emmanuel catabas

Give Yourself Reasons Why You Can

2014-09-08T13:08:00.001+08:00

Negative thoughts and negative talks affect our brain and our ability to perform even simple tasks.

Giving in to the reasons why you can’t is a form of a self-imposed stress. Instead of giving yourself reasons why you can’t, give yourself reasons why you can.

For most of us it is very easy to spend our energy in comparing ourselves to others and common standards.

Image: Free Digital Photos

For a change, acknowledge your uniqueness and abilities. Nurture what is best in you. Go and fulfill your dream.

Here is a popular short story of Monty Roberts. You may have already read or heard about this story, still it is good to read it again as it can teach or remind us of valuable life lessons.

Monty Roberts is the son of an itinerant horse trainer. His father would travel from one farm to another farm, from one ranch to another ranch. This constant travelling interferes with Monty’s studies.

One day, his schoolteacher asked everyone in the class to submit a paper describing their goal and dreams in life. That night, Monty stayed up late working on what he wants to accomplish in life. What he came up with was a seven-page paper describing in detail what he wants to be in life, a rancher with a large tract of land for horses. He even came up with diagrams of the ranch and how the structures within it would look like.

He submitted his paper to his teacher the following day. After two days, his teacher returned his paper with an "F" grade.

He asked his teacher why he failed in his paper. His teacher answered to him, ”Because your dream is not realistic. How can you be what you have put in your paper when you are just a son of an itinerant horse trainer?”

His teacher continued, “Get your paper and submit to me one that is realistic.”

Monty thought about it for a week. Then he returned his paper without changing anything. He told his teacher, “Keep your “F” and I will keep my dream.”

Monty fulfilled his dream to own a 200-acre horse ranch. He framed his paper and hanged it over the fireplace in his 4,000 square-foot house.

The moral of the story is Monty did not let himself be deterred by the negative thoughts limiting his options to succeed. Instead, he filled his mind of what he must do and can do to fulfill his dream.

2013-11-21T11:07:00.000+08:00

Infographic: How To Prepare For Calamities

manny catabas / originally posted 3 days ago at EC Mobile Solutions

Infographic guide on how to prepare for calamities such as tropical typhoon, earthquake and terrorism. Three calamitous events that hit the Philippines recently, just weeks ahead of each other.

See more about our Business Continuity Management Program

Download this infographic in PDF

Disaster Recovery Reverse Engineering: From The Cloud To The Ground

2013-11-15T09:53:00.002+08:00

by manny catabas / 20 hours ago / originally posted at ecmobilesolutions.com

The Philippines was recently been hit by a triple whammy – terrorism, earthquake and tropical storm, in that order. All with dire consequences for businesses and lives. All occurring just weeks ahead of each other.

These events may have occurred in different places, but the intensity of each is almost the same in magnitude – whole cities or provinces were desolated; The effects and consequences for businesses: prolonged work stoppages.

Except for the terrorism, these natural phenomenon are a regular occurrence. The Philippines is situated in the so-called Pacific Rim of Fire, together with Japan, Vietnam and China in the Western Pacific. It extends up to the Eastern Pacific where the US West Coast is located running down the whole length of the Pacific rim of Central and South America. Within this region tropical storms and earthquakes are to be expected at any time (another is volcanic eruption), sometimes with the kind of magnitude that is immensely devastating.

Therefore, the lessons to be learned is to expect the worst and be prepared at all times. Prudent businesses must not only have a disaster recovery plan in place, but a cloud system that can be re-engineered in distressful times .

Much have been written about the advantages of cloud computing as a part of any business continuity plan. But how do we implement it or how can we use it when all communications system breaks down, like what happened in Bohol and Leyte? Any disaster recovery plan must include a back to the basics option – from the cloud to the ground.

This is where the Caspio Online technology is tested supreme among all web platforms. EC Mobile Solutions can reverse engineer a Caspio cloud system to an on-premise system in a jiffy. How?

Let me show you how the process is done. First let’s go back at the start of the implementation of cloud computing.

When we do the database prototyping, we do it by using Microsoft Access, an application that is included in MS Office. Every step of the prototyping is done within this office application: database models, database queries and even the front end application itself.

Once the client approves the prototype, we then upload the database and queries to the Caspio cloud platform. Following the client approved front end application, we recreate them through the Caspio form creation facility. The forms created are what we call the web apps that is deployed to any web site the client preferred.

When communication facilities are down during times of emergency reversing the process is possible. If you have not kept a physical backup of the Caspio database find a place where you can download your data from Caspio. The data are downloaded in MS Excel format.

Contact EC Mobile Solutions for more information or how we can assist you in your technological requirements

If you have a disaster recovery plan, follow the procedures indicated. As soon as the situation improves, a suitable location is found, power lines are restored and security is guaranteed, set up the computer equipment and copy the data. Import the data to the prototype MS Access.

Now you can continue recording your transactions, on the ground. Then if all power and communication facilities are restored and the internet is made available you can again upload all the transactions that was done during the emergency situation. Your data retains its usefulness and integrity. Your business recovery is faster.

Can your current web platform or any legacy system be reverse engineered as easy as ours? Think about it, no one is immune to calamities. But its consequences can be mitigated by prudence, like your choice of a better web platform that is easy to develop, use and maintain, such as a Caspio’s Online Technology.

–oOo–

How To Build Your Free Web Presence

2013-05-19T18:49:00.000+08:00

This post is related to my previous post on "More Than a Storage, You Can Turn Your Cloud Storage Into ECommerce Platform". Here I will give a concrete example of how to have a free web presence (that is if you opt not to hire the services of a web developer or designer). Otherwise you will have to settle for the very inexpensive option.

