Using Technology to Achieve a Work-Life Balance - Communications

Voice over Internet Protocol, how it works (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

The previous instalment of this article looked at how the two concepts of VPN and BYOD can be used to improve the work-life balance of employees by providing connected computing and so this second instalment continues the theme with the focus instead on internet based communication channels.

VoIP
VoIP is an acronym which stands for the term Voice over Internet Protocol. In other words, it represents the technologies in which voice data, typically telephone calls, is transferred over the internet. With recent advances in VoIP technology, it is able to almost seamlessly take the place of traditional fixed phone lines and offer many other benefits in addition. As it does replace more and more PSTN (public switched telephone network - the traditional mostly analog network) lines in both our homes and workplaces, often the only way to distinguish whether you are using VoIP vs. PSTN is by the extra functionality that comes with it. Much of this functionality concerns integration, into unified communications packages (see below), and flexibility, both of which allow workers to make more efficient use of their working hours and reduce the work creep into their personal lives.

VoIP packages can vary but the functionality on offer can typically include the ability to make and receive phone calls free of a fixed location or device, as long as an internet connection is available. The user may be able to use differing interfaces to handle calls, depending on the device in question - for example, a web interface and a headset on a desktop computer vs. a mobile phone vs. a digital handset - but the end result will be unaffected as far as the person on the other end of the line is concerned. The consequences for employees is that they are able to work outside of the office (at home for example) to make better use of their time and still be as accessible on the end of the phone as they would normally be on site; often on the same number . Commutes can be negated when needs be and flexible working arrangements can be embraced far more easily.

Video Conferencing
As with VoIP, the benefits of video conferencing, in terms of achieving a better work life balance are all about providing effective but flexible communication possibilities free of location dependencies. The term, sometimes referred to as video chat or video calling, describes scenarios and technologies in which users can talk face to face using video streams over the internet - essentially like VoIP with added video. Many organisations have meeting rooms with video conferencing facilities to allow communication between office locations without the need for travel but the technology is also used in portable devices and desktop computers to provide the means for visual communication on the move. It is possible, for example, to join a meeting in the office using a smartphone when on the train, using video conferencing.

The technology, therefore, allows workers to communicate using all of the visual cues that make face-to-face contact so effective without travelling long distances, or, when more beneficial, from alternative locations such as home. Combined in a unified communications package (see below), it can even facilitate collaboration on work with colleagues as though they were in the same office despite being stationed in disparate locations. All of this reduced travel and location independence does of course mean more time at home as fewer demands on time spilling outside of work hours.

Unified Communications
Bringing all of these together to offer joined up communications channels, is unified communications (UC). This is a very dynamic area of tech but the ultimate goal is that individuals are able to communicate seamlessly, switching between different methods/channels such as voice calls, video calls, email and instant messaging (IM) or SMS, across varying devices and platforms, without the conversation dropping at any stage. UC can use the concept of an integrated inbox where more traditional emails sit alongside IMs and even voicemail messages, managed with unified contact lists. The concept is being adopted at enterprise level with solutions such as Microsoft Lync but it also creeping into our day-to-day lives with developments such as Google Hangouts. The latter brings together our personal conversations across mobile and desktop devices using instant messaging, email and video calling and provides another example of how high technology is permeating our personal lives and in turn increasing the expectation and perceived possibilities of its use in the workplace.

UC is attractive to enterprise because offers businesses efficiencies in terms of the speed and effectiveness of communications alongside reduced travel costs. However, UC adoption in the workplace can also improve both the motivation - due to the effectiveness of the work employees carry out using the technology - and the working hours of employees so that their jobs take less of a toll on their personal lives and ultimately their happiness.

To find out more about the uses of unified communications including VoIP and video conferencing in the workplace you can check out what’s on offer from an enterprise level provider of unified communications.

Using Technology to Achieve a Work-Life Balance - VPN & BYOD

The following article introduces some of the technologies that can be used to help us improve our work-life balance by being more efficient and flexible in what work we do and where we do it from. Many of the technologies help us to work from dynamic locations and make communications and the sharing of information speedier and more versatile - thus providing benefits to both employers and their employees with higher staff morale and higher productivity.

