Category Archives: business

Travel By Train For Extra Productivity!



Photo by Jens Johnsson on Unsplash

In the most recent GNC podcast, Todd talked about an article from BBC which asked if responding to corporate email during the daily commute counted as work. That reminded me of a company that I used to deal with which always encouraged its consultants to travel to customer sites by train and paid for first class travel too. I thought this was a great perk as the company I worked for wasn’t so generous.

However, after a few beers will new colleagues one night, I discovered that this wasn’t quite as caring as it sounded. What was happening was this….

Say the consultant was travelling to visit client A on-site for a day’s work. Travel time was charged at half the normal hourly rate. But while travelling in first class, the consultant was expected to do (paper) work for client B, which could then be charged at the full hourly rate. An hour of travel time became the equivalent of one and half hours of work time.

As the consultants were being charged out at GB£120 per hour, travel time was a good earner for the company. Now do you think commuters should be paid for work email?


Blade: The Uber of Helicopters



Blade phone app for Business NO CREDIT
Blade phone app for Business NO CREDIT

Life is hard all over. It seems like every time you really need a chopper to fly you from your Manhattan luxury apartment to the Hamptons, there’s never one around!

Well no worry no more! A new company called Blade is here to help.

Blade bills itself as a sort of “Uber for helicopters” allowing riders to book short flights between Manhattan and the Hamptons, among other nearby cities.

According to the Business Insider, it’ll run you about $575 a seat to get to the Hamptons.

Go grab your Blade app and get flying.


Businessfriend is Where Professionals Collaborate at CES



BusinessFriend logoLove ’em or hate ’em, social networks are here to stay. Over the years, many companies have entered this market. Networks like Facebook want to connect everyone, while networks like LinkedIn are aimed at business users. A new network called Businessfriend hopes to bridge the gap between the personal and professional social network.

Scott met with Glenn from Businessfriend. Glenn explained that Businessfriend is a “one-stop shop” for social networking and collaboration tools. Businessfriend users can do standard social-network stuff like follow the feeds of friends, colleagues and brands. But Businessfriend users can also access tools like instant messaging, video chat, audio chat and cloud-based document collaboration. Best of all, Businessfriend is one app that can be accessed via desktop computers or iOS and Android mobile apps, allowing users to connect no matter what platform they’re on.

Interview by Scott of F5 Live: Refreshing Technology for the TechPodcast Network.

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Voiceboard Brings Interactive Presentations to CES



Voiceboard logo

Technology is changing the way we live, communicate, and work. Innovations in smart technology are making collaboration with coworkers easier and more effective than ever, and Voiceboard is great example of how technology is changing the world for the better.

Scott talked with Nigel Sharp from Lionsharp, Inc. about their latest product, an interactive presentation technology called Voiceboard. With both voice and gesture control, Voiceboard’s innovative application enhances your office presentations and allows you to manage slideshows, display web pages, play videos, and much more.

Voiceboard is available for purchase at www.voiceboard.info for $599, or search for “Voiceboard” on Kickstarter.

Interview by Scott Ertz of F5 Live: Refreshing Technology.

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Payleven Mobile Payments at The Gadget Show



Payleven Chip and PINOne of the common problems facing start-ups and small businesses are the costs associated with taking credit card payments. The transaction costs can be high for small turnovers and point-of-sale machines are expensive with a monthly rental fee. To counter this problem, Payleven offers a low-cost mobile payment solution for European businesses using a Chip’n’PIN card reader that uses Bluetooth to communicate with both Apple, Android and Amazon smartphones and tablets. The Chip’n’PIN unit costs only GB£60 (ex-VAT) with a transaction charge of 2.75%. Payleven have partnered with GoTab to offer a complete solution for around £250 including a tablet and the card reader.

The approach is similar to US-based Square, but as Chip’n’PIN is only beginning to be required across the pond, Square’s reader unit is a simpler card-swipe device that plugs straight into the smartphone. Having a full Chip’n’PIN card reader in Europe is a necessity but the independent unit makes the transaction look much more professional anyway.

Simon from Payleven tells me about their solution and takes me through some of the features.


UberConference



UberConference Anyone who does a lot of audio conference calls is aware on how little they have changed in years and how hard they can be to set up and control. You have to call into a number, hit access wait for the beep and then spend ten minutes figuring out who is on the conference call and who is supposed to be on the conference call. If you want to mute someone or prevent them from hearing what you are saying you have to input a certain code, and you forget the code.

UberConference was designed to try to solve these and other problems audio conferences present. UberConference is visual interface for an audio conference. It is available on iOS, Android and through the web. When you are on a conference call you can see who is there, the person who is speaking is always at the top. If you want to find out more about a person, simply click on their picture and their Linkedin , Twitter or Facebook profile will pop up. As the conference organizer if you tap on a person a lot of controls come up including the ability to mute or unmute them. Plus UberConference has also created what they call “earmuffs” which blocks the person from what you are saying.

UberConference has a free version which allows up to twenty people on a conference and requires you to call into a number in Los Angeles. There is a pro-version which allows up forty people on a conference call. The Uberconference branding is removed and you can have a local number to dial into. The pro-version also automatically dials the participants, so they don’t have to remember to dial in. More information about UberConference is available at the UberConference website.

Interview by Jeffrey Powers of Geekazine. and Interview by Nick DiMeo of F5 Live: Refreshing Technology.

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iON Audio: Talking Point



iOnAudio iOnAudio introduced the Talking Point at CES 2013 which was developed to make conference calls easier. The device which is the size of a small disk and is light connects by Bluetooth to your smart phone. It has an omnidirectional microphone. It works with several audio profiles and the quality is crisp and clear. It has DSP inside so feedback is not a problem. It works through simple touch controls. No landline needed, you simply plug it into the wall connect your phone by Bluetooth and you are ready to go. The Talking Point will come out in Q2 for $179.00

iOnAudio also showed off the Party Rocker which they describe as a party in a box. It is a personal sound system. It has Bluetooth and lights built-in. The lights pulsate with the music. They also showed off the Air Copy a wireless scanner. The Air Copy generates its own wi-fi network. It scans at high-resolution 300 dpi and gives you a real-time preview. You can download a PDF with more information on each of the products at Ion New Innovation for 2013

Interview by Jeffrey Powers of Geekazine, and by Nick DiMeo of F5 Live: Refreshing Technology.

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