Microsoft, Windows, and Internet News - XML News Feed

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Windows and Internet News for the full feed - 10 items

Articles - What Makes a good CIO

May 9th, 2013
Articles - What Makes a good CIO

Top 10 Things to Improve Employee Retention (8.7) Employee retention will be a CIO concern when the economy improves Here are ten things that you can do to employee retention. See that rules...

Released Internet and Information Technology Position Descriptions HandiGuide, 2013 Edition (8.7) Internet and Information Technology Position Descriptions HandiGuide, 2013 Edition Janco has released the Internet and IT Position Descriptions HandiGuide® which is over 700 pages; includes...

10 Things to do to Increase Your Chance of Getting a Raise (7.9) 10 Things to do to Increase Your Chance of Getting a Raise Growth of IT job market continues to slow down and many companies are...

8 Characteristics of a Good Disaster Recovery Manager (7.7) 8 Characteristics of a Good Disaster Recovery Manager The characteristics of a good disaster recovery manager and leader in a crisis like a recovery process...

Top 10 CIO Productivity and Budgeting Issues (7.2) CIO Productivity Kit The best companies, and their CIOs, recognize the importance of ready access to the right information to drive the right choices...

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Recap Cloud Solution Articles

April 18th, 2013
Related cloud articles:

CIOs are not conducting cloud computing risk assessments CIOs are not conducting cloud computing risk assessments A new survey by Protiviti has found that cyber security tops chief information officers concerns, with 84...

Top 10 Reasons Cloud Solutions are Expanding Top 10 Reasons Cloud Computing is Exploding As CIOs and businesses move organizations towards cloud solutions and processing there are many benefits. The top 10...

Top 10 Selection Criteria for a Disaster Recovery Cloud Provider Cloud disaster recovery business continuity When looking for cloud providers of Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity Services you need to establish that they will be...

More Cloud based DR and BC More businesses will take advantage of cloud computing for business continuity during 2013, it has been predicted. According to a research firm, next year will...

Cloud storage aids disaster recovery and business continuity Cloud Storage is a next step to implement after the disaster recovery plan is created Cloud storage is a next step after the CIO creates a...

Cloud Issues

Outsourcing

Infrastructure Review

Security

Backup

Requirements

SLAs

DR BC Secrutiy

Issues Pit Falls

Contract Best Practices
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Good job descriptions are key to job satisfaction

April 2nd, 2013
At the moment, CIOs may feel like the most highly skilled of IT professionals have a distinct advantage over them in terms of negotiations for compensation, perks and other recruitment enticements. And perhaps that's true - for now.

Great job descriptions are a crital to maintaining good employee morale and focus on long term staff development.

But here's an interesting revelation from the same tech workers who currently possess all the leverage: They harbor significant reservations about the future, according to a recent survey. In fact, a great many of them worry about whether they'll even be able to enjoy a long-term career. They feel the fast pace of IT will eventually render them obsolete, while others sense a workplace bias that favors younger employees. In either case, CIOs may want to reassure valued, veteran IT staffers, and even encourage more training so these employees continue to make impactful contributions. By the same token, IT professionals [must identify] which technologies will become increasingly important at their organizations, and ensure that they are equipped with the skills needed to handle new technology initiatives.
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BYOD is biggest technology shift in the last 20 Years

March 26th, 2013
It's the biggest shift in IT in years: the consumerization-of-IT trend that gained major traction with the advent of the iPhone and other modern mobile devices, causing most businesses to let employees bring -- or at least choose -- their own smartphones and tablets, all in fewer than two years.

The consumerization and BYOD trends are only getting stronger, as success on the mobile front puts pressure on IT to allow other employee-driven technologies, such as PCs, cloud services, desktop apps, and social media.
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IT Departments do not trust BYOD users

March 12th, 2013
In most discussions of Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) and consumerisation the IT departments mistrust of users is evident. Typically, IT departments are not keen on people bringing their own devices into work with the expectation that apps, services and support will just magically work.