VPN
The term VPN, or Virtual Private Network, is used to describe scenarios and technologies that allow two disparate local computer networks (LANs) to be securely connected across public networks such as the internet. The exact technologies and protocols can vary with some VPNs using software programs and/or network configurations, but the basic principle is that the data that is transmitted between the two endpoints on each network or device is contained within encrypted packets, whilst each endpoint itself requires authentication to restrict access to authorised users. As the encrypted packets can only be decoded at these endpoints, the data cannot be intercepted as it travels across the public networks.

This secure system can be used, not to only connect two distinct LANs regardless of geographical location, but also to connect individual machines/devices to LANs. For businesses it can therefore be a valuable technology for connecting separate office sites or allowing employees to connect with centralised LANs when travelling or working from other locations. However, for individual employees looking to improve their work-life balance it can be a vital tool allowing them to work from home and still access all of the secure files and data stored on their office’s servers, as well as running programs, such as email clients as if they were sat at their usual desk. The flexibility that this offers can, where the employer is obliging, massively ease time and travel pressures, preventing work from encroaching excessively on personal time. Moreover, employers using VPN are more likely to be obliging when it comes to changing working locations due to the security VPN offers, as well as the continuity, with employees able to contribute and work at the same capacity as if they were on-site.

BYOD
BYOD, which stands for Bring Your Own Device, represents a fast growing trend in the workplace whereby employees are permitted, and sometimes encouraged, to use their own personal devices in place of those provided by their company. A BYOD policy has to tackle security concerns as ‘untrusted’ devices (with varying malware vulnerabilities and the potential to take private data off the network) are introduced to otherwise restricted workplace LANs. On the other hand, adoption can reduce a business’s IT spend, introduce more IT functionality to the workplace and make individual employees more productive - as they work on devices with which they are more familiar. The adoption of BYOD and its benefits therefore relies on technologies such as VPN (above) to provide secure connections between devices and LANs (without necessarily bringing the device directly onto the LAN behind the firewall).

BYOD helps to improve the work-life balance because it blurs further the boundary between working from the office, on the road or at home so that there is a seamless transition between each; reducing the need to travel/commute in many cases. It can also increase the period and efficiency of output which, in turn, can mean that the working day eats less into personal time. All of which means more personal time spent at home. Furthermore, it can’t be underestimated how a sense of morale at work affects the work-life dynamic and so using devices with which one is familiar, experienced and comfortable can be important.

To find out more about the uses of unified communications including VoIP and video conferencing in the workplace you can check out what’s on offer from an enterprise level provider of unified communications.

The Need for Standardisation in Cloud Computing - The Issues

The second instalment in this couplet of articles looks at some of the issues that the standardisation of cloud computing, including the European Commission's potential initiative, will aim to tackle and clarify in order to drive the adoption of cloud computing forward, particularly within its ripest markets, such as amongst SMEs.

Control Over Data & Security
Arguably the primary area for concern for prospective cloud computing clients is that of data handling. In other words knowing and controlling where your data - personal details if you are a personal consumer, or client data etc for businesses - is stored (geographically and technologically) and how secure it is in that location. For on-site private clouds, for example, this is less of a concern, but where a client is signing up to a public cloud service, based upon shared server resources and public network connections, they may not fully understand, nevermind influence, where their data lives.

The cloud computing model means that a client’s data can ultimately be stored across national boundaries, across continents even and that raises many issues around the varying jurisdictions under which that data exists. It can lead to conflicts between the differing jurisdictions under which cloud providers operate and under which the data they control is stored. As an illustration of this, data held by US cloud providers must be supplied to the US government on request under the US’s Patriot Act, even when that data is physically hosted in another country. Consequently, as a UK resident signing up to a Microsoft Live account for example, a consumer may not in fact realise that their personal details, and who has access to them, are governed by US laws, despite understanding that Microsoft is a US based company. In many other scenarios, private and commercial users of cloud services may not be confident of the nationality of the provider in the first place, never mind the jurisdictions and legislation that govern their data.

Not only may this lack of transparency lead to concerns over who has access to and jurisdiction over data but it may also raise questions about what security measures are applied to safeguard that data against those who shouldn’t have access to it in any case, and against any kind of intentional corruption of that data. Security vulnerabilities can of course sit at many points in the cloud model but client perception and awareness of those at source - at server/data centre level - can be far less clear than of those at the access points with which the client interacts.

