Recent technological improvements have made hybrid meetings more effective. With the Bring Your Own Meeting concept, running video meetings from your own laptop in the meeting room, is only one click away. BYOM puts the user at the heart of the collaboration experience. However, other collaboration solutions put the meeting room and the technology first.

Different setups in the video-enabled meeting room

Today we can distinguish roughly 3 types of meeting room setups.

Empty room
For those rooms that are not yet equipped with any technology, you can bring all the benefits of ClickShare to them by simply combining ClickShare with AV equipment from one of our more than 120 global alliance partners.

 

Room with wired setup
In a wired meeting room, you can find a display, camera and audio. Whenever you want to connect to the display, you need to connect your laptop via a cable. With ClickShare, you get rid of the cable and make the setup much easier to use, wireless and hassle free.

 

Fixed conference room
You can even add ClickShare to a meeting room that has a fixed conference room setup, such as a Microsoft Teams Room. Sharing content in a face-to-face meeting or teleconference becomes effortless. With ClickShare you can easily switch between UC&C platforms mode and Bring Your Own Meeting mode.

BYOM room solutions offer the possibility to switch platforms and use the devices, videoconferencing platforms and setups users prefer. In a wired BYOM setup, you need an HDMI-cable to share content on screen, whereas in a wireless BYOM room, you use wireless collaboration solutions like ClickShare to get content on the room display.

Sometimes IT departments decide to roll out one video conferencing platform throughout the organization, accompanied with installation of the accompanying fixed conference rooms (Room systems). These provide a simple way to have a videoconference or a hybrid meeting. Microsoft Teams Rooms or Zoom Rooms offer a complete meeting experience.

What are users struggling with in fixed room setups?

These typical fixed room features can cause quite some frustrations for end-users, especially when they easily want to start meetings from their own devices.

1. Different rooms, different setups
1 in 2 is confused by different setups in different rooms
When you equip a meeting room, you want  users to be able to intuitively get started with the conferencing equipment installed. When having different setups, different peripherals and different room systems with dedicated user interfaces, that can be tricky and may lead to extra training, more IT tickets and lots of phone calls.

2. Cable troubles
57% think it’s a hassle connecting the cable of the meeting room display
Which cable goes where? What do you do when you have multiple presenters? The search delays the start of the meeting or causes unwelcome interruptions. Moreover, when you want to switch presenters in a space with a fixed in-room system, there is only one cable available, and you must pass on that very same cable.

3. Platform troubles
65% is unable to connect to the meeting room system
Have you ever tried having a Zoom call in a Microsoft Teams Room, or a Teams call in a Zoom Room? Fair to say, that’s quite cumbersome. In a fixed room setup, you are prompted to use the video conferencing platform the room is designed for. Switching platforms is not an easy option.

4. Sharing content is hard
58% have issues with sharing content 

1. Wireless content sharing in a face-to-face meeting
   A room with a fixed in-room system is intrinsically inflexible. You have the option to share content with a cable. If you hop into a fixed conferencing room to have a face-to-face meeting, wireless content sharing can be a challenge. You need to book a video call, join the call and turn off the audio. Only then can you wirelessly share content without audio echoes.
2. Content sharing side by side
   Sometimes you need to compare documents and different presenters want to share content on screen. However, not every setup allows for multiple sources on screen or side-by-side sharing. A Microsoft Teams Room only has one cable to share content to the meeting room display, so switching presenters means handing over the cable in the meeting room.
3. Content sharing in a videocall
   Sharing content in the room does not equal sharing content in the video call. Sometimes, additional presenters need to dial into the video call as extra participant before they can share content in the video call as well. This can cause annoying audio interferences in the meeting room itself.
4. Content sharing from a mobile device
   Have you ever tried sharing a video or image from a mobile device in a fixed room? There’s no way to connect the cable to your phone or tablet. Nor are there features to enable screen mirroring via Airplay, Google Cast or Miracast.

5. No decent view on content & people
65% want to see people & content equally good
For the most equitable experience in a video meeting, you want to be able to see and connect with remote colleagues. Remote participants should have an equal part on the meeting screen as the content displayed. Not all meeting rooms have multiple screens, or a room display that is large enough (like 21:9) to show both people and content. In a Microsoft Teams Room, the full pixel space of the meeting display is not optimally used. There are always black borders around the shared content.

6. Unwelcome to guests
1 in 2 systems do not allow external guests to participate in collaboration
Working with complicated control panels, having no access to the company network or having to install software can only add up to the complexity of joining meetings for guests. In addition, guests are not always accustomed to the platform used in the fixed room or have the right account to start the video meeting. Which adds up to the complexity of sharing content.

7. Ad hoc video meetings are a nightmare
62% of meetings is unscheduled
Unplanned and unscheduled meetings in a fixed room take time, simply because the room setup does not allow for easy wireless content sharing in an ad hoc meeting. You need to schedule your call upfront before you can start the meeting from the room console.

8. Room systems can be costly
1 in 2 IT managers want to invest more in hybrid meetings
Rooms with fixed in-room systems often eat up your budget, as you installed high-cost equipment and have recurring license costs.