But some organisations have decided to trust the user and claim big savings in productivity by deploying BYOD.
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IT Infrastructure Links

February 17th, 2013
Other sites that contain IT Infrastructure information and data that are managed by Janco are:

www.ejobdescription.com - Policies, procedures, job descriptions and other information related to the human resource aspects of the information technology function.

www.it-toolkits.com - Policies, procedures, tools and other information which can help CIOs, CTOs, CSOs, and IT managers to more effectively manage the information technology function.

www.psrinc.com - A resource site for Information Technology management. This site contains the tools that the CIO, CSO, and CFO can use for Sarbanes Oxley, Disaster Recovery, Security, Job Descriptions, IT Service Management, Change Control, Help Desk, Service Requests, SLAs - Service Level Agreements, and Metrics.

www.ntcity.com - Technology Meeting Place

www.cto-toolkits.com - This site is dedicated to supporting the goals of the Chief Technology Officer and includes links to tools and toolkits that meet those needs.

blog.e-janco.com - Blog site

www.disaster-recovery-planning-template.com

www.disaster-planning-template.com

Specialized areas of Janco's practice include

Electronic Books - Create network ready electronic books to eliminate paper. Improve accuracy, ease of use, and turnaround time. Reduce infrastructure costs and training.

Outsourcing Reviews - Analyzing, planning, and managing the migration to services

Information Systems Reporting - Developing and implementing methods to focus management's attention on critical data processing operational issues.

Information Systems for Competitive Advantage - Assisting organizations in using computer systems and information delivery as tools to generate business and capture market share.

Information Systems Planning and Development - Defining direction for the management of planning, developing, and implementing automated business systems that complement a firm's strategic needs.

Internet and Intranet Web Site Design, Implementation and Management - Create Web sites for corporations and e-commerce.

Data Network and Communication Planning - Developing architectures to support the use of decentralized data processing structures, including point-of-sale networks and multiple-site data entry and retrieval networks

Competitive Compensation Analysis - Surveying the marketplace of compensation for data processing professionals, and assessing the alignment of compensation programs between competing organizations.
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Recent Security Blog Postins

February 8th, 2013

Top 10 Security Myths Security Myths Organizations are more secure now than they were a year ago The presence or absence of regulations greatly matters when it comes to...

20 Most Common Words Used in Phishing Attacks 20 Most Common Words Used in Phishing Attacks A new report from a cybersecurity company that analyzes how malicious files get past traditional defenses also...

FBI Begins Big Brother Security Implementation Lost of Privacy FBI begins Big Brother Security implementation In January of 2000 I wrote an article for PSR Reviews that forecast what was going to happen. The...

IT Security Decision Process IT Security Decision Process The IDG Enterprise Role & Influence of the Technology Decision-Maker survey helps CIOs understand their evolving roles and influence in todays...

Life cycle for business continuity and security breaches are the same When a security breach or business interruption occur, the life cycle from the start to the end are the same. First and foremost you must...

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Denial of Service Attacks Plague Banks

January 24th, 2013
Approximately two thirds (64 percent) of IT and IT security practitioners reported to a recent survey that their banks suffered at least one distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack in 2012.

The survey of 650 IT and IT security PR professionals at 351 banks also revealed that 78 percent of those surveyed believed that DDoS attacks will continue or significantly increase in 2013, leaving banks vulnerable to cyber attacks that could lead to downtime and compromised data.

Include Social Media in Your Business Continuity Plans 6 Ways to Utilize Social Media Before a Disaster Strikes by Adam Crowe When creating a disaster recovery plan include social media. Simple things like...

CIOs are not conducting cloud computing risk assessments CIOs are not conducting cloud computing risk assessments A new survey by Protiviti has found that cyber security tops chief information officers concerns, with 84...

Compliance Program 10 Steps 10 Steps to a World Class Compliance Program A Compliance program, or a lack of one, is now putting CIOs and CSOs under a great...

10 Compliance Best Practices 10 Corporate Compliance Best Practices Compliance is a major issue that organizations of all sizes need to address. In the information technology field they range...