Interoperability
Presently, the primary driver for standardisation across the industry, whether amongst clients who feel they have a grasp of their data handling processes or not, is that of interoperability - that is being able to switch their IT functions from one provider’s platform to another compatible platform. The current cloud market raises many questions in this area for organisations: if it moves some of its functions to one cloud provider will it then be locked into that provider for its associated functions; can it integrate functions hosted with other providers; will this carry prohibitive costs; can it switch workloads between different cloud services seamlessly; will it be able to migrate away from its chosen provider if a more preferable solution comes along? From a commercial point of view these are some of the most pressing questions when choosing a cloud provider and so there is gathering momentum across the industry, not just in Europe, to establish open standards which free consumers to treat their cloud computing services more like the utility computing that the cloud has long promised to deliver. In other words, allowing clients to tap into different provider’s services as and when they need them, without lock-ins and without barriers.

There are many other aspects of a cloud proposition, in relation to performance, uptime, storage space etc, that clients can have difficulty understanding and comparing like for like. All of these issues demand clear and standardised SLAs to come into play in order to define the language and metrics in which information can be presented to clients. Form a client’s point of view, however, the key is to seek out reputable cloud providers, enquire about interoperability physical hosting locations, use recommendations from clients with established relationships where possible and steer well clear of ambiguities.

To find out more about accessing secure and transparent cloud based sevices across the EU you can check out this pan-European operator of virtual data centres.

Careers in IT Beyond Development and System Admin - Project Management

Project Management Lifecycle (Photo credit: IvanWalsh.com)

There is no doubt that the for those looking to switch their career paths, the world of IT, or information technology, can provide an attractive option because of the basic fact that the world’s demand for IT solutions is only going to increase. Whether it's the production of computing devices and software for the personal retail market or the creation and maintenance of IT infrastructures within the enterprise space, the demand keeps rising as we become more and more dependent on technology to underpin every aspect of our personal and professional lives.

When many people think of IT careers they may well think of writing code for software programs, or maintaining the hardware on which those programs run, however, there are a myriad of essential jobs which don’t require you to touch a line of code or tinker with a server. The following piece highlights some of the primary but alternative skill areas that anyone looking to kickstart a career in IT should investigate.

Project Management
Perhaps the most salient example of an IT career beyond development is project management. Every IT project, for example the deployment of a new in-house administration system, the building of a new website or the release of a software package, requires the guiding hand of a Project Manager to:

• bring all of the project members (developers, network administrators, testers, marketers) and other stakeholders (clients, company boards) together in collaboration
• keep communication flowing
• scope and plan the project - including project objectives, scheduling and defined completion criteria
• track and report the progress of the project
• manage risk
• determine the methodologies and tools that the project will employ to meet its stated aims

Project Managers (PMs) are often required to become familiar with a variety of different technologies between projects however, they rarely need to be hands on with creating IT elements themselves. It is therefore beneficial to have experience in IT, but any suitable individual with the ability to learn quickly and build a good team around them - i.e., good interpersonal and other soft skills - will be able to succeed. It is often a lone role within a project team and therefore requires that the individual is capable of working effectively on their own as well as within a team; with the skills to organise (and lead) both themselves and their team. In short, it requires a multi faceted skill set incorporating and combining soft skills with a strong technical awareness.

One attractive benefit of a Project Management role is that the skills employed are largely transferable, especially between different areas of IT such as software developments and systems deployment, but also beyond the IT sphere into other areas of business. Often the only limiting factor will be the individual’s ability to pick up the specifics of their project’s subject matter, as mentioned above.

There are a number of other similar roles, which can take on the title of project management, but where some of the responsibilities and levels of control are diluted, including project administrators and facilitators. Sometimes these may work alongside a project manager and can present an opportunity to gain valuable experience about what the role can entail.

The next installment in this series of articles will look at testing/quality assurance roles in relation to both software and hardware.

To find out more about training and qualifying to become a project manager you can check out this organisation offering ISEB certification in London.

The Need for Standardisation in Cloud Computing - Introduction

To many observers, cloud computing may appear to be spreading like wildfire with both enterprise and personal users jumping at the chance to take advantage of the cost effectiveness, scalability and flexibility that it offers. However, there is a strong debate amongst industry experts, and beyond, as to whether this uptake, however rapid, has been severely tempered by a lack of trust and understanding around cloud services from prospective clients.

