Aligning IT: Recent Episodes
The IT Company
Technology, and IT, have long been a necessary evil. Over the past five years technology has accelerated to the point where tech is now a driver, and critical to the success of the business. The Aligning IT podcast addresses the alignment of IT to business outcomes in order to achieve the greatest results for your business.
Rounding out our "Are You Prepared for Crisis?" series, Hank Brown joined Paul Sponcia to share his expertise on preparing for crisis by staying ahead of the curve.
In a four part series, Hank Brown joined Paul Sponcia in sharing his expertise in guiding you to ensure your basic needs are met in the midst of a crisis you don’t expect. In the third episode he focuses in on normalcy bias.
Hank Brown joined Paul Sponcia in sharing his expertise in guiding you to ensure your basic needs are met in the midst of a crisis you don’t expect.
The IT Company's Paul Sponcia joined cyber insurance expert Andy Huddleston for a live webinar to understand the need of both these elements.
The IT Company's CEO, Paul Sponcia, joined Hank Brown in discussing ways to ensure you are prepared for crisis. Whether from a business perspective or in your personal life, understanding crisis and being prepared for how to handle it when it arises, is crucial.
The IT Company's CEO, Paul Sponcia, shared the top 3 indicators that it is time to start outsourcing your business's I.T.
The IT Company's Paul Sponcia and Cody Crowell are bringing you tips and insight on how to maximize the tools within Teams. Get the most out of the platform you are paying for by effectively using group chats.
For those of you using Microsoft Teams, check out this short video as The IT Company's Paul Sponcia and Cody Crowell walk you through integrating applications and creating tabs within Microsoft Teams to maximize the platform's capabilities.
Maximize using Microsoft Teams by effectively sharing files. Listen as The IT Company's Paul Sponcia and Cody Crowell share insight and tips on file sharing.
M365 (Formerly Office365) is a powerful platform that most businesses are now using for Email, and for enhanced collaboration with Microsoft Teams BUT....there is so much more.
This time we will focus in on: - Video collaboration and meeting functionality - Integrating apps with Tabs to create a centralized hub within teams - How to setup, use and the power of External sharing - Some of the other M365 apps such as Planner, Stream, To-Do and others - Video collaboration and meeting functionality - Integrating apps with Tabs to create a centralized hub within teams - How to setup, use and the power of External sharing - Some of the other M365 apps such as Planner, Stream, To-Do and others
We have done 3 webinars already on this topic, so this is part 4 after the SBA has released a new set of PPP rules and new guidance on those rules.
Specifically we address: 1. Changes post June 5th related to the maturity timeframe moving from 2 years for payback to 5 years 2. The change from 75% payroll use, to 60% payroll use 3. The extension from 8 weeks to 24 weeks for the payroll period 4. The changes for the timeframe to apply for forgiveness being extended to 12/31 As well as a myriad of other small details.
- Intro
- M365 Use, Configuration and Security
- Practical Use, Functionality, Tips and Tricks
- Teams is the hub, so what is it?
- Functionality, Tips and Tricks
- Pinning Apps to the Teams Window
- Status and Status Message
- Creating Chat Groups, Using Them, Tips and Pop Out Option
- Using a Team, Creating Channels and Priv Channels, Email Functionality, etc
- Using your team to store, edit, share, comment and collaborate on files
- Setting folders as "View" only
- File version history and restore capabilities
- Using OneDrive's Files to Go Sync Capabilities
The IT Company's Kenneth Herring joined Jutta Bangs, Director, Small Business Development Center (TSBDC) at Roane State Community College, as she provided advice and tips on how small business owners can successfully reopen. Topics covered include: Continuing customer engagement, Ideas to improve your cash position and profitability, and Controlling your inventory.
In this episode, Kenneth Herring hosts Cayce Smith (Cope Architecture), Sara Martin (Open Door Architecture) and Daryl Johnson (Johnson Architecture) discuss potential changes we may see in architecture and design, due to COVID-19. Areas such as office space layout, increases in handwashing and sanatazion stations, and fresh air flow are all covered. We also talk about changes other pandemics have already impacted our homes and offices.
CEO Paul Sponcia will be hosting this follow-up webinar from last weeks update video with with our two two experts from law and accounting: - Chris Trump, a Shareholder and Attorney with Egerton, McAfee, Armistead and Davis, PC - Adam Slack. Partner and CEO of Two Roads Accounting
This time we will cover the most recent guidance AND the recent PPP forgivness application that came out. Our experts will talk some more on how to interpret, track, address, etc.