10 BYOD Best Practices for CIOs BYOD Best Practices for CIOs Bring Your Own Devices (BYOD) is exploding all over corporations. CIOs are in the cross hairs and need to follow...
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Back more complex with big data

January 16th, 2013
A converged storage strategy can help companies more easily deal with the various storage challenges they face, including the increasing amounts of unstructured data they must manage - also known as big data. Read this white paper to learn how companies can more easily address the four pain points of data deduplication:

Shrinking backup windows amid ever-increasing amounts of data

Increasingly difficult disaster recovery processes, including use of tape that must be transported to and from a backup site

Lights-out data protection requirements for remote and branch offices where no IT personnel are onsite

The need for rapid file restore, which involves finding the right tape and matching files with compatible backup systems

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IT trends that need to be inlcuded in Disaster Recovery Plans

December 14th, 2012

Trends in IT computing that CIOs and Disaster Recovery Managers need to inlclude in their plans:

BYOD -- BYOD is a transformative technology and 2013 will see companies trying to integrate it into their networks. While tactical needs will drive integration, strategic requirements will become increasingly important.

Mobile device management -- MDM solutions need to address the problem of managing both employer-owned and employee owned devices, and differentiating between business use and personal use. A crucial component for continued growth will be the clear separation between the management of business and personal data on devices. There are over 100 suppliers in mobile device management many of them are good but niche solutions.

High density wireless -- The new 802.11ac standard, with 1 gigabit per second throughput rates, will be a key driver in organizations moving to high density wireless in 2013. High density wireless will provide companies with high coverage and high performance, supporting business critical applications and delivering complete site coverage.

Data back-up and recovery -- New data replication technologies will have a major impact for data centres in 2013. For smaller organizations, the shift from tape will continue apace. For conservative organisations, the move to disk (and, in particular, RDX technologies which combine the best of tape and disk) will accelerate. Hybrid backup to RDX and then the cloud will increase. In volume terms, the lowest move (but in market-hype the biggest) will be significant growth in direct backup to the cloud.

Data leakage protection -- With growing volumes of data and with regulatory bodies increasingly prepared to levy fines for various non-compliance issues, data leakage protection will continue to be a major cause for concern during 2013. Companies will be looking closely at how to secure and manage their data as their network boundaries spread even wider, with increased use of social networking and BYOD, increased remote access, the rapid growth of wireless, increased virtualisation and the move towards convergence.

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Cloud usage is on the rise

December 6th, 2012
According to a recent study, urrent use and future implementation of cloud-based applications is on the up-tick

Business tools, (sales, marketing, HR and procurement) are being used by 12% with 15% planning to migrate

Data storage and archiving is already being used by 16% of respondents with a further 17% looking to adopt a cloud-based approach in the next 1-12 months

Communications applications (e.g. email, contacts calendars) are being used by 14% of businesses with a further 20% adopting them over the same time period

Collaboration tools and shared document services (eg. Dropbox, Box) are being used by 11% with 20% planning to migrate

Internal applications and portals (eg. travel and finance) are being used by 9% with 19% migrating in the next 1-12 months.
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3D Printing

November 30th, 2012
The 3D printing revolution has gone retail. Now, some makers will have the option of employing printers at local Staples stores to produce their wares.

The Staples Printing Systems Division is set to launch a new 3D printing service called "Staples Easy 3D," online via the Staples Office Center.

The question is: does this mean Staples is now in the contract manufacturing business? The lines are increasingly blurring between manufacturers, retailers, and software publishers.

Staples Easy 3D will offer consumers, product designers, architects, healthcare professionals, educators, students and others photo-realistic 3D printed products from Staples stores. To do a print job, customers upload electronic files to the Staples Office Center and pick up the models in nearby Staples stores, or have them shipped to their address.

Examples of products capable of being produced at Staples include customized parts, prototypes, art objects, architectural models, medical models and 3D maps.