The debate stems from the thought that there is a perceived lack of transparency caused by the multi-server approach to the creation of cloud platforms and the differing propositions put forward by individual cloud providers; and that this in turn is obscuring client understanding of what it is exactly that they are choosing to sign up to.

Moreover, it is argued that some of the markets that would benefit most from cloud adoption are made up of the same clients that are more predisposed to be reluctant to take on the perceived risk of signing up to cloud services. As a generalisation, large scale enterprises are perhaps more likely to possess the budgets to either host private cloud services internally or engage with third party providers to define exactly what they getting from their service, whilst private users perhaps only engage with the cloud at a lower level where they don’t have the inclination to analyse the performance and security issues at play. However, in between, SMEs (small to medium sized enterprises) are likely to be better informed as to both the benefits and risks of cloud computing platforms, but won’t necessarily have the budgets to bring IT functions in-house or employ dedicated professionals with the expertise themselves to procure the most suitable services. In other words, the likelihood is that SMEs are more reliant on third party suppliers, aware of the non-specific risks of each proposition but unable to control the specific vulnerabilities of the cloud.

Standardisation

Many propose that, as has been the case in many markets that have preceded cloud computing, the answer to client wariness is standardisation with the aim of delivering transparencies. In other words, create a market where a client can shop between multiple providers and judge their security levels, data handling, performance and service stability on comparable metrics.

One of the main driving forces behind standardisation in the European cloud computing market is the European Commission (the executive arm of the European Union) who are keen to implement a new set of standards across the 27 constituent members of the EU. The intention of these standards, alongside updated data protection rules, is to allow the consistent delivery of cloud services spanning national borders within the union - much like the commission has delivered with economic migration. Together they aim to build client trust that their data is handled and stored within the same legal frameworks whether it is physically hosted in Holland or the UK, for example. The policies would see the introduction of a certification scheme whereby cloud providers across the EU would be certified if they were shown to conform to the commission's standards on data handling, interoperability and security.

Perhaps at the crux of what the commission's policy would seek to clean up, however, is the topic of SLAs or Service Level Agreements. These are the documents that outline what it is exactly that the client is signing up for and what services they can expect from their cloud provider when they hand over their money. Standardising SLAs is key to building trust in the cloud computing market because it introduces the transparency for cloud clients when they are analysing their options. The subjects covered by SLAs are explored further in the second part of the article.

To find out more about accessing secure and transparent cloud based sevices across the EU you can check out this operator of pan-European virtual data centres.

The Features of Mobile Tech and their Applications for Good Causes - Connectivity

The following two parted article examines the key features of mobile technology and how these features can be vital to those looking to use mobile devices for good causes; whether it be aid or health agencies employing them ‘in the field’ or charities rolling them out to disadvantaged individuals to improve their quality of life.

Wireless Connectivity
Perhaps the primary advantage of any portable device, in terms of its use for charities and aid agencies for example, is the factor that makes it portable in the first place - that is its wireless connectivity. There are a myriad of ways in which devices can connect with the rest of the world. When it comes to delivering basic communications, vast swathes of the developed and developing world are covered by mobile phone networks and, as the more basic mobile phones are becoming cheaper and cheaper, it has never been easier to make phone contact across disparate locations. Where mobile phone signals don’t exist yet (due to a lack of mobile phone base stations) there is still the option of using satellite phones which are potentially able to relay voice and simple data communications, using satellites, between any two locations across the planet.

However, the real advances in the last decade have gone beyond sharing one-to-one conversations in opening up the internet, and therefore the ability to share vast amounts of information, to portable devices such as notebooks, tablets and smartphones. Such devices, when connected to wireless (WiFi) hotspots or 3G (and increasingly 4G) cellular data networks, can give users access to the internet when they are away from fixed (home or office) locations, in transit or in the field to allow data sharing and collaboration. For any aid worker or health professional working in the field for example, this can be a vital means of immediately sharing information about patients or environments, with colleagues - perhaps back at a base - for further analysis and diagnosis.