First thing to do is open a free Dropbox account. If you already have one which I would presume is positive, then check your storage capacity. Though your web capacity does not require so much amount of space, I suggest you leave at least 250 MB reserved for this purpose.

Next step is register you dropbox account with Site44. Register with your Dropbox account. Then give your consent for Site44 for access to your Dropbox file. Do not worry as Site44 will only create a folder named site44 and this is the only folder Site44 will have access to.

Once the folder site44 is created in your dropbox files, go back to Site44 and give your web site its name. If you do not want to pay for a domain name, then you have to settle for a website address as yourwebsitename.site44.com.

Now your web site infrastructure is established. You now have a domain host (Site44) and a web server (Dropbox). For a web site that is meant only for display these are all what you need. Now let's build your web site.

Remember you prefer to work on your own and there is no web developer nor designer working for you. So how do you do it?

There are thousands of free templates available in the internet provided by very nice people who only want their name or company retained in the code. I think that is a fair deal. Select a free web template (a sample site that offers free templates can be found here) from hundreds of templates that suits your taste. Download your selected template to your computer not yet on your Dropbox folder. Since your Dropbox folder is synchronizing what ever you save there.

After you have made your selection comes the tricky part - modifying the template for your own web site. You are not a web developer nor a web designer, again you ask the question how do I do it? Simple. These templates include instructions or notes on what items have to be edited for your own purpose. So it is really easy to modify them. There is no need to modify everything.

Ok, let's see how you could modify these templates for your own use. For this you will need a tool web developers use. I recommend Kompozer. This is a free developer tool. With this tool you have a choice how to edit your web site code - in developers view or graphic view. In graphic view you can see how your web site will look like and you can perform your editing here. What You See Is What You Get (WYSIG) in our developer language. Yes, instantly you see what your web site will look like while you are editing the template.

After finishing your editing and you are already satisfied with what you have done, copy the entire folder where you have saved your template to your Dropbox folder created by Site44. After Dropbox finished uploading your finished template, it will synchronize with Site44.

You now have a website of your own without spending a single cent.

If you are still having a problem on how to do this, just send me an email and let us talk how I can help you, or contact my company, EC Mobile Solutions. We offer this kind of services for the small business. Please click on this link for more information.

On my next post, we will tackle how you can turn your website into an inexpensive ecommerce web site. So you will not only have a web site that is a marketing tool but a sales tool as well.

Do Not Forget the Feature Phone In Your Mobile Strategy

2013-05-08T19:57:00.000+08:00

The mobile technology may be revolutionizing the way consumers behave online. Smartphones may be selling briskly all over the world. A new era in digital communication and commerce is dawning.

There is no doubt that consumers today are more mobile. In some countries, the number of mobile device may be at par with the nation's population. This phone density has never happened to the telephone. The reason is that mobile infrastructure is more cost effective than a land line structure.

In the Philippines, getting a mobile phone is easier than getting a land line. This despite the telephone's head start of almost a century. Well, that's what innovations are for any way. And mobile technology has really benefited so many people.

With the advent of this new technology comes the way people live with it. The growth of mobile devices is staggering that it has created a new era. The PC era has really ended.

Western nations are leading the way with how to create opportunities with this new phenomenon. Apple store recently awarded its 50th Billion downloader of its apps. Fifty billion downloads, Wow! You can just imagine how much business there is in mobile apps. Thus, many companies are riding to this extravaganza. Mobile commerce is included in their marketing strategies now.

This may be true in the western side of the world and in some industrialized countries in Asia. But how about those in the developing world?

In a recent article by BBC News, use of feature phone in developing countries is still quite a number to reckon with. They are still part of the demography any marketer has to consider. And the functionality of the smart phones like payment gateways are not preferred by the users of these kind of phones. It is to be expected, any technology in its beginning has to consider the behavior and acceptance of the consumer. It will take time for everyone to adjust or adopt to changes. This is not new. Always this must be included in every marketer's consideration.

Based on the graph provided by BBC News it will still take about four to five years before smart phones will be at par with feature phones. Still, even though these users may belong to a demographic group that is not a marketer's preference, still they are consumers your company has to reach out to.

A Nightmare on Tech Street

2013-04-29T15:44:00.000+08:00

The Wizard. The word has become a sobriquet for techies or tech people.

Webopedia has three definitions for the word and and all of them technology related. It has become synonymous to a person who is an outstanding programmer. The system administrator for a chat room. Or a utility in an application or computer program that directs you through different steps to accomplish a task.

Though the term was flattering as it is true in a sense - tech people can make the usual burdensome tasks into a magically easy way through the use of technology. Well, actually there's no magic. Programmers do the task in their logical steps.

Since, business systems has been with us for quite a time now, most businesses has come to rely on them. As their dependence grows, their expectations of the system and their programmers grow disproportionately.

How? Business mindset of budgeting is a major consideration. Always. And the IT Department is not immune to it. They expect more but they would not allocate enough (so how could you operate on a shoestring budget?).

As technology ages there come tools and methodologies that evolve, and they expect us to know everything and be updated with these new methods and tools. We may be wizards but one thing certain is we are not omniscient.

I may sound bitter or doubtful of my profession, no I'm not. That's one of the challenges we face. Voila! We usually get over those kinks in our programs so why can we not get over the kinks in our lives?

More Than a Storage, You Can Turn Your Cloud Storage Into ECommerce Platform

2013-04-21T14:34:00.000+08:00

By now, most of us have one or more preferred cloud storage - Dropbox, Box.Net, Google Drive, SkyDrive. We know how it is used: primarily for storing our files into the cloud so we can access them from anywhere or from any device. Another most common use is as a sort of a backup storage in case of a computer crash.

