Day: November 20, 2018

Categories
Technology

How To Introduce New Technology In the Workplace

In business introducing new technology and software can seem like a great idea, and often it is. For example, if you were to decide on invoice management software, some of the advantages would be cost-savings, error reduction and improved efficiency.

However, the benefits might not be as appealing to employees, especially ones who may be resistant to change.

Employees can feel overwhelmed by the concept of new technology and sometimes they might even feel as if it’s going to make their job harder or replace them.

The following are some ways to effectively introduce new technology in the workplace in a way that’s not going to overwhelm employees or frustrate them.

Prepare for Problems

When new software is introduced, it might lead to some problems for employees. These problems are likely going to be related to the fact that they’re unsure of how to use it.

Anticipate these problems and plan for how they’ll be dealt with well in advance of actually introducing the software or technology.

It’s good to introduce training before you actually launch the technology or platform as well.

Your employees need to know how they can get support quickly and easily once the rollout starts happening too.

What a lot of businesses do that are successful with new software or technology rollouts is put a team in charge of the entire process and transition. This gives employees an easy place to turn when they do need help or guidance. Even once the implementation part of the process is over, this team can still be in charge of making sure employees are taking full advantage of the technology.

Start Slow

When you’re a business leader and you’re excited about introducing new technology, you might rush the implementation. That can lead to frustration and a lack of understanding on the part of employees. It’s better to take your time and gradually implement the new technology.

You don’t have to introduce all the capabilities of new technology right away.  Let employees get comfortable step-by-step.

Create Clear and Defined Roles

With the introduction of new software, roles can change or evolve. Let employees know well ahead of time and be transparent if you expect this to happen.

Going back to the original example of automated invoice management software—this might create a lot of big changes in terms of how your finance team works and what’s expected of them.

Let them know to go into it that this will be the case and define what their new roles will be. If you don’t do, these employees are likely to feel like you’re trying to leave them out of the loop or hide something.

Finally, you should also set metrics and benchmarks that will let employees know what’s expected of them through the implementation of the new software. For example, if you automate invoice processing, how much do you expect invoice processing times to speed up? If employees know the objectives, they’re more likely not just to feel comfortable with the rollout, but they’re also more likely to take full advantage of the software.

Categories
Technology

Six Things to Consider When Choosing a VPN Provider

Over the past few decades, cases of cyber-attacks have been on the rise. Big companies and individuals have lost loads of sensitive data to the so-called hackers. As a result, people are now on high alert when it comes to the use of the internet. Many people now understand that they can quickly lose their online privacy by connecting to the internet.

Today, a virtual private network (VPN) is the best solution for online data and privacy issues. There are many VPN providers in the market. Thus, picking the right provider can be a bit hectic. Without saying much, here are six tips that can help you select the best service provider.

1. Cost

Hotstickybun always insist that you should first consider cost when it comes to choosing the right VPN provider. Today, there are many VPN providers in the market. Every provider offers a different deal. Therefore, you must go through all the available choices, to arrive at an option that meets your budget. Never make the mistake of picking a provider based on the cheap. Instead, focus on a provider that meets all your security needs and has the best price. VPN packages range from $5-$20 per month. It’s advisable to pay the fee annually because the price is usually lower as compared to the monthly subscriptions.

2. Number of servers

Nothing is frustrating than having a slow connection. The scenario is typical when using a VPN. Why are some VPN providers faster than others? Well, it’s all about the number of servers. When choosing a VPN, ask yourself, how many servers does it have? A faster VPN provider will always have thousands of servers spread across the world. The many servers enable one to have a fast and reliable connection no matter the geographic location. This tip is essential for individuals who happen to travel a lot.

3. Protocols

When it comes to picking the right VPN, internet protocols should be among the first things to consider. You must be sure that the VPN’s services are supported by protocols such as SSL, L2TP, and IPsec among many others. For example, if you intend to use the VPN to streaming sites such as Netflix, PPTP is well suited. Some VPN protocols are more secure than others. Besides, some protocols offer reliable and faster download speeds than others. Therefore, you must ensure that your VPN provider has secure and fast protocols.

