Microsoft today announced a donation of devices to Barnardos in order to empower the organisation to work remotely as it continues to provide vital support to vulnerable children and families.
The provision of eighty-four refurbished Microsoft Surface and other devices has ensured that the inspiring team at Barnardos can now support over 800 children and families across Ireland by providing much needed help, advice and support at a time when they need it most.
Suzanne Connolly, CEO of Barnardos said: “The support from Microsoft will mean the world of difference to our frontline teams across Ireland – over 80 Barnardos staff will receive devices that will enable them to continue providing vital and necessary support to some of Irelands’ most vulnerable children and families in the months to come.”
Cathriona Hallahan, MD of Microsoft Ireland said: “Microsoft’s mission is to help every person and every organisation to achieve more. We are all too aware of the additional challenges that many social services and charities are navigating due to the restrictions that were put in place, with many unable to maintain their regular work in the community. That’s why we’ve made a special donation of devices to Barnardos, who have been on the frontline making sure that vulnerable children and families have the supports they need. Through technology, the charity’s project workers are empowered to continue providing essential services to some of our nation’s most vulnerable from their own homes.
“The team at Microsoft Ireland is committed to doing all that we can to respond to the evolving needs of people, communities, families and organisations as we journey along the road to recovery.”
Amazon today announced Echo Auto is coming to Ireland and the UK. Echo Auto is the first Echo device designed for use on the road, giving you an easy and affordable way to add the power of Alexa on the go. Echo Auto is available from today on Amazon.co.uk as well as Argos, Dixons and Very.co.uk for just £49.99.
“Customers tell us they want to take Alexa with them everywhere they go. We’re delighted to offer them an easy way to add Alexa to the car they already own.” said Eric Saarnio, Vice President, Amazon Devices EU. “With Echo Auto, customers can now enjoy the convenience of Alexa on the road, giving them the ability to play music, make calls, continue their audiobook, play games, manage their reminders and more—all just by using their voice.”
Echo Auto features a custom-designed eight-microphone array which has been designed to account for challenging in-car acoustics, enabling Alexa to hear commands over music, air conditioning and ambient road noise. Powered by your car’s 12V power outlet or integrated USB port, Echo Auto connects to your stereo system through a 3.5 mm audio jack or Bluetooth. Echo Auto connects to Alexa through the Alexa app on your smartphone, iOS or Android, and uses your existing phone’s data plan for connectivity and to access a range of Alexa features such as music, calling and more.
With Echo Auto, just ask Alexa to hear your morning news, listen to an Audible audiobook and more. You can also set reminders to pick up your dry cleaning on your way home, control your smart home devices, build your shopping list or manage your calendar—all while your eyes stay on the road.
With tens of thousands of skills and counting, Alexa is always getting smarter. Skills are like apps and help you do more, such as play relaxing sounds or test your music knowledge. Just say, “Alexa, what are your top skills?”
Andrson, an A.I. artist discovery platform, has launched Uploaded – an international song competition offering emerging musicians the chance to win a grand prize of €10,000. Open to artists globally, the competition runs until 30th November 2020 with monthly prizes available and will culminate in a live event showcase to declare the eventual winner – due to be held in Dublin, February 2021. Uploaded will not only reward unique musical talent, but will showcase some of the world’s best undiscovered artists.
Launching this week, Andrson invites all aspiring and emerging musicians, across all genres of music to enter by submitting an original song which will be judged by top level music industry execs. With no limit on the number of submissions, artists can enter up to one song per month until the competition closes in November – creating as much music as they like.
Each month, twenty-three artists will be chosen to advance to a semi-final whereby eventually the long list of semi-finalists will be whittled down to a shortlist of 10 talented finalists – chosen by a leading panel of handpicked judges from the music industry. The 10 finalists will then be invited to perform live in Dublin next year for a chance to battle it out to win €10,000. Additionally, a second prize will be available at the event offering the public a chance to vote for their favourite artist in the People’s Choice award and a cash reward of €2,500.
To enter the competition, artists can simply download the Andrson app from the App Store or Google Play, then upload their chosen song and lastly complete the entry form on the contest landing page. The grand final will take place in Dublin, in February 2021. The 10 finalists will be invited to perform their songs live in front of fans, music industry execs and a select panel of judges. Winners will be announced during the evening.
