July 2011 Newsletter
VOLUME 1, ISSUE 4
Inside This Issue
- JULY 23RD COMPUTER RECYCLING EVENT!
- Business Growth Through IT
- SalesForce Social Network Monitoring
- Tablets in the Office
- July $20 Chipotle Quiz!
- Getting to Know Craig Ballinger
- Google is #1
- Client Profile Integrative Helath Center of Virginia
- Referral Program Details
- A Price to Pay for Google Apps?
Every year, 20 to 50 million metric tons of electronic equipment waste (e-waste) are generated worldwide, which could bring serious risks to human health and the environment. More than 3.2 million tons of electronic waste is laid to rest in U.S. landfills each year
Clear Out Office Clutter While Helping the Environment by Ridding Yourself of "End of Life" Electronics and Paper!
Join RAM Consulting, The Virginia Realty Group and Remax Gateway on Saturday July 23rd from 10-2pm as we celebrate the first Anniversary of RCare™ Solutions with a computer and electronics recycling event! Paper shredding services are also available and free for business owners who register below.
There will be $10,000 in prizes, food and drinks, raffles and every participant who signs up for the contests will receive a youtube video of their business displaying their "green sense" to post on their website. For details, a list of acceptable items and to enter our prize drawings click this link. Otherwise call 703-766-2820 for further details.
See you there!
IT Helps Shatter Competition
Want to leave your completion in the dust? Don't forget the significant advantage IT initiatives can deliver.
This is the compelling message in the research report: "Mind the Gap: Insights from Accenture's Third Global IT Performance Research" that is based on the feedback from CIOs at more than 225 of the world's largest private and public organizations.
Researchers noted that well-run firms have increased their gap with the competition when compared to what was observed last in 2008.
We offer below, our take from the report, on lessons one can learn about IT implementation that support profitable growth.
Improve customer satisfaction by Web-enabling interactions. High performers tapped IT to deliver on core business objectives.
Diligently measure progress and benefits delivered by IT. High performers made the case for new IT initiatives and diligently measured their progress and benefits.
Know when to switch to new applications instead of maintaining existing ones. As business processes evolve, there comes a time when maintaining existing applications takes more effort than creating new ones with features in line with current needs.
Prioritize workforce performance by reviewing business workflows and developing effective business intelligence and analytics capabilities that help teams do their jobs better through access to needed data in real-time.
Leverage resilient IT technologies by evaluating IT infrastructure and platform automation environments that are the backbone of private and/or public clouds. This allows them to deploy such technologies quickly when they make sense for the business.
Implement transparency of processes by deploying real-time dashboards and alerts that make it easy to understand where bottlenecks are so solutions can be developed.
Manage corporate knowledge and resources through investments in standardization, worker skill development, market trend analysis, retiring workforce transition plan, and new career tracks for future work. There are numerous technology tools in the market that help better manage key aspects of such initiatives and efforts.
Develop strategic partnerships with specialists who enhance the firm's skill set and allow it to act with agility and flexibility. By using such outsourcing strategically, high performing organizations lower their total cost of ownership for applications and infrastructure.
The study found that it is possible to improve the value IT provides in helping an organization gain competitive advantage while at the same time delivering IT more economically. In other words, deriving more value from technology and improving its economy need not be mutually exclusive.
You and your technology service providers have a choice: Maintain the status quo, or take deliberate steps focused on leveraging technology to foster business agility, innovation and execution. The approach you and your team takes will determine the outcomes you are likely to see.
Google Jumps to #1
Google Inc. is the most reputable company in the US, according to market researcher Harris Interactive Inc.
For it's most recent "Annual RQ Summary Report", Harris asked more than 30,000 participants to list the 60 most "visible" U.S. companies, and then to rate the reputation of each according to 20 attributes that make up their reputation quotient (RQ).
Improving its No. 3 rank in 2010, Google topped the 2011 survey with an RQ of 84.05 (above 80 is considered "excellent"). Other technology companies that placed in the top 10 were Apple Inc. (#5), Intel Corp. (#6) and Amazon.com Inc. (#8). Microsoft was ranked no. 7 in 2010 but fell to No. 16 in this year's survey.
Tablets in the Office?
CIOs are grappling with the BYOT (bring your own technology) phenomenon. As they develop policies to cover employee-owned iphones, ipads and other devices, two themes are emerging: Companies will put a cap on how much they'll pay for voice and data services, and they'll remotely wipe data from lost devices.
Industry experts and IT Managers recommend taking the following steps if the decision is made to support tablets in the workplace:
Craft or amend usage policies to enforce security best practices. Establish tiered access to network resources to secure critical data and applications.
