Industry's top manufacturers and academics to present at IEEE/LEOS sponsored seminar programme
At this week's Photonex 08, leading laser system manufacturers and university academics will take part in a high level seminar programme on High Power Diode Lasers and Systems. Representatives from Alcatel Thales III-V Labs (France), Jenoptik (Germany), Intense and GSI Lasers, will be joined by academics from Cambridge, Glasgow and Nottingham universities. The seminar, supported by IEEE/LEOS, confirms Photonex as the UK's premier showcase for the photonics industry's most advanced technology. Photonex is taking place in Coventry's Stoneleigh Park, 15 - 18 October.
"The market for advanced, high power laser systems has shown incredible growth in recent years, and that growth shows no signs of slowing," said Professor Catrina Bryce of Glasgow University. "The high power diode laser and systems market is seeing advances in the capabilities of both conventional solid state lasers and fibre lasers being driven by improvements in power, mode structure, brightness and reliability of high power pump laser diodes.
"This seminar, along with the rest of the programme taking place at the event, will see the top people from the commercial and research areas of this exciting marketplace outline the very latest advancements in technology, business and applications.
"As Photonex grows in size and stature each year, so does it's seminar programme, and this year it has attracted some big names in the photonics space."
The seminar programme will also include an Innovation and Investment Seminar Programme to link with this year's new forums, as well as Industrial innovation with lasers in the medical sector and Solving sensing problems with photonics, amongst others.
The programme, along with the addition of this years Innovation and Investment Forums, means that this years Photonex is pushing itself to the front of the crowd, to be recognised as a truly innovative and high-calibre show.
Saturday, October 11, 2008
Mobile Phone Plans: Traditional versus Prepaid
The wireless communication business is like any other part of the competitive retail industry. It constantly expands, and continuously makes room for improvements and revolutionary discoveries. Upgrades and enhanced technologies hit the market at regular intervals and it is becoming more difficult to keep up with the latest trends and developments.
Mobile phones have become a way of life and most people today use a wireless handset to conduct business on the go, or enhance their social life. As business strategy develops, the wireless service providers offer their users more and more possibilities, with the prepaid mobile phone as being one of the most recent innovations.
With every progression in technology, come new rate plans, service conditions and fees. This is also the case for prepaid mobiles. Analyzing the most significant differences between a long-term plan and a prepaid plan, we notice that, while monthly cellular or mobile phone plans, as a norm, tie their user into a one- or two-year service contract, the prepaid plans do not require a set time commitment. Knowing exactly how much you are spending, you can better control your cost, and there is no monthly bill to worry about.
Prepaid mobiles are ideal for people with bad credit. The carriers do not need a credit approval, which means, no credit checks! They do not demand a deposit and do not surprise you with hidden fees. There is also no termination penalty, as there is no contract.
Many prepaid mobile phone starter kits are delivered with a phone number, access to a network and a certain amount of credit for calls. When all the credit is used up, recharging the account is easy, and can be done in many different ways, at any time. You can go online, pay by phone, bank machine, or with a prepaid card. Refills can also be obtained at retail outlets, service stations and convenience stores.
With every great invention come drawbacks. The average charge per minute for a pay-as-you-go phone is higher than what monthly mobile plans bill for, and if you do not use the phone for an extended period of time, you may lose the unused funds on your account. Collect calls or third-party billed calls are also not accepted.
In general, prepaid mobile phones can be the cheapest option for people who do not make many mobile calls. They are handy if you only want a handset to receive calls, or take along for emergencies . Even if you run out of credit you can still receive calls for a limited time and dial out for emergency services. On the other hand, if you are a frequent caller, want extra features such as Internet access, and have several family members, employees, or business partners you want to add to your plan, you are likely better off with a traditional mobile service plan.
Before signing up for a long-term plan, think about the length of the contract and minimum total costs; find out if a phone is included in the starter package, and if there are penalties involved when leaving the plan early. Carefully weigh the pros and cons of both prepaid and traditional mobile phone plans and then decide what format would work best for you.