Neil Dunne, Co-Founder of Andrson, commented: “We want to be a source of inspiration and support all budding musicians globally. By launching Uploaded, we hope we’ve created a space whereby not only can their music be heard by the right people but we will hear the incredible talent from some of the best undiscovered musicians.”
To launch Uploaded, Andrson has partnered with children’s charity, Make-A-Wish Ireland. Twenty percent of sponsorships and donations from the competition will be committed to the charity – raising vital funds to help grant wishes to seriously ill children.
Uploaded is an opportunity for all budding songwriters to showcase their talents whereby their music will be judged on originality, lyrics, melody, composition, production and the potential to be a ‘smash hit’.
A sound-driven A&R platform, Andrson is a brand new A.I.-powered tool which connects emerging artists to the right industry professionals, helping them to become discovered. For more information and to enter Uploaded, head to andrsonuploaded.com.
Recent events have driven unprecedented levels of creativity and agility within the marketing sector, with brand communications teams and agency creatives pivoting rapidly to deliver transformational digital campaigns to address an entirely new set of consumer needs.
As such, CRU (The Commission for Regulation of Utilities) has launched the first ever Google Home and Alexa centred AI campaign in Ireland, aligned to the roll out of its ‘Switch On to Savings, Rights and Safety’ communications campaign.
This unique digital activation involves the development of an app which effectively ‘trains’ smart home devices, namely Google Home and Alexa, to deliver specific responses to any consumer questions on the theme of savings, switching energy suppliers, energy safety and rights, whilst also driving awareness of the role of CRU, its services and guiding consumers to CRU branded information portals such as the CRU website and social media channels.
This ‘smart home conversation skill’ activation is the first of its kind to be developed and rolled out in Ireland by any organisation and was developed by the CRU in close collaboration with PR agency AMPLIFY@Drury Porter Novelli and Granite Digital.
The Commission for the Regulation of Utilities ‘Switch On’ campaign calls on the public to switch on to their rights, safety and savings as an energy consumer, and is fronted by long standing Campaign Ambassador Maia Dunphy. As part of a broader communications campaign, Maia will work closely with several high-profile Irish influencers to engage in an online challenge to see how much money they can save, by following the simple steps suggested by CRU. Over the coming weeks the influencer collaboration campaign will see participants using their smart home devices to put the CRU app to the test, when comparing costs from different Irish energy providers. The influencer campaign will roll out across Instagram, but will be amplified across all channels.
The way people are connecting with businesses through technology is constantly evolving. Surveys from 2019, found that 15% of Irish households now have smart speakers, while over 50% of Irish people are expected to own a smart speaker by 2023. In further research, ComScore forecasts that over half of all search will be via voice by 2020, showing that voice is poised to become the next big channel for marketers.
With the disruptive effects of the pandemic currently dominating our daily lives CRU was forced to pivot its ‘Switch On’ campaign online. CRU Head of Communications and Public Affairs, Karl Richardson said “The current COVID-19 pandemic has forced many businesses to stop in their tracks, quickly re-strategise, and change the ways in which they operate. Given how consumer behaviours to switching suppliers have been impacted due to Coivd, we are delighted to be the first to introduce this innovative AI technology and reach Irish consumers in a way that compliments their busy on and offline lifestyles and provide them with the information they need to switch on to savings, their right and safety.”
As Ireland’s independent energy and water regulator, the Commission for the Regulation of Utilities (CRU) is central in protecting Irish consumers’ energy savings, rights and safety, and wanted to scale the advice previously provided by its consultants.
Launching this latest digital activation, Nicky Crichton, Brand Communications Lead at AMPLIFY@DruryPN said “Like many brand communications agencies, we’re pushing boundaries and pivoting fast to ensure effective, impactful, digitally led solutions for our clients, and the campaign for CRU is one that we’re particularly excited about given that its first to market, and perfectly timed given the ever increasing use of in-home AI technology”
Ivan Adriel, Creative Strategy Director of Granite added“AI assistants are rapidly taking over consumers’ homes, soon to become the primary channel through which people get information, goods, and services. We were delighted to co-create this solution for CRU, anticipating the future and exploring a striking new opportunity for connection between brand & consumers.”
Switch On To CRU is now available on all Google Home and Amazon Alexa devices in Ireland. To start a conversation simply use the prompts below:
Leading Irish cloud-communications company workair has expanded its suite of remote-working services to enable Irish businesses to continue to work in a distributed way and survive the Covid-19 crisis.
