The 10 Most Innovative Unified Communication Solution Providers 2019 February2019

EUnified Communications is Here to Stay

Businesscommunicationisoneofthemostsignificantaspectsofanorganization.Enterprisesrequiregood

communicationthroughoutthedepartmentsasitleadstoeffectivegrowth.Businesscommunicationcanbe consideredasthebackboneofanorganizationasitkeepsallthedepartmentsconnectedandwell-coordinated.Itis impossibleforbusinessestotrackitsdirectionwithouteffectivecommunication.

Aneffectivecommunicationregimecanevidentlyincreasetheproductivityofanenterprise.Thisalsohelpsingrowingthe customerbaseasconsumershavemoretrustincompaniesthatcommunicatewell.Moreover,businesspartnershipssuchas vendorsandothercontemporariesbuildstrongerrelationshipswithcompanieswithgreatcommunications.

However,nowthattherearenumerousmethodsofcommunication,theprocessoftransmittinginformationhasbecomemore complicatedthanever.Giventhefactthatweareclutteredwithoptionssuchase-mails,SMS,videoconferencingand telephony,therehasbeenanissueofmanagingandoptimizingthesetools.Anditseemstoberesolvedwiththehelpof Unifiedcommunications.

UnifiedCommunications(UC)hasreceivedalotofattentionintheITspacebecauseofthebenefitsitprovides.Thisis especiallythecasebecausethecompetitionhasgrownfierceandeverycompanywantstobeefficientamidthesame.UC integratesalltheaspectsofcommunicationsandenablescompaniestousetheminasimplerfashion.Hencetheproductivity! UCenablesbusinessestogrowbyhelpingthemsmoothlyindulgeinactivitiesthatwillincreasetheiroverallperformance. Collaborationisonesuchactivityinwhichenterprisescometogethertofulfillacommonpurposeandexceltogether.It becomessimplerforthemtooperateonvariouslevelswhenthereisapropersystemofcommunicatingamongbothinternal andexternaldepartments.Additionallythishelpstheemployeeslearnnewmethodsofdoingtheirjob,inspiresthemtoput newideasonthetable,andencouragesbusinessestogrowtheirnetwork.

UCalsohelpscompaniesofferbettercustomerservices.Thereisnodenyinginthefactthatrealtimeresolutionof customer’sissuesmakestheenterpriseapopularchoiceamongthem.Thisdirectlyimprovesthegoodwillofthecompany. However,itrequiresproactiveresponsefromtheserviceteamandthatisonlypossiblewhen“the message is loud and clear.”

Moreover,ahasslefreeworkingenvironmentbooststhemoraleofemployeesandmakesthemefficientintheirjobs. Currently,theunifiedcommunicationsindustryisleveragingnewtechnologiesinordertoupgradeitsservices.Asperthe trends,itisgrowingtowardsamobilecentricexperienceastheworldisrapidlyshrinkingina5-6inchesscreen.Withthe increaseinappbasedplatformsandintroductionof5g,interactionandcommunicationtoolsareonlygoingtobecomemore mobilefriendly.

ImplementingArtificialIntelligence(smartbots)forassistingcustomershasrecentlygainedmassivepopularityamong businesses.Instrumentingsuchtechnologieshelpthecompaniestoresponsefaster,understandtheissuesbetter,andfind solutionsinrealtime.

Aswearetappingtheeraofconsumercentricbusinessapproach,itisveryimportantforenterprisestosurvivethe competition.Andforthatitisnecessaryforthemtostrengthentheircorefunctionsincludingcommunication.Withthatin mind,thedemandforUCsolutionshasalreadygrown.Andwithallthepossibleoutcomesitpromisesusingtechnology,it willnotbeoveremphasizingtosaythatunifiedcommunicationisheretostay.

Therearevariouscompaniesthathavehelpedtheindustryblossomandreachtotheheightswhereitistoday.Thereforein ordertoacknowledgesomeofthegreatestcontributorsofexcellenceintheunifiedcommunicationsolutionspace,Insights Successhasshortlisted“The10MostInnovativeUnifiedCommunicationSolutionProviders2019.”

Also,makesuretoflipthrougharticles,writtenbyourin-houseeditorialteamaswellasCXOstandpointsofnotableindustry personalitiestohaveabrieftasteofthesector.

Let’s start reading!

Excellence is achieved when the message is loud and clear.

“ “

Shubham Khampariya

Beitcollaboratingwithteammembers,orpresenting anyproductorservicetocustomers,communication playsacrucialroleforbusinesssuccess.Considering thisunwaveringfact,atrustedleader,Sangoma Technologiesisredefiningthewaybusinessescommunicate andmarketcontenttotheircustomersthrougha comprehensiveUnifiedCommunicationssolution.

Foundedin1984,SangomaisaleadingvoiceandUnified Communications(UC)providerforSMBs,enterprises, OEMs,carriers,andotherserviceproviders.Itoffersonpremisesandcloud-basedUC/PBXsystemsaswellas phones,gateways,andsessionbordercontrollers,providinga comprehensivesolutionforitscustomers.Sangomaleadsthe marketintheenterprise,value-basedcommunications segment,whichincludessmallbusinessestolargeenterprises whoarelookingforalltheadvantagesofUCatafairprice. Sangoma’sUCsolutionsmeettheneedsofthissegmentwith advancedfeatures,suchaspresence/chat,conferencing, mobility,fax,andmore,builtintothebaseplatform.This enablesbusinessestotrulycommunicatebetterwiththeir customersthroughahigh-qualitysolutionwithalowtotal costofownership.Thisistruevalue.

Tailor-madeSolutions

SangomathoroughlyunderstandSMBs,andthisiswhathas madeittheleaderinvalue-basedcommunications.Itmakes upgradingfromalegacyphonesystemeasy,becauseitoffers businessesdeploymentoptionsthatfittheirneeds,whether theyarelookingforanon-premise,virtualized,orcloudbasedUCsystem.Thecompanyalsoincludescallcenter functionalityinitsbasesystem,withoutrequiringSMBsto purchaseexpensiveadd-onsorpackages.Mostofall,it providesvalue,whichisexactlywhatSMBsreallywantfrom theirUCsystem.

Additionally,Sangomaisalsoexpertatprovidingasmall businessaUnifiedCommunicationssolutionthatistailored totheirneeds.Itssmallbusinesscustomersfallintofour broadcategorieswhenconsideringUC,whichincludes upgradingalegacyphonesystem,obtainingmorecallcenter capabilities,increasingemployeeproductivity/combining disparatecommunicationsystemsintoone,andwantingto movetoacloud-basedarchitecture.

Sangoma is the leading full service, global, value-based Unified Communications provider.

At Sangoma, the UC features are included in the basic phone system one is buying.

Thismeansthatasmall

businessmaynotwantthe entiresuiteofcapabilities thattypicallycomeswithaUC system.However,thecompanycan makesurethattheyonlypayfor whattheyneed,andtheyknowhow tousewhattheyhave.Theyalso

typicallywillupgradetoutilizeother featureslateron.Theywouldsimply needtounlockthisfunctionalityano costlater.

AnExemplaryLeader

BillWignall,asthePresidentand CEOofSangoma,leadsthe companyintheexecutionofits growthstrategy.Hisdeepoperational andstrategicskillsaremajorassets tothecorporation.Billbringsto Sangomahispersonalstyleof workingcloselywithexisting customersandvaluedchannel partners.Asatechnologyindustry veteran,Billheldtheroleof PresidentandCEOatTruitionInc.,a

developerandmarketerof e-Commercesoftware.Priortothat, heworkedasthePresidentandCEO ofElectronicsWorkbenchandhas servedinseniormanagementroles throughouthiscareeratcompanies ranginginsizefromstart-upsto NorthernTelecom,BNIand Telezone.

UnderBill’sleadership,Sangoma hasdramaticallyexpandedits productportfolioandistargeting newmarketsandterritoriestofurther accelerategrowth.In2018,Sangoma hassuccessfullycompletedthe acquisitionofDigiumandthe DialogicConverged

Businesses can achieve enhanced levels of collaboration, productivity, and ROI with Sangoma.

CommunicationsDivision.Priorto that,SangomapurchasedVoIP SupplyandSchmooze,among others.BillhastransformedSangoma boththroughM&Aandorganically.