But what you may not know is that your cloud storage can be used into any e-commerce or m-commerce (mobile commerce) platform. There are quite a number of tools or apps that you can use to maximize your use of your cloud storage, whatever it may be.

I will cite just a few and limit to what I have tried, some are free and some requires a monthly fee. Even if you are charged for a fee, I can assure you that you will get your money's worth for its very functionality:

1. Document signing function.
There are a number of apps offered to let you have a e-signature for documents - Adobe EchoSign, DocuSign and my favorite HelloSign. The HelloSign is more to my taste as it is very simple to use, no limit and most of all it can be integrated with your Gmail account, what more can you ask? So if there's a document or a contract to be signed, store it to any of your storage cloud and let HelloSign do the rest.

2. Sales Ordering Function
Handshake is an app that can be installed in your Box storage so you can use your Box folder as repository of all your sales record done via Handshake. Handshake serves as your product presentation platform, Sales Ordering platform where you can fill up sales orders and your office can instantly pick up that sales order and prepare the delivery to your customer in a jiffy. Isn't that efficiency?

3. Web site function
Need a web site? Then turn a folder in your Dropbox into a web site. Site44 is an app that can be integrated with your Dropbox account. The drawback is you have to have knowledge of HTML programming code so you can have a real fantastic web site of your own. Actually HTML programming is not that hard to learn. There is a ton of templates you can use for website you have created.

4. Other useful tools you can use. The Practical E-Commerce has other apps which can turn your cloud storage into powerful platforms for e or m commerce. Visit their web site here.

As you can see, there are a lot of things you can do with your cloud storage. Maximize them and you can profit from them.

The Mobile Trend

2013-04-18T10:41:00.002+08:00

There are some interesting fact now with regards to the mobile era:

"The Philippines is 10th among all countries using mobile internet, according to admob."

Mobile is the trend now. It is time to realize the difference between mobile users and internet users.

A mobile user surfs the web on mobile devices while an internet user surfs the web on PC.

Mobile internet has a different protocol than a PC internet.

If your web site is not mobile friendly, then you have a problem.

Your Business and Social Media

2013-04-11T15:26:00.000+08:00

In marketing, there are two objectives that is always present: one is to keep customers and how to add more customers. Customers here meant the users of a company's products or services. And marketers will pay good money for the success of its engagement campaign with its clientele.

The advent of the Facebook era has brought marketing effort to a new dimension in engaging with its customers and clients. Many companies have looked into this social media phenomenon with much interest. They are of the belief that those who do not will lose the game.

But how do you play the game?

Social media is a totally different way of engaging with your clients. Here, you don't make a sale intonation directly, but in a subtle way. Lest you will be making your page a spam machine and your followers may lose interest and worse lose them. Giving tips and tricks that will generate responses is one way to do the engagement.

People loves promotions and freebies. Offer these now and then so that you get the interest of your target market.

Invite your audience to an event that you are directly or indirectly may have an interest on. It may be a fair where you have a stall or a community event that you may not be directly involved but could initiate a visit to your store.

When you engage more with your clients you learn to know more information about them - their likes and dislikes.

There are so many opportunities that can arise with your social media engagement. The more you touch base with your customers, the more will you learn how to fit your offerings and strategies.

Image courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net

What Counts for a DBA: Being Replaceable

2012-12-10T10:03:00.000+08:00

Image courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net

The year is ending. 2012 for some of us may be a great rewarding one, career-wise, but for some it may be a time best forgotten.

Anyway, every setback, every triumph must be viewed and reflected on at the end of the day. This practice will help us to correct our wrong or to make room for more improvement. Life is really on ongoing process.

I find this article a great reading for a great discussion or reflection for our career:

What Counts for a DBA: Being Replaceable - SQLServerCentral

In Case of Emergency

2012-09-03T17:11:00.001+08:00

Image courtesy of FreedigitalPhotos.net

Disasters are sudden events or accidents that have serious consequences. Even great nations are not spared if a disaster strikes - natural or man-made. There are several causes of disasters - either by the acts of nature, by the acts of man or a combination of both.

The same is true within the confines of a business organization. Everyone or anyone is a potential victim of accidents - whether it is a minor incident or a disastrous accident.

However, its disastrous effect can be mitigated by readiness with an extensive risk reduction plan or program. These plans or programs are called by various names- risk reduction, disaster recovery or business continuity. Whatever name it is called, it means that any organization must have one.

In one of my recent projects where I did a business process analysis for a client, I found several flaws or inconsistencies. These I showed and reported to the client.

As a backgrounder, this client has recently installed a new financial system, have undergone reorganization of their IT which is leaning more toward hardware technology than a system oriented orientation. Maybe you would have already guessed what are the possible ramifications of this kind of situation, which is also common anywhere.

Yes, you are right. It is chaotic. Although, the organization is not a large one, the transaction being handled daily is quite a challenge for the small number of staff they have. Thus the need to analyze and revise the whole business process within the current resources.

But on this article I will concentrate on one flaw that I have found that can have a tremendous consequence for the client if not properly addressed. What happens when disaster strikes?

Recovering from a disaster requires an organized and methodical response from the whole organization - a bottom to top involvement. If one has no existing plan or program, now is the time to have one, not when a known danger is already lurking on the horizon. It must be carefully planned and organized and it must be regularly updated.

Here is the basic framework.