Moreover, meeting rooms with complex or malfunctioning video conferencing setups are usually not used often enough. Recurring technical issues with equipment are the main reason for users to stop using certain spaces. People don’t want to lose time with starting and running meetings. They simply want the setup to work.

The service tickets to fix issues simply take too much of your precious time. If you want to save on both money and time and enjoy a better ROI and higher adoption rates in your meeting rooms, you need a solution that is easy-to-use, easy-to-manage and a good investment in the long run.

What now?

Download our infographic.

Don’t worry, there are wireless collaboration solutions that help you improve the user experience in a fixed room. Download our Design Guide white paper, here.

The post What are your Biggest Struggles with Tech in UC Rooms?  appeared first on My TechDecisions.

AI has the potential to significantly improve business operations, boost productivity and create new opportunities. According to a report by IBM, 35% of businesses worldwide were already using some form of AI technology in 2022.  Additionally, 61% of employees believe integrating AI into their workflow has made them more efficient and productive.

However, integrating AI with existing systems can be a complex process that requires careful planning and execution. Organizations that fail to integrate AI properly may miss out on its benefits or, worse, experience negative consequences such as biased decision-making or data breaches.

This article will explore the strategies for successful AI integration and how organizations can leverage this technology for maximum benefits. We will also discuss the key considerations to keep in mind when integrating AI with your existing systems.

Tips for Successful AI Integration

Integrating AI into existing systems is not just a matter of acquiring the latest technology. It requires careful consideration of various factors and proper planning. Below, let’s look at five tips that will help you integrate AI with your existing systems effectively.

1. Develop a Clear AI Integration Strategy

Developing a clear AI integration strategy is the first and most crucial step in ensuring successful AI integration. The strategy should clearly define business objectives, identify key stakeholders and outline the resources required to achieve these objectives. It should also include a roadmap outlining the key milestones and metrics for measuring success.

To develop an effective AI integration strategy, you must consider your organization’s long-term goals. Why do you want to integrate AI with your system? For example, 38% of businesses use AI primarily for cost reduction. However, this is not the only business use case of AI. Other popular use cases include improving customer experience, generating business intelligence and automating internal processes.

Besides the immediate needs of the business, consider the scalability and adaptability of AI to changing business needs. You also need to consider the potential impact of AI on the workforce, customer experience and brand reputation.

2. Ensure Data Quality and Availability

AI algorithms rely on accurate and relevant data to make informed decisions, so you must ensure that your organization has high-quality data that is accessible and available when needed.

To ensure data quality, you must implement data governance policies that define data ownership, standards and procedures for maintaining data quality. You should also invest in data management tools that enable efficient data collection, cleaning and integration.

Ensuring data availability involves making data accessible to the AI system when needed. For this to happen, the organization has to develop data pipelines that can feed the AI system with real-time data. However, it’s also important to ensure that these data pipelines are designed to ensure data security, privacy and compliance with regulatory requirements.

3. Train and Upskill Employees

AI integration requires a skilled workforce that can understand, develop and manage AI systems. Your organization should therefore invest in training and upskilling employees, both technical and non-technical, to ensure that they can work collaboratively with AI systems and leverage their full potential.

Here, it’s essential to design training programs that cater to different levels of expertise, from basic awareness to advanced skills. Technical training should focus on programming languages, data management, machine learning, and model development, while non-technical training should focus on business understanding, AI ethics and decision-making.

You should also design upskilling programs to support employee growth and development, such as mentorship programs and access to AI learning resources. It’s also important for the organization to encourage employees to explore new AI use cases and ideas.

4. Address Cultural and Organizational Challenges

AI integration can disrupt the status quo, change human job roles and create uncertainty among employees. Addressing these challenges is important if you want to mitigate resistance and create buy-in.

A good way to demonstrate the benefits of AI is to showcase successful AI implementations and how they have contributed to other organizations’ overall business objectives. For example, in the medical field, AI can be used to speed up medical diagnoses, provide better customer service and improve medical research.

You should also involve employees in decision-making by encouraging them to provide feedback and suggestions on how AI can be integrated into their daily work.

5. Ensure Compliance With Legal and Ethical Standards

AI integration should comply with legal and ethical standards to avoid reputational and legal risks. Your organization must also ensure its AI systems are transparent, explainable and ethical.

Transparency and explainability are essential to building trust with stakeholders and ensuring that AI decisions are fair and unbiased. The organization should document the AI system’s decision-making processes, including the data and algorithms used and the model’s output.

Your organization should also ensure its AI systems comply with relevant regulations, such as the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA). Ethical considerations should be embedded in the AI system’s development, deployment, and maintenance.

To ensure compliance, you must establish an AI governance framework that includes policies, procedures and standards for AI development and deployment. This framework should be regularly reviewed and updated to reflect changing regulatory and ethical standards.

Key Considerations for AI Integration

When integrating AI with existing systems, there are several key considerations organizations should take into account. These include:

Data Quality

Poor quality data can lead to inaccurate predictions and insights, undermining the benefits of AI integration. Before integrating AI, you must ensure that your organization’s data is accurate, complete and consistent. This may involve cleaning and transforming data or collecting new data to train the AI models.