EnablingCustomersObtain ExceptionalValue

AccordingtoSangoma,thereis misinformationaboutUnified CommunicationsintheIndustry. Therearesuppliersthatclaimto provideUC,butinrealitysimply haveabasicphonesystem.Soit’s importanttounderstandwhatUCis. UCisbasictelephonyandvoicemail capabilities,butalsoincludesother formsofcommunication,suchas presence,instantmessaging,

collaboration,fax,video,andfile sharing.Italsoenablesone’s smartphonetobetiedtotheprimary businessphonesystem,essentially extendingpeople’sofficephone numbersbeyondthephysical boundaryoftheoffice.It’simportant tonotethatmoremodernphone systems,whethertheyhaveUC capabilitiesornot,arealso increasinglyincludingsomebasic callcenterfeatures,suchasIVR,call transfer,andcallmonitoringand analytics,aspartofthephone system.

Secondly,customersassumethatthe additionalUCfeatureswillcomeat pricepointstheycan’tafford.At

Sangoma,theUCfeaturesare includedinthebasicphonesystem oneisbuying.Thecompanywants itscustomerstoobtainexceptional valueattheirpricepoints.

AheadofCompetition

Sangoma’sPBX/UCplatforms includeUCfunctionalityaspartof thebaseplatform.ThismeansUCis partofthePBXandabusiness doesn’thavetopayextraforthis functionality.Sangoma’splatforms arealsoengineeredtobeflexibleso thatitcanbeconfiguredeasilyby anyuser.Sangomaalsooffers customersbothanon-premiseanda cloudbasedUCsolution.Thismeans Sangomacandiscusstheprosand consofeachofferingforthespecific businessinquestion,andassuch,is inatrulyuniquepositiontobea trustedadvisortoitscustomers.

ContributioninIndustry

SangomaTechnologiesistheworld’s largestproviderofopensource communicationssolutions,andisthe primarydeveloperandsponsorofthe Asteriskproject,theworld’smost widelyusedopensource communicationssoftware,andthe FreePBXproject,theworld’smost widelyusedopensourcePBX software.

S’angomasgloballyscalableofferingsincludeSIP trunking,IPphones,gateways,sessionbordercontrollers andtelecominterfacecards.Together,theseprovide seamlessconnectivitybetweentraditionalinfrastructure andnewtechnologies.

Company’sProspective SangomawillcontinuetosupportboththeAsteriskand FreePBXopensourcecommunitiesandwillcontinueto driveitsUCplatformsforwardbycontinuingtoaddnew features,suchasamobileclient,andeverincreasing scalabilityandrobustness.

MarkofExcellence

“WefoundPBXacthasthebestvaluewesawcompared tosomeoftheothersolutionswelookedat.”–JosephD. OBrienJr,Founder,OBrienAutomotive,USA ’ ’ “ItwasanhonortoworkwiththePMCBank–oneof thebiggestco-operativebanksinIndia.Wearehappy

thatwecouldprovidethemthesolutiontofittheirneeds. TheSangomasolutionwaseffectiveinenhancingthe voicequality,acriticalfactorforanycontactcenter.We havebeenusingtheSangomahardwareforallour customers.Ithelpsustoprovidearobustandscalable solutionwiththehighestqualitytoourcustomers.”–MehulShah,CEO,ElisionTechnolabLLP,India

“ANTlabshasseendramaticimprovementinthequalityof ourservicetothecustomersfollowingthenewinstallation ofSangomasolutions.Wehavebenefitedfromreduced monthlytelephonyoverheads,andexpansionattheclient devicelevelhasbroughtmucheasetooperations.Our remotestaffsareabletocommunicatewitheachother seamlessly.TheadvancedfeaturesoftheSangoma telephonyarepositivelyimpactingbothourstaffand customers.”–TroyTan,OperationsManageratANTlabs, Singapore

Our scalable oerings provide seamless connectivity between traditional infrastructure and new technologies.

Knowmail:

Reinventing Work Communication with Personalized AI

Weseektechnologytobeutilizedasaninstrument tooptimizethewaybusinessesrun,thereforeit doesnotmakesensewheninsteadofyielding productivity,theinstrumentinsteadhinderstheprocess. Withtheemergenceofdataandcontent-oriented operations,companiesoftenstumbleupontheoverloadof informationandstruggletoretrieveimportantdataorlet aloneunderstandwhatrequiresappropriateattentionatany giventime.Knowmailacknowledgedthisissueandcame upwiththesolutionbyofferinganon-device/cloud ArtificialIntelligenceplatformforpersonalizedemail experiences.

InaninterviewwithInsightsSuccess,theCEOand Co-founderofKnowmail,HaimSenior,shareshiskey insightsonunifiedcommunicationsandthesignificanceof ArtificialIntelligence(AI)anditsimplementationalong withothertechnologiesinordertoenhanceemployee efficiency,engagement,andwell-beingwhilemakingsure operationsrunproductivelyandtargetsaremet.Beloware highlightsfromtheinterviewconductedbetweenHaimand InsightsSuccess:

GiveabriefoverviewofKnowmailanditsvision. KnowmailisapersonalizedArtificialIntelligence(P.A.I) platformforemail,providingUnifiedCommunication businesses,vendors,andserviceprovidersaneasy-tointegrateAPI/SDKtoenhanceofficeproductivity, engagement,andcontextualrelevancyforitsownusers.

TheP.A.Iplatformbenefitsincludeautomaticemail prioritizationtourgent,important,andother,estimated time-to-completion,predictednext-best-actionstosave time,stayorganized,andgetthingsdone,andmore valuableusesacrossmeetingsandtaskstohelpknowledge workersbecomemoreproductiveandgetmoredonewith lesseffortandstress.

HowdoyoudifferUnifiedCommunicationservices,so theywillbenefityourcustomers?

WithKnowmail,UnifiedCommunicationproviderscan trulyunifyvariousofficesolutionssuchasemail,meetings, andtasks,sotheycanworkinunisontobettermanagetime anddeadlines,priorityandrelevancy,andmakesureto completethemosturgenttasksaccordingtotheirown targetsandgoals,aswellastheorganization’s.

ThisAIlayerprovidesaverypersonalizedapproachto availableandupcomingUCdevicesandsolutions,by

grantingeachemployeeatailoredexperiencefortheiruse, basedontheirownpatterns,behaviors,preferences, contacts,andusability.Moreover,theentirelearning processisdoneusingauniquearchitecture,sodataremains privateandsecured,withthemodelitselfonlyavailableto theuser,onitsowndevice/s.

Describetheexperiences,achievements,orlessons learntthathaveshapedthejourneyofthecompany. Wewerepreviouslycorporateemployeeswhofeltthepain ofinformationoverloadfirsthand,withtheconstantneedto bealwaysonanduseanyavailablesecond(ormeeting)to gothroughandcleanourinboxes.We’vespenttremendous timejusttryingtomanageourtime,calendar,andtasks efficiently,andweendedupcontinuingtodosoevenoutof theoffice.

Ourexperiencewasnotunique;mostinformationworkers were(andstillare)goingthroughthesameattheirplaceof work,withpersonallifetakingsecondplace.Asolutionis absolutelyneeded,yetwe’reallpersonallyunique,hencea one-size-fits-alltypeofsolutionisn’tright,norwoulditbe effective;ThisiswhyArtificialIntelligenceistheonly fittingsolution,helpinglearneachpersonbytheirown individualuseandneed,andcreateauniqueprediction modelforeach…whichcontinuallyimproveswithuse.In short,somethingtolearnyouasifyoutrulyhadapersonal assistantunderstandingyourneeds,schedule,andpriorities.

Inaddition,we’vealwayslistenedtoourusers,contacts, andorganizationsweworkwithtofurtherunderstandhow thesolutionshouldbeprovided,alongwiththemajorareas andvaluesrequired.Thishelpedusadapt,customize,and fine-tuneourofferingsoitmaybeintegratedintoavariety ofsolutionssuchasUnifiedCommunicationdevices,digital assistants,andmobileapps.

Alongwithourownattentiontodetail,ourplatform technologyproveditself,andwe’vebeenableto collaboratewithmajorgiantssuchasbecomingaMicrosoft AIpartnerwhoalsointegratedKnowmailinCortanafor Windows10anditsmobileapp.Furthermore,we’vebeen abletoworkalongsideleadingUCproviderAvayaforan enterprisesolutioninthisarena.

Whataretheevidentchallengesintheunified communicationservicesindustry?

IbelieveUnifiedCommunicationcanbecomemore holistic,allowingindividualstocommunicateacross

Company of the Month

“ “

variousplatforms,thusbecomeamuchbroaderunified channel,ratherthananaggregationofchannels.A universalapproachisneeded,sointurntheusergetsa muchmoreorganicexperiencethatadaptscontinuously todynamicuseandneed,nomatterthelocation,device, time-of-day,state-of-mind,andmore.Withthis,auser canalwaysbeinfocusandontopoftheirgame.