Objective Definition. In disseminating the program, everyone must have a complete understanding of what the program is attempting to achieve. That is why the objective must be described in a clear and concise way.
The Organization. Here the roles and responsibilities of each person identified to be involved must be defined. It is also important to indicate the key person either by name or by position.
The Communication Plan. This is an important part of the plan that almost everybody take for granted. However, the importance of having one or incorporating it in the program can bring invaluable benefits and nobody has to claim or complain that they were not informed or are not aware of how the program works.
The Risk Management Plan. It is said that an ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure. This idiom is also best applied to your disaster recovery plan. This is the heart of the whole program. Assess and analyze all the possible risks that can happen, including those that has a very, very low probability with the same rate of consequence. Nothing should be overlooked. Identify each risk, rate them and plan how it is managed - prevent, mitigate or transfer the risk to a more competent entity. This must be continually updated.
The Recovery Plan. If despite all the prevention steps have been successfully implemented, still a major accident or incident happens, implementing your recovery plan must be done methodically. In this kind of situation mitigating the loss and work stoppage must be the primary goal. Recovery must be done in the shortest possible time. Define each steps to be taken and identify all the key persons that will be involved in the recovery.

In this age of system dependency, some organization may find this business continuity or risk reduction or disaster recovery program a secondary priority, but it should not be. Remember Murphy's Law? Anything that can go wrong will go wrong. So it is better to be prepared now than to be sorry later.

For SMBs, Your Interactive Web Presence Need Not Be Expensive

2012-08-24T17:16:00.000+08:00

Photo courtesy of FreeDigitalPhotos.net

For small and medium businesses, developing and maintaining an interactive web presence may be expensive.

First they have to worry about the development of its web sites and more importantly, its contents. Infrastructure may not be something to worry about but it also matters when the platform to run the web site is to be considered. Secondly, who will maintain the web site and its database? With a limited number of personnel, it is better for the owner and its existing staff do the work physically than virtually.

After all of these have been decided, there is still no assurance that the web site will really reach the market place it intended to penetrate. What with the billions of web sites competing for your favorite search engine placement.

With all of these serious considerations, is it viable for any small and medium sized business to have a presence in the virtual world of the internet?

Discouraged? Don't be! There are more ways than you can know how to make your interactive web presence a not so expensive endeavor.

First let us map the road we have to take in developing a successful web presence.

Your web requirements and strategy. How do you want your presence to be felt in cyber space? Do you want to have an e-commerce capability? As is any venture, a business has to have a clear understanding of what it intends to accomplish and how to accomplish them. Having a web presence is the same.
The Web site requirements. First to consider is who will build the site - do you need to outsource or do you have the capability? How is it going to be built? What is the infrastructure needed? What kind of platform to use?
Web content management. What does your business stand for? What services or products do you offer? How would you like these to be presented to your intended market?
Web marketing strategy. This is a very critical part of your whole web presence strategy. What with a hundreds of thousands competing for every keyword you have chosen for your business. It is not that easy to land in the top five pages of every search engines where every web surfer usually start for their search.
Web maintenance. How are we going to react if the web site goes down? Is the database growing unexpectedly affecting web speed? Will we still have our data should we decide to transfer our domain hosting?

Once you have decided on what and how your web presence will be, building and putting your ideas into action is easier than what you think. Developing a web site nowadays need not be built from scratch. There are quite a number of companies offering web services either as an (1) Infrastructure as a service [IaaS]; (2) Platform as a Service [PaaS] and (3) Software as a service [SaaS].

Let me explain briefly what these services are:

Infrastructure as a service (IaaS) is offered as an alternative for companies that do not want to build their own data centers. The cost of building and maintaining data centers is very prohibitive unless you are a global company earning a global profit. Some of the well known companies that offer IaaS are: Oracle, Dell and IBM.
Platform as a service (PaaS) is a cloud offering for companies that shares their data centers to their clients. These cloud services evolved as an inexpensive alternative for companies that would like to develop their web applications without the cost constraints of building their own infrastructure or the more expensive IaaS. Mostly, the PaaS offers specific e-commerce applications which you can develop yourselves.
Software as a service (Saas) is a type of e-commerce cloud services that offers several shared applications such as Customer Relations Management, Enterprise Resource Planning. These applications are quite expensive if installed in-premise.

With the diversity of these cloud services being offered at reasonable prices (depending on the plan you will purchase), investing on such software or applications has gone down considerably.

I have already shown you that to establish your cyber space presence, your whole infrastructure need not be expensive through the sharing arrangements several cloud services are offering. Now how about the other matters I have mentioned like web search strategy and web maintenance? This where an IT consultant comes along. SMBs can profit considerably on the services of such professionals as they do not have to hire additional staff or for owners and existing staff themselves to handle the job which may be an additional burden for them.

Google Drive Is An Integrated Project Management Tool

2012-08-14T22:20:00.000+08:00

Image courtesy of: FreeDigitalPhotos.net

For my latest project, I was looking for a cloud based service that I can use together with my colleagues as our project management collaboration tool.

I have been using the TeamLab services for a time. It has somewhat served me and my previous colleagues' needs, however, I was also looking for something that is easier to manage and use. Also some member of the team I previously worked with impressed in me that they cannot follow everything posted in the site. Another thing is I was looking for something that I can manage all the tools within only one web service which TeamLab has failed to satisfy. (This does not mean I have given up on TeamLab, it is still a great project management tool offered as a cloud service and improvements are ongoing. But my own set of criteria for the moment tells me I have to.)