Mobile phones have become a way of life and most people today use a wireless handset to conduct business on the go, or enhance their social life. As business strategy develops, the wireless service providers offer their users more and more possibilities, with the prepaid mobile phone as being one of the most recent innovations.
With every progression in technology, come new rate plans, service conditions and fees. This is also the case for prepaid mobiles. Analyzing the most significant differences between a long-term plan and a prepaid plan, we notice that, while monthly cellular or mobile phone plans, as a norm, tie their user into a one- or two-year service contract, the prepaid plans do not require a set time commitment. Knowing exactly how much you are spending, you can better control your cost, and there is no monthly bill to worry about.
Prepaid mobiles are ideal for people with bad credit. The carriers do not need a credit approval, which means, no credit checks! They do not demand a deposit and do not surprise you with hidden fees. There is also no termination penalty, as there is no contract.
Many prepaid mobile phone starter kits are delivered with a phone number, access to a network and a certain amount of credit for calls. When all the credit is used up, recharging the account is easy, and can be done in many different ways, at any time. You can go online, pay by phone, bank machine, or with a prepaid card. Refills can also be obtained at retail outlets, service stations and convenience stores.
With every great invention come drawbacks. The average charge per minute for a pay-as-you-go phone is higher than what monthly mobile plans bill for, and if you do not use the phone for an extended period of time, you may lose the unused funds on your account. Collect calls or third-party billed calls are also not accepted.
In general, prepaid mobile phones can be the cheapest option for people who do not make many mobile calls. They are handy if you only want a handset to receive calls, or take along for emergencies . Even if you run out of credit you can still receive calls for a limited time and dial out for emergency services. On the other hand, if you are a frequent caller, want extra features such as Internet access, and have several family members, employees, or business partners you want to add to your plan, you are likely better off with a traditional mobile service plan.
Before signing up for a long-term plan, think about the length of the contract and minimum total costs; find out if a phone is included in the starter package, and if there are penalties involved when leaving the plan early. Carefully weigh the pros and cons of both prepaid and traditional mobile phone plans and then decide what format would work best for you.
How Does Voice Over IP Work - Save Money And Take A Step Into The 21st Century
How does voice over IP work? This may be a question you find yourself asking when considering to change your home phone out with this type network. This is a great way to reduce costs over time. Have you seen the Vonage commercials, I know I have. My question was not how does Voice over IP work but rather what in the heck is that? So I wanted to learn how to save money while taking yet another daring step into the future.
You can still get features such as redial, caller ID, call forwarding, and 3 way calling, basically anything you had on your old phone can come on this system.
Voice Over IP telephony works by packet switching instead of old circuit switching. When talking to someone, analog voice is changed into digital packets which are routed through the internet like websites. Your conversations are held over the internet. This is what makes this so much more cost effective than your old phone service. All calls are basically local calls because your call does not even leave the internet until it is at the switching station.
While there are a couple of points that you should consider before switching, I believe the switch is a step in the right direction. You should remember that you must have the internet in a Broadband form. If you have no power, you will lose your phone, but count back how many times have you lost your power, and didn't you make all your calls on your cell phone anyway because the only kind of phone you had was a cordless, that required the power to work anyway. So how is that change? Plus your batteries backups will still work and your phone can still receive and make calls. Your phone calls can even be forwarded to your cell phone so that you do not miss a beat in the case of a power outage.
For faxes you even can get a separate line to make iFaxes. If you do a lot of faxing from home. Which average homes do not. You have already changed your old dial up service to DSL or cable or even satellite. Who knew that you upgrading your internet could lead to a phone upgrade as well?
You can still get features such as redial, caller ID, call forwarding, and 3 way calling, basically anything you had on your old phone can come on this system.
Voice Over IP telephony works by packet switching instead of old circuit switching. When talking to someone, analog voice is changed into digital packets which are routed through the internet like websites. Your conversations are held over the internet. This is what makes this so much more cost effective than your old phone service. All calls are basically local calls because your call does not even leave the internet until it is at the switching station.