Re-architect application delivery mechanisms Consider setting up an internal app store.
Determine what levels of support IT will provide. Remember that the level of support may vary depending on whether devices are owned by employees or the company.
A Price to Pay for Google Apps?
Google is changing the terms of it's free service for small businesses, requiring any organization with more than 10 users to subscribe to its paid Google Apps for Business, effective May 10th. They've excluded schools, non-profits and current customers with up to 50 users.
Google claims that the increase in profits will support customer expectation with more storage and 99% Service level agreements on their web-based productivity, collaboration and messaging service.
Pricing shows $50 for a one year contract or $5 month with no contract.
Salesforce to Add Social Network Monitoring Service
Salesforce.com will add another key piece to its service lineup later this month when it closes the acquisition of Radian6, widely considered to be the world's top-rated social media monitoring software maker.
In the $326 million deal for the New Brunswick, Canada based company, Salesforce will obtain highly specialized social media monitoring and analytics software. Radian6's Widgets and reporting tools help social software providers get a clear view of what consumers, partners and competitors are saying about their product, services or brand on Facebook, Twitter, Linkedin and blogs.
"Nobody else does this the way Radian6 does it", says Alex Dayan who runs CRM products and the Service Cloud for Salesforce. "With Radian6, you can be much smarter. You can grab people wherever they are and find out what they're saying about your product or service, and turn it into useful analysis.
Ace our July Quiz to Win $20 in Chipotle!
Yes, you could win a $20 gift card to Chipotle! To win you must have received this newsletter from us, or be forwarded this newsletter by someone on our mailing list. Submit the correct answer to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it by June 22, 2011.
One winner will be randomly drawn from all correct entries received. The winner will be featured in the next month's issue.
There were no entries for June so we had a nice Chipotle lunch here at RAM. June's answer was Silver. Don't miss your chance in July!
July's Quiz Question:
How many computers were replaced, worldwide, in the years between 2004-2006?
a. 1-2 million
b. 4-6 million
c. 7-8 million
Getting To Know: Craig Ballinger
Craig Ballinger is a registered Professional (Civil/Structural) Engineer who has retired from the FHWA, where he was a national-level research program manager – handling Government, State and private-sector laboratory and field research on bridges; including on prestressed concrete segmental bridges and on fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) structural applications.
Since 2004 Craig has been Project Manager on several RAM projects involving field inspection and assessment of structural problems on highway signs, high-mast lighting and traffic signals as well as on inspections during construction.
Craig's interests include boating, snow skiing, and photography.
Client Profile:
Dr. Christopher Ogilvie, ND & Sandy Sartain
As a Naturopath, Dr. Ogilvie has received formal training in basic and clinical western medical sciences as well as training in Nutrition and the other Naturopathic modalities including, acupuncture, herbal medicine, supplementation, hydrotherapy, and homeopathy. Dr. Ogilvie works with people and their doctors to help them reduce their dependence on potentially harmful medicines and treatments. Dr. Ogilvie believes that by removing obstacles to health and supporting the body through food based and energetic therapies, the body will have the tools necessary to heal itself.
Sandy Sartain is a licensed acupuncturist with the state of Virginia, and is board-certified nationally by the NCCAOM in Oriental Medicine and Massage. Sandy also holds a license to practice acupuncture in the state of California. She received her Masters of Science in Traditional Chinese Medicine from the Pacific College of Oriental Medicine (PCOM) in San Diego, CA. Sandy also received training as an Asian Body Therapist and has been practicing massage therapy since 2005. Seeking a wide variety of experience, Sandy had the opportunity to complete semester-long internships at San Diego Hospice treating chronically ill patients, UCSD's Pacific Beach Free Clinic to treat the underserved population, and Oceanside Family Recovery Center treating women in recovery and transition. Following graduation from PCOM, Sandy continued her studies at the Chengdu University of TCM in Sichuan Province, China. Her studies consisted of hospital rounds and lecture series in the fields of oncology, diabetes, pediatrics, digestive disorders and cardiology.
Sandy's goal is to assist her c lients in their healing journey, providing care that is specifically tailored to meet their individual needs. She believes in integrative medicine, and knows that there are many different paths to healing.
RCare™ Solutions Referral Program
We will pay you $25 for anyone that you refer to us that we get an appointment with. When your referral becomes a client (and has spent $1,000 or more) then we will pay you an additional $50. And, we will give your referral a true $100 off their purchase.
RCare™ Solutions and the RCare™ Logo are registered trademarks of RAM Consulting Corp.
RAM Consulting Corp - 21525 Ridgetop Circle, Suite 270 Dulles, VA 20166-6510. ph +1 703-766-2820