Fortunately, I didn't have to look far and wide, I have discovered that Google Drive can satisfy my and my team's needs for a collaboration tool. Aside from being a files cloud storage, it has some additional web applications that can be useful as a tool for my profession and services. And what I experienced was truly amazing. In the course of finding useful tools, I discovered four cloud project management services that can be integrated with all of my Google services.

The application I've integrated with my Google Drive were:
1. Gantter Work Schedule. This is a cloud based service that works like Microsoft Project. It can even import files done with MS Project or saved as an mpp file. The WBS file you have created can even be shared to your co-workers either through the Gantter services or if you preferred to save the file in your Google Drive, then share the generated link directly. Even saving the file in Google Drive, you have to install in your Chrome browser an application to open and edit the file. There is no need to download the application to your computer as working in Chrome browser is also fine. The service is offered free and the browser application works only for Chrome, though the service platform is available for all browsers.

2. Mindjet Project and Task Management. I find this task management tool a better alternative or a complimentary service to Google Calendar's task management. Each task can be categorized as personal or a project management task. The best feature is it can be integrated with your Google Calendar and can use Google's reminder facility like sending a SMS message. Though I like very much the Mindjet's email service that sends you a daily reminder.

For project management use, create a project folder, add members and assign tasks. Project members can view or create tasks. A report can also be generated to monitor status of the project and each tasks.

Another feature of this service is its mind mapping tool which is a great way to record ideas and concepts. This tool is very versatile as it can also be used for charting. Files created within the service can be directly saved to or opened from your Google Drive.

3. LucidChart. Another valuable tool that can be integrated for charting or mapping processes, organization, and other charting needs of projects. The service is not completely free. Number of pages or objects are limited for each file created on a free account. If you decide to buy a service, then the limitations are nil. Files created in the service are interchangeable with MS Visio.

4. Yam Labs. Having a meeting? This is another invaluable tool which everyone in your project can view and follow while the meeting is being conducted . What ever is being discussed are recorded and can be viewed instantly by everyone on their own devices. Within the service, there are many tools useful in any meeting. The meeting's minutes, the discussions, action plans and ideas generated are instantly recorded. All of these can be accessed by every attendee in the meeting and can be sent to anyone immediately right after the meeting ended. Talk about speed, huh.

These four cloud based services which I integrated with my Google Drive did the job as I expected. I will appreciate if you can recommend some more which you have experienced.

Create a Valuable Project Portfolio

2012-07-23T11:02:00.001+08:00

This is a blog written by Mr. Michael Kaplan. In managing project portfolio, prioritize those that builds better business values for the organization.

Growing up: From Engaging the Business to Coping with Change

Project prioritization remains one of the PMO’s key opportunities to generate business value.

The PMO remains under real pressure to generate business value within the limits of modest budget growth. To manage with this challenge, PMOs need to ensure the business project portfolio reflects a balance of projects that maximizes benefits for the enterprise.

The challenges PMOs face in balancing project portfolios include:

Understanding project value and generating consensus
Keeping up with changing business needs
Aligning the project portfolio with business’ priorities

These challenges were mirrored in a finding from a Forrester Research survey of PMOs, who listed poor sponsorship, politics, project coordination, misalignment between business strategy and the investment pool as the key hindrances to project prioritization.

Continue reading: SoftPMO™ Social Project Management: Create a Valuable Project Portfolio

What You Choose Is What Matters

2012-02-19T12:00:00.000+08:00

Saturday night and there was nothing much to do at home. Left with grown up kids at home who have their own things to do, I was left with no choice but to decide how I would spend my night away.

At first I seem can't decide what to do, either watch a movie or read a book. I opted for the first. After a hard day's work I needed the rest and respite. Yes, Saturday and I was still working. I have a project to do and meet deadlines on the work I have set out for myself.

I needed something light, I thought... something really entertaining. The list of videos I have contains some heavy stuff, luckily I found something - Kung Fu Panda 2.

It was really a nice sequel to the original with the story revolving how the identity of Po came about. Where he came from and how he end up being a son of a goose up to the point he understood what happened to his real parents. The realization of what his life is meant to be.

There is a moral lesson I picked up from the movie. It may be made for children and the young ones, but thinking deeper, it really have some moral teachings you can pick up.

"Your story may not have a happy beginning, but what matters is the rest of your story." This is a very strong statement. The choice always falls on our shoulder how we intend to finish each stories in our life. In every day we live we can choose how we end up our day - winning or losing.

Every instance of our day is a story on its own that keeps on adding to the big picture that is our life. Always there is a chance and the hope to attain a happy ending, in spite of a sad beginning.

"Your story may not have a happy beginning, but what matters is the rest of your story." How you choose the ending of your story is what really matters.

--()--

Image: courtesy of digitalart

Are Your Team Members Ready To Take On the Responsibilities?

2011-12-08T14:37:00.000+08:00

Most of the time the people we worked with have the capability and ability to go through with us in any given project. Sadly, in reality this is not always true.

There will always be delays in deadlines. Worse, tasks will not be done as expected of the person assigned to it. Then a problem arises that can have an impact on the progress of the project.

Frustrating, isn't it? As a project manager, we surely will do an assessment of what have happened and the things that have been done to mitigate or solve the problem that arose. We often focus on the event, but we seldom focus on the role factor of each members of the team.

The symptoms could be overlooked upon. The person has been missing deadlines or could be finger pointing and not accepting responsibilities or blaming others for every mistakes. These are the causes that must be looked into as soon as possible every time such an instance arises. After finding out the who then immediately find out the why.

There could be a lot of reasons why the person is not performing well as expected - personal, career, emotional, psychological problem. Actually the reasons could be endless including any shortcoming of the project leader himself.