While there are a couple of points that you should consider before switching, I believe the switch is a step in the right direction. You should remember that you must have the internet in a Broadband form. If you have no power, you will lose your phone, but count back how many times have you lost your power, and didn't you make all your calls on your cell phone anyway because the only kind of phone you had was a cordless, that required the power to work anyway. So how is that change? Plus your batteries backups will still work and your phone can still receive and make calls. Your phone calls can even be forwarded to your cell phone so that you do not miss a beat in the case of a power outage.
For faxes you even can get a separate line to make iFaxes. If you do a lot of faxing from home. Which average homes do not. You have already changed your old dial up service to DSL or cable or even satellite. Who knew that you upgrading your internet could lead to a phone upgrade as well?
Friday, October 3, 2008
Use internet technology to 'phone home' when on holiday
Travelling abroad has always involved an element of adventure, but even as recently as 20 years ago visiting countries as technically advanced as the USA meant that you literally went into a communications black hole until your return. That is because the cost of transatlantic phone calls was so outrageously high that your entire holiday budget could be used up calling home, and that was just for a few minutes.
However, advances in competition amongst telephony companies have changed that. For example, travellers to the USA can purchase great value phone cards starting from as little as £5 for approximately 167 minutes of calls to a landline number in London. Or, if they prefer travellers can also call home using a mobile phone. But, even though that's not as relatively expensive as it was to use landlines at the end of the 1980s, it is still an expensive way to keep in touch with calls to home typically costing around £1.37 - £1.99 per minute outside Europe.
As technology has advanced the amount of differing communication methods have also grown exponentially. Now even without a landline or mobile phone, it is still possible to call home just as long as you are connected to the internet. VoIP (Voice over internet protocol) now enables broadband users to be able to communicate both freely and for free with anyone on the internet who has the same software installed.
Indeed, modern technology expands at such a phenomenal rate each year that nothing seems impossible when it comes to global communication. Logging into your email account when in the heart of Peru to send and receive messages or even using your laptop to make free calls to home via WiFi at the top of the CN Tower in Toronto; both are eminently possible in the 21st century.
Wherever you go in the world the internet has invariably got there first, unless the destination is extremely remote and off the beaten track. For those on extended holidays or especially back-packing then internet phone calls can be a great way to make sure everyone back home realises what a great time you are having, as well as a great way for you to keep in touch with happenings on the domestic front. But the real advantage is that you save your much needed cash to spend on essentials or fun activities and without having to spend it all it on expensive phone calls. So, before heading off to foreign parts make sure you open an internet VoIP account, and you'll have the ability to stay in touch just about wherever you go!
However, advances in competition amongst telephony companies have changed that. For example, travellers to the USA can purchase great value phone cards starting from as little as £5 for approximately 167 minutes of calls to a landline number in London. Or, if they prefer travellers can also call home using a mobile phone. But, even though that's not as relatively expensive as it was to use landlines at the end of the 1980s, it is still an expensive way to keep in touch with calls to home typically costing around £1.37 - £1.99 per minute outside Europe.
As technology has advanced the amount of differing communication methods have also grown exponentially. Now even without a landline or mobile phone, it is still possible to call home just as long as you are connected to the internet. VoIP (Voice over internet protocol) now enables broadband users to be able to communicate both freely and for free with anyone on the internet who has the same software installed.
Indeed, modern technology expands at such a phenomenal rate each year that nothing seems impossible when it comes to global communication. Logging into your email account when in the heart of Peru to send and receive messages or even using your laptop to make free calls to home via WiFi at the top of the CN Tower in Toronto; both are eminently possible in the 21st century.
