Articles by "Multimedia"
Showing posts with label Multimedia. Show all posts

on Friday, November 19, 2021 0

 


TEAMS is chocked full of functionality, in fact so much so that it would take quite a bit of time to learn it all.  The pandemic sped up the use of TEAMS and Microsoft increased the functionality by leaps and bounds to keep pace.

Very few people use all the features.

I was introduced to TEAMS in January 2020.  I had no previous experience; the system, for the most part, is extremely user friendly and intuitive.  

The functions highlighted below are nifty ones used by many on a daily basis:

TEAMS communication options fall into 1 of 4 types

(no difference if scheduled or impromptu)

  • Chat only functionality - text conversation. 
  • An audio only call (all parties picture or initials appear) with or without screen sharing.  
  • Full video meeting (live faces) with or without screen sharing. 
  • Audio call with people outside of the company - a traditional phone call.

I recommend considering  the "traffic light” approach prior to reaching out to someone internal for any type of communication (this is the availability status circle by the internal employee’s name or initials in TEAMS:

  • Available - for calls and screen chat. 
  • Busy - will receive chat messages and will have functionality to answer back. 
  • Do Not Disturb with horizontal slash – no outside screen chat will appear until the has concluded. 
  • Be right back with a clock sign - The person is temporarily unavailable or is finishing a task. (Be right back can only be set manually if your computer is idle/ screen lock or “asleep”)  
  • Offline - It means the person is currently not using TEAMS, connected to the company, and until they log back into Corcentric they are not receiving messages. 

How to take and share notes in a team’s meeting

  • Selecting the “More Actions” icon
  • Select the “show meeting notes” option
  • A side pane will pop up select the “take notes”

I need all the organization help I can get; with the elimination of paper files and the growth of a “cloud filing system” I can easily loose items. TEAMS provides the ability to “Pin” – think of a bulletin board.

Pinning/organizing your teams

  • Open Microsoft Teams. 
  • Go to the team and channel you want to pin.
  • Find the post and click the more options button at top right.
  • Select Pin.
  • The post will be pinned to the top. The post is pinned for everyone, if part of a channel.

Edit in DESKTOP APP 

While in the document others that have access to the same document will be able to edit simultaneously and EVERYONE’s collaborative changes/updates will be AUTOSAVED!

FYI - changes can be made in the channel/non-desktop environment, however this is where (in my opinion) TEAMS is flawed; when multiple parties making changes, alignment and structure can become skewed.

 How to save a message/chat/or link to files

  • Find the message you want to save.
  • Hover over the message and click the bookmark icon to save the message.
  • Once the message is saved, the bookmark icon will appear red, and a message will pop up indicating that the message was saved.

How to find saved items

  • Just to the right of the text.
  • To see a list of your saved messages, select your profile picture at the top of the app and choose Saved.

How to copy and send a link

  • Select Format beneath the message box.
  • Select Insert link.
  • Add display text and the address.
  • Select Insert or copy and paste the link into the message box.
  • Select Send.

Emojis and Gif’s in Teams – Why & When 

According to the company hibox - (Paraphrased) "There are real, measurable benefits to the increasingly casual form of communication that has become the norm of the most innovative businesses. Without in-person interaction, there’s little emotional dimension to our messages at work which can tax employee engagement and relationships. Formal communication is being factored out in favor of informal methods which include emojis and GIFS because we simply work better this way. Using Emojis and Gif's in appropriate business communication produces better results!" 

TEAMS has over 800 Emojis, stickers and Gif’s incorporated into the platform.  On my team,  if a message is received with no action or reply required, the “thumbs up” is posted as a confirmation of being received/read by the recipient.  

Please know your audience prior to adding emojis, GIF or Stickers to group reads, channels – especially if clients are part of the communication/information stream. 

How to access the “Secret” Emoticons in TEAMS 

  • Open Microsoft Teams. Go to either a teams' channel or a chat thread. 
  • Click inside the text input field and enter the colon character: 
    • Follow this character up with a letter for example “a” and emoticons that start with the letter will appear in the list.  🚲🍱🧐

These quick how-to tips are are used frequently and offer effective interactions both internally to an organization and when engaging external resources. TEAMS offers extensive robust features and functionality; continuously helping to bridge the gap of face-to-face interactions that are still impacted by Covid. 

Corcentric is currently looking for qualified staff... www.corcentric.com/company/careers/

If an opening is of interest or if you have questions about the company please email me at twankoff@corcentric.com.