Most of the reasons mentioned may be out of the control of the project manager but there are ways that they can be somehow be avoided or mitigated.

Disseminate the roles and responsibilities of each member clearly. The first thing to do is to communicate the roles and responsibilities of each member of the team. Try to give a very detailed job description for each. If possible create a Responsibility Matrix that everyone can reference upon.

For me, I am more comfortable in creating a work process flowchart. This is what I usually do and show to my team member so they would easily see how the process flows and who is responsible to what task needs to be accomplished in every instance of each processes.

Whether you use the Responsibility Matrix or a flowchart, if everyone knows what each person is supposed to do, then everything will flow smoothly and seamlessly. Know everyone you are working with, their strengths and weaknesses. This way you can have a clear picture of what tasks to be given for each of your member.

Engage and empower the team member with the main objective of the project. At this stage, everyone knows what each is supposed to do on the project. But not everyone's heart could be into the project. As the project leader, it is prudent to share your enthusiasm with your team. It is but natural for you to know the importance of the project, what it means for you, what it means for the major stakeholders, what it means for the project sponsor, and most importantly, what it means for the company.

In my previous work for a non-profit organization, aside from my regular job in IT and managing IT projects, I am also involved in every event that that organization holds. Not as the leader but as a member, assigned in the documentation. Not everyone shares the same personal values, but what we commonly share in doing the project is the belief that what we are doing we do for the Lord. This is what bonds us together, our faith and belief.

In the secular world we work in, this may not hold. But what I mean is as a project leader, we have to find a common cause that will bond the whole team together for the success of the project. One of the most common is the main objective of the project and its benefit for the company. The project leader must be able to clearly and objectively present this to the team so that all shall have a common cause to work for. Working for a cause is a unifying factor and a good motivator.

Delegate decisively and help your people take the helm within the area of his responsibility. It is a cardinal rule in project management not to micro-manage. Create committees and assign persons to handle or manage the deliverables. Remember that as a leader, it is our foremost duty to create leaders not followers. If you got to know who you are working with, it will be easy for you to pinpoint persons that you can delegate to. Allow the persons you have chosen to show what he or she's capable of. This is also called motivation. Any person that is trusted to do something that is meaningful and with a purpose can do even the most difficult task passionately. Sometimes even more than what the project leader can give.

Lastly, as any good manager will do, try to give praise - to the team, to each member, to the performer. Show them your appreciation for doing their tasks diligently. Remember that for every success each member of the team makes, is definitely a success for the project manager. You cannot be expected to do everything, but what is expected of you is to work with and lead the team for the success of the project.

Any project will only be as good as the team that worked for its success.

--()--

Reference:
Image: FreeDigitalPhotos.net

An Advent Reflection

2011-12-06T11:06:00.001+08:00

I decided to update this blog to give it a more profound meaning as I believe this reflection is very appropriate for Advent , the season of expectations. Updated today 08 December 2011.

Image courtesy of Koratmember of freedigitalphotos.net

Expectation is one of our most profound habit in life. Whether we accept it or not, we always expect something to be given back to us - loyalty from our friends, a bonus or a promotion as reward from our work, complete obedience from our children. In everything we do expect something that must be in accord with what we want whether it is reasonable or otherwise.

In my morning prayer today, I read a book of a selection of homilies given by Fr. Johnny Go in his book 50 Something. I found a very apt reflection for this season of Advent. In the Gospel of St. Matthew 11, we were being invited to reflect and learn about St. John the Baptist's own expectation of the Lord. As Fr. Go said, "They were reasonable expectations especially with what he had done for the Lord. But as it turns out, even prophets don't always get what they expect."

The beauty of this reading is not on what was written but on what was not written - the message intended by the author of the gospel.

There are two main things to consider: First, John the Baptist had openly declared Jesus as the Lamb of God when he saw him approaching the river where he was preaching. Second, he even told his disciples that the one more worthy of him is Jesus whom two of his followers, Andrew and John, accepted and had followed Jesus as a result. This is also what he preaches and he is very clear on his mission - that he's only to prepare for the coming of the Messiah.

If John the Baptist is so convicted of his mission and he knows who Jesus was, then why does he have to send messengers to ask Jesus "Are you the One who is to come or do we have to wait for another?" Such a strange question from a man who is very sure of what he preached.

Or then, maybe, what John sent Jesus was a very subtle message of what he expects from the Lord to do for him since he is languishing in prison at the time. Does he expects that the Lord will set him free? We all know that this is not what happened. His expectation was not what he got. God has other plans for him, which, maybe he had not understood at the time.

In the world we live in, always things will not turn out the way we always expect it to be. Even with people whom we relate to. We must not expect too much but try to learn to appreciate whatever or however things may turn out to be. Most often our prayers are not answered the way we want them to be answered.

As an old saying goes, "Let go and let God." Even without understanding.

--()--

Reading: Matthew 11:2-11
Fr. Johnny Go's Website: www.jcgosj.com

Image: FreeDigitalPhoto.net

Keeping Our Sanity

2011-11-24T10:54:00.001+08:00

There are times when we have to take it easy. Take off to some quiet place like a beach, a park or any place we can spend some peace and let off our mind to the stresses of our work. Not to be burdened with so many serious stuff else we burn ourselves out.

But there are also times that constrains us not to be able to take off. So what do we do?

I received this story sometime ago. I find it amusing and would like to share it with you. At least to keep our sanity.

The spoon:
A lesson on how consultants can make a difference in an organization.

