Look into the future by asking "What if . . ."

Have you ever made a decision which didn’t turn out as hoped? It's OK. Everyone has. When faced with difficult decisions, I’m sure most wish they could peak into the future to make the right choice. If you’ve ever felt like that with difficult business decisions, I have something that will help.

No, sadly you still can’t see into the future. But, I’d like to introduce the next best thing for businesses: The m-Power what-if analysis report!

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8 ways to reclaim your focus at work

I frequently write about tools to increase productivity in the workplace. However, the most valuable tool of all is perhaps the most overlooked: Your mind. It’s a very complicated tool. Some days, it works great. You have no problems focusing and you’re quite productive. Other days, it feels like your mind is still at home sleeping.

Why does that happen? Perhaps more importantly…How can we fix that?

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5 indispensible IT skills of the future

Technology is constantly evolving. I’m sure many companies wish it moved a little slower. It probably seems like every time you catch up from a tech standpoint, something changes…and you’re behind again.

While keeping up with changing technology is a challenge, I believe there are many opportunities as well. For example, new technology provides one of the best ways for companies to save money. With every new advancement in tech, comes new and efficient ways to operate.

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Geolocation: Web apps that know where you are?

Our HTML5 tutorial this week focuses on an area of HTML5 that you may already be using: Geolocation. Chances are, if you use a smartphone, you’ve encountered geolocation-aware web pages.

In short, geolocation gives a web page/application the ability to find the user's location. While that might sound like an invasion of privacy, there’s no need to worry. A website can’t find your location without your permission.

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14 ways to kill creativity

Do you feel like your company lags behind the competition? Do you feel like you’re struggling to keep up? I’d like to tell you about the secret key to innovation. It’s something that every company has: Employees! Specifically, your employee’s ideas are a great way to fuel innovation.

Every company wants to think that their corporate culture fosters new employee ideas. They want to think (or at least say) that their employees are their best asset. Here’s my question: What do the employees say?

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10 apps to optimize your smartphone

When you consider that just 10 short years ago we carried cell phones that doubled as weapons, it’s truly amazing what our phones can accomplish these days. Thanks to cell phone advancements, many of the tasks previously possible inside the office can now be performed anywhere.

Savvy businesses take advantage of these new capabilities and empower their workers with phones and apps to improve productivity. For example, I’ve heard how some of our customers created smartphone apps so their salespeople could check real-time stock levels, get directions to customer’s locations, and view up-to-the minute reports. In fact, in an effort to prove Android’s superiority over the iPhone, one of our customers created a web app with m-Power using his Droid smartphone.

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HTML5 Tutorial: Canvas is flash without Flash

When you hear about HTML5, some new features cause more excitement than others among web developers. The new canvas element is one of those features. The canvas element is an area you can place on a page and fill with a variety of items, such as: Images, text, graphs, charts, animations, interactive tools, etc…

If you’ve spent any time on the internet, you’re familiar with Flash-based games and web tools. The canvas element is similar, but does not require Flash. Like the new video tag we covered a couple of weeks ago, the canvas takes another step in freeing us from third party plug-ins. It also takes another step in creating a consistent browsing experience across all platforms, including smartphones.

Want to learn how to use the new canvas element? You will find the tutorial in our forums.

Why do 80% of spreadsheets contain errors?

According to a number of different surveys conducted over the last few years, spreadsheets are still a commonly used tool for business intelligence. But, according to this article in CIO.com, 80% of spreadsheets contain significant errors.

Think about that for a second. Many companies still rely on spreadsheets for critical decisions, but most spreadsheets contain significant errors. In other words, critical decisions are made every day based on error-filled spreadsheets. How much does this hurt business?

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33 free and low cost web-based tools for business

In the past, business applications were synonymous with high cost. Why? There weren’t any cheaper, quality options. Vendors realized this and knew they could charge high user or monthly fees. I’m blown away when I hear how much certain applications or systems cost.

I believe this practice is on its way out. The rise of web applications is slowly changing the game. These days, there are plenty of good, cheap (and sometimes free), web-based application alternatives for you to try.

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What screen-scraping vendors don't want you to know

I still run across companies seriously considering the screen-scraping approach to modernization. For those unfamiliar with screen-scraping, it is the process of creating new, modern-looking interfaces on top of old legacy applications.

Why do people still use screen-scraping? Maybe they’re blinded by the price. Maybe they believe the vendor’s sales pitch. Maybe they just don’t know all the problems associated with screen-scraping.

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5 tips for becoming a better leader

What makes a good leader? I see some companies who assume a good leader is someone who is very smart or who is very good at their job. Not necessarily. While it’s definitely possible, a great employee does not always translate into a great leader.

A leader inspires others to be better. A leader improves their employee’s productivity. A leader sets a good example.

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10 tech skills in demand right now

I hear many tech people complain that no one is hiring IT staff. On the flip side, I hear complaints from companies who can’t find good IT talent. I’m confused…considering the job market, there must be qualified help available for nearly any skill-set.

According to Dice.com, there is a high demand for skilled IT staff, particularly in programming and software development. In fact, they say there are over 14,000 job openings for Java developers alone.

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How to drive customers away

Did you know that shoddy computer systems can actually drive customers away? Here’s an excellent example on consumerist.com, which illustrates how one company’s inept systems harmed business. In this case, it not only drove customers away, it drove those customers to warn other potential customers about them.

I found one point particularly interesting about the whole ordeal. The customer states that whenever they went into the store, they had to wait 20 minutes while an employee checked the warehouse stock levels. Today, that should be automatic. In fact, 1 minute is too long for something as simple as checking stock levels.

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