Wherever you go in the world the internet has invariably got there first, unless the destination is extremely remote and off the beaten track. For those on extended holidays or especially back-packing then internet phone calls can be a great way to make sure everyone back home realises what a great time you are having, as well as a great way for you to keep in touch with happenings on the domestic front. But the real advantage is that you save your much needed cash to spend on essentials or fun activities and without having to spend it all it on expensive phone calls. So, before heading off to foreign parts make sure you open an internet VoIP account, and you'll have the ability to stay in touch just about wherever you go!
7 Habits of Highly Effective Technology Partnerships
Choose the software company you will hate the least." This was some of the advice that my friend and industry consultant Mike Sheffield provided several years ago to his audience at an mlm startup conference in Las Vegas. I cringed and thought "Wow, did I pick the right business? The best I can hope for is to be hated -the least," As the president of International Direct Selling Technology Corporation (IDSTC), a direct selling software company, the message was disturbing.
Some time has passed since that experience, and the good news is that I now know, and I'm sure Mike will agree, that you are not doomed to have a contentious relationship with your technology partner or IT department. More importantly, it is possible to have a productive, cost-effective relationship with your partner, and - holy cow! - you may even like and appreciate them. But a little background first.
I began my career in the direct-selling industry as a bonafide idealist and network marketing company owner. You know the profile - an unbridled enthusiasm and naiveté to match, with a plan to address all the shortcomings of the mlm strategy. Not to mention a really fair and powerful compensation plan and a cool product, to boot. With inevitable exponential growth and truckloads of cash to divvy up, the sales force would soon get rich, and I would, too!
Admittedly, eight years of executive management for a company that grew to over 100,000 sales representatives came at the expense of some of my idealism. One of the first dents in that idealism came fast in those early days. Everyone and their brother didn't jump on board like I knew they would. My partner Chris Kent, who arranged most of our original funding, was quick to create a new company sales plan and motivational mantra - a survival mantra is more like it. "GET SOME REPS!" he and I would scream at each other repeatedly throughout the day as we stuffed mailers and compiled binders.
We didn't start in the proverbial garage, but our 493 square feet of "class C" office space was certainly humble enough. What we had to do first for survival - and ultimately to be successful - was obvious, and we couldn't state it (or should I say, scream it) enough. In case you are wondering, I'll clarify a little bit later just how this relates to creating productive and successful technology partnerships.
In 1994, Chris and I launched Optimal Telecom. We engaged a consultant, hired a local attorney and purchased mlm software. The software was developed and supported by Target Data. For nearly five years, the mlm software did exactly what it was designed to do. However, in the latter part of 1998, the Internet and the first generation of web-based applications were really starting to take off. The Internet and its new technology offered a fabulous opportunity for us to be a leading-edge organization.
That's precisely what we wanted. So, we set out to replace our existing mlm software system with a new state-of-the-art application that would enhance our operational efficiencies and allow us to deliver to our field the latest and greatest online direct-selling tools at the time - replicated websites and back offices.
We found the industry's hottest mlm software company right in our own backyard, based less than a mile from our headquarters in downtown Tampa. Over the next few weeks we enthusiastically, but cautiously, completed our due diligence and verification of the software company's capabilities. They had only been in business for a couple of years, but based on our research we decided they had a bright and successful future ahead and selected them to be part of ours. That turned out to be the wrong decision as the software company was out of business within six months of securing our payment. Adding to the injury was the fact that the company did not deliver to us any functional software before packing up shop and heading off into the sunset.
Compounding the disaster, we had made another classic mistake, one you might recognize. We had already promised all of these new resources to our sales force, and the excitement was palpable. The field was growing impatient and less and less empathetic. After reevaluating all of our options, we did what we thought we needed to do at the time; we did it ourselves. We hired an IT staff and developed a proprietary system. (I would not recommend this strategy for the inexperienced, those who are short on time, or for poorly funded enterprises!)
You see, I've been in your shoes - managing and surviving through every aspect of the software/technology experience: buying, implementation, support, migration, disaster, chaos, drama, rebuilding and a new successful implementation and operations lifecycle. Now I'm on the other side of the technology partnership as the provider, so my insights should prove quite helpful to those of you who work with software providers. These habits can also be applied to in-house IT departments or other partners in general.