People are trying to take action via cyberspace with malevolent intent. the ones of greatest concern are
- Nation states
- Highly organized criminal organizations
They will apply warfare techniques, such as attacking targets at their weakest points and timed for greatest advantageous to them and least to the target. Any time there is disruption of distraction, then the opportunist will use that to achieve their objectives.
Understanding the tensions that exist between various systems, such as the cyber security concepts around Confidentiality, Availability and Integrity. Emphasizing any of these requires de-emphasizing of the others. This creates risk, risk which needs to be identified, and then mitigated and bound where and when possible.
- Most modern things we enjoy are dependent on power, communications and water.
- These are all very fragile, and we are seeing this more right now during COVID-19
- We have taken these for granted that water, electricity and communications will just always flow because the more we try to gain efficiency the more fragile they become
- We cannot do much about the risks, we can't change the risks of a foreign government attacking a utility for instance BUT you can prepare yourself for if that happens
- Create a buffer for your family, such as pre-purchasing a two week supply of your critical items to buy space and time to adjust to your new conditions and then not be desperate
- Buying things in advance that you will use, not things you don't need
- You can think stay in front of the curve of disruption
Get the right people in the right seats on the bus (Jim Collins)
- Steady/Patient people, like it steady and don't move their cheese. When they blow it's epic. Tell them why you are changing their world. This makes work from home more stressful for folks in this category. Their productivity will increase when out of "high traffic" areas to home.
- Understand when to work from home, and who is best suited to work from home
- There are some people who just cannot do it - it's without structure, the 80% finishers can't do it without the team pressure and specific "wins" they will lose track
- Requires understanding structure and expectations, give them good hard deadlines and last minute pressure
- Hire them right, but ensure you are also inspiring them right
- This is a chance to learn from this, discipline your talents, manage yourself well as people are going to be looking at talent in this time.
Four forces that destroy culture and engagement
- Their manager, people quit managers not their job
- Job fit, just not the right fit
- The team, not on the right team or a bad team
- The culture, a bad culture
Remote makes it even harder. Understanding people is a bigger deal the ever
- Extroverts have to talk it out
- Introverts need to think it out
What does this mean?
- Send agendas to the introverts first, so they are ready and tell them what you need and want from them.
- Extroverts won't prepare, they will talk and disrupt. Be ready.
Transitioning people to the "work from home" requires managing the people, not the environment.
- You don't treat others the way you want to be treated, you treat people the way THEY want to be treated - the platinum rule. Lead the way they need and want to be led
- Know your people, so you know how to lead them so use tools to understand your people
- There is value in all psychometrics, PI allows for a 5 minute test to get insights quickly
- Without a tool it's all guessing on the drives unless you are just intuitive by nature, which is rare
- Good tools have software which allows you to manage and understand your team more, and how to best motivate and interact with them
- Demarc a space, where will you work and make it sacred and setup for you to work effectively
- Ensure you have natural lighting, don't be in a cave
- Use technology to meet regularly with your team AND use video
- Dress up for work, dress professionally - it will make you more productively mentally
- Create to-do lists and block it on the calendar, start the day like your normally would and start on time
- Work in blocks, and take physical AND mental breaks
- Watch the fridge, stay healthy!
Aligning IT means creating greater outcomes for your business. The work from home movement is a threat to outcomes to many ways, but it doesn't have to be. We sat down with Karen Clark to discuss how the work from home movement has expanded the security "attack surface" and what businesses can do to start securing these new environments to ensure disruption doesn't affect alignment and better business outcomes.
Kent Cunningham, Microsoft Civilian Gov CTO, tell us how Microsoft "Eats its own dog food" and leverages it's own technology in M365 to run its business.
This is a follow-up web recording from our original webinar where we cover the latest guidance sent out on May 13th regarding the PPP loan forgiveness with Chris Trump
Kent Cunningham, Microsoft Civilian Gov CTO spent some time with us discussing his experiences, and Microsoft's experiences, as a virtual worker for 15 + years.
Paul Sponcia brought together two experts, Adam Slack from Two Roads Accounting, and Chris Trump, Attorney with Egerton, McAfee, Armistead and Davis, to discuss the COVID-19 PPP loan, and specifically how to track, manage and what guidance exists on pay back.