Read more »

on Tuesday, April 07, 2020 0

It’s easy to look at a recession and decide to pump the brakes on marketing activities. After all, marketing is an investment to attract customers to purchase your company’s product or services; and if your customers are not in a situation where they’re ready to buy, why not wait until they are?
The reality is that even with a recession (or pandemic in this case), individuals still have day-to-day needs. Sure, you might not go out to dinner as often or go out to the movies, but we all still need to eat and yearn for entertainment. On top of this, studies show that brands are less profitable post-recession if they cut back on their marketing activities in the midst of one.
If you’re a marketer, here are some ideas for where you can invest your marketing budget to work during a recession:
 
      1.       Market Research – Yes, I know, you should be doing this anyway, but things can change quickly during a recession, and you should understand how this recession has affected your customers. Has the recession changed how your customers use your product? Can they purchase your product without leaving their home? Do they know your product even exists? These are all questions that you should have answers for regardless of the market situation. With the proper combination of primary (self-gathered) and secondary market research, you should look to steer your brand accordingly and interact with your target market(s) at the proper touch-points.

      2.       Positive Brand Value – Showing your brand’s heart by providing customers something extra during hard times will only enhance their opinion of your brand over the long term (and may encourage them to spend a little more during the short term). These values could be anything from short-term discounted pricing, free deliveries, community investments, or free services depending on your brand and product. During the COVID-19 pandemic, Disney brought their movies from theaters to Disney+ streaming in expedited time; Burger King offered free deliveries via apps like Grubhub; Campbell Soup donated over $1 million in cash and food to organizations in their hometowns where they have plants and offices; and Adobe made their Creative Cloud available to K-12 institutions for free. All of these are extra perks that will tell a potential customer that your brand cares, but be careful. Consumers are smart enough to recognize which gestures are authentic, and which ones are only for financial gains.     

      3.       Focus on Existing Customers with Loyalty Tactics – Existing customers are the bread and butter of your business, and without them, you would not be where you are as a company. Plenty of studies show that it’s easier (and cheaper) to retain an existing customer than it is to obtain new ones…especially during a recession. For certain companies, Loyalty Programs can serve as a worthwhile investment for retention purposes. According to the 2009 COLLOQUL Loyalty Census, reward and loyalty programs rose significantly in the US during the recession of 2008, growing nearly 20% with the total US population and 32% with millennials. This makes complete sense as consumers see value in participating in a program that will help them stretch every dollar. As a parent of two year old twins, I love participating in loyalty programs for basic needs like diapers and wipes. Saving a little on these purchases helps enough where I won’t look elsewhere for those products. While not every loyalty program works like my diaper deals, one factor is universal across all of them: Recommendations! With a good loyalty program, your customers may tell their friends, family-members, colleagues, and possibly total strangers about the wonderful benefits they’re receiving from your company. This means that your loyalty program isn’t just incentivizing your customers to come back, it’s also working as free PR!   

      4.       Continue to advertise…If you can – According to market researcher NPD Group, U.S. sales of laptops, desktops, were up 40% in March 2020 compared with the same period from 2019, and the Wall Street Journal published an article in April 2020 showing that local TV stations had a surge in viewership due to COVID-19. Unfortunately for the stations, they aren’t benefiting from this viewer surge as companies are cutting back on advertising. While this is completely understandable, studies going back to the 1920’s show that increasing your advertising spend during a recession actually pays off. In 1927, Ad Executive Roland S. Vaile reported in an issue of the Harvard Business Review that companies who continued to advertise during a recession four years earlier in 1923, were 20% ahead of where they were BEFORE that recession, while companies that reduced their advertising were 7% below their levels before that recession began. Other examples from the 1940’s through the 1990’s in both B2C and B2B environments showed similar patterns. It seems obvious: when you advertise when other companies stop, your brand is much more likely to be noticed, and it’s also more likely to be remembered when the economy stabilizes and others begin advertising again. So with more people buying laptops and spending time watching TV, it’s a fantastic time to invest your advertising dollars on TV, Digital and Social media.  

Recessions can throw a massive wrench into your business, but with some quality planning and adjustments, your marketing can thrive if you look for the right opportunities. The proposed tactics and budget areas above are potential options for where to invest your marketing dollars. Please come back next week and read the second part of this blog where I will address how to properly invest your marketing budget during a recession by discussing various sourcing strategies.   
Read more »

on Monday, August 28, 2017 0
It’s that time of year again when Apple rejuvenates the consumer market with new technologies that will have people in a frenzy. Rumor has it that the event is expected to take place on September 12th, 2017 at the newly constructed Apple Park. The Apple events have become an annual tradition for many within the tech industry and avid users of Apple products, with its popularity rising in recent years due to predictability of them announcing the latest version of the iPhone. Apple is expected to release details on the S-series of the iPhone 7, an updated Apple TV, and a new Apple Watch. However, in addition to all that, this year provides some added suspense as it marks the iPhone’s 10th anniversary building anticipation for many looking to see the new iPhone 8 (unofficial name but we’ll use it for the purpose of this blog), a complete redesign compared to last year’s iPhone 7.

