Regulatory compliance can take on different definitions according to the industry in which you are applying the policies. Since compliance means incorporating standards that conform to specific requirements, regulatory compliance is the regulations a company must follow to meet specific requirements.
When you apply regulatory compliance to IT, the regulations apply to two different aspects of company operations which include the internal requirements for IT and compliance standards that are set forth by external entities. Both types of regulatory compliance affect IT company operations and can potentially restrict
More
As many of you have probably noticed, the number of network security breaches in the news has been on the rise. Some of you are probably thinking “thank goodness I am at a small company”. The unfortunate truth though is you are just as likely, if not more likely to be a target of online hackers.
As the Wall Street Journal recently pointed out in their July 21st article “Hackers Shift Attacks to Small Firms”, small businesses end up being very lucrative for
More
Cloud computing is a term used to define products and services delivered through the internet. Since its introduction this IT phenomenon has been growing and evolving towards the right way. Cloud computing has been defined by a leading technology researchers as “a style of computing where massively scalable IT-related capabilities are provided as a service using internet technologies to multiple external customers”. Also known as hosted services, the cloud computing services offering virtualized and web services, along with some other new technologies have turned managed IT systems upside down,
More
Times they are a-changin’ and they won’t wait for the rest of us to catch up. Technology is in every nook and cranny of my life, which has created a deep-rooted need I never knew I had for instantaneous access to anything and everything.
Nothing makes me more aware of the technological advances over the past few years than my 20-month old son. He wants to play Elmo’s Monster Maker on a smartphone, watch Mickey Mouse Clubhouse on-demand, and listen to his favorite music online. All of these just-in-time modes of access to media are happening everywhere, not just when it comes to children’s entertainment.
So how do all of these changes in technology impact business, specifically with regard to learning in the workplace? New means of communication and staying connected are enabling people to share information and participate in learning in newer, more collaborative ways. As younger generations enter the workforce, they look for quicker ways to learn, gain access to information, and share their own thoughts and ideas. They look for faster connections to peers and colleagues regardless of geographical separation.
With the changes in how we communicate or even access information happening so radically, training and development must transform along with them. The lines between formal “classroom-style” learning and informal “social” learning such as on-the-job training will be more blurred than ever with the growing adoption of newer technologies in the training and development industry.
Newer Trends in Technology & Training
Here are a few newer training methodologies gaining lots of traction over the past several years that look to be noteworthy trends in 2011 when it comes to professional learning:
More
Thrive Networks is proud to have been ranked #23 on MSPmentor’s Top 100 Managed Service Providers List for 2010-11. This is the third straight year that Thrive is being recognized as one of the most progressive Managed Service Providers (MSP) in the world.
Thrive improved on its 2009-2010 MSPmentor ranking by jumping 15 spots. This is one of the largest improvements of all MSPs that appeared on both lists.
The MSPmentor 100
The MSPmentor 100 is an annual research report from MSPmentor and its owner, Nine Lives Media Inc., MSPmentor is widely considered the ultimate guide to managed services and the leading global destination for managed service providers. Nominees were evaluated in a range of industry-specific categories including:
- Annual managed services revenue (2010)
- Annual managed services revenue growth (2010 vs. 2009, in U.S. dollars)
- Annual managed services revenue growth (2010 vs. 2009, percentage growth)
- Percentage of overall revenue from managed services (2010)
- Devices/seats managed (2010)
- Devices/seats managed, annual growth (2010 vs.2009) in raw numbers)
- Devices/seats managed, percentage growth (2010 vs. 2009)
- Recurring revenue per full-time employee (2010)
This methodology ensures small, midsize and large MSPs from around the world are recognized on the MSPmentor 100.
More
Join us on Thursday, October 28, 2010 at the Westin Hotel in Waltham, MA to learn about latest technologies that can help your company succeed in today’s changing business climate.