The real question is: what real world, experience-tested strategies result in a successful, long-term partnership? You as the client and your provider have to be committed partners to that goal. But where do you begin? Here is a not-so-technical primer on how to do it.
Habit 1. Be a Team: The Same-Team Paradigm
The relationship between a technology provider and the client involves several dimensions. For the client, one of the most significant concerns is the fear of not having control, and even worse, being controlled by, and at the mercy of some evil and manipulative software company. Coming to terms with this fear is essential to having a successful relationship. While tactical practices should be in place to handle these valid concerns and issues, addressing this aspect is important for your relationship to be effective.
From my observation of hundreds of client relationships, they all begin with an enthusiasm to get the project underway. Most begin with what I describe as a Two Team paradigm: the client team and the provider team. What I have come to understand is that this paradigm usually results in unnecessary inefficiencies and frustration. Notwithstanding good intentions, by its very nature a Two Team paradigm can easily result in an us-against-them, win-lose relationship. In the implementation and support of technology services, challenges and issues most certainly will arise and they must be handled. A win-lose approach in problem solving won't save you time and money, much less solve the tasks at hand any faster. More often than not, it actually slows things down.
A subtle change in perspective can produce a profound paradigm shift that can significantly improve the effectiveness and the overall relationship in general. This can be achieved early in the partnership by initiating, developing and nurturing a genuine Same Team paradigm. Clearly two parties are involved here, possibly more when third-party providers are involved. But the Same Team paradigm is founded upon the principle that everyone is actually on the same team, with the same objective: getting the client's system launched and supporting the business through its various stages of operations.
A Same Team paradigm invokes a pragmatic solution-oriented approach to achieving objectives and milestones. The Same Team paradigm establishes a spirit of collaboration and cooperation with all the players. As your relationship progresses and support for your business is going well, the Same Team paradigm continuously reflects upon how you support your provider in their effort to support you. When challenges arise (and they will), stay calm - don't start beating up your team. Think how you can work with the team to help solve the issues. Collaboration and cooperation are the key elements to a successful Same Team approach.
Habit 2. Collaborate, Cooperate & Synergize
Having the right person responsible for coordinating between your company and your technology provider is essential to creating synergy between the organizations. Whereas having several individuals who may not be in sync with each other interacting with your provider may cause misunderstandings and disorder. Determine who within your organization will be the project manager to coordinate with the project manager of your technology partner. Make sure the project manager you appoint has the operations experience, ability, authority and time to be effective.
Project management is fundamental to a technology partnership, and it requires collaboration and cooperation from all parties. Your technology partner should provide you with a detailed overview of their project management process and requirements. This should define the client responsibilities, deadlines, milestones, and delivery dates. You should be prepared to provide any information or feedback your provider needs to move on to the next stage in the process. Whether it's a clarification or a specification document authorization, being expeditious and responsive will enable the team to meet deadlines. This is of critical importance because many steps in application development are sequential in nature and dependent upon prior action or steps being completed.
Habit 3. Know the Rules, Play by the Rules.
Let's assume you've adopted a Same Team paradigm with your technology partner. The team needs to operate by a predetermined set of rules. These include the project management procedures and requirements, support policies and procedures, billing policies and payment terms, services available and pricing, terms of the agreement, user's guides, instructions and more. Your expectations for service, support and costs should be based entirely on this body of information; the rules. Software providers have policies and procedures in place that enable them support numerous clients simultaneously. Make sure these rules are compatible with your requirements and that you're able to comply with them. Of course you should expect great service and hold your partner to the same standard of compliance. Know the rules and play by the rules.
Habit 4. Get Some Face Time.
Have you experienced an email miscommunication, where one of your messages was taken out of context and a well intentioned message instead offended someone? Have you ever taken someone else's message out of context where the intent of the message was lost in interpretation? Have you worked long and hard through teleconferences and thought that the other party doesn't get it or just doesn't care? The reality in our business is that most communication takes place through online messages, email and phone calls. Not only does this invite a significant margin for error in the interpersonal experience between the staffs of your company and your technology provider, it lacks a fundamental ingredient for a great relationship: some face time.