Security

Integrating AI with existing systems can have significant cybersecurity implications. AI-powered systems may access sensitive data and, if not properly secured, can result in data breaches and cyberattacks. Therefore, you must ensure appropriate security measures are in place to protect your organization’s systems and data. This may include access controls, encryption and regular security audits.

Scalability

As your business grows, its data volumes and processing requirements will increase, requiring more powerful AI systems. To meet future demands, ensure that your chosen AI systems can scale. This may involve selecting scalable cloud-based solutions or building scalable on-premises systems.

Ethics

AI-powered systems can have significant societal and ethical implications, and organizations must consider the ethical implications of AI integration. For example, AI-powered systems may introduce bias or discriminate against certain groups, leading to social and legal implications. Thus, you must ensure that your organization’s AI systems are developed and deployed ethically, with proper oversight and governance.

AI Integration Benefits

AI integration is a key driver of digital transformation and can help organizations improve efficiency, increase productivity and gain a competitive edge. However, successful AI integration requires a well-thought-out strategy that takes into account various factors, including data quality, technology selection, employee training, cultural and organizational readiness and compliance with legal and ethical standards.

By following the strategies outlined in this article, organizations can successfully integrate AI into their existing systems and reap the maximum benefits. These benefits include improved decision-making, enhanced customer experience, increased revenue and reduced costs.

Isla Sibanda is a B2B copywriter from Cape Town, South Africa with a background in computer science and ethical hacking. Since 2012 she’s worked with local and international companies completing numerous bug bounty programs and pen tests.

The post AI Integration: How To Integrate AI With Existing Systems for Maximum Benefits appeared first on My TechDecisions.

According to Microsoft, this allows users to create an image simply by using their own words to describe the picture they want to see, allowing users to generate both written and visual content in Bing Chat.

Users in the Bing preview will begin to see Bing Image Creator fully integrated into the chat experience, initially rolling out in Creative mode. Users can type in a description of an image, provide additional context and choose an art style. Image Creator will then generate an image based on those inputs.

Image Creator will also be available in Microsoft Edge, which the company says makes Edge the first browser with an integrated AI-powered image generator.

Like ChatGPT, Bing and other text-based generative AI tools, Microsoft says it is taking a responsible approach to Image Creator, ensuring OpenAI’s safeguards and additional protections such as controls designed to limit the generation of harmful or unsafe images.

“When our system detects that a potentially harmful image could be generated by a prompt, it blocks the prompt and warns the user,” the company says in a blog.

In addition, Microsoft will make it clear that images are generated by AI via a modified Bing icon in the bottom left corner to help indicate that the image was made using Image Creator. Microsoft says it is working with OpenAI on other mitigations in this area.

To start, Microsoft is rolling out the Image Creator in a phased approach by piloting with preview users before expanding more broadly. Image Creator will only be available in the Create mode of Bing Chat, but Microsoft will make it available in Balanced and Precise mode over time.

Microsoft is also making Stories and Knowledge Cards 2.0 available to all Bing users. According to the company, Stories provide another way to search and interact with content, offering images and short videos.

Knowledge Cards 2.0, meanwhile, is an AI-powered infographic-inspired experience designed to provide fun facts and key information at a glance, the company says. The new experiences includes interactive content like charts, graphs, timelines, visual stories and more.

Bing Image Creator integrated into Bing chat will begin to roll out to Bing preview users on both desktop and mobile starting today, the company says. Those not in the new Bing preview can access Image Creator at bing.com/create.

The post Microsoft Begins Rolling Out DALL∙E-Based Image Creator in Bing appeared first on My TechDecisions.

One widely embraced term, zero-trust architecture (ZTA), calls for continually vetting users as they access different applications and devices in a network. With a long list of requirements like multifactor authentication (MFA), identity verification, and traffic encryption, ZTA surely provides a comprehensive framework for securing your digital environment. But does it enable the most productive workflow? The short answer – not always.

Businesses embracing ZTA often implement siloed solutions. However, as we’ve seen with surging supply chain attacks, hackers often move laterally across the network, and fragmentation can create unknown vulnerabilities for them to exploit. Without strong integrations between solutions, ZTA can also require frequent verification and re-authentication between applications – not an ideal workflow.

There’s no slowing the growth of IoT and hybrid work environments, or the emerging technologies meant to secure them. So, analysts have come up with a new term that goes beyond ZTA and suggests a deeper, better integrated layer of security: cybersecurity mesh architecture (CSMA).

What is cybersecurity mesh?

Cybersecurity mesh was coined by Gartner to offer a new perspective on strengthening security, and it should be viewed as the foundation to build your ZTA. By connecting the security tools used across a network, CSMA bolsters defenses around every critical access point, rather than traditional security around the perimeter.

As organizations embrace digitalization, strong integrations will be key to enabling seamless, invisible security. By acting as an identity fabric grounded in flexibility and scalability, CSMA calls for integrations that leverage analytics to help organizations remain adaptable, defensive and responsive in the event of a cyber incident.