The anticipation of the newly designed iPhone 8 has already been impacting the market, with their market cap increasing by 36%, hovering close to $826 billion, compared to the start of the year. Analysts at Nomura Instinet predict that Apple will move roughly 50 million iPhones by the end of the Q3; 10% more than the same period last year. The new iPhone 8 is, as expected, going to be the most technologically advanced model yet. While nothing has been confirmed by Apple, it is rumored to include:
  • An edge-to-edge display (5.8-Inch, largest iPhone display yet)
  • OLED panel for a brighter and more colorful display
  • Facial-recognition technology by utilizing a 3-D sensor on the front of the device
  • Fingerprint reader on the back of the device
  • Wireless charging capabilities (finally!)
  • “Waterproof” – it will be interesting if Apple actually deems the next generation of devices as waterproof as that carries a lot of liability. I expect it will have more advance water-resistant capabilities.
While the new features will have consumers clamoring to get their hands on one, the price may steer some to stick to the 7s versions which will most likely have updated hardware but primarily mirror the iPhone 7 that was released last year. The new iPhone 8 is rumored to be priced around $999 and climbing upwards of $1400 depending on the chosen memory capacity. That’s a substantial, almost 50%, increase from the $650-$750 that we consumers have become accustomed to paying. It will be interesting to see if the higher price due to the increased technology will ultimately become a deterrent for consumers.
While the iPhone 8 will definitely steal the show at the next Apple Event, it’s worth noting the improvements that will be made to our other beloved Apple devices:
  • Apple Watch: expected to include an LTE cellular chip that will enable the watch to directly connect to wireless services and independently from the iPhone transmit emails, phone calls, and texts.
  • Apple TV: The updated model will be capable of supporting 4K resolution which will deliver twice the current viewing quality (at 1080p). In addition, look for updates to the TV app that was rolled out in 2016. It is rumored to be able to aggregate programming from apps that support live streaming (Sling, DirecTV NOW, Hulu, etc.).
Now we look to (hopefully) September 12th to discover the next chapter of what Apple hopes to disrupt the market with. With the main focus of the event being the rumored iPhone 8, it will be interesting to learn what’s actually included and, in true Apple fashion, everything else that we didn’t even fathom having included in a cellphone, watch, and streaming device.
Read more »

on Thursday, March 23, 2017 0
Most commonly, strategic sourcing is only introduced during the manufacturing phase of the product lifecycle, during the growth and maturity stages. Organizations often only consider procurement a necessity when considering their options for reducing the overall costs of the established product. Within many organizations, procurement is viewed as an obstacle in the sourcing process. However engaging sourcing and procurement teams throughout the product will offer a clear view of the market landscape when it comes time to make serious purchasing decisions, and ultimately result in added value.

Strategic Sourcing and Procurement can achieve even greater savings by expanding on existing component opportunities to include the engineering team's insights into critical and non-critical selection. Including SS&P during the ideation phase can offer an abbreviated development timeframe that meets cost targets to ensure the design of a quality product in a competitive market is a repeatable reality. Procurement has the ability to enable manufacturers to understand the market for material and functional design considerations, evaluate their current contract engineering relationships, and then determine the most efficient approach to balance costs with technical considerations. Beyond that, procurement can leverage supplier input during the Production phase that can assist engineering teams to guarantee cost-competitive and sustainable initial design.

In a recent conversation, Strategic Sourcing Throughout the Product Lifecycle Q&A, with Source One Consultant Martin Przeworski, he reveals the benefits of including procurement during the earliest phases of the product lifecycle. Przeworski applies his background in engineering as a direct and indirect material sourcing expert to improve communication between engineers and procurement professionals that achieves savings and allows both parties to stay competitive in their markets. This question and answer session follows the release of a new white paper titled Strategic Sourcing Throughout the Product Lifecycle, which explores the value of engaging Strategic Sourcing and Procurement groups at each stage of the product lifecycle. Przeworski was a main contributor to the white paper, and collaborated with other members of the Source One team to offer their perspective on utilizing procurement earlier in the product lifecycle than it is traditionally and how it can provide additional value start to finish.
Read more »

on Thursday, December 08, 2016 0
We sat down with three incredibly talented millennials in the supply chain and procurement industry, and winners of THOMASNET.com’s 30 Under 30 Rising Supply Chain Star Program for a unique podcast conversation on what their generation offers organizations. Together, Amrish Lobo of Baker Hughes, Aisha Khan of Johnson & Johnson, and Michael Croasdale of Source One Management Services, LLC discuss what being a millennial in the supply chain and procurement means to them, beyond the negative stereotypes and misconceptions the generation has acquired in the work place.

“A generation without borders.”