The company’s move to grow its offering comes as details of the new Programme for Government’s measures for remote working emerge.
workair is providing a new unified communications platform which supports remote, mobile, and home-based workers to collaborate and connect with customers at any time and on any device. It follows workair’s recent support for leading health insights company LetsGetChecked, which enabled the latter to continue its development of critical new Covid-19 testing services that confirm patient results within 48 hours. LetsGetChecked has just raised $71m in funding as the start-up sees huge demand for its at-home health testing kits.
In parallel with its partnership with LetsGetChecked, workair has been ramping up its services to meet surging demand for distributed and remote working solutions since the Covid-19 outbreak. It has enabled other companies challenged by the recent national lockdown restrictions, such as travel agency Hannon Travel, law firm Whitney Moore, HR software company Intelligo, and Eden Recruitment, to continue servicing customers in an innovative, efficient and cost-effective manner.
Stephen Mackarel, Managing Director of workair Ireland, said: “With countries, economies and the whole business world grappling with the unprecedented challenges of Covid-19, companies need remote solutions to help sustain their businesses, reduce costs and drive efficiencies in what is the toughest of times. Already focused on cloud-based solutions for every type of business, we have been ramping up our fully-functional remote-operation services since the outbreak, and now our unified platform will further enable our clients’ staff to continue to be productive and customer-focused remotely in this incredibly challenging environment. Companies of all sizes in Ireland are dealing with massive financial, operational and CRM challenges and business managers are having to work out totally new ways of leading. Our single, unified technology solutions will drive efficiencies, keep costs down, provide performance metrics and ultimately support enterprise recovery in the new Covid-19 business world.”
LetsGetChecked is a leading health insights company that allows customers direct access to a wide range of testing options and clinical services from home. The company recently announced it is to offer innovative new testing services to those working within the healthcare system and to at-risk groups as part of the fight against Covid-19.
Since partnering with LetsGetChecked 12 months ago, workair has been helping the company to provide 8×8’s unified communications solution across its worldwide base. The Covid-19 pandemic necessitated LetsGetChecked to make a more rapid deployment to enable remote-working solutions for its staff following the closure of its Dublin and New York offices. Within 10 days, workair helped LetsGetChecked to re-activate its call centre operations, enabling its customer-support staff in Ireland and New York to operate remotely and continue critical work enabling testing services for the Covid-19 disease.
Mark Donaghy, Product Manager at LetsGetChecked, said: “It’s been great to be a part of such a tangible example of businesses pulling together like this. LetsGetChecked has seen a huge increase in test orders because our customers can safely test from home without putting themselves or others at risk. Thanks to the quick turnaround from the workair team, we have been able to keep this vital medical service going at a time it is needed most and we are now actively testing and supporting healthcare workers with our coronavirus testing solution.”
With more than 30 existing clients already using its cloud-based technology to support employee productivity and customer engagement, workair is leveraging its expertise to help many more companies support their staff to make the transition to effectively work from home easier in the midst of the Covid-19 crisis. Since the outbreak in Ireland, the company has been working closely with existing clients, as well as providing solutions to new customers, enabling SMEs of all types to continue to effectively run their day-to-day business, ensuring their staff can work remotely to service customers in Ireland and abroad.
workair provides unified communication platforms for businesses of all sizes through various communications, meeting, project management, customer engagement and analytics tools. workair provides a seamless and easy to use experience by providing all of these services in one central location, increasing efficiency and reducing costs in a manner that connects effectively with existing CRMs.
workair has well-established partnerships with leading, award-winning communications providers with a global footprint. Unified platforms from 8×8, Ring Central and LogMeIn enable workair to provide customized solution to meet specific businesses’ needs. workair is making enterprise grade solutions affordable to businesses of all sizes, future proofing businesses in their transition to the cloud. Voice, video, Instant messaging, analytics and meetings removes the need for employees to switch between multiple platforms and applications, bringing all services onto one user-friendly platform. workair’s offering reduces both complexity and cost while fostering a collaborative work environment by enabling employees and customers to be connected anywhere and on any device.
Since its launch, workair has worked with businesses in many sectors including the motor, auctioneering, law, recruitment, travel, financial service, and healthcare industries with cloud-based solutions benefitting management, employees, and customers.