So build into your schedule and budget a day or so to spend with your technology partner in person. The earlier in the relationship you do this, the better. Onsite visits, when practical, help build trust and friendship in a long term relationship. Visit a couple of times a year to continue building upon this important, but often overlooked personal foundation. In my experience, any rough patches in a client relationship are typically dissipated when working together in person.
Some time has passed since that experience, and the good news is that I now know, and I'm sure Mike will agree, that you are not doomed to have a contentious relationship with your technology partner or IT department. More importantly, it is possible to have a productive, cost-effective relationship with your partner, and - holy cow! - you may even like and appreciate them. But a little background first.
I began my career in the direct-selling industry as a bonafide idealist and network marketing company owner. You know the profile - an unbridled enthusiasm and naiveté to match, with a plan to address all the shortcomings of the mlm strategy. Not to mention a really fair and powerful compensation plan and a cool product, to boot. With inevitable exponential growth and truckloads of cash to divvy up, the sales force would soon get rich, and I would, too!
Admittedly, eight years of executive management for a company that grew to over 100,000 sales representatives came at the expense of some of my idealism. One of the first dents in that idealism came fast in those early days. Everyone and their brother didn't jump on board like I knew they would. My partner Chris Kent, who arranged most of our original funding, was quick to create a new company sales plan and motivational mantra - a survival mantra is more like it. "GET SOME REPS!" he and I would scream at each other repeatedly throughout the day as we stuffed mailers and compiled binders.
We didn't start in the proverbial garage, but our 493 square feet of "class C" office space was certainly humble enough. What we had to do first for survival - and ultimately to be successful - was obvious, and we couldn't state it (or should I say, scream it) enough. In case you are wondering, I'll clarify a little bit later just how this relates to creating productive and successful technology partnerships.
In 1994, Chris and I launched Optimal Telecom. We engaged a consultant, hired a local attorney and purchased mlm software. The software was developed and supported by Target Data. For nearly five years, the mlm software did exactly what it was designed to do. However, in the latter part of 1998, the Internet and the first generation of web-based applications were really starting to take off. The Internet and its new technology offered a fabulous opportunity for us to be a leading-edge organization.
That's precisely what we wanted. So, we set out to replace our existing mlm software system with a new state-of-the-art application that would enhance our operational efficiencies and allow us to deliver to our field the latest and greatest online direct-selling tools at the time - replicated websites and back offices.
We found the industry's hottest mlm software company right in our own backyard, based less than a mile from our headquarters in downtown Tampa. Over the next few weeks we enthusiastically, but cautiously, completed our due diligence and verification of the software company's capabilities. They had only been in business for a couple of years, but based on our research we decided they had a bright and successful future ahead and selected them to be part of ours. That turned out to be the wrong decision as the software company was out of business within six months of securing our payment. Adding to the injury was the fact that the company did not deliver to us any functional software before packing up shop and heading off into the sunset.
Compounding the disaster, we had made another classic mistake, one you might recognize. We had already promised all of these new resources to our sales force, and the excitement was palpable. The field was growing impatient and less and less empathetic. After reevaluating all of our options, we did what we thought we needed to do at the time; we did it ourselves. We hired an IT staff and developed a proprietary system. (I would not recommend this strategy for the inexperienced, those who are short on time, or for poorly funded enterprises!)
You see, I've been in your shoes - managing and surviving through every aspect of the software/technology experience: buying, implementation, support, migration, disaster, chaos, drama, rebuilding and a new successful implementation and operations lifecycle. Now I'm on the other side of the technology partnership as the provider, so my insights should prove quite helpful to those of you who work with software providers. These habits can also be applied to in-house IT departments or other partners in general.