However, to implement effective CSMA, it’s important to understand the trends and changes that led to its development.

Changes in the cyber landscape

The traditional perimeter for user access has disappeared. Remote access is now necessary for businesses – from third-party vendors to users working from home. While a virtual private network (VPN) or remote desktop protocol (RDP) was once effective in preventing breaches, evolving attacks prove they just aren’t enough.

Hackers are setting their targets on access points that allow for lateral movement, often through a VPN or RDP. This is becoming more common as it allows hackers to move through the network until they reach the most valuable data to breach, such as financial information. Users connecting from more devices and locations adds to the complexity.

All this creates a decentralized environment, introducing new risks that typically didn’t threaten the previous ‘castle-and-moat’ method of security.

Impacting over 18,000 customers, the infamous SolarWinds attack is an example of how costly and widespread these attacks can be. It stands out as one of the most sophisticated hacks against critical infrastructure.

The threat to the global supply chain is imminent. While some may view cybersecurity mesh as another buzzword, all organizations should consider it when developing a digital identity strategy and building ZTA.

The next defense: implementing cybersecurity mesh

By 2024, Gartner predicts that organizations with CSMA will reduce the financial impact of individual security incidents by 90%, on average. Unfortunately, the next attack is a matter of if, not when. To ensure your business doesn’t fall victim, follow these steps to secure your integral assets with cybersecurity mesh:

• Identify your critical access points. Understand where the most valuable data is stored and how it’s accessed. Establish authentication methods and access policies around those points, ensuring the solutions used are well-integrated.
• Strategically outline your plan for ZTA and move away from VPN and RDP access. Enforce a ‘never trust, always verify’ approach. Start by implementing MFA at the most valuable touchpoints to control who has access to essential data. This is the simplest way to prevent lateral movement even if there is a breach.
• Use analytics to monitor and audit user behavior. These tools give organizations clarity and insight into user access and movement – allowing them to identify suspicious activity that might lead to a breach and empowering them to act before one occurs.
• Assess and establish better relationships with third parties. Third-party connections are a primary gateway that cybercriminals take advantage of in gaining access to valuable data. Improving visibility into their external users and operations is key for an effective cybersecurity mesh strategy.

By ‘meshing’ together these cybersecurity solutions, businesses can validate the specific access privileges for each digital identity. This provides a cohesive blueprint for governing user activity, completely safeguarding critical assets. Cyber threats will only grow more agile and sophisticated. To protect your organization from the breaches of the future, consider trending efforts, like cybersecurity mesh.

The post Building a Foundation for Zero Trust with Cybersecurity Mesh appeared first on My TechDecisions.

Microsoft Teams on Macs with Apple silicon

Microsoft will be rolling out a native Teams app optimized for Mac users with Apple silicon designed to make Teams run better on Mac computers.

In a short Tech Community blog, Microsoft says the move will bring about a significant boost in performance and ensure efficient use of device resources, even when using multiple high-resolution monitors during calls or meetings.

“Microsoft is committed to innovation and committed to the Mac, so we’re excited to bring this to our Mac users,” the company wrote in the blog.

All Mac users will be automatically upgraded with their most recent update to Teams, and the general availability version of the native Teams app on Mac with Apple silicon will be incrementally rolled out to customers over the next few months.

According to Engadget, the updated app comes about two years after Apple released its first Silicon-powered M1 devices, but Teams has run using Rosetta 2 translation, resulting in slow startup times, lag and other performance issues.

AWS, Azure, Google Cloud Continue Dominance

It’s not exactly surprising, but new research from tech market analysis firm Canalys shows that Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud combined to make up 63% of global cloud spending in the second quarter of 2022, and they collectively grew 42%.

AWS was the leading cloud service provider in the second quarter accounting for 31% of all cloud infrastructure services spend, growing 33% on an annual basis. Azure was next with a 24% market share after growing 40% annually. While Google Cloud grew 45% in the quarter, it ranked third with an 8% market share.

Meanwhile, worldwide spending on cloud infrastructure grew 33% year over year to $62.3 billion, driven by demand for data analytics and machine learning, data center consolidation, application migration, cloud-native development and service delivery.

VMware, Cisco Patches

IT giants VMware and Cisco have released security advisories urging users to immediately patch critical vulnerabilities that could result in a range of compromises.

VMware’s warning to admins says an authentication bypass vulnerability in VMware Workspace One Access, Identity Manager and vRealize Automation could allow an attacker to gain admin privileges. Other important bugs to patch quickly are remote code execution and privilege escalation flaws, according to a VMware blog.

Meanwhile, Cisco also disclosed several vulnerabilities in Small Business RV160, RV260, RV340, and RV345 Series Routers that could allow an unauthenticated, remote attacker to execute arbitrary code or cause denial of service.

Since patches are available for both companies’ products, admins should waste no time in applying them to protect their organization.

Cybersecurity threats per minute

Microsoft published an infographic that details how many kinds of cyberattacks are happening in any given 60-second window, including how many it blocks.