HowdoestheKnowmailcontributetowardsmaking theindustrybetter?

Weprovideavaluablesolutionasaneasy-to-integrate platform,soavailable(andupcoming)UCsolutionsand devicescaneasilyandquicklyupgradetheirofferings andprovideapersonalizedAImodelforeachoftheir usersandclients.Thiscanonlybenefittheirusersby keepingthemengagedandproductivewithintheirown device,withouttheneedtohoparoundchannels,apps, andsoftwarejusttokeepup…rathermoveaheadandget thingsdone.

Consideringtherisingnumberofunified communicationsolutionproviders,howdoes Knowmailstandoutfromitscompetitors? OursolutionisanAIplatformtoenhance providers/devicesuser’sengagement,experience,and usability,sowekindofstand-alone.Wedonotcompete withtheothersolutions,ratherareabletohelpupgrade themtoprovideevenmorevaluetotheirownusersand clients.

AfewwordsfromKnowmail’spartners

“We’re working with companies like Knowmail for value-added applications that help predict and prioritize critical email communications that are directly applicable to the typical employee.”–JonAlperin, DirectorofpartnershipsandalliancesforDevConnect andA.I.ConnectatAvaya

“We find in Knowmail’s technology elements that perfectly fit into Avaya’s vision of the Future Workplace experience. Knowmail’s application provides greater value to our smart devices by adding relevant, personalized context to the collaboration experience.”–GuyGadnir,DirectorofBusinessDevelopmentand AvayaIsraelDirector

About the Company

KnowmailwasfoundedbyHaimSenior,Oded Avital,andAviMandelberg.Asexecutives workinginabigcorporatefirm,OdedandHaim weredisappointedbytheconstantneedto monitortheiremailsinordertostayontopof theirgame.Theybothunderstoodthefactthat theywereinvestingexcessiveamountsof potentiallyproductivetimereadingoften unproductiveandirrelevantmessages.Together, theyrealizedthatiftheycannotstopthemessage flood,theyshouldbeabletoapplyapersonalized filterthatwouldallowonlyrelevantand importantmessagesthrough.Fromthis realization,theideaforKnowmailwasborn.

Withtheirpersonalexperience,bothHaimand Odedbelievethatasolutionforthisproblemisa must,andthecurrentsituationintheworkplace cannotcontinue,neitherfortheemployeenorthe organization,intermsofprogress,innovation, andgrowth.

Knowmail is using Personalized Articial Intelligence to reinvent messaging in Unied Communications. “ “

Haim

Senior CEO & Co-founder

Human Capital Management:

AI Can’t Replace the Human Side of Recruiting

Whathappenedtocoalminersisnotgoingto happentorecruiters.

Automatedandautonomoustechnologieshaveforever changedminingglobally,andnoamountoftariffsor corporatehandoutswillaltertherealitythatcoal extractionrequiresfewerandfewerpeople.Donald Trump’s2016campaignblamedthesharpdeclineincoal miningjobsonDemocratsandcoastalliberals,yet overlookedtechnology’sroleineliminatingthemfor good.

Recruitingisanotherindustryinwhichtheintroduction andadoptionofnewtechnologieshasbecome commonplace.Animportantdifferenceisthatrecruiters arenot—despiteworkinginanindustryhungryfor efficiencygains—facingthesamefateasminersorthose whousedinworkinofficessuchasbookkeepers, accountants,secretariesandadminstaff.Thedemiseof thosepositionswasduetosoftwareandhardware innovation;QuickBookseliminatedhundredsof thousandsofbookkeepingjobs,whilewordprocessing andotherdesktopsoftwareappsmadesecretariesalmost extinct.

RecruitingisDifferent

Theprincipalreasonwhyrecruitingwillavoidthesame fateastheWestVirginiacoalminerorSouthern Californiabookkeeperisbecauseit’sfundamentally different.Recruitingisn’tjustasequenceoftasks;it’sa

sequenceoftaskswithanecessarilyheavyhuman component.Recruitingcomprisesengagementand communicationwithotherHRteammembers,hiring managers,executives,otheremployeesonhiringteams, alongwithexternalcontactssuchasjobsourcesand agencies.Tothatlistwecanalsoaddthemostimportant cohorts,prospectiveemployees,applicantsand candidates.

TheRiseoftheMachinesthatLearn

Inreferringtotechnology,I’mnotreferringtosoftware programslikeApplicantTrackingSystemsthathave existedforover20years.I’mreferringinsteadto advancesinArtificialintelligence(AI)andMachine Learningalgorithmsthatarebothpromisingtosomeand frighteningtoothers.Forreference,MachineLearningis theideathatwecanfeedlargeamountsofdataintoa computerthatwillidentifypatternsanduristicsalmost byitself.Onceidentified,itwillapplythe“conclusions” tonewsetsofdata.AIisthebroaderconceptof machinesbeingabletocarryouttasksinamannerthat weconsidertobe“smart.”

MuchofthepromiseofAI/MachineLearninglieswith introducingmoreobjectivityintorecruiting,handling moredataandautomatingasmanyprocessesaspossible. AIandMachineLearningaregreatforallofthose.What they’renotgreatat,andwillnotbecomesointhe foreseeablefuture,isreplacingface-to-facehuman interaction.

Knowledge Keys

About the Author

Omer Tadjer is the CEO and Cofounder of Comeet. He has been involved in high-tech companies for more than 15 years, a decade of which was devoted to software development and managing development teams. A technologist and philosopher by training, he is a business entrepreneur at heart. He is passionate about applying his practical IT and management experience to creating valuable products and transforming the way the HR industry operates.

ImprovingaRecruiter’sFavoriteMetric-Time-toHire

Let’sfaceit,mostcandidateswantpersonalinteraction whenseekinganewopportunity.Newemployeesarenot justfillingananonymousopeningonanorgchart; they’reseekingopportunity,challengeandawork environmentwhereit’snotallaboutwork.There’sa selectionprocessonbothsidesbeforeitleadstobuy-in, andthere’sonlysomuchapplicationoftechnologyyou canmakewhencandidatecourtingbecomes conversationsacrosstablesinboardroomsand restaurants.

Ithinkit’simportanttounderstandthatadoptionofAIin recruitingisnotaneither/orreality;It’sstillearlydays butrecruitersarealreadybenefiting.Byobservinghow managersandrecruitersmakescreeningdecisions,AIbasedsystemscanpredictthematchbetweenajob,a candidate,andateam:

Ÿ

Submittinganapplicationwillbecomemucheasier forcandidates.

Ÿ Recruiterscanevaluateresumesandcandidates faster.

Ÿ

Ensuringpositionfitismoreprecise.

Omer Tadjer CEO & Co-founder Comeet

Ÿ

Identifyingthebestcandidatesinacandidatepool takeslesstime.

ThecumulativeeffectofAIintheseareasisthattime-tohireissignificantlyreduced.Recruitingteamscanmake internaldecisions,closejobrequisitionsfasterand reducethepotentialityofpoorhiringdecisions,allof whichhappensinamannerthatfullyrespects candidates.

EnhancingtheCandidateExperience

TheothersideofAI-enabledrecruitingisthecandidate experience.Fromseeingwhatourcustomersaredoing, weknowthatagreatcandidateexperienceequalsan 80%greaterchancethatthecandidatewillacceptan offer.What’sthesecretofdeliveringthiskindof experience?Respectthecandidate,betransparentand don’tkeeptheminthedark.Forexample,don’task candidatesthesamequestionsmultipletimesin interviews.Keeprecruitingstagesshort,preciseand respectful.Ourcustomerdatashowthatthese characteristicsincreasejobacceptance.

DrivingImprovementUsingAIandMachine Learning

WhetheryouhavealotofAIandMachineLearning experienceoryoureducationisstartingwiththisarticle, hereareafewspecificsource-to-hireapplicationswhere smartsystemsdeliverempiricalvalue:

Ÿ

Helpingyouoptimizeyourmarketingbudgetand howyouallocatethemoneyandcollectresumes. Analyzingyourandothercompanies’datawillallow smartsystemstounderstandwhereandwhenthe budgetshouldbeinvested,significantlyreducingthe cost-per-hireandincreasingcandidatequalityinyour pipeline.

Ÿ

Matchinganapplicationtoajobdescription,a candidatetothecompanyculture,orahiringmanager preferencetoanexistingprofileinyourcandidate databasecandeliverhugevalue.

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Makingthesepromisingmatches,pushingtheright candidatetothetopofthelist,andautomatically handlinginterviewschedulingdeliverimportanttopof-funnelreturns.