This will be an intimate trade show format with a morning and an afternoon session, allowing for the maximum number of interested companies to attend. Hear from industry-leading experts on topics like:
- Complete Data Protection – Breakthrough technology to consolidate Data Back-up, Business Continuity and Disaster Recovery into ONE service.
- Virtualization and Cloud Computing – Could Virtualization help my business? What does cloud computing mean and how does fit into my technology plan? Learn more about the path you should take and the products that best-fit into your technology plan.
- Email Archiving – You can’t live without email! Protect it, store it, recover it and satisfy the new compliance requirements.
- Network Security – As the number of malicious threats to your network continues to rise, the time you spend managing your firewall doesn’t have to.
- Hardware Performance - Slow hard drive? Learn how you can get faster, more reliable performance out our your existing hardware.
CLICK HERE TO REGISTER
Networking Event
At the conclusion of the afternoon session, stay and network with the areas other small business leaders. Open bar and food will be provided from 5:00–7:00pm. Every participant will be registered in a raffle to win:
- Apple iPad
- Tickets for the Boston Celtics/Miami Heat game in February
- Tickets for the New England Patriots/Minnesota Vikings game on Sunday, October 31st
Attendance is limited. Please Register Now so you don’t miss out.
For more information, please visit: www.ThriveNetworks.com/TechConference
More
Recently, one of our clients had a Web Presence issue. The issue wasn’t with their company’s website, rather with the CEO’s name. Let’s call him Fred Fakename. When Freddy did a Google Search for “Fred Fakename”, he couldn’t find himself. Even worse, the top result didn’t point to Fred. It pointed to a Dentist in Canada, Dr. Fred Fakename. Fred had no control over his Web Presence.
Fred’s dilemma made me think about how many other people out there are like Fred. Am I like Fred? I’ve spent very little time social networking, but I’ve written a couple of blogs, and I’m the only John Dilthey I have ever met. It was now time to see where I stand.
More
Multiple Vulnerabilities in Cisco ASA 5500 Series Adaptive Security Appliances
Cisco Systems has recently released a Security Advisory regarding the ASA 5500 Series Adaptive Security Appliance (ASA), more commonly known as your firewall. This firewall device is a security appliance that sits between your private network and the Internet, protecting you from would-be attackers and other malicious activity. On rare occasions however, even an extremely robust security appliance such as the Cisco ASA can suffer from vulnerabilities.
This Security Advisory applies to the Cisco ASA 5500 Series firewalls and the Cisco Firewall Services Module (used in the Cisco Catalyst 6500 Series switch chassis) only. None of Cisco’s other firewalls are affected by any of the vulnerabilities. These vulnerabilities are:
- Three SunRPC Inspection Denial of Service Vulnerabilities
- Three Transport Layer Security (TLS) Denial of Service Vulnerabilities
- Session Initiation Protocol (SIP) Inspection Denial of Service Vulnerability
- Crafted Internet Key Exchange (IKE) Message Denial of Service Vulnerability
What is a Denial of Service Vulnerability?
Simply put, a Denial of Service vulnerability is a weakness in the operating system of a server or network appliance. When these vulnerabilities are exploited by a Denial of Service attack, the resource are unavailable to its intended users.
More
After my last Blog entry, Brian P. labeled me as an “Early Adopter.” I see myself as more of a “Futurist.”
Early Adopter, Futurist. Tomato, tomahto. Let’s call the whole blog off!
What’s the difference, and why should you care? The key difference is that I don’t care about the technology; I care about the Big Picture.
Let’s look at the multi-touch Smartphone. Specifically, let’s talk about Apple.
More
Let me start off by stating that I’m not a marketing person. I have no desire to be a marketing person and in fact, I personally can’t stand sales and marketing in general! Now all that said, I’m a complete social media junkie. I’ve got accounts with Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and Foursquare and I’m sure when the next cool thing comes out, I’ll probably jump on that bandwagon too! What I’ve learned about these sites is that while most of them are for personal use, business owners can and should take advantage of the tremendous reach of these sites.
Let’s take a brief look at each of these tools and how some businesses are taking advantage of them.
More