4. Number of devices allowed

When it comes to online privacy, you should consider all the devices that you use to connect to the internet. Your phone or Xbox can get you vulnerable to hacking. Therefore, when choosing a VPN package, you should consider the number of devices it can support at one given time. Online security experts always insist that one should go with a provider that allows at least five devices. This option allows one to use the VPN services simultaneously with the opportunity to remove or add other devices when the need arises.

5. Log information

What is the primary purpose of a VPN? It’s to keep your browsing private and secure. Therefore, when choosing a VPN provider, you need to check if it keeps a log of the browsing history. Some providers store the log info and thus excluding the sole purpose of the VPN. Always choose a VPN provider that doesn’t keep logs. Remember, these logs can be stolen and used to your disadvantage.

6. Server locations

Many people who subscribe to VPN services are from countries such as Saudi Arabia, Syria, and China because of the restrictive internet rules. The VPNs enables a user to visit Geo-restricted sites such as Pandora, Hulu, and Netflix among many others. Therefore, if you intend to use the VPN to bypass restrictive internet rules, you must ensure that the VPN provider isn’t based in your country or a friend to your country. It’s usually a challenge to get info about a particular user when there are hostile borders involved.

Over the past few decades, cases of cyber thefts have been on the rise. As a result, internet users are now cautious to avoid falling prey of the ruthless hackers. The use of VPNs is the best way to ensure online security and privacy. The number of VPN providers in the market is high and hence making it difficult for internet users to create a wide selection. With the list provided in this article, you can narrow down your decisions to the perfect provider.

Categories
SEO

3 Easy Ways in Finding an Affordable SEO Service

With the rise of the internet, small business is really finding it hard to thrive without proper SEO maximization practices. Since most of them are operating on small budgets, they tend to look for cheap services. But that doesn’t come easy either with the several numbers of service providers, some of which are quick to promise more than they can actually deliver.

The good news, however, is that there are several ways of finding and hiring affordable and genuine SEO services and they include;

Make The Internet Your Best Friend

In order to succeed in a specific location, you have to know it inside and out. The same case applies to the internet. Yes, you might be blossoming and well known out there at your physical location, but that might not be the case with the internet. You, therefore, need the services of SEO experts that have a good understanding of how the internet functions. And what better place to find them than through the internet itself? If they claim to know so much about the virtual world, then they must also know their way around it.

It’s easy to find Affordable SEO service providers through a random internet search to at least boost your customer base and increase traffic to your websites. This is because these affordable services keep evolving with the current market needs and are customized. There is also no off-peak / peak seasons. And since the web hosts experts from all over the world, their number is extremely overwhelming making competition top-notch. So it becomes easy to land better deals.

Consider Referrals

Referrals are one of the best and surest way of landing a trustworthy cheap SEO service provider. First, ensure you foster positive relationships with other business owners such that they won’t be forced to hold useful information from you. This way it will be easy for you to bring up the subject during discussions and ask them about their recent SEO adopted deal. Since they have the first-hand experience with the service providers, they can provide useful insights that will help you determine whether their package will suit your needs.

Also, don’t ignore the input of family and friends. Yes, they might not have directly dealt with the service provider, but that doesn’t mean they haven’t heard anything about them. Don’t assume their ignorance if you haven’t taken the time to find out. They might also be having friends of friends that have hired the said service provider at one point. You can also go through some online customer reviews. It’s always good to know something about your desired SEO service provider before your meeting so that you prepare to ask result-oriented questions.

Make Use Of Offers

Lastly, while it’s often said that “cheap is expensive”, sometimes not all the cheap-priced SEO providers do a shoddy job. Some, just like your small business is still on the upcoming level and are trying to create a name for themselves by offering awesome affordable offers to lure customers. So if you come across those, and of course with an impeccable reputation, don’t waste the chance. You might even end-up being long-term partners.

SEO plays a key role in the success of any business and it’s for this reason that you shouldn’t ignore it, no matter how small your budget is. Instead, focus on hiring cheap professional SEO service providers at least until you stabilize. You can achieve all this through internet searches, referrals and maximizing on offers.