Directive Blogs

As expected, mobile technology is a consistent part of daily business operations for many companies around the world. Employees love taking advantage of the mobility these devices offer, making their home office just as useful as their in-house workstation. However, a mobile device management solution needs to be strictly adhered to in order to optimize security and guarantee that a stray smartphone doesn’t expose your data to unexpected eyes.

It’s important for a business to be connected with their community. Even if you have a global market, it’s still important to invest in the city you’re headquartered in. It’s where you and your employees live, and if you can build relationships and connect with other organizations in your community, only good things can come from it.

Here are three easy ways your business can become more involved and respected within your community.

The CEO baton at Microsoft has been passed from Steve Ballmer to Satya Nadella, making Nadella the third CEO in Microsoft's well-publicized history. You may not think that this will have an impact on your business, but considering how intertwined Microsoft is with the the global economy, you may be surprised to learn that this move will affect your company.

Expenses from running a business can add up quickly. We want to help by sharing six easy things you can do that will save you money and improve your workplace. Even though these two goals may seem diametrically opposed, we have found that they can work together in a synchronized harmony!

You may have realized that marketing and advertising tactics are shifting toward reaching mobile leads. Even superstar companies like Google and Facebook are delegating more marketing dollars to their mobile marketing budgets after a discovery that nearly one-fifth of Google's revenue comes from mobile searching. Here are three ways your company can start up your mobile marketing initiative.

For most small business owners, your average week includes several moments where you look at your expense sheet and search for ways to cut costs and improve the profitability, and thus, the sustainability of your company. Around the holidays, when business picks up for everyone, some small businesses run into problems that stunt their net profitability. The inability to spend the money that larger companies can, will often result in handcuffing a business' ability to compete.

As a business owner, your business is your baby. Therefore, it's easy to take it personally when a customer says something negative about your company. It feels kind of like a stranger calling your newborn baby ugly. Don't overreact to negative opinions by overhauling your business model; you can actually use negative customer feedback to your advantage.

Upgrading your network and shopping for new technology can be a daunting task. Technology is expensive and it's an investment that will help your business grow, but that's only if you purchase what you need. A poor technology purchase can actually be a budget buster. To maximize your new technology purchases, it's worth it to partner with IT professionals.

In a recent economics survey of small to medium-sized businesses by Oxford University, it was discovered that two-thirds of companies believe that technology is the key to transforming their business in order to "achieve longevity and sustainable growth." This survey reveals a lot about how businesses worldwide feel about technology. Does your business identify with any these trends?

You don't need us to tell you that running a small business has its inherent difficulties. There are all types of factors that could literally destroy everything that the hardworking people in your organization have accomplished. The problem is that these situations aren't limited to just disasters such as flood or fire. Below are three factors that may wreak havoc with your small business in 2013.

Everything feels extra difficult for small businesses. Technology makes things easier; yet technology costs money, and the lack of money tends to be at the root of every problem for businesses of all sizes. Big businesses can afford the best technology, which is one reason they do so well. We level the playing field by making big business solutions affordable.

Many small businesses are switching their phone systems to Voice over Internet Protocol and seeing dramatic savings over traditional phone plans, especially when it comes to long distance charges. Once the switch to VoIP is made, small businesses are discovering there are more benefits to VoIP that make their business appear bigger and more professional!

Computers have been designed to be easy and intuitive to use. Just about anybody can figure out how to open files and browse the Internet, but PCs are still complicated machines that require technical knowledge to fix and maintain. When it comes to the technical stuff, it's better to leave it to the pros.

Every generation improves the technology of the previous generation. Sometimes technology can improve at such a rapid rate that it can make other technologies obsolete. It takes a bit of know how to determine which technologies will last and which ones are just fads. We are here to help you make sense of all of these rapid changes.

Typically, the only way that spaghetti improves the office is by providing a low cost meal during a lunch break. As it turns out, spaghetti can be used as more than lunch; spaghetti charts are a great productivity tool that can improve your workflow, eliminate transport waste, and save you money.

We are not guaranteed a life without problems. Problems will happen and your plans will be ruined (okay, it's not ALWAYS that bad!). While you can't totally eliminate problems from life, you can greatly reduce them by being proactive. This proactive problem solving approach also works great with technology!

Procrastinators of the world unite... tomorrow! Many people who feel the constant and crushing pressure of deadlines, and who have a habit of being late with deadlines, would identify themselves as procrastinators. Stanford professor John Perry has discovered a method to use procrastination as a tool to get more done, he calls this structured procrastination.

Every enterprise, whether it is a successful one or not, has to deal with its fair share of adversity. One of the most rampant difficulties a business is forced to deal with is the necessary ability to secure prompt payment for the goods and services it provides its customers. For small and medium-sized businesses, or even one-man bands, they likely do not have the deep pockets many larger organizations have. Not being able to timely collect income can make sustaining business operations all but impossible. With remote payment applications that are now available for mobile devices, collecting crucial revenue at a mobile point-of-sale is making collecting that is money easier.

Everybody has a weakness; Superman has Kryptonite, the Wicked Witch of the West had water, and the Death Star had a womprat-sized exhaust port. Character weaknesses make for solid storylines because they drive conflict. Your company has its own set of vulnerabilities that you may not know about, and unlike stories, conflict in business is not a good thing. Here are a few of the lesser known IT weaknesses, and what you can do to resolve them.

Despite having more paperless solutions at our disposal, it looks like offices will always have the need for a printer. Maybe you are not quite ready to take the great paperless leap, but you can reduce the amount of resources and power consumed from using your printers with the help of a print server solution.