Lobo explains that millennials understand the importance of collaboration in the workplace. Millennials are no stranger to “sharing”. The most obvious example of this is the use of social media channels – many of which are rapidly advancing as real-time sharing platforms of events happening in the moment such as Facebook Live and Snapchat. Beyond sharing their life on social outlets, millennials are also happy to share resources. Consider the boom of Airbnb and Uber. As a money-conscious generation deeply affected by the economic downturn in 2008, millennials frequently share their resources in an effort to reduce costs. And, the trend of sharing doesn’t end there. Programs such as Google Drive and Hangouts, are rapidly becoming go-to collaborative tools for working with colleagues in any location – wifi permitting of course.

“Avoid a blanket strategy”

Khan explains how she appreciates management that challenges her and suggests that employers ned to recognize that not all millennials are the same – despite what the stereotypes might imply. The solution: get to know your millennial talent individually and take the time to understand their goals to help them reach their full potential. As the most educated generation, millennials are eager to apply their degrees in their work and they are driven to advance. However, that drive doesn’t necessarily mean they are willing to “job-hop”. Employers should strive to challenge millennials by rewarding performance with new responsibilities and opportunities to grow.

“Gaining exposure to a wide range of business units”

Croasdale shared his motivation and passion for the supply management field. He shares that as a procurement consultant, he is routinely challenged to think critically to present clients with solutions. Offering a unique perspective as a consultant specializing in strategic sourcing, Croasdale explained that his career has given him exposure to a wide range of business units but also industries.

All three unanimously agree that supply chain management offers fantastic career opportunities for millennials. Their advice? Work hard and don’t look back. Don’t be afraid to be innovative and pursue what makes you happy!


Millennial talent management is a major topic of discussion for procurement leaders. During the Institute for Supply Management’s Annual Conference (ISM2017), Source One will be presenting a session titled: Should I Stay or Should I Go? Led by Source One Associate Director and recipient of the Council for Supply Chain Management Professionals’ Emerging Leader Award Diego De la Garza will explore dispel the millennial myths and offer career guidance that garners a strong relationship between millennials and their employers. 
Read more »

on Tuesday, November 29, 2016 0
Each year THOMASNET.com and the Institute for Supply Management recognize 30 incredible purchasing and supply chain management  professionals under the age of 30, for their contributions to the industry through the 30 Under 30 Rising Supply Chain Star Recognition Program. This year, Source One's very own Senior Project Manager and MRO Category Expert, Michael Croasdale received the recognition - making the list of 30 Rising Supply Chain Stars for his innovative work delivering a preferred vendor program for a construction client utilizing Google Earth technology.

While Croasdale's solution saved his client thousands of dollars, all too often millennials receive a ton of flack for their dependency on technology - among the long list of other generational stereotypes. However, millennials are making a huge impact on the supply chain management industry. As drivers behind human-centered technology, millennials in the workforce are transforming the way companies operate.

And, despite the terrible preconceptions of the millennial generation, they're not all lazy and entitled. They are a generation composed of diverse backgrounds and motivations. To address those stereotypes, Source One's Michael Croasdale joined two other Rising Supply Chain Stars: Aisha Khan oh Johnson and Johnson and Amrish Lobo of Baker Hughes for a podcast discussion on Being a Millennial in the Supply Chain Management Field. Together, they share the stereotypes they wish they could change the most, as well as how managers can keep millennial talent engaged. For future graduates and millennials interested in a career in supply chain management and procurement, each 30 Under 30 winner shares what motivated their career path in the field and their advice for those looking to do the same.
Read more »

on Friday, November 11, 2016 0

Source One Round Up: November 11, 2016

Here's a look at where Source One's cost reduction
 experts have been featured this week!


NEW BLOGS:
Give Your Procurement Practice Some Backbone
When organizations begin to make the transition from decentralized to centralized procurement operations, there can be quite a few growing pains. In many cases, distilling the information to the right parties and getting stakeholders on board can be major challenges. Without the right amount of support from top-end leaders, resistance can easily halt the initiative. This week, Source One Project Manager Torey Guingrich explains the practices necessary to give your procurement organization a backbone. She gives an overview of the common reasons for stakeholder disengagement when it comes to getting teams on board and the policies to establish that will ensure your procurement practices are fully adopted.


UPCOMING WEBINARS:
"How to Future-Proof Your Procurement Support Team"
On Wednesday, November 16th Source One, Corporate United, and MRA Global Sourcing will be hosting a webinar on preparing your procurement team for the changing vision of Procurement and Supply Management. The perfectly timed webinar as the year comes to a close, will cover the blend of internal resources and external solutions to address evolving challenges facing procurement groups. The session will cover how the function has changed over the years and explore the different strategies and tactics available to organizations.


Read more »
Subscribe to: Posts (Atom)