Ÿ

Enablinginterviewerstobecomemoreprofessional bysurfacingtherighttypeofquestionsaccordingto thepositionandjob.Process-driveninterviewinglike thiswillenablecompaniestoavoidexpensivehiring mistakes.

Ÿ

Followingtheprocessandsuggestingfollow-up actionstothehiringteam.

TheseapplicationsandotherswillmakeAI tremendouslyusefultorecruitersinthenextseveral years.Fromcollectingapplications,evaluatingresumes andmakingdecisions,itsimpactwillbemassive.By applyingautomationandsemi-automationtosomany differentrecruitingtasks,recruiterswillgainmanymore hoursforthekindofhuman-to-humaninteractionthat revealsthetypeofinformationandlearningsthat softwareanddatacan’tdiscover.And,dependingonthe regionwherethey’reworking,recruitersmaybeableto helpex-coalminersfindnewcareerpathswithmore long-termupside.

Ÿ

Ensuringthatcandidateswhoarenotafitaretreated respectfullyandreceiveprofessionalandcourteous notificationsabouttheircandidatestatus.

EMBEDDED SYSTEMS POPULARITY ARE GAINING ACROSS ALL DOMAINS

Intoday’semergingworld,

systemshaveboughtaneaseof workduetoitsinherent advancementsandfeatures.The embeddedsystemisoneofthemost imperativesubjectsinthedigital world.Thinkingabouttechnology, dailylifestyleessentialdeviceslike mobilephones,tabletsandlaptops cometoourmind,buttheinternal featuresisnotknowntomostofus. Thepresenceofthesedevicesis almostinevitableinallfacadesofthe humanendeavor.Inorderto understandmoreabouttheoperations, functionsandfeaturesofembedded systems,itisdefinedhereahead.

Embedded Systems -Itisanelectronic systemincorporatinghardware integratedcircuitwithsoftware programmingtechniquesfor deliveringvariousprojectssolutions. Themainadvantageofusingan

embeddedsystemisithelpstoreduce thecomplexityofthecircuitswhich becomesexpedient.Italsooffersa costeffectiveandanappropriatesize whichissuitableforthesystem.This electronicsystemcanperformsingle ormultipletasksbasedonthe application.Anembeddedsystem consistofhardwaresuchaspower supplykit,centralprocessingunit, memorydevices,timers,output circuits,serialcommunicationports andsystemapplicationspecificcircuit componentsandcircuits.

TypesofEmbeddedSystems

TheEmbeddedsystemsareclassified intocategoriessuchas

· Basedonitsperformanceand functionalrequirements

· Performanceofthe Microcontroller

Thecategory- based on its performance and functional requirements areclassifiedintofour typesthatare Stand alone, Real time, Networked, and Mobile embedded systems.Further,thecategoryperformance of the microcontroller is classifiedintothreetypesthatare smallscale,mediumscaleand sophisticatedembeddedsystems.

AnExcellentApplicationProvider

Theembeddedsystemsarehighly applicableasitisaspecial-purpose systemduetoitsunique characteristics.Itisusedina diversifiedareaofthingsasits componentsandfunctionsof hardwareandsoftwarearedifferent foreachsystem.Itisapplicablein areaslikecommunication,space, transportation,roboticsystems,and homeappliancesandmanymore.

Real Time Applications of Embedded Systems

Asithasavastvarietyofapplication domainsitdiffersfromhighexpense tolow,consumerelectronicsto industrialequipment,academic equipmenttoentertainmentdevices andfromweaponstomedical instrumentsandaerospacecontrol systems.Heregoessomeofthe categoriesembeddedsystemsare used:

Ø Consumerelectronics-Mobile phones,videogameconsoles, digitalcamera

Ø Householdappliances-Washing machines,microwaveovens, refrigerators

Ø MedicalEquipment-CTScanners,

heartbeatmonitors, electrocardiogram

Ø Automobiles-Antilockbraking systems,air-conditionercontrols, electronicfuelinjectionsystems

Ø IndustrialApplications-Assembly lines,multipleparameter monitoringsystems,datacollection systems

Ø Aerospace-Navigationsystems, guidancesystems,GPS

Ø Communications-Routers, networkhubs,satellitephones

ProgressionofEmbeddedSystems overtheDecade

Withchangingtimes,inventionshave becomearoutineintheworldof technology;theembeddedsystems havealsoundergonesomesalient modifications.Intheexistingtimes,

theembeddedtechnologiesare responsiblefortheintellectual capabilitiesofutmostmoderndevices, forbothconsumersaswellas industrial.Topresentthisinasimpler manner,theembeddedsystemsnot justcontrolthelifestyledeviceslike microwaves,smartphones,tablets, andotherconsumerelectronicsbut alsodirectsthetelecommunication systems,submarines,ATMs,and manymore.

Theupperechelonsinthefieldof embeddedtechnologieshavecreated someinnovativetechnologiesoverthe lastdecadewhichishighlyadmired. Multi-coreprocessors,virtualization, theexpansionofdeviceswith improvedsecurityrequirements, 64-bitprocessorsandnewchip manufacturingprocessesaresomeof theinnovativeachievements.

Embracingsuchinnovativetechnologiesaddressesthescaleofthemarketandthenumberofitsplayerswhich includecompanieslikesemiconductorsuppliers,systemsoftwaredevelopment,andmechanicalcomponents suppliers,systemsoftwaredevelopmentcompanies,andmechanicalcomponentssuppliers.Theembeddedsystems marketleadersincludenationalandinternationalrenownedcompanies.

AdvancingwithMultifunctionalFeatures

Withtheadventofmulti-functionalengineering,thenextageofwirelesscommunicationsystemsisencouraginga newleveloftechnologyintegration.Incorporatingeffectivemeasureslikeprogressivedatarates,greatconnectivity forsystemssuchastheInternetofThings(IoT),lesspowerconsumption,andotherstrivinggoalscanbeachievedby joiningadvanceddigital,RF,andantennatechnologies.

Anembeddedsystemwhichperformsmultipleapplicationsisknownasamulti-modeembeddedsystemasit dynamicallyrecomposesthesystemfunctionality.Moreover,anembeddedsystemwhichadditionallyassists multipletaskstobeexecutedinamodeisknownasamulti-modemulti-taskembeddedsystem.Themulti-material additivemanufacturingprocessesofferthepotentialformulti-functionalpartstobemanufacturedinasingle procedure.Toutilizethepotentialbenefitsofthedevelopingtechnology,analysis,newdesigns,andoptimization methodsareneeded.Suchmethodsarefacilitatedintheoptimizationofamultifunctionalpartbypairingboththe structuraldesignaspectsandsystem.AnapplicationdevelopmentplatformknownasMultifunctionalEmbedded ApplicationPlatform(MEAP)isusedtocreatecustomizedapplications.

TrendstoWatch

Developersshouldconstantlykeepaneyeonthetrendsandmakeappropriateuseofthelatestadvancesin techniquesandtechnologies.SomeofthetrendsincludeInternetofThings(IoT),processortechnology,storage, artificialintelligenceand,virtualandaugmentedreality.Also,thereareseveraltrendslikeembeddedsecurity,realtimevisualization;cloudconnectivityandBluetoothmeshnetworking,lowpowerconsumptionandoptimization thatwillhelpdevelopersworkingwithmicrocontroller-basedsolutions.

ElevatingwithTime

Overtheyears,embeddedsystemshavecomealongwayandcontributedtoeveryaspectoftheindustrialsector.All thedevicesorappliancesusedinourdailylivesaredesignedinsuchawaythatcanbeusedwithoutcreating difficultiesusingtheembeddedsystems.Takingthisintoaccount,incomingtimeseveryobjectaroundwillconsist ofaeitherasmallprocessororsensorembeddedwithinitself.Eventhoughitisinvisibletothenakedeyeitstill connectswithmultipleotherdevicestomakethelivesmorealliedandaccessiblethaneverbefore.Usingembedded systems,wonderslikedriverlesscars,fullyautomatedfactories,adaptivehomeappliancesandmanymoredevices havesuccessfullybeencreated.

Intheupcomingtimes,theembeddedsystemsarelookingforwardtoevolvewithtechnologiesthatwillassistlarge datastoragedimensions,fastercommunicationandhighlylinkedconnectionsamongthedevices.

SilexPro:

Optimizing the Experience of Visual Communication

SilexProisatechnologyinnovatorinthefieldof visualcommunicationandgroupcollaboration.It offersauniqueCenterofTable(CoT)conceptthat makesthegroupcollaborationexperiencefeelmorenatural. ThecompanyisactivelypromotingtheSilexPTEseries whichisagnosticall-in-oneCenterofTable(CoT)visual collaborationsystems.