The results are alarming, but not necessarily unexpected.

According to Microsoft, there are 34,740 password attacks, 1,902 IoT-based attacks, 1,095 DDoS attacks and 7 phishing attacks every minute.

Meanwhile, the company says it blocks hundreds of thousands of attacks every minute, including 18,265 malware threats, 48,706 brute force attacks, 58,980 identity threats, 17,123 endpoint threats, 60,882 email threats and 1,065 open ports.

The post This Week in IT: Teams and Apple Silicon, Cloud Leaders, VMware and Cisco Patches appeared first on My TechDecisions.

TORONTO–(BUSINESS WIRE)–As the eCommerce holiday shopping officially kicks off this week with Amazon Prime Days, GroupBy, a SaaS-based eCommerce product discovery technology leader, published an infographic outlining how retailers can maximize sales with next-gen search.

Online holiday sales are projected to reach $235.86 billion this year, with half coming from mobile devices, according to Adobe. The customer experience is critical to maximizing the holiday shopping season, regardless of where or how consumers are shopping – in-store, online or buying online and picking up in-store.

Starting with Search

A website’s search function is one of the most significant online revenue sources. Poor search experiences account for $300 billion in lost revenue in the U.S. each year, with three out of four consumers leaving a site for a competitor after an unsuccessful search, according to Google. When selecting a site search partner, the essential features to look for include:

• AI-powered product discovery solution built using state-of-the-art AI algorithms.
• Hyper-personalization that leverages Al, real-time data, and connects in-store and online user profiles to deliver more relevant results.
• Scalable omnichannel functionality that enables store/zip code level search across platforms and devices, while supporting all fulfillment types.
• Merchandising platform that is optimized for revenue, increases productivity and empowers merchandising teams to make data-driven decisions with actionable insights.

GroupBy’s Product Discovery Platform powered by Google Cloud Retail AI taps into Google’s years of experience delivering personalized content across flagship properties such as Google Search, Google Shopping and YouTube. Gain access to Search, Recommendations, Data Enrichment, Merchandising and Reporting & Analytics directly within a single platform.

To download the infographic, visit groupbyinc.com/-/blog/blog-posts/maximize-ecommerce-holiday-sales-with-next-gen-search.html.

About GroupBy Inc.

GroupBy’s fully cloud-native technology powers the world’s most relevant and highly converting eCommerce websites. Our SaaS-based, Product Discovery Platform powered by Google Cloud Retail AI, provides industry-leading features for data enrichment, search, recommendations, navigation, personalization, merchandising and search analytics, and is backed by our ongoing commitment to partnering with our clients. We excel with complex, large-scale B2B configurations and in dynamic, high volume B2C scenarios. Founded in 2013, GroupBy is headquartered in Toronto, Canada and has offices in Austin, Texas.

Contacts

Brianna LaRouche

(404) 214-0722 Ext. 142

blarouche@trevelinokeller.com

The post GroupBy Infographic: By the Numbers: How to Maximize eCommerce Holiday Sales with Next-gen Search appeared first on My TechDecisions.

Survey also reveals that girls are more confident in their writing than boys, among other findings

SAN FRANCISCO–(BUSINESS WIRE)–#K12–Writing is a critical skill for success in school and beyond, but how do students feel about their writing? A new survey from NoRedInk, a provider of adaptive online writing curriculum, reveals that student writing confidence decreases with each successive grade level. The nationwide survey also uncovered several other findings that educators may find informative as they plan for the 2022-23 school year.

Leveraging its presence in over 60% of U.S. school districts, NoRedInk asked more than 60,000 of its student users in grades 4-12, “How confident are you in your writing skills?” It found that student writing confidence drops 5.03% from late elementary school (grades 4-5) to middle school (grades 6-8) and then drops another 4.74% from middle to high school (grades 9-12). As a result, the average fourth grader is nearly 13% more confident in their writing than the average high school senior.

Additionally, female students are 3.75% more confident in their writing than male students. While writing confidence doesn’t vary significantly based on a school’s per-pupil funding, students attending private schools are more confident than students attending public schools.

Unsurprisingly, practice has the greatest effect on writing confidence — and, by extension, on writing proficiency. “An essential part of becoming a great writer is having lots of opportunities to write,” said Jeff Scheur, founder and CEO of NoRedInk. “When students get sufficient practice and meaningful feedback, they begin to see what they’re capable of and to view themselves as writers.”

As an illustration of the power of practice, high schoolers who mastered “Revising Wordiness” on NoRedInk were, on average, 6.57% more confident in their writing than those who didn’t. Similarly, those who mastered “Recognizing Language That Is Too Formal or Too Informal” were 5.22% more confident than those who didn’t and those who mastered “Building Counterargument Paragraphs” were 5.14% more confident than those who didn’t.

Students who mastered multiple topics in tandem often reported confidence well above average, particularly when the topics covered complementary grammar and writing skills. NoRedInk found over 1,600 topic pairings for which mastery corresponded with confidence at least 10% above average. For example, students who mastered both “Providing Strong Context for Nonfiction Evidence” and “Dialogue and Flow Quotes” were 10.48% more confident than the average student.