Last week, we took some friends to a new Indian restaurant, 'Muthu's Place,' and noticed that the Indian waiter who took our order carried a spoon in his shirt pocket. It seemed a little strange. When the busboy brought our water and utensils, I observed that he also had a spoon in his shirt pocket. Then I looked around and saw that all the Indian staff had spoons in their pockets. When the waiter came back to serve our soup I inquired, 'Why the spoon?'

'Well, 'he explained, 'the restaurant's owner hired Andersen Consulting to revamp all of our processes. After several months of analysis, they concluded that the spoon was the most frequently dropped utensil It represents a drop frequency of approximately 3 spoons per table per hour. If our personnel are better prepared, we can reduce the number of trips back to the kitchen and save 15 man-hours per shift.'

As luck would have it, I dropped my spoon and he replaced it with his spare. 'I'll get another spoon next time I go to the kitchen instead of making an extra trip to get it right now..' I was impressed.

I also noticed that there was a string hanging out of the Indian waiter's fly.

Looking around, I saw that all of the Indian waiters had the same string hanging from their flies. So, before he walked off, I asked the waiter, 'Excuse me, but can you tell me why you have that string right there?'

'Oh, certainly!' Then the Indian waiter lowered his voice. 'Not everyone is so observant. That consulting firm I mentioned also learned that we can save time in the restroom. By tying this string to the tip of our you-know-what, we can pull it out without touching it and eliminate the need to wash our hands, shortening the time spent in the restroom by 76.39%.'

I asked quietly, 'After you get it out, how do you put it back?'
'Well,' he whispered, 'I don't know about the others, but I use the spoon.'

Haha! Ok, back to work!

Reference:
Image: FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Database Threats 101: SQL Injection

2011-11-11T13:30:00.000+08:00

Here I will treat you to a visual tour on the largest source of hacking methodology: SQL Injection attacks. What is SQL Injection and how is it done?

Or by Using a Hacking Tool

How to get the Havij tool? You can either buy a licensed copy here:

IT Security Research and Penetration Testing Team Web Site

or download the cracked copy here: Cracked version of HaviJ

How to create your defenses

Is Cloud Computing For You?

2011-11-04T15:32:00.001+08:00

Wondering what cloud computing is or what it can do for you?

Cloud computing has been with us for quite a time. When the internet was first becoming popular, it was very trendy for companies to make their presence in cyber space by having or developing their own web sites. However, most of these are of the static (HTML) type.

As the development of more sophisticated script languages came, the more interactive the internet became. Thus came the more engaging social messaging and photo sharing on the internet. Web sites that offer these services sprouted like mushrooms: Photobucket, Picasa, flickr for photo storage and photo album sharing; MySpace, Friendster and the most popular these days: Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter for networking and virtual interaction with your friends, whether just around the corner or as far as anywhere in the world. This new trend evolve into what is now popularly known as social media or social networking. Whatever interest or profession you may have, you will surely find a social site where you can join in.

The era of cloud experimentation is now over. Cloud computing is a success and has now become a part of our lives - as a person and as a consumer.

Today's consumer trend is to engage socially

The phenomenal success of the social media trend brought new mobile devices, most notably the smartphones and the tablet, which made it easier for consumers to engage in their social activities when or where ever they want to. Even at work.

Some companies even allow their employees to cyberloaf. Human Resource Executive Online recently issued a report on its study about the effect of internet surfing and employees engaging on social media while at work. According to the report it can be a restorative function for employees to cyberloaf and could thus lead to more productivity. Though this finding is still debatable, there is no reason for enterprises not to grab the opportunity to be where the action is. Wherever a large number of consumers congregate, there is a market present. And in this virtual world, there is no other way to make your presence felt than to have a 24/7 interaction with your customers.

Business and social interaction

For enterprises, cloud computing has also progressed from a simple pumping out of information to a more engaging inter-active experience with its customers.

Having a presence in the virtual interaction with the market is called social media marketing. According to Wikipedia, the term Social Media refers to the use of web-based and mobile technologies to turn communication into an interactive dialogue.

Social media marketing is on the rise according to a survey conducted by Burson Marsteller, a leading global public relations firm. This is just to prove how companies are responding to this new business/marketing trend. However, the report also shows that firms going the way of the cloud lack a real perspective and long term strategy to conduct its presence.

As in any social interaction within a community, building a trusted relationship is the key to building or sustaining relationships. This is the long standing norm, even in the non-virtual world. Leadership is built upon trust.

The way to do it in the cyberworld is by content management which could revolve around the emotional impact of the product and services. This strategy is nothing new as this is done ever since marketing has been invented. Though its presentation has improved.

Enterprise trends for the next 5 years
Consumer cloud trend is on the positive note and still growing. How about enterprise cloud trends?

For the last two decades, all technological innovations and efforts centered on the automation and improvements of efficiency within the confines of the corporate organizations. It was epitomized by a server-client or mainframe environment. The era of computing somehow distributed the work processes to the different business units which the Enterprise Resource Planning or ERP applications provided. It enabled information or data sharing within the corporation.

As cloud computing progresses, so is collaborative efforts among business partners, this is referred to as B2B. Supply chain management is a critical function in decision making. This involves the buying, making, moving and selling processes. If any of the links involve breaks down then a big problem arises which may be costly to repair.

With the web and internet facility this collaboration expedites the sharing of information and workflow process - from quotes/proposal submission, purchase orders issuance, shipment notifications and remittance of payments - among business partners.

Cost effective cloud services
If you are just starting or planning for the cloud, the question might be "should we go on public cloud or have a private cloud?"

It will really depend on the organization, but having a private cloud might be a very expensive venture, especially if one is just starting up to bring their business into the cloud. There are a lot of things to consider: hardware, software and personnel are just some of the most important.