SilexPro’svisionistomergeInnovation,Technologyand Elegancetocreateauniqueengagingmeetingexperience, virtuallyinvolvingallsenseswiththemissiontoallowits customerstoenjoyabettermeetingexperience.The companyhasdesignedtheSilexPTEwhichareuniqueallin-onegroupcollaborationsystemstobeusedinthecenter ofthetable.TheSilexPTEvideoagnosticsystemsoffera singlehardwareforallplatformsandarecurrentlytheonly devicesthatprovideatrulynaturalgroupcollaboration experiencewhileleveragingthevideoclientofuser’s choice.

AllEncompassingSolutions

SilexProattractsitsclientswithitsinnovativesolutions, theiruniquedesignsandtheadvantagestheyoffer.Its productsoffersolutionstotraditionalproblemsencountered inregularmeetingroomsetupssuchastheeyecontactand the‘tinyhead’problem.Customerswhoareassociatedwith thecompany,liketheinnovationtheyaregettingandthe cutting-edgeadvantagesSilexProcanoffer,beitwiththe SilexPTECenterofTablesolutionsorwiththecustomized roomsolutions.Longstoryshort,themaintenanceofa SilexPTEsystemisassimpleasthemaintenanceofany PCnowadays.

TheSilexPTEnewgenerationendpointsweredesigned fromscratchtoincludemultipleinteractivetouchscreens providingaseamlessmulti-sidedwhiteboarding experience,andanexceptionalviewingexperience; multiplecameras(3or4)fora360degreescoverageofthe

roomfromthecenterofthetable;centralspeakerphonefor radiallysymmetricalcoverage;intelligent360degrees voicetracking;wirelesspresentationsystembasedon marketstandardslikeMiracast,Airplay,ChromeCast;one buttonsessionrecordingandfacialrecognition.TheSilex PTEsystemsleveragegroupcollaborationexperienceon anyplatformandaddthefollowingadvantages: Ÿ

Agnosticvideoconferencing(givesgreater compatibility) Ÿ

Zeroinstallationrequired Ÿ

Win10based(allowsanintuitiveusage) Ÿ

Excellentroomcoveragefromthecenterofthetable withaperfectframingofparticipants(upto360degrees –nomorepartialcoverageproblems) Ÿ

PerfectEyecontact Ÿ

Peopleperfectlyframedbythecameras(andtheyall lookthesamesizeonvideo) Ÿ

Intelligent360degreesvoicetrackingfromthecentreof thetable(coveringalldirectionsoftherooms) Ÿ

EffectiveCenterofTablecollaborationandannotation withoutleavingyourseat

InnovatorBeyondImagination

RonaldHajjistheCEOandFounderofSilexPro.He inventedandpatentedtheCenterofTableconceptfor naturalcollaboration.Hebelievesthathismissionisto enhancethewaypeoplecommunicateandcollaborate remotelyovervideo,andtomakegroupvideomeetings morenaturalandmoreenjoyableandcertainlymore productive.AccordingtoRonald,oneshoulddreamand stretchonesimaginationandcreativitybeyondtraditional boundariestocreatetherequiredpositiveforcetodrive innovation.Towhichheasserts“With my great team at SilexPro we created the Silex PTE revolutionary products to serve this purpose. ‘Innovation beyond imagination’is the mindset by which we will positively disrupt and change the way people collaborate!”

Ronald Hajj CEO & Founder SilexPro

GettingAheadofTheCurve

SilexProhadaprovenexperienceindesigningand integratingcustomizedcomplexfull-fledgedsmart conferencerooms.Thenwiththechangeandevolutionof themarkettrends,itsawtheneedtocreateanew generationofvisualcollaborationendpoints.The experienceithas,givesSilexProanedgetocreateadvanced solutionscombiningthetechnologiesalreadyavailablein themarketandtheonesitalreadyowns.Thus,thecompany investeditsabilitytointegrateadvancedpersonalized featuresintolargecomplexenvironmentsincreatingits uniqueSilexPTECenterofTablevideocollaboration products.

OfferingCompatibility

AccordingtoSilexPro,thecurrenttrendsinvideospaceare enablinghuddleroomsforgroupcollaboration.New technologiessuchasWebRTCandstandardwireless displayprotocolsareemergingandareexpectedtobevery widelyusedsoon.Soft/web/cloudbasedvideoclientsare takingoverlegacyvideoconferencingsystems,and customersarelookingforeasyall-in-onesolutionsto deploy.

Toalignwiththismarkettransformation,SilexProhas createdanewgenerationofUniquelyDesignedCenterof Tableendpoints;theSilexPTETrioandSilexPTEQuattro thatnotonlyfitsthenewmarkettrendsbutalsofixessome oftheinheriteddiscomfortandchallengesitfacesin traditionalmeetingrooms.

NaturalExperienceisTheKey

OneofthemanyfactorsthatdifferentiateSilexProfromthe competitionisnaturalexperience.SilexProisthefirst companyinthemarketwhichdaredtodefythetraditional waysofconductingvideomeetingsbyintroducingits disruptivetrueall-in-oneCenterofTableconcept.SilexPro believesthatmeetingscanbeconductedmorenaturally,and peoplecanbemuchmoreengagedduringvideomeetings whentheremoteparticipantappearsinthecenterofgravity ofthemeeting(whichisthecenterofthetable).It’sa completemindsetshiftandthecompanydidn’tseeany othercompetitorenterthemarketthiswaysofar.

AspiringGlobalExpansion

SilexPro’smaingoalistoenhanceandpromotethemost naturalvideocollaborationpracticesandexperiences.It aimstobecometheleadingcompanyinvideocollaboration acrosstheworld.Thecompanyisaspiringtospreaditsnew collaborationconceptsandtechnologiesandtoconquerthe 40+millionhuddleroomsandsmartspacesacrossthe globe.

“Innovation beyond imagination.”

Co-founder & CTO

Dave Gullo

VideoAmp

How VideoAmp Evolved the Company Culture and Process to Increase the Number of Engineers Employed

VideoAmpturns4yearsoldthismonth. Somany memories,andsomuchgrowth.Let’sreflecton someoftheworstdecisionsandassociated learningsthathavebeenfundamentaltoourgrowth.Why theworstyousay?Becausewhenyouaccelerateyour learningrateinafail-fastenvironment,itthenallowsyouto makefastdecisionsvs.theanalysisparalysispredicament.

Reflection

Oneofmyfavoritewildcardinterviewquestionsfor managersis:“Describethefailureyou’remostproudof.” Thissometimescatchespeopleoffguard,soI’llsharemine firsttogettheconversationgoing.Inevitablyitcomesdown tochoosingbecausetherearesomany.

Youcan’ttalkaboutgrowthandsuccesswithouttalking aboutthesefailures.Unlessyou’re somekindofhybridAIrobot-space-alienwho’sabsolutelyperfect,there’sgoingto bemistakes.What’simportantisthatasaleaderyouown yourmistakesandbetransparentaboutthem.

Hiring

Findingtherightpeopleisthesinglemostimportantaspect ofgrowingastartup.Thebiggestmistakesinhiringhave been:

Ÿ

“Hiringoutofhand”,orshortcuttingthenormal processesbecausethecandidateiswellknownbyother engineersinthegroup.

Ÿ

“Promotingoutofhand”isanothervariationof thiswhereyoudon’tputsomeonethroughthe normalduediligencebecausetheyalready present.Inourcase,individualcontributor(IC) engineersdon’tgothroughtherigorous referencechecksthatnewmanagersdo.

“Hiringunderduress”,orloweringyourbar simplytomeetheadcountgoals. Istrongly advisetohirefewer“full-fullstack”senior engineersvs.abunchofjuniorormid-level careerdeveloperswhorequiremoretime, nurturingandpreciousattentionunitsfromyour seniorstaff.

Process

Thisisamovingtarget,andonewhichhasdefinitelybeen anongoingseriesofblogs.Intheearlystage,we“over prescribedscrum.” Somethingthataveryearlystage companycando,alongwithtoomuchagileprocessestoo soon.

Forexample,prototypesandproofofconceptsshouldnot havearigorousdefinitionofdone,withendlessunit, functional,andend-to-endtestsbecausetheproduct’s requirementswillprobablyzig-zagwildly.

Conversely,havingtoolittleprocesswhenyouare supportingenterprisecustomerscanalsobea problem. IspentmypriordaysasanICand

contractorretrofittingandscalingCI/CDpipelinesand trainingengineershowtowritebettertests.