Aramex, a leading global provider of comprehensive logistics and transportation solutions, today announces the launch of “Aramex SMART”, an innovative and comprehensive delivery, payment and returns solution for e-tailers that enhances consumers’ online shopping experience, increases payment optionality and delivery flexibility, and promotes the overall growth of e-commerce industry in the region.
“Aramex SMART” is the world’s first all-in-one stack delivery, payment and returns solution offered by a logistics and transportation company. It enables e-tailers around the world to deliver a premium experience for their shoppers in Aramex’s core markets. Consumers that use this solution benefit from a convenient online shopping experience which gives them access to fast deliveries, easy returns, and allows them options to complete their payments within a period of 14 days after the delivery of their shipment, using a payment method of their choice.
Commenting on the launch, Bashar Obeid, Chief Executive Officer of Aramex, said: “The launch of ‘Aramex SMART’ is a milestone not only for Aramex, but for the entire e-commerce industry as it brings together a full stack of delivery, payment and returns solution in a single offering. As one of the leading industry players, part of our strategy is to continuously improve the ecosystem by identifying gaps and coming up with innovative solutions to help resolve bottlenecks that will ensure a healthy and uninterrupted growth of e-commerce. With ‘Aramex SMART’ we aim to support businesses that wish to grow their online sales channels, and improve the online shoppers’ overall experience, especially during the current unprecedented challenges brought by COVID-19. Through the launch of this innovative solution, we aim to boost growth in the digital economy and support resurgence in retail demand.”
Arun Singh, Aramex’s Corporate Treasurer and Head of Aramex SMART,said: “We are very excited to launch ‘Aramex SMART’ in response to evolving consumer needs and e-commerce industry trends. Through our extensive market research, we identified a need for a full suite solution that will address disparities between an increased consumer preference for cash-on-delivery shipments in spite of limited digital payment options offered by e-commerce players. Our research showed that one of the main reasons for preference for cash-on-delivery is due to the trust deficit consumers have in the e-commerce experience. Our studies also revealed that businesses suffer from slower deliveries, high rejection rates, and inventory inefficiencies with cash-on-delivery shipments. To address these gaps, we have developed this innovative platform that provides shoppers convenient and flexible payment options when making online purchases, as well as supporting e-tailers with cash flow management, ensuring seamless and efficient transactions, higher acceptance rates, improved consumer trust and enhanced bottom line growth.”
“Aramex SMART” is the latest addition to the suite of other innovative solutions that Aramex developed as part of its digital transformation journey. Earlier this year, the company introduced a fully revamped mobile App that includes real–time shipment and courier tracking, and seamless connection to Aramex’s WhatsApp chat-bot.
In 2018, Aramex launched “Aramex Fleet”, a crowd-based delivery platform that connects Saudi Nationals to flexible last mile delivery work to leverage Saudi Arabia’s sharing economy and support fluctuating demand in the Kingdom. This was followed by the launch of Aramex Spot, a partnership with retail outlets to support last mile delivery access across Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
OpenSky, the digital transformation specialist for government organisations and large private enterprises, today announces the findings of a survey which reveal that almost half (47%) of Irish office workers would move to an organisation embracing more automation.
The research – carried out by Censuswide and involving 1,000 people across Ireland, 500 of which were office workers – found that 62% would like to see their organisation embrace more automation, with the highest demand among workers in Carlow, Dublin and Cork. Some 35% of respondents think automation will help people to do their jobs more effectively.
The top three benefits of such technologies were cited as the ability to minimise boring tasks, to help during situations such as the current coronavirus pandemic, and to enable information to be processed faster.
William Flanagan, Technology & Commercial Director, OpenSky
Almost a third (32%) of office workers believe automation would reduce the pressure placed on the human workforce, while more than a quarter (26%) think it would lead to the possibility of a four-day work week. The study also revealed that a significant frustration among people was spending too long in work.
Moreover, 71% said that further automation of business processes would be of strategic benefit to their organisation. Forty-seven per cent of those respondents said it would reduce operational costs, while 42% think it would streamline processes.
In terms of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and robotics, almost a fifth (19%) of office workers admitted they would be worried about such technologies listening to and watching them in the workplace. Some 22% think robots will be involved in workplace decisions within the next 20 years, while 14% believe they will have employee rights