

Subscription Savings.

Based on research by Adobe on the growth of enterprise mobile apps, 69% of company departments are using between two and five enterprise mobile apps, while 27% are even using six or more. Look at how much your company is spending on third party subscriptions and compare it to the up-front cost of developing a mobile app. With its long-term rewards that can meet your business’ needs as it grows, creating a mobile app should come out on top. This will also generate enterprise value through adding a new IP.

Data & Insight.

Your mobile app could be used to gather customer feedback. Staff behavioural trends from back-end processes can be monitored to guarantee everyone is performing at their optimum level. These metrics will make a significant difference, as new opportunities could be identified from data trends that were previously unknown.

Convincing your company’s main powerhouses to invest in your mobile app opportunity isn’t always a walk in the park. However, if you research and correctly identify how your opportunity can provide solutions to existing business problems, your listeners will find it difficult to object.

 

Sam Furr,founder & Head of Product Strategy of Tappable, has been developing apps for over 10 years and founded a successful award winning, international digital app development & product design agency; Tappable. Whether you’re after a commercial, enterprise or consumer facing product, Tappable will help turn your opportunity into a mobile-first solution that delivers.

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