“My students use NoRedInk to produce, evaluate, and improve their writing. Once they had the confidence that they could write clearly and accurately, they were no longer embarrassed or afraid of writing. They wanted to write, and NoRedInk was the springboard that allowed that to happen,” said Kirk Macnider, a former English teacher who is now assistant principal at Schaumburg High School outside of Chicago.

A summary of the survey findings, and a state-by-state breakdown of student writing confidence, can be found in this infographic.

About NoRedInk

NoRedInk helps students in over 60% of U.S. school districts become better writers. The company’s adaptive writing curriculum engages students with exercises based on their interests, guides them through the writing process with instructional support, and boosts their skills through targeted practice. Learners have completed over 10 billion exercises on the site. For more information, visit www.noredink.com.

Contacts

Stephen Gardner, Vice President of Sales & Marketing

stevegardner@noredink.com

The post NoRedInk Survey of 60,000 Students Reveals That Practice Is Key to Increasing Writing Confidence appeared first on My TechDecisions.

• Available this summer, Lumin’s new program, Lumin Response, gives customers in select regions eligibility for financial incentives for automatic energy reduction at certain times to balance the grid.
• Unlike other options in the wholesale demand response market, Lumin’s technology integration is automated for individuals looking for flexibility in offsetting their energy bills.

CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–As energy prices soar and households seek to lower costs and maximize the value of their solar and storage systems, Lumin is partnering with energy market access provider Leap to offer Lumin Response, a program providing homeowners automated participation in the wholesale demand response (DR) market, with financial incentives for energy reduction during times when the local grid is stressed. Launching for select customers in California in July, Lumin Response is the integration of Lumin’s home energy management platform and smart circuit control technology with Leap’s distributed energy resource aggregation platform, reducing a home’s power usage by automatically turning off appliances when electricity prices are highest. Participants will then help balance the electrical grid and receive compensation for their energy reduction.

“Smart energy devices can make an important contribution to grid stability during periods of peak demand,” said Jason Michaels, Chief Commercial Officer at Leap, “Together, Leap and Lumin are making it possible for homeowners to unlock more value from their energy assets and become active participants in creating a more resilient, sustainable energy system.”

Users of Lumin Response will receive an in-app message or email notifying them they are eligible for financial incentives. Once they provide a simple set of preferences for when and how long their appliances can be turned off, participation is seamless and Lumin will automate the entire process.

Lumin’s technology connects the most energy-consuming circuits and various smart devices, including smart thermostats, connected appliances such as refrigerators, smart controllable plugs, and electric vehicle chargers. By interconnecting these devices on its platform, Lumin creates an ecosystem where energy consumption is synchronized and remotely accessible, and controllable, with the energy supply available to a household.

“This partnership presents the first true example of automated value stacking for individual homes in the demand response space, beyond battery participation in virtual power plants,” explained Alex Bazhinov, Founder and CEO of Lumin. “We are thrilled to work with Leap to help modernize residential power loads and provide more flexibility and options for homeowners. Designed to work well for individuals who may or may not have an energy storage system in place, we deliver value from multiple streams.”

Demand response (DR) is a short-term, voluntary decrease in electrical consumption that is usually triggered by compromised grid reliability or high wholesale market prices. While many U.S. utilities offer their customers some DR options, the Lumin-Leap partnership provides a unique, automated DR solution for any appliance connected to a Lumin Energy Platform. In addition, participants can receive direct, performance-based payments for their DR participation rather than an annual credit through their utility or a points system.

“As many municipalities move to enact standards for energy-saving measures in homes, smart appliances that integrate seamlessly with renewable energy systems will become more important as we continue to see energy strain on the grid, and this is why Lumin’s user-friendly, automated system is so valuable,” added Keegan Campanelli, Product Manager at Lumin. “And thanks to our partnership with Leap for wholesale demand response, we can now help homeowners save money at the same time. Lumin Response is a big win for everyone.”

Leap’s software platform makes it easy for smart energy technologies to generate revenue by providing flexibility and support to the grid. The company has dispatched over 10,000 MWh of clean energy to electric grids, reducing over 1,000 metric tons of CO2 and offsetting the equivalent of 3,500 hours from gas-powered peaker plants. Combined with the UL-certified Lumin® Energy Management Platform, users can maximize their energy and the return on investment for their residential solar systems.

About Lumin

Lumin® is the pioneer and market leader for responsive load management, adding exceptional value to residential microgrids by balancing home energy supply and demand. Lumin helps homeowners automatically or manually control their personal microgrid and enhance and protect their investment in solar PV and energy storage. Learn more at luminsmart.com.

About Leap

Leap is the leading global platform for integrating flexible energy resources into global electricity markets. Leap supplies the grid with zero carbon, price-competitive alternatives to fossil-fueled power plants by creating virtual power plants (VPPs) from its partners’ batteries, electric vehicles, smart thermostats, HVAC systems, and industrial facilities. Leap performs all the heavy lifting to operate and stay compliant across wholesale energy markets, enabling partners to unlock hidden revenue, increase customer engagement, and achieve sustainability goals.