Thechallengeisright-sizingthisallalongtheway,andthe triggerpointsonwhentochangemaynotbeobvious. Isay thisbecausewegrewheadcountby22engineersfromOct 2017toFeb2018,andintheprocesswedidnotmodifyour simplifiedKanbanapproachtoaprescribedScrumprocess quicklyenough. Growingpainsemerged,tosaytheleast. Nowwe’reinaspotwherewecanwithstandamagnitude scaleofgrowthwithroughlythesamesquadandtribe-level process.

Management

RiffingoffrapidgrowthofBrainsinengineering,wedidn’t scalemanagementfastenough. Almostallstartup engineeringorgsstartveryflat,withallICsandno management.Youhave“techleads”whomaysplittheir timedoinglightmanagerialfunctions,buttheyallwrite codeanddiveintotheoperations.

ThebiggestfailhereinscalingtheICswasnotscalingthe organdmanagementstructuretofollow. At~44engineers anddatascientists,wehaveadutytodeliveronourmission toprovideanenvironmentwheretheyhavetheopportunity todothebestworkoftheirlivesandbeworthmoreinthe marketplace.

Withoutthisvitalmanagementstructure,thereisavacuum. Donotboltthisonlater,builditasyougo.Wetook inspirationfromSpotify’smodelofengineering organizationalscaling.

Growth&CareerPathing

We’vetalkedaboutallofthesefails,howaboutsomething thathasworkedwellforus?

Whendoinginitialcontactwithacandidate,Ioftenask “whyareyouinmarket?”Ihaveseencountlessfolkswho

arelookingbecausetheircurrentmanagementdoesnot havetheirgrowthandcareerpathinginmind.Inextreme cases,theycandoaday’sworkinfourhours,feellikethey areunder-challenged,andhavenotlearnedanythingin years.TheyworkinanenvironmentlikethemovieOffice Space.

Takinganoppositeapproachistoengageinthegrowthand pathingofeveryindividual.Wedothisby:

Ÿ aligningthegrowthoftheindividualwiththe company’sgrowth.

Ÿ havingmanagementcheckinfrequentlyonthesuccess ofthis,and

Ÿ settingupformalquarterlycheck-insonmeasuring thesegoals. GoogleadoptedthisearlyonfromJohn DoerrintheformofOKRs,andtherearegreat platformsouttherewhichcanformallymeasureand tracktheseobjectives.

Careerpathingisalonger-termconcern.Iaskcandidates fromthestart“sowhat’sthenextjobafterVideoAmp?” Thisoftencatchesthemoffguard,thenaftercarefulthought mostreplywitharole1-2levelsbeyondwherethey’reat now.It’sourgoaltohelpsteertheminwhateverpaththey currentlysee.

Manyearlier-careerengineersthinkmanagementistheir ultimatepath,butIhavefoundthatmanywillstayona tractofengineeringexcellence.Whetherit’saPrincipal EngineeroraVPofEngineering,thegoalistoorientthe newchallengesinamannerwhichgrowstheminthat direction,evenifwecan’tfullyrealizetheirultimate pathinggoalwhileatthecompany.

Bypayingcarefulattentiontothesedetails,wehavefound ourannualretentionrateinthehigh90%.

SureCall: Improving Cell Service for Better Coverage

InaninterviewwithInsightsSuccess,theCEOand FounderofSureCall,HongtaoZhan,shareshiskey insightsonvariousaspectsofthecompanyandhowit contributestowardstheindustrybymaintainingthequality ofallthoseaspects.HealsodiscussesSureCall’s accomplishmentsandfutureinitiatives.

Belowarethehighlightsfromtheinterviewconducted betweenHongtaoandInsightsSuccess:

GiveabriefoverviewofSureCall,itssolutionsand services.

SureCallisthemulti-patentedindustryleaderincellphone signalboosters,combininghigh-qualitytechnologywith innovativedesignstocreateaward-winningboostersthat dramaticallyimprovecellserviceforbetter2G,3G,4G LTE,and5Gcellservicesinsidehomes,carsand businesses.

HowdoyoudiversifyUnifiedcommunicationservicesso thatitwillbenefityourcustomers?

Cellphonecarriersusetowerstosendsignaltoyourphone butthesetowersdon’treachalllocations.Thereareso manyfactorssuchasmetalcarframes,structuralwalls, hills,mountains,trees,andotherfactorsthatblockthe signalsthataretryingtoreachyourphone.Boostersallow youtocapturethatcellphonesignal,maybeoutsideofyour house,andboostitinanewlocation,suchasinsideofyour house,togiveyouastrongwirelesssignalthatwon’tdrop calls.

Describetheexperiences,achievementsorlessons learnedthathaveshapedthejourneyofthecompany. WhenTiananmenSquarehappenedin1989Iwasatwentyyear-oldcollegestudentandoneofthedemonstratorsthere.

Whathappenedthatdayledmetolookatthingsvery differentlyandguidedmetowardmakingdecisionsthat shapedmyfuturetowardaneducationintheUSand, eventually,becominganinnovatorandentrepreneur.This comesthroughinthebusinessaswellbecauseweareso motivatedandpassionateaboutinventingnewproductsthat promoteabetterlife.Now,wearestillemployeeowned andfunded,wejustcelebratedourthirdyearontheInc. 5000andthebestdaysareaheadofus.Itisamazing.

HowdoesSureCallcontributetowardsmakingthe industrybetter?

Goodquestion.Thereareacoupleofingredients.Ifyouare talkingaboutmanufacturingyouhavetostartwithhighqualitycomponents.Wearedrivenbycustomer satisfaction,notbyprofits,andthatmeanswedonot compromisequalitybecausewewanttoofferthesignal boostersthatwillbebestforourcustomers.Thatisdeeply rootedintheheartsofeveryemployee,whethertheyare producingtheactualproducts,providingcustomerservice, salesormarketing.Asamanufacturer,youneedasystem whereeveryonesharescompany’smission.Wehavea championshipteamthatunderstandsthisandexecutesit everyday.Ifyouhavehigh-qualitypeoplethenyour productscanbethebest.

WheredoesSureCallseeitselfinthelongrunand/or whatareitsfuturegoals?

Inthelongrun,wewanttodomoreofwhatwe’redoing today–makinggreatproductswhichsatisfycustomersand resultinhealthygrowth.Ourpassionforinnovationwill naturallytakeusinto5G,whichwearealreadyengineering tosolve,andweareextremelyoptimisticaboutwhatthe futureholdsforallofushereatSureCall.

Zhan Founder & CEO SureCall

ConsideringtherisingnumberofUnified communicationsolutionproviders,howdoesSureCall standoutfromitscompetitors?

SureCallhasremainedcompletelyself-fundedand employeeowned.GoingagainstthegrainbyresistingVCfundinghasgivenusmorecontroloverthetechnologyand thedirectionofthecompany.Weareateamofcurious mindswhohavenolimitsonourabilitytotakecareofour customers,partners,andemployees,andweareoftenfirst togeneratenewtechnology,likethefirst5Gsignalbooster, thatmeetstheneedsofthechangingmarket.Thereareso manythingsthatdifferentiateourproductsfromtheother optionsonthemarket.

ClientTestimonials

“SureCall boosters are the most durable and reliable we’ve used. Our client’s trust us with solutions and we trust SureCall to produce reliable and high-performance signal amplifiers and antennas.”–SinaKhanifar,Founder&CEO ofRepeaterStore

“I’m live-streaming from the eye of these extreme weather situations. The tornadoes and hurricanes will often rip towers down and when this happens the Fusion2Go 3.0 is strong enough to quickly find a new tower to keep my calls connected and my hi-res video feeds streaming without a hitch.”–Clement

“We all use our cell phones and everyone in the firehouse has service now. Verizon, Sprint, T-Mobile and AT&T all work and we’re really happy we chose the SureCall.”–Fuson

“Fusion4Home delivered more than I expected. It’s taken our off-grid organic farm back into business and keeps us in touch with our customers. I would highly recommend this for other people who struggle with the same thing.”–Olive

AbouttheLeader

HongtaoZhanisthefounderandCEOofSureCall. Spendingmorethantwenty-yearsasaleadengineerin advancedtechnologies,Zhanhasestablishedhimselfasa pioneerwhoseinnovativedesignsarebuilttoconnect peoplethroughreliablecellularandinternetsignals.Zhan usheredintheadoptionofcellular,therebydeliveringinbuildingconnectivityformobiledevice.Filinghisfirst patentin2001forthefive-bandamplifier,Zhannowholds sixU.S.patentsunderthecompany’snameandhasbuilta businesscomprisedofmorethan96employeesthat recentlycelebratedtheirthirdyearontheInc.5000Listof FastestGrowingPrivateCompanies.