On the other hand, there are already a lot of distinguishable companies offering the right cloud solution for any size of business. This is easier to deploy and you can rely on the support of the business partner you have selected.

If security is the main concern, well, a private cloud does not guarantee a more secured infrastructure but on how defense parameters are established.

Is Cloud Computing for you?
For consumers, definitely.

For enterprises, a mere ERP is outdated - from a structured data mining to a more algorithmic search for a more robust information, as well as collaboration.

Collaborating not only with your customers but your business partners will ensure your leadership in whatever industry you are involved.

--()--

Further Reading:
Networkworld article on cloud computing
Business Insider Article on Social Media
Building strategic relationship through social media (content management strategies)
Social Media Examiner: Small Business and Facebook
Social Media Examiner: How Content Marketing Build Trusted Relationship

Enterprise Computing Trends

Social CRM services

Social Media trends

TNW report on social media trends

Gartner Report: Private Clouds are a last resort

Gartner Report: Trends in IT

A Chance Each Day

2011-11-04T09:28:00.000+08:00

Each morning when we wake up, a CHANCE is given to us...

a "CHANCE" to enjoy life to its fullest...

a "CHANCE" to correct the mistake of yesterdays...

a "CHANCE" to forgive...

a "CHANCE" to ask for forgiveness...

and a "CHANCE" to love and to be loved.

Don't miss every chance that we receive every morning as we wake up. It's God's way of loving us.

The Power of Words

2011-11-01T09:54:00.003+08:00

Words are our God-given tools with which we have the power either to hurt or to heal; to destroy or to build.

Security Threat Most System Administrators Are Not Aware Of

2011-10-20T18:48:00.000+08:00

Most System Administrators are always well-informed about external threats to any computer systems they are administering. Their server rooms or data center, in case of large organizations, is equipped with the latest devices and software to counter these threats. External threats may be the biggest doom for any System Administrators, but there are also threats that can be as risky - threats and attacks from within. And would you be surprised if I say that employees are the biggest source of internal security threats.

However, much of these are done by corporate users unintentionally, more out of ignorance than out of arrogance. Employees just do the things they know how to, without even trying to learn the consequences of their actions. Below I listed some of the more popular issues employees make that make them an internal security threat:

Employees are most often the cause of virus infections
There are several ways corporate users unknowingly infect the network with viruses. First and most common is the clicking without thinking habit. Oftentimes it happens when an employee receives an email with an attachment even if the email came from someone they do not know. Their curiosity will get the better of them. It is only after several hours or could even be days that the user will send a complaint to the IT department. Which at this time the virus might have already spread to a large number of computers inside the company network.

Another common way employees infect viruses in the company network is through those common USB dongles or SD cards. These devices are used to connect into different computers or devices other than those that belong to the network. If the computer the dongle or card was attached on has a very weak security or anti-virus system, then surely it is capable of infecting other computers. This is also another way of spreading the virus within the network.

Improper use of passwords
The most common issue among employees. Aside from not knowing how critical having a strong password is, users can sometimes make the mistake of lending their passwords to other co-workers. This practice is common among those who have close relationships with each other. But the trouble comes when the passing of the password become out of control. The original user might not be able to trace how far the password may have traveled to.

Incorrect use of file sharing/permissions
Even if a company has an ERP system running on its network, every user will have its own file directory stored on their workstation. And mind you that these files are sure to contain valuable company data. Some of these confidential data may be stored on networked storage. The trouble is they do not know how to secure these folders and leave the default permission as is, which is easy to share with or "networkable". This could lead to trouble if accessed by unauthorized or disgruntled employees.

Unauthorized machines or devices
Sometimes employees may bring their own laptops or phone to the office. Either they use it in their work or for other reasons. Most likely it is to connect into the company internet connection. Either they use it for internet surfing or for work, the device will be able to enter the company network. If the security system of that device is low then it is a possible source of a threat.

Unauthorized use of the internet
Let's face it, internet usage has become somewhat indispensable to the way we work. Whether the company uses the cloud or not, employees will in one way or another have to access the internet in the performance of their tasks. But you cannot monitor each user's internet usage every hour of the day. System administrators may institute some policies and rules, but these are oftentimes not being followed. Some may block some web sites, but when employees learn how to use proxies, then a work around the firewall is possible. When this happens then productivity suffers or worse, the web site visited may contain malware that can potentially harm the network without the employee realizing it.

Unauthorized installations of software
I've seen some companies who are very lax in the administration of their networks. Most of the time this is also due to management not being aware of the different threats in their company network. They do not want so stringent rules. But giving in to this situation will bring trouble not only to the company network but to the System Administrator himself. Surely, this laxity will be exploited by employees. If this happens, you will find different types of applications and software not necessary for the work of the employees installed in their workstation. Most of these unauthorized applications are for gaming. Or if not, the worse is that the applications will by unlicensed. Software piracy means a very costly trouble for the company.

These are the most common ways employees become an internal threat to any company network. There could be other ways. Every System administrators must be aware of this else it becomes their disadvantage. They must also learn how to teach each employees the proper way to use the computer, how to keep safe online and their limitations in using company network. Management must also support policies on internet, email and company network usage formulated by the System Administrators. They were hired to do their work in protecting company networks from all threats - external and internal.

The Power of Team-Work

2011-10-20T11:53:00.000+08:00

Remember this Coke ad? It's a bit entertaining but it does have a subtle message - what team work can achieve.

Positive Attitude is Everything

2011-10-18T18:18:00.000+08:00

It's a hard day... but with a positive attitude?