The real question is: what real world, experience-tested strategies result in a successful, long-term partnership? You as the client and your provider have to be committed partners to that goal. But where do you begin? Here is a not-so-technical primer on how to do it.
Habit 1. Be a Team: The Same-Team Paradigm
The relationship between a technology provider and the client involves several dimensions. For the client, one of the most significant concerns is the fear of not having control, and even worse, being controlled by, and at the mercy of some evil and manipulative software company. Coming to terms with this fear is essential to having a successful relationship. While tactical practices should be in place to handle these valid concerns and issues, addressing this aspect is important for your relationship to be effective.
From my observation of hundreds of client relationships, they all begin with an enthusiasm to get the project underway. Most begin with what I describe as a Two Team paradigm: the client team and the provider team. What I have come to understand is that this paradigm usually results in unnecessary inefficiencies and frustration. Notwithstanding good intentions, by its very nature a Two Team paradigm can easily result in an us-against-them, win-lose relationship. In the implementation and support of technology services, challenges and issues most certainly will arise and they must be handled. A win-lose approach in problem solving won't save you time and money, much less solve the tasks at hand any faster. More often than not, it actually slows things down.
A subtle change in perspective can produce a profound paradigm shift that can significantly improve the effectiveness and the overall relationship in general. This can be achieved early in the partnership by initiating, developing and nurturing a genuine Same Team paradigm. Clearly two parties are involved here, possibly more when third-party providers are involved. But the Same Team paradigm is founded upon the principle that everyone is actually on the same team, with the same objective: getting the client's system launched and supporting the business through its various stages of operations.
A Same Team paradigm invokes a pragmatic solution-oriented approach to achieving objectives and milestones. The Same Team paradigm establishes a spirit of collaboration and cooperation with all the players. As your relationship progresses and support for your business is going well, the Same Team paradigm continuously reflects upon how you support your provider in their effort to support you. When challenges arise (and they will), stay calm - don't start beating up your team. Think how you can work with the team to help solve the issues. Collaboration and cooperation are the key elements to a successful Same Team approach.
Habit 2. Collaborate, Cooperate & Synergize
Having the right person responsible for coordinating between your company and your technology provider is essential to creating synergy between the organizations. Whereas having several individuals who may not be in sync with each other interacting with your provider may cause misunderstandings and disorder. Determine who within your organization will be the project manager to coordinate with the project manager of your technology partner. Make sure the project manager you appoint has the operations experience, ability, authority and time to be effective.
Project management is fundamental to a technology partnership, and it requires collaboration and cooperation from all parties. Your technology partner should provide you with a detailed overview of their project management process and requirements. This should define the client responsibilities, deadlines, milestones, and delivery dates. You should be prepared to provide any information or feedback your provider needs to move on to the next stage in the process. Whether it's a clarification or a specification document authorization, being expeditious and responsive will enable the team to meet deadlines. This is of critical importance because many steps in application development are sequential in nature and dependent upon prior action or steps being completed.
Habit 3. Know the Rules, Play by the Rules.
Let's assume you've adopted a Same Team paradigm with your technology partner. The team needs to operate by a predetermined set of rules. These include the project management procedures and requirements, support policies and procedures, billing policies and payment terms, services available and pricing, terms of the agreement, user's guides, instructions and more. Your expectations for service, support and costs should be based entirely on this body of information; the rules. Software providers have policies and procedures in place that enable them support numerous clients simultaneously. Make sure these rules are compatible with your requirements and that you're able to comply with them. Of course you should expect great service and hold your partner to the same standard of compliance. Know the rules and play by the rules.
Habit 4. Get Some Face Time.
Have you experienced an email miscommunication, where one of your messages was taken out of context and a well intentioned message instead offended someone? Have you ever taken someone else's message out of context where the intent of the message was lost in interpretation? Have you worked long and hard through teleconferences and thought that the other party doesn't get it or just doesn't care? The reality in our business is that most communication takes place through online messages, email and phone calls. Not only does this invite a significant margin for error in the interpersonal experience between the staffs of your company and your technology provider, it lacks a fundamental ingredient for a great relationship: some face time.