“SureCall has a mission to connect people through secure and top-tier wireless communication.”

Hongtao

The Emerging Cloud Cloud Security Solutions and Challenges Ahead

Intheworldofcloudcomputing,thecompanies

arefacingnewsecuritychallengeseveryyear.The essentialprinciplesofthesecurityaresecure access,credentials,applicationusage,anomaly detection,encryption,andstorage.Cloudsecurity companiesaredevelopingproductswithprominent securityfeaturestotackletheseissues.Transition periodsfortheorganizationsmovingfrommainframe systemstocloudsystemsarereducingsharply.They areoperatingwithon-premiseandoff-premisedevices spreadacrosscountrieswithdifferentsecuritylaws. Suchorganizationsarebringinggreatersecurity challengesandhencevaluablebusinessforsecurity serviceproviders.Thesecuritysolutionsproviders shouldcarefortheneedsofbothsecurityrequirements andperformance.

CloudSecurityServiceswithHighGrowth Potential

Technologiessuchasartificialintelligence,the machinelearningandthemostrecentdeeplearning encompassanumberofsolutionsthatcanbeusedfor securitypurposes.Anomaliesinthebehaviorof ‘entities’withinthesystemcanbedetectedeasilywith thehelpofdeeplearningtechnology.Machinelearningtechnologieswillhelptodifferentiatebetween thegoodandthebadsoftware.Thisapproachwill offerasignificanttoolforsecuritypractitioners enablingthemtodetectthethreatinadvanceand eradicateit.

Securityhardware,firewalls,intrusiondetectionand preventionsystemshavetakenavirtualmodefor operations.Asmoreorganizationshavestartedusingthe cloudtechnology,morekindsofvulnerabilitieswillemerge andconsequentlymoreapproachestosecuritywillalsobe developed.Ifcloudserviceproviderscanalsoexpandtheir servicestoemergeas‘infrastructure-as-a-service’provider theywillbeabletoofferthehigh-enddatasecurity availableeventothesmallenterprises.

Encryptioncanbeaneffectivetechnologyfordataloss prevention.There’sbeenalotofsecurityspendingoverthe lastseveralyears,andyetthenumberofrecordsbreachedis considerablyhighinrecentyears.Companiesare consideringthisasthebusinessopportunitytoaidin compliancewithdataprivacyandsecurityregulations.It indicatesthenecessityofsophisticatedencryptionsand authenticationthereforetheyareconsideredasemerging securitytrendsfordatalossprevention.

Therearetechnologieswhichusebigdataanalyticsto identifytheanomalyinbehaviorbyauser.System defenderscanspotaredalertiftheyareworkingwiththe userbehavioranalytics(UBA).Thereisalotofinterest showninthistechnologybytheenterprisesasthiscan enhancetheworkforceoutputalso.Thesetechnologies offerhugebusinessopportunity.Thetechniquecalled‘peeranalysis’compareshowsomeuserisbehavingcomparedto otheruserswiththesamemanagerorsamedepartment. Trainingcanbegiventotheemployeesforbettersecurity practicesandenablethemtoadheretothesecuritypolicies. Technologycanalsoenhancethesecurityofendpointslike desktops,servers,tabletsandlaptopsusingmostimproved securitymonitoring,detectionofthreatsandquickresponse capabilitiestoincidents.

Chipsetwithinadevicecanbeapartoftheauthentication process.Apartfrompasswords,thedeviceactsasatoken forsecurityincloudnetworksincludinglaptops,desktops andmobiledevices.Hardwareauthenticationsolutionsat processorlevelcancombineavarietyofhardwareenhancedfactorssimultaneouslytovalidateauser’s identity.

SolutionsOfferedbyCloudServiceCompanies

Clientshavegotmultipleexpectationswhileusingthe cloudservicefromproviders.Theyshouldmaintain completecontrolovertheirdataprocessingeveninmultiusercloudenvironments.Theyshouldbeabletoretaintheir efficiencyandflexibilityaccordingtobusinessobjectives andpolicies.Accessto‘Softwareas-a-Service’applications shouldbeassecureasbefore.

High-performancesolutionsforthecloudsecurityare availabletodaywhichenablethegovernance.The managementofsensitivedatainacentralizedmannerfor allapplications,systemsacrossallplatformswithonpremisesandpartiallyorfullycloudenvironmentsis possible.

Therearecompaniesspecializingincloudsecurity solutionsandprovidingfollowingservices–

•Classificationandprotection,securityassessmentand audit,documentmanagementandwatermarking,and encryption.

•Security-as-a-serviceplatform,clouddiscovery,real-time monitoringandblocking,on-demandapplicationand configuration,andSensitivedatadiscovery.

•Privacyandconfidentiality,riskassessments,dataloss prevention,tokenization,flexibleandgranularemail securitycontrols,capabilitiesarounduserbehavior,data lossprevention,andpolicyrestrictions.

•Securewebgatewayplatformspositionedtocapture trafficandseetheflowofdatatoandfromSaaS applicationswithreportsofdataflow,content,anduser activitymonitoring.

ChallengesAhead

Thereisagreatserviceopportunityopeningupforcreative andinnovativesolutionprovidersintheareaofcloud securitysolutionsbuttheyareequallychallengedon variousfronts.Organizationallevelchallengesrepresent thoserisksthatmayimpactthestructureoftheorganization orthebusinessasanentity.Thefunctionalareasthatare vulnerableandcanbecompromisedareidentifiedby exploringpastbusinessrecords.Theseareasrepresent potentialthreatorsourceoffailureandneedstobesecured onpriority.Thephysicallocationoftheclouddatacenter cancomeacrossachallengeofunauthorizedon-siteaccess. Itcanbepreventedthroughstafftraining,physicallocation security,andnetworkfirewalls.TechnologicalSecurity challengeisrelatedtohardware,andservicessuchas portability,maintenance.Complianceandissuesrelatedto theaudit,lackofjurisdictioninformationorchangesin jurisdictionandsometimesevenillegalclausesinthe contractoftenleadtothelegaldisputesoverinformation security.DataSecuritychallengesaremainlypertainingto dataintegrity,confidentiality,andavailability.Multiple companiesarecomingtothemarketwithsameapproachto dealwiththesecuritychallengesandhavesimilarsolutions tothesameproblem.Realchallengeiscreatinginnovative andproactivesolutionswhichcanofferbettersecurityand smoothflowofbusinessoperations.

VivifyScrum: Optimizing Project Management Processes

InaninterviewwithInsightsSuccess,GoranPrijic, CEOandProductOwnerofVivifyScrumshares insightsonhowthecollaborationofScrumand Kanbanbecomesacomprehensivetoolandenhancesthe efficiencyofprojectmanagementprocesses.Also,he broadlydiscussesthecompany’scorecompetenciesandthe servicesitoffers.

Belowarethehighlightsoftheinterviewconducted betweenGoranandInsightsSuccess:

GiveabriefoverviewofVivifyScrum,itssolutions,and services?

VivifyScrumisanagileprojectmanagementsoftware.It combinesScrumandKanbancollaborationboardswith advancedprojectmanagementfeatures.Userscanorganize andtracktheirprojectswhilemanagingtheirteam members’engagements.Withthereal-timeupdatesand communicationwithintheapplication,usersstayup-to-date withthechangesandprogressoftheirwork.

HowdoyoudiversifyUnifiedcommunicationServices sothatitwillbenefityourcustomers?

Manyofourcustomers(users)workaspartofremote teamsmakingcommunicationacrucialelementforsuccess. Asa,primarily,projectmanagementtool,VivifyScrum offerscoupleofcommunicationchannels-messagingand commentingwithintheapp,integrationwithachatapp (Slack),creatingtasksviaemailandmore.

Describetheexperiences,achievementsorlessons learnedthathaveshapedthejourneyofVivifyScrum. VivifyScrumbeganitsjourneyasasimpleproject managementtooldevelopedbyanoutsourcingcompany,as itsfirstproduct.Wewantedtomakeanintuitivetoolthat would,atthattime,fillinthegapinthemarket-itneeded

tobesimpleenoughandeasytousebutwithallthe necessaryfunctionalitiestomanageaprojectinScrum framework.

Wealsowantedtodevelopaproductthatwouldhelpus growasdevelopersbyusingthelatestdevelopmenttrends. Themostvaluableinputscamefromourearlyadopters. Usersprovidedin-depthfeedbackandwegotaclearpicture ofthedirectioninwhichwewantedtotakeVivifyScrum. Overtheyears,VivifyScrumevolvedfromasimpleScrum tooltoacomprehensiveagileprojectmanagementsoftware andeventoday,werelyonthefeedbackwereceiveandon themarkettrends.

