So we're in the THICK of Christmas and other Holiday shopping! My wife and her friends decorated our house - it now sparkles and glows amazingly!
Indiana, I get a bit depressed during the holidays as when I see how full my family is I can only think of the many unfortunate individuals and families who don't have anything. From Penn Station homeless to the young man who sells candy by the highway in Newark to so many others.
Am I alone in this?
But I'm happy when I think of the rest of 2014 and the New Year! Big plans!!
What big plans do you have to take your business to the next level?
Please share them with me and let's learn from each other. Email me back or post them to the SmallBizTechnology.com Facebook page...
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Did you read the latest edition of Smart Hustle Magazine? We profile 5 entrepreneurs who EMBRACE the holidays to rock their sales. Join the community and subscribe.
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* Ramon's day at Microsoft Headquarters *
On Monday, 17 November, I spent a day at Microsoft Headquarters. Sure, we discussed, "the cloud", mobility, and more - but more important it was awesome to see how Microsoft continues to innovate and deliver some pretty cool and useful business tools to small business.
I write about this on SmallBizTechnology.com . If you want to see the FULL article with all the pictures check it out here.
Microsoft is still focused on servers, Microsoft Office and a range of other products and services. However, there’s clearly a new focus – an evolved focus.
For small businesses, the thrust of Microsoft’s education and marketing is Office 365.
Sure, traditional Office is still important, but businesses, professionals and the world are quickly moving to a “cloud & mobile based” world. This is a world where traditional servers are used less, where files are stored less on desktops, where less software is installed on a computer’s hard disk and more software is accessed on 3rd party servers (the cloud).
Mobile and Cloud Are Critical.
I know you know the power of mobile and cloud – but really do you?
Many small business owners express how “they need to get back to the office to do this or that”. Every business, no matter how small, must ensure they’re business is positioned to operate fully mobile and in the cloud.
So what does this mean? Is mobile and cloud really important?
Mobile means that from your pocket, hand bag or back seat of a taxi you can manage every aspect of your business. It’s that simple. Mobile means that you can be ANYWHERE and with a simple WiFi connection access everything you need to manage and run your business and overall fulfill your client expectations.
Why does mobile and cloud go hand in hand?
By having all your documents and applications in the cloud (stored online), your mobile (or desktop bound office devices) can access anything at anytime, that you need to run your business. Microsoft, with Office 365 is fully harnessing and enabling a mobile and cloud first computing experience.
Windows 8 and Microsoft Surface Make a Great Team.
Part of a mobile world, for Microsoft, is Windows 8 and Microsoft Surface. Both of which we got a heavy dose of.
Microsoft Surface continues to be the machine for the business professional who wants a personal device as well. I’ve not counted whose device has more developers creating apps for it – but I’m pretty sure more apps are developed for iOS and Android than Windows. However, beyond that very important fact, the Surface has some compelling features and options for so many people.
If Microsoft Surface is not for you, Microsoft has a number of partners, Dell, HP, Asus, Toshiba who provide tablet/notebook powered, Windows 8 touch devices as well!
I also got to dive into Windows 8 a bit more. Sure I have it on my office computers, but seeing the experts at Microsoft use it, I saw that there were several, easy to do things, that I could do to make Windows 8.1 even better to use. Want a comparison of the Surface vs an iPad (mini) check this out.
Work & the Home of the future are more aware and intuitive.
We had fun taking a tour of the work and home of the future and saw a VISION of how the world could be in about 10 years. The world of the future is MORE intuitive, MORE aware and uses various sensors to know who we are and overall connecting us (with permission) in more ways. I wish I could tell you more or show you some way cool video – but what we saw was for not for the public to see…yet.
Real Time (Mobile) Collaboration and Communication
Microsoft HQ we got a first hand look at the power of Microsoft Office 365 collaboration and communication capabilities. It was impressive to see the blend of a smartphone (powered by Microsoft), computer (running Windows 8) and a headset (connected to the computer). In a demonstration setting we were able to from the computer to the phone and the phone to the computer – and hold a live streaming video chat on the phone. Is this new? Of course not. But what’s new is the powerful integration that Microsoft has built for business owners, through the Office 365.
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