Contacts

Technica Communications for Lumin

Sarah Malpeli

Ph. 408-806-9626 Ext. 6840

lumin@technicacommunications.com

The post Lumin and Leap to Help Homeowners to be Automatically Paid to Reduce Energy Use appeared first on My TechDecisions.

CIOs must seize opportunity to advance sustainability to deliver value, tangible outcomes and sustainable impact across their organizations

NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)–As businesses set more ambitious environmental, social and governance (ESG) goals, their sustainability and technology strategies need to become more tightly aligned to gain competitive advantage, financial value and a lasting positive impact on society and the environment, according to new research from Accenture (NYSE: ACN). However, only 7% of respondents have fully integrated their business, technology and sustainability strategies today.

All 560 companies surveyed as part of the report, Uniting Technology and Sustainability: How to Get Full Value From Your Sustainable Technology Strategy, ranked technology as important or very important for achieving their sustainability goals. While companies see clear value in having an integrated strategy, they cite a lack of solutions and standards (40%), complexity (33%) and lack of awareness of unintended consequences of technology (20%) as barriers to reaching their goals. This gap between intent and action leads companies to make trade-offs between business and sustainability goals – trade-offs that can be reduced or eliminated with a holistic, sustainable technology strategy.

Chief Information Officers (CIOs) can play a critical role in supporting their company’s overall transformation efforts and should have a seat at the table on sustainability decisions. But most do not. In fact, only 49% of CIOs are part of the leadership team setting sustainability goals, and just 45% are assessed on achieving these goals.

“Every business must be a sustainable business and technology is a critical and fundamental enabler –from improving transparency and traceability in global supply chains, to helping measure and reduce carbon emissions,” said Sanjay Podder, Technology Sustainability Innovation lead at Accenture. “It is no longer simply optional to put sustainability at the core of how organizations operate. A sustainable technology strategy – one that embeds sustainability in technology, drives sustainability by technology, and scales sustainability by engaging the ecosystem – will help companies deliver 360° value and contribute to the achievement of their broader sustainability goals.”

An effective sustainable technology strategy helps drive business growth and ESG performance by delivering on three key imperatives:

1. Sustainability by technology: Using the power of technology to enable and accelerate sustainability efforts across the organization. Ninety-two percent of companies surveyed aim to achieve net-zero targets by 2030, which will require deployment of advanced technologies to measure, reduce and remove an organization’s carbon footprint. Technology is also key for moving toward responsible value chains; promoting sustainable choices for customers; and building a sustainable organization. Of the companies surveyed that successfully reduced emissions in production and operations, 70% used artificial intelligence (AI) to do it.
2. Sustainability in technology: Protecting people and the planet by making technology itself progressively more sustainable. As more people go online and the use of technology increases, so do the carbon emissions from IT. Embracing green software that is both carbon efficient and carbon aware; building trustworthy systems that incorporate privacy, fairness, transparency, robustness and accessibility; and instituting the right governance mechanisms must be prioritized. Only two of the 560 companies surveyed said they consider energy efficiency at all stages of the software development lifecycle, indicating considerable room for improvement. The report identifies a robust green software development framework that prioritizes material emissions areas including the software development life cycle, as well as green digital experience, cloud, edge, data centers, AI, distributed ledger technology and infrastructure.
3. Sustainability at scale: Pursuing breakthrough innovation with ecosystem partners to develop radically different and more sustainable ways of doing business in the future. No organization can address global sustainability challenges at scale on its own. Companies must work beyond the boundaries of their own organizations to meet the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). Forty-three percent of companies surveyed are now joining industry collaborations, alliances and advocacy groups focused on eco-friendly technology.

Podder added, “Creating and implementing a comprehensive sustainable technology strategy – one that uses technology to drive sustainability at scale while also making technology itself more sustainable – is now the core mission of the purpose-driven CIO. The responsibility is huge, but the opportunity to drive new sources of value and lead the way to a more sustainable future is even bigger.”

Accenture is committed to sustainability across each of the three imperatives, embedding sustainability in everything it does and with everyone it works with. In fact, 95% percent of Accenture’s applications are in the public cloud. A founding and steering member of the Green Software Foundation, Accenture is helping to set standards and catalyze action across industries. It has developed its own green software framework, tools and best practices, and has trained more than 70,000 of its developers on sustainable software engineering practices. Accenture also collaborates with partners—from the largest software and cloud companies to small, disruptive innovators—to help clients achieve their sustainability objectives and deliver outcomes.

Research Methodology

The research was conducted in September and October 2021 via a web survey. The sample comprised of 560 CIOs, CTOs, chief sustainability officers, and those directly reporting to them (directors, VPs) from companies with more than US$1 billion revenue. The research spanned 12 countries and 11 industries.