Themostimportantlessonwelearnedisthatthemarket won’twaitforyou.Thechangesarefrequentandinevitable sotheonlychoiceyouhaveistoadaptandtoadaptfast. Thisiswheretheagilemindsethelps.Regularinspection andadaptationisthemostefficientwayofkeepingupwith newmarketrequirements.

HowdoesVivifyScrumcontributetowardsmakingthe industrybetter?

Scrumisalreadyaprovenframeworkforproductsuccess andthereforeworkinginVivifyScrumcancontributeto ensuringthedeliveryofaproduct.However,atthecoreof Scrumisnotaproductbutateam.Scrumframework,in general,providesmoreflexibilityforteammembers, especiallytheremoteones.Distributedteamsareableto seamlesslycommunicate,toremoveimpediments,andtrack theirprogressbyusingtheappropriatetoolsuchas VivifyScrum.

Giveadetailedexplanationregardingthe Founder/CEO/Management’sinfluencetowardsthe industryandthecompany.

Goran Prijic CEO Product Owner

Asaco-founderofVivifyScrum,myvisionwastogathera teamofpeoplewhowillbemotivatedtocreateaproduct thatpeoplewouldlovetouse.Anotherimportantaspectof buildinganappwasprovidinganopportunityfortheteam todeveloptheirskillsandtalents,tohelpthemgrowas individualsandasateam.

Asfortheproductitself,Itrytostayfocusedonour roadmap,withoutgettingdistractedbytheshortterm trends.However,VivifyScrumhadtobeimprovedand updated,hencetheversion2.0releasedin2017.Atthe time,thefirstversionhadanoutdateddesignandthe technologythatwasusedcouldn’tsupportthelatest requirements.Thesituationwasclear-weneededtobring somethingfreshtothemarket.AsImentionedbefore,we decidedtogiveVivifyScrumafaceliftthatwouldmeet contemporarydesignandUXconventions.

WheredoesVivifyScrumseeitselfinthelongrunand/or whatareitsfuturegoals?

Beingthefirstproductwedevelopedfromscratchand releasedtothemarket,VivifyScrumisheretostay.Westill haveafewacesupoursleeveandwe’rereadyfornew challenges.VivifyScrumwillcontinuetocompetefora securepositiononthemarketofagileprojectmanagement software.

ConsideringtherisingnumberofUnified communicationsolutionproviders,howdoes VivifyScrumstandoutfromitscompetitors? VivifyScrumismuchmorethanjustaunified

communicationsolution.Itisagenuinecollaborationtool thatkeepsteamsandorganizationsattopofthegame.It providesnotonlycommunicationmeansbutfeaturesand functionalitiesthatservetomanyaspectsofrunninga successfulbusiness-fromteam’sday-to-dayworkto organizingandmanagingprojects.

Testimonials

“VivifyScrum allows multiple users and multiple items. It enables project management, project tracking, collaboration and team management all in one solution. It is affordable. It has a clean user interface.”–Elijah Wanjau,ProjectManageratIbuykenya

“VivifyScrum is the right software for business persons or organization owners that will enable them to manage their projects and teams well in one single place. I like using VivifyScrum because of its magnificent capabilities. VivifyScrum is cost-effective.”–LillianRichardson,Social MediaCoordinatoratCommercialBankofTexas

“I like VivifyScrum because it is highly customizable to meet varying desires such as team collaboration and project management. VivifyScrum also has great customer support.”–AlexWallrap,DirectorofContentServicesat GlobalSEOSwitch

“An agile project management software for teams and organizations of all sizes.”

Digital Transformation is a Business Requirement: Hype or Reality?

About theAuthor

Christopher James Camut is the Director, President and CEO of Field Squared. Christopher has a successful track record of building high-performing sales teams, improving operational efciency, driving customer experience, and exceeding revenue goals.

Prior to Field Squared, Christopher was President of Integra Telecom, Inc. (acquired by Zayo), where he managed 300 employees and over $250 million in annual revenue. Before Integra, Christopher was CEO of Ajubeo, a Boulder-based infrastructure-as-aservice (IaaS) provider. Previously, he was CEO of Vixxi Solutions, a SaaS e911 service provider (acquired by Bandwidth.com) and was EVP and General Manager of network consultancy Telwares among other leadership roles. Christopher holds degrees from the University of Toledo in sociology and psychology.

Christopher James Camut Director, President & CEO

Weareataninflection

point,atrueparadigm shiftacrossbusinessesof everysize,industryandmarket.No businessisimmunetotherapid technologicalchangebroughtabout bythedigitalera.Butthereinbelies thedisruptionofdigital transformation:therewardvs perceivedtimecommitmentand investment.Thequestionon everyone’smindis,isdigital transformationallhypeorreality?

ADigitalBacakbonefromthe GroundUp

Therealityisdigitaltransformation isabusinessimperative.Anynew businessstartedtodaymustbebuilt withadigitalbackboneand infrastructurefromthegroundup. Therearethreecrucialcomponents thatcanmakeorbreakanew businesstoday:

AutomateBusinessProcessesand Workflows

Almosteveryorganizationmaintains severalroutinetocomplexbusiness processesandworkflows.Sometimes theprocessfallswithinacertain department,whileothertimesitmay spanmultipledepartmentsandeven third-partyvendorsorcustomers. Andnottooverlycomplicatethings forthisexample,butthereoften timesasingleprocesstiesinto anotherprocessortwo,orthree.

Atleastinthefieldservice managementspace,forinstance, digitaltransformationisslowly makingitswayintothefabricof organizationsthathaveafieldservice ormobileworkforce.Themaingoals aretoincreaseoperationalefficiency, improvethecustomerexperienceand understandkeyfieldservicemetrics

impactacrosstheworkforceandthe organizationasawhole.Business processautomationmakesitpossible toreapthebenefitsofdigital transformationbystartingwithsmall, incrementalworkflowsandgraduate tomorecomplexprocessesasthe businessgrows.

FocusonReal-TimeCustomer Experience

You’veprobablyhearditsaidthatwe areintheAgeoftheCustomer, whereeverygoodorbadexperience hasthechancetoappearonsocialin aminuteandgoviral.Fearof negativerepercussionsisnotthe reasontofocusonthecustomer; rather,it’slearningopportunityto gainfirst-handinsightonhowto improvethebusinessorexceed expectationsthenexttimearound. Further,real-timecommunication tools(i.e.,chat,text,email,phone call,etc.)ensurebusinessescankeep intouchwithcustomersfromthe momenttheyvisitawebsiteormake apurchase,dayornight,locationand timezoneneednotapply.

Asisthecasewithservice-based businesses—fieldservice organizations,forinstance—the abilitytosendreal-timealertsvia textareanimportantpartofmany differenttypesofworkorders. Digitalsolutionsprovidethemeans tonotleaveacustomeroutofthe communicationloopwhenyoucan automatesendingatexttonotifythe customerofalatearrivalorachange intechnician.Focusingongettingthe customerexperiencerightisreason enoughalonethatmakesdigital transformationanimperativefor businessestoday.

OpentoInnovation Innovationisoneofthemore controversialconsiderationsof businessesontheirdigital transformationjourney.Innovation comesinmanyforms,canbethought ofasaharbingerofgood(orevil) andoftentimesfollowsachangein executivemanagement.

Thecommonthreadamong businessesthatareopento innovation,isthedesiretomovethe businessforward—beseenasa leader.Famedinventorandfuturist DeanKamensaiditbest,“Every onceinawhile,anewtechnology,an oldproblemandabigideaturninto aninnovation.”Mostbusiness leaderscanrelatetosimplyputting upwithaproblemuntilsomething breaks.

Today,businessleadersmustbe savvywhenitcomestobeingaware ofinnovativesolutionsavailableto solveoldproblems.Keepingonthe themeoffieldserviceorganizations, thefirstproblemmosttrytosolvefor isschedulingand/orroutingtheir technicians.Asimpleconcept,buta powerfulfirststepnonetheless.If, however,thebigpicturecomesinto view,it’spossibletogowaybeyond scheduling—tocomefullcircle—andinsteadautomate businessprocesses.

Intheend,digitaltransformation doesn’thappenovernight,whichisa goodthingbecauseitmakesthe conceptaccessible.Whateverroute businessestaketoimprovetheir operations,today’sbusiness imperativeisdigitaltransformation, beforeit’stoolate.