Using the internet (on 3G for example) to carry data, mobile VPN (virtual private networks) can also provide a secure link between disparate locations so that any of this data/information which is private and sensitive can be shared with, and restricted to, trusted individuals and networks. Following on from the above example, but more specifically, health workers visiting patients off-site in their own homes can instantaneously update health records on secure centralised servers using mobile VPN technology, with no need to wait until they are back at base.

GPS
Most portable devices such as smartphones and tablets also come with GPS integrated within their connectivity options. GPS, or Global Positioning System, uses signals bounced from multiple satellites to identify where any device in the world is located. For individual consumers, it helps us to navigate maps and see what services and attractions are nearby, but for aid workers it can allow vital information concerning their context to be logged alongside other data they are sharing. If water samples, or photos are being captured for example, GPS functionality can add an automatic and accurate time (incorporating time zone) and place stamp, making the information far more complete, accurate and useful.

What’s more, for those actually carrying a portable device, the GPS functionality can prove life saving as allows their position to be tracked and picked up when they are in need of assistance. Whether it's a lost walker or an elderly individual who’s had a fall, their support and rescue can locate them without delay where GPS is utilised.

To find out more about how mobile devices are being used for good causes you can check out these videos from Vodafone's Mobile for Good Foundation, or get more information on the uses of VPN.

The Features of Mobile Tech and their Applications for Good Causes - Usability & Portability

Having looked into how the connectivity of mobile devices can be useful in providing flexible and diverse communication channels for those carrying out charity work, the following part of this article highlights the more interactive features that increase the functionality of the devices for both aid workers and disadvantaged individuals.

Cameras
A digital camera is now standard in the vast majority of portable or mobile devices and an increasing proportion can capture both photo and video. Coupled with the aforementioned connectivity of such devices, this provides many charity or health organisations with the ability to capture evidence and information on what is happening ‘in the field’ and share it almost immediately with their target audiences. For example, the visual aspects of symptoms can be recorded and reported by health professionals to their colleagues for further analysis; or evidence on the extent of disasters can be collated, shared and assessed to inform what actions should be taken next. Moreover, this evidence can be shared with the wider world to effectively communicate situations where aid action is required to the public, across the globe, in order to raise the profile and ultimately the funding for a cause. Even where charity or aid workers are not on the scene, the prevalence of portable devices with in-built cameras and connectivity means that the public’s attention can be drawn to those in need by witnesses with such devices documenting events.

Size
Arguably the second decisive factor in defining a device as portable is its size. Devices such as tablets and particularly smartphones can be carried and transported to any part of the world that people can get themselves to. As these devices are packed with computing power that would have, only a few years previously, been restricted to desktop PCs, plus connectivity that crosses boundaries, they are not only able to collect information but process it, analyse it, share it and report it wherever they are. Whether it’s individuals who require more assistance themselves, or people and organisations helping others, the fact that they are not tethered to a location means that they are able to deal with demands when and where they occur.

Touch Screen Displays
The development of a touch screen is fundamental to the existence of portable devices as it has allowed them to do away with both physical keyboards and mice to become handheld and pocket sized.

What’s more, however, touch screens provide a more intuitive way for some less able users to make the most out of their device. By generating possibilities around the creation of specific accessibility applications, they open up functionality to individuals with specific needs. Large, increasingly high resolution displays, for example, allow touch screen controls to be made as large as possible and well defined for those who have difficulties perceiving the usual small controls. Using software (see below), controls no longer need to be fixed and can be dynamically configured to suit the user’s needs. Button colours, keyboard layouts and languages, for example, can all be changed using software to benefit the device’s user.

Software
Finally the element that brings many of the hardware capabilities together, integrates them and leads to ingenious solutions to niche but demanding problems is the software. On each platform, solid and useful pre-packaged software is complemented by stores of 3rd party applications, developed by people ranging from global software companies to keen individuals building apps in their spare time. It is hard to find a problem too big or too small where someone hasn’t attempted to develop an app to deal with it. Therefore with mobile device processing power growing at an exponential rate and the physical capabilities of high connectivity, GPS and camera functions all on offer, the real potential mobile devices have in aiding good causes is the creativity of those developing solutions for them.

To find out more about how mobile devices are being used for good causes you can check out these videos from the Vodafone Foundation, or get more information on communications and networking from this provider.