Staples is partnering with Mcor Technologies to produce products on the Mcor IRIS, a commercial-class 3D printer. The service will first launch in the Netherlands and Belgium in Q1 2013, according to a statement by Mcor.
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Datacenter location impacts TCO

November 23rd, 2012
Selecting a good location for your data center is a critical element of data center planning, as deciding where to build and maintain a facility directly impacts the total cost of ownership (TCO) over the lifetime of the data center.

In looking to either purchase an existing facility or build a new data center, there's an exhaustive list of factors to be weighed and analyzed before you select a site. To that end, Janco spoke to industry leaders to learn more about considerations that range from the probability of basing your data center in an area where a natural disaster could occur to the availability of utilities and the cost of energy.

The Quality Assuarance and Quality Control Bundle includes:

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Home Workers Are More Productive

November 7th, 2012

Home workers were more productive. An analysis showed they answered more calls and worked more hours because they took shorter breaks and used less sick leave. The home workers also reported being happier than the office workers, and fewer of them quit. Retention of quality workers is important to keeping company recruitment and training costs down, so Bloom calls it a no brainer for CTrip to offer a working-from-home alternative to other workers. In this case, the average home worker saved the company about $2,000, nearly as much as his or her annual salary.

Related posts:

5 tips to improve productivity 5 tips to improve productivity The Internet is full of ways to improve productivity, but in Jeff Hadens latest column for Inc., he offers five...

CIO and Productivity CIOs drive productivity Looking ahead, managers and CIOs in particular have a focus on productivity. That not only applies to the IT staff but to...

Labor Force Participation Rate Drops Not a good sign as more workers leave the job market In July of 2012 the work force participation percentage of all employees (male and female)...

Top 10 CIO Productivity and Budgeting Issues CIO Productivity Kit The best companies, and their CIOs, recognize the importance of ready access to the right information to drive the right choices...

Disaster can strike anywhere Disaster strikes one of our work at home employees Even Janco Associates is not immune to disasters. Just this past week one of our key...

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Testing is key to business continuity compliance with ISO 22301

October 29th, 2012
Compliance and business continuity management are closely inter-related ISO 22301 is just one of many standards. A companys disaster recovery and business continuity programs would be incomplete without covering compliance risks and without using compliance tools to mitigate risks. On the other hand, compliance management is a critical component of disaster recovery and business continuity. This is recognized by executive managements ensuring that integrity and regulatory compliance are achieved alongside strategic, operations and reporting objectives as the key pillars of a corporate DP / BC program.

Related posts:

5 Corporate Compliance Errors Executives Are Making 5 Corporate Compliance Errors many executives are making Compliance is never easy and even the best make mistakes on occasion. But we can learn from...

Top 10 Reasons Why Disaster Recovery Business Continuity Plans Fail In the recession many organizations put disaster recovery and business continuity on the back burner. As a result those plans are not as functional as...

Disaster Recovery Misconceptions Disaster Recovery What are the major misconceptions when a disaster occurs with IT systems? Can your systems can not support your companys day-to-day operations?...

Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity Top 10 Disaster Recovery and business continuity are all about being ready for everything. The question that every IT manager and CIO has to answer every day...

Top 10 things business can do to minimize wildfire risks in business parks Top ten by Janco Wildfire caused and increase business interruption risk as the number of companies that are located in business parks located in...
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What happens to your revenue stream after a disaster occurs

October 13th, 2012
Have you ever considered what happens to your business' revenue stream when a natural disaster or other major casualty strikes?If you are a business owner, can your business survive after all the sirens and community aid are gone?

Disasters Happen -- Business Continuity Disaster Recovery

How do you balance the business continuity disaster recovery risk and investment equation? Is the potential risk greater than the investment? The facts are:

43% of companies experiencing disasters never reopen, and 29% close within two years.

93% of businesses that lost their data center for10 days went bankrupt within one year.

40% of all companies that experience a major disaster will go out of business if they cannot gain access to their data within 24 hours.

Most federal aid comes in the form of loans for businesses and if a business has to close in an community that will mean a loss of services and jobs.Some businesses may not be able to recover from a major disaster.