About Accenture

Accenture is a global professional services company with leading capabilities in digital, cloud and security. Combining unmatched experience and specialized skills across more than 40 industries, we offer Strategy and Consulting, Technology and Operations services and Accenture Song—all powered by the world’s largest network of Advanced Technology and Intelligent Operations centers. Our 699,000 people deliver on the promise of technology and human ingenuity every day, serving clients in more than 120 countries. We embrace the power of change to create value and shared success for our clients, people, shareholders, partners and communities. Visit us at accenture.com.

Contacts

Hannah Unkefer

Accenture

+1 206 839 2172

hannah.m.unkefer@accenture.com

The post Sustainable Technology Strategy Critical for Achieving Business Growth and ESG Performance, According to New Accenture Report appeared first on My TechDecisions.

New global research from Jumio reveals preferences around use of digital identity across financial services, healthcare, social media sites and more

PALO ALTO, Calif.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Jumio, the leading provider of orchestrated end-to-end identity proofing, eKYC and AML solutions, today released the findings of its global research conducted by Opinium, which shows the impact of the increasing use of digital identity on consumer preferences and expectations.

The research questioned 8,000 adult consumers split evenly across the UK, U.S., Singapore and Mexico. It found that over half (57%) of consumers across the globe now have to use their digital identity “constantly” or “often” to access their online accounts following the pandemic. Consumers in Singapore report the highest level of digital identity use (70%), as opposed to in the UK (50%), the U.S. (52%) and Mexico (55%).

Demand for digital identity as a form of verification

As providing a digital identity to create an online account or complete a transaction becomes more commonplace globally, consumers are now expecting this as part of their engagement with a brand, specifically in certain sectors. Over two-thirds of consumers (68%) think it’s important to use a digital identity to prove who they say they are when using a financial service online, closely followed by healthcare providers (52%) and social media sites (42%). While all markets were united in financial services being the most important sector for robust identity verification, consumers in Mexico believe it is an important step when interacting with sharing economy brands (49%). UK consumers believe it should be required when shopping online (40%). Where more sensitive personal data is concerned, consumers indicated robust identity verification becomes even more important.

Leaders and laggards: certain sectors need to enhance their usage of digital identity

Despite more consumers demanding digital identity solutions for verification when engaging with companies online, they aren’t confident that all businesses are doing everything they can to protect their online accounts. Only one-third (34%) of consumers believe that their bank has implemented more online identity verification checks since the pandemic to protect them against online fraud and identity theft. Similarly, in the gaming and gambling space, less than half (41%) of consumers say they are “confident” that providers are doing what they can to accurately verify identities and prevent identity-related fraud.

Online identity verification can improve trust in service providers and social platforms

While digital identity solutions are recognized as important in preventing identity-related fraud, consumers have other concerns that these solutions could address. In healthcare, one-third of consumers (32%) are most concerned about not knowing the identity of the healthcare practitioner they are engaging with. This is also of particular concern for consumers in Mexico (45%). In the social media space, an overwhelming majority of consumers (83%) think that it’s important for social media sites to verify identities so that they can hold users accountable for online hate speech/comments. As such, the use cases and benefits of digital identity extend beyond just fraud prevention and could provide a solution to broader consumer concerns.

“As our use of online services only continues to grow, organizations are clearly implementing the robust identity verification methods required to prevent against the risks associated with virtual services,” said Philipp Pointner, Jumio’s Chief of Digital Identity. “But this research reveals the demand for digital identity solutions, too – particularly in the financial services and healthcare spaces – and is clearly now a point of differentiation. Implementing these kinds of solutions should be a ‘when,’ not a ‘maybe,’ and will now ultimately determine whether a consumer chooses your business over another.”

Find additional data and insights here.

The research was conducted April 7-14, 2022.

About Jumio

When identity matters, trust Jumio. Jumio’s mission is to make the internet a safer place by protecting the ecosystems of businesses through a unified, end-to-end identity verification, eKYC and AML platform. The Jumio KYX Platform offers a range of identity proofing and AML services to accurately establish, maintain and reassert trust from account opening to ongoing transaction monitoring.

Leveraging advanced technology including AI, biometrics, machine learning, liveness detection and automation, Jumio helps organizations fight fraud and financial crime, onboard good customers faster and meet regulatory compliance including KYC, AML and GDPR. Jumio has carried out more than 500 million verifications spanning over 200 countries and territories from real-time web and mobile transactions.

Based in Palo Alto, Jumio operates globally with offices in North America, Latin America, Europe, the Middle East and Asia Pacific and has been the recipient of numerous awards for innovation. Jumio is backed by Centana Growth Partners, Great Hill Partners and Millennium Technology Value Partners.

For more information, please visit www.jumio.com.

Contacts

U.S. Media Contact
Diana Gallagher

10Fold Communications

jumio@10fold.com 408-656-9699

Europe Media Contact
Gemma Lingham

FleishmanHillard UK

gemma.lingham@fleishman.com +44-752-569-9347

APAC Media Contact
Luke Nazir

FINN Partners

Luke.Nazir@finnpartners.com +65 8139 2504

LATAM Media Contact
Karina Durán

Nasci Comunicación

karina@nasci.com.mx
+52 55 5139 5482

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