Tag: best practices

24 April 2013

Green Data Centers: Good for the Environment and Business

ThinkGig
by Blake Wetzel

We celebrated Earth Day this week, but for many organizations, supporting the environment isn’t just a one-day affair. That’s because companies have learned that by taking steps to go green, particularly when it comes to the data center, they are helping protect the environment — and in the process, their business.

Why is the data center an important place to look to when greening an organization? For
one, an estimated 2 percent of the world’s carbon dioxide emissions come from IT sources, studies have shown. Additionally, replacing an old server with a more energy efficient design could save up to 1 ton of carbon emissions, according to Intel.

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01 April 2013

Government and Technology: Rise of the Apps

ThinkGig
by Shaun Trippel

There’s no question that government agencies are making big strides when it comes to technology. And now we’re seeing an even greater concentration on mobile app development to better serve mobile constituents, similar to the way businesses are using them to stay in front of customers.

According to a recent study by analyst ForeSee, one in three citizens who accessed a federal government website did so on a smartphone or tablet, and nearly half said that they might or plan to access a government website from their mobile device in the future.

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05 February 2013

PaaS Rising: Is Your Business Following?

ThinkGig
by Bob Hollander

When you think of cloud computing and what it means for your business, what comes to mind? For some businesses, it means a complete outsourcing of hardware needs through Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS). For others, it’s only using applications, like email, that are accessed over the Web, which is Software-as-a-Service (SaaS).

But businesses increasingly are turning to the middle of the cloud computing spectrum, applying solutions for developing and deploying applications over the Internet, such as virtualized servers and operating systems. This is Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS), and with its multiple benefits, it’s poised to be the next big model in cloud computing.

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30 January 2013

Government Gets Social Part 2: Four Social Media Tips

ThinkGig
by Shaun Trippel

Government institutions are using social media more than ever to communicate with constituents. We recently talked about why it’s so important: Because having direct communication with constituents can advance government effectiveness.

Since some organizations might just be getting started in taking advantage of social media technology and applications, we wanted to provide tips, as there is such a thing as “doing it wrong.”

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24 January 2013

Government and Social Media: Not Just a Passing Trend

ThinkGig
by Shaun Trippel

Social media isn’t just about being social anymore. Businesses aren’t the only one taking advantage of social media to communicate directly with their target audience to boost business. Government institutions of all sizes are getting in on the act, using social media tools to communicate important information to constituents and improve delivery of services.

Government adoption of social media is on the rise so much so that a recent report by the Partnership for Public Service says it’s “not just a passing trend,” rather, an important mechanism for advancing government effectiveness.

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06 December 2012

Cloud Makes it OK to Fail

ThinkGig
by Mindy Powers

As we’ve discussed before, the role of the CIO is constantly evolving in today’s tech environment, but so is business as a whole. So, how should business leaders position their organizations for success in this increasingly cloud-prevalent world?

For a company to thrive, it must seek agility and innovation. We know those are business buzzwords but they are important when it comes to the business environment we will enter over the next few years. Agility will be important to integrate technology, and innovation will be needed to make organizational changes that blend information technology more closely with the lines of business.

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06 November 2012

Three Ways to Get Your Organization in the Big Data Game

ThinkGig
by Dennis Brouwer

When it comes to Big Data, your organization could be missing out on key advantages to find and keep customers. Businesses today are producing and processing masses of data — at breadths, depths and velocities never seen before — and they’re using the information collected for competitive advantage with customers. But many organizations might not fully recognize the value of all the data being managed. In fact, only 37 percent of IT and business managers are familiar with the Big Data concept, according to CompTIA’s recent “Big Data Insights and Opportunities” study.

But according to the latest research, organizations that use analytics, and use them creatively—finding interesting patterns and following them down the rabbit hole, as data scientist Bill Franks says — are the ones reaping value.

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30 October 2012

Beware BYOD? Not With These 3 Key Policy Traits

ThinkGig
by Mindy Powers

Now that the Bring Your Own Device movement has taken hold in the business world, the first step organizations must take is to create a policy for the employees who access company data and applications with their own smartphones, tablets or laptops.

Unfortunately, though many companies have joined the movement, 71 percent of organizations have not yet taken the step of creating a specific BYOD policy or procedure to ensure security, according to a recent study by KnowBe4 and ITIC.

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15 October 2012

How Much Is Your Data Center Really Costing You? [INFOGRAPHIC]

ThinkGig
by Blake Wetzel

We understand that increased data usage and the adoption of cloud environments are putting a strain on your current data center requirements. And for those of you who are still running your own data centers, the costs and growth are just going to continue to increase. In fact, according to salary.com, you’re probably already paying $450,000 a year for 5 IT managers to run your data center 24/7/365, and that number is just going to get bigger as your business and data needs grow.

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04 October 2012

Is the CIO Role Shrinking? Three Ways to Secure the Spotlight

ThinkGig
by Mindy Powers

With more organizations turning to the cloud and third-party providers for data and network infrastructure services, technology leaders are seeing changes to their responsibilities and roles within the company like never before.

It’s no wonder CIOs are looking for more efficient technology. With technical operations, internal business needs, the mobile workforce, the influx of the BYOD, and business-capable Web applications, IT leaders have a full plate.

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