Business leaders and first responders discussed what would happen to local businesses in the event that there are any major catastrophes.Each group discussed what they would need to do to ensure that their business and employees were safe and business operations could continue in the event of a disaster.

The participants read the three different scenarios which included the following scenarios: imminent flooding, the great flood and disaster recovery.Each were three phases in a flood disaster and those in attendance had to begin planning for the emergency, deal with the flood and then the steps of recovery.

Businesses that have experienced a disaster and have no emergency plan; 43 percent of them are never able to reopen after the disaster, Layton Dickerson of the Arizona Emergency Management explained.Of the businesses that reopen only 29 percent of them will remain in operation two years after the disaster.

One of the key things that was discussed is how businesses need to make a disaster plan in the event that something should happen.Business leaders discussed how they would communicate with staff and suppliers should they be closed down.The forum also provided resources for helping businesses to begin setting up their emergency plans.Some resources are available online at FEMA: www.ready.gov/business and through the Small Business Administration: www.sba.gov/prepare.
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Disaster Recovery in the Global Marketplace

October 7th, 2012
To remain competitive in a global marketplace, businesses need to adapt quickly to ever changing requirements. These days consumers and businesses expect to get the products and data where and when they want it. With data continuing to grow at a dizzying pace and new technologies like server and storage virtualization, orchestration, automation, and even cloud services more readily available and adopted, organizations can easily become overwhelmed when it comes to architecting an effective business continuity/disaster recovery (BC/DR) environment.

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Small and mid-sized business disaster and business continuity planning

September 19th, 2012

Practical Guide for Cloud Outsourcing

The template is provided in WORD and Adobe Reader PDF format. It is can be used in whole or in part to plan for, negotiate, and manage the cloud outsourcing process. In the 126 pages included are a job descriptions for Manager Cloud applications, Cloud Computing Architect, sample contract, service level agreement, ISO 27001 - 27002 - 27031 security audit checklist, Business and IT Impact Questionnaire and much more.

Many small to medium business cannot afford the complex infrastructures that are required to create full-fledged protection mechanisms for business continuity. They try to rely on backup tapes, backup software and offsite vaults, but everyone knows that backups arent any good unless they are tested and that takes a lot of time, effort and resources, most SMBs just don't have. That's where the Janco Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity Template comes in.

With the template and the electronic forms that it has it is much easier to implement a Cloud solution. Cloud service providers can easily store duplicates of all your data and content, and all for a fraction of the cost it would take to manage the process yourself. Relying on the cloud in this way is the easiest and fastest path to recovery in the event of a situation. Given the maturity of the cloud today, you can safely and securely rely on this environment to protect all of your business assets; in fact, it is the future of business continuity and the core of disaster recovery.
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Multiple business continuity events

August 26th, 2012
Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity

Verizon Wireless is gearing up for two possible storms in Tampa, as the Republican National Convention, and attendant demand for voice and data access, arrives on Monday and Tropical Storm (or possibly Hurricane) Isaac may also arrive with it.

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Disaster Recovery Plan versus Business Continuity Plan

August 5th, 2012
Both the disaster recovery and the business continuity plan covers how employees will communicate, where they will go and how they will keep doing their jobs. The details can vary greatly, depending on the size and scope of a company and the way it does business. For some businesses, issues such as supply chain logistics are most crucial and are the focus on the plan. For others, information technology may play a more pivotal role, and the BC/DR plan may have more of a focus on systems recovery.

The critical point is that neither disaster recovery nor business continuity issues can be ignored. These IT and human resources plans cannot be developed in isolation from each other. The core of disaster recovery and business continuity is about constant communication. Business leaders and IT leaders should work together to determine what kind of plan is necessary and which systems and business units are most crucial to the company. Together, they should decide which people are responsible for declaring a disruptive event and mitigating its effects. Most importantly, the plan should establish a process for locating and communicating with employees after such an event. In a catastrophic event (Hurricane Katrina being a relatively recent example), the plan will also need to take into account that many of those employees will have more pressing concerns than getting back to work.
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