So build into your schedule and budget a day or so to spend with your technology partner in person. The earlier in the relationship you do this, the better. Onsite visits, when practical, help build trust and friendship in a long term relationship. Visit a couple of times a year to continue building upon this important, but often overlooked personal foundation. In my experience, any rough patches in a client relationship are typically dissipated when working together in person.
You Get A Variety Of Options With Dish Network Satellite TV
It seems that nowadays there is a trend that has people constantly scrambling in order to get all of the entertainment television programming that they can possibly get access to. There are many people who just love to watch all of the top TV shows and newly released movies on their home television entertainment systems. They feel that having a dish network satellite service is the absolute best way to get programming that gives them everything they are looking for, and sometimes even more.
There are two primary components that you need to have in order to get your news, sports and entertainment via a TV satellite dish system. The first component is the satellite dish antenna that captures the programming broadcast signal, which then relays that signal to the second component; the satellite TV receiver. This receiver then decodes the signal from the dish antenna and turns it into a signal that can be transmitted to your television.
This means that once a dish network satellite system has been properly installed, access to a huge selection of television programming from the comfort of your own home is obtainable. Because these satellite dish antenna installations do not need to be attached to any kind of physical network, like the cable companies must have for cable TV, these satellite TV systems are more flexible and are more widely available, especially in the more rural areas.
A home dish network system picks up programming signals that are transmitted from the various satellites, which are orbiting thousands of miles above the surface of the earth. Many of the satellite dish antenna units now come with dual receivers, thereby receiving broadcasts from two different satellites at the same time, making it possible for a household to feed programming to two different televisions in the house. This has allowed the satellite TV companies to offer programming packages that include even more options.
At the same time, the dual receivers that are more common these days also allow you to use the picture in a picture, or PIP, function that is now a standard feature of so many of today's televisions. This allows you to essentially be watching two shows at the same time with one channel being shown full size and the second being shown as a smaller picture within the large picture. Since you can see what is going on both channels you can easily switch back and forth between the two programs.
Another advantage of these dual receivers is that it allows the dish network satellite system to record one television program while you watch a second program, if you have a DVR, or digital video recorder. The DVRs are becoming a very popular option that many people are adding to their satellite TV systems today because it gives them freedom from the constraints of the broadcasting schedule.
There are two primary components that you need to have in order to get your news, sports and entertainment via a TV satellite dish system. The first component is the satellite dish antenna that captures the programming broadcast signal, which then relays that signal to the second component; the satellite TV receiver. This receiver then decodes the signal from the dish antenna and turns it into a signal that can be transmitted to your television.
This means that once a dish network satellite system has been properly installed, access to a huge selection of television programming from the comfort of your own home is obtainable. Because these satellite dish antenna installations do not need to be attached to any kind of physical network, like the cable companies must have for cable TV, these satellite TV systems are more flexible and are more widely available, especially in the more rural areas.
A home dish network system picks up programming signals that are transmitted from the various satellites, which are orbiting thousands of miles above the surface of the earth. Many of the satellite dish antenna units now come with dual receivers, thereby receiving broadcasts from two different satellites at the same time, making it possible for a household to feed programming to two different televisions in the house. This has allowed the satellite TV companies to offer programming packages that include even more options.
At the same time, the dual receivers that are more common these days also allow you to use the picture in a picture, or PIP, function that is now a standard feature of so many of today's televisions. This allows you to essentially be watching two shows at the same time with one channel being shown full size and the second being shown as a smaller picture within the large picture. Since you can see what is going on both channels you can easily switch back and forth between the two programs.
Another advantage of these dual receivers is that it allows the dish network satellite system to record one television program while you watch a second program, if you have a DVR, or digital video recorder. The DVRs are becoming a very popular option that many people are adding to their satellite TV systems today because it gives them freedom from the constraints of the broadcasting schedule.
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