Keep your holiday shopping merry and bright with an early gift from the Federal Trade Commission: tips to help you watch your wallet, shop wisely, and protect your personal information.
- Make a list and a budget. Those impulse purchases (looking at you, cozy sweater) are less tempting when you have a game plan. Consider how much you’re willing to put on your credit card, and how long it might take to pay it off. If money’s tight, paying for a gift over time through layaway might help.
- Do your research. Read reviews and recommendations about the product, seller, and warranties from sources you trust. If you’re shopping online, check for reports that items were never delivered or not as advertised. Spreading holiday cheer by donating to charity or a crowdfunding cause? Look into it first to make sure it’s legitimate.
Creating a Modern IT Strategy
Nearly all businesses need some kind of IT leadership. For many smaller businesses, we help provide that leadership and guidance. However, whether you provide the leadership or outsource it, the goals are the same.
As an IT leader, your job is growing more challenging by the day. Your IT strategy must be sophisticated and agile, balancing digital transformation priorities with security imperatives—and you probably have to stick to a lean budget too. What are the non-negotiable priorities you absolutely must include? Here’s a look at some of the most important IT issues that a modern CIO or CTO must tackle and why they matter to your success.
1. Enable digital maturity
Digital transformation may be the buzzword phrase of the moment, but there’s a good reason for that. Businesses that fail to become digitally mature will struggle to compete and thrive within the evolving digital landscape. While the transition to digital maturity often involves updating legacy infrastructure and implementing new technology systems that enable powerful business capabilities, it also requires a considerable amount of cultural change.
According to TechTarget, IT and business leaders often underestimate the degree of change management and political acumen required to lead an organization to a state of digital maturity. With that in mind, remember to keep a close eye on the softer human elements associated with digital transformation as well as the innovative technologies your organization is pursuing.
Converting Office IT to a Mobility Force
by Karen Gilleland
As an office IT decision-maker, you’re concerned with making employees’ lives easier and more productive—that’s why you’re always on the hunt for new tech solutions that add convenience. And in the current environment, office IT convenience means utilizing mobile apps. Mobile apps, which have long been platforms for more trivial matters like gaming, are quickly emerging as the dominant business interface.
But while companies are rushing to extend mobility to customer interfaces, executives are slow to grant their own employees mobile access, according to a study by Accenture. Currently, only about 40 percent deploy mobile apps for their employees.
Make Your Vacation Scam Free
by Lisa Lake, Consumer Education Specialist
It’s almost summer! Right now, you probably have beaches on the brain or you’re thinking about that long-planned trip abroad. Before you head out, take steps to help keep your dream vacation from becoming a nightmare:
Do some research — and then carefully read the details on travel offers.
- First, get recommendations from family and friends on good travel agencies, vacation rentals, hotels and travel packages — before responding to offers.
- Look up travel companies, hotels, rentals and agents with the words “scam,” “review,” or “complaint.”
- Look for extra costs. Resort fees (also known as destination, facility and amenity fees) can add $50 or more to your nightly cost.
- Ask about taxes, which may be significant in many locations.
- Get a copy of the cancellation and refund policies before you pay.
- If you’re buying travel insurance, be sure the agency is licensed.
- Bring copies of any confirmation details that show the rate and amenities you were promised. This also helps if the hotel or host says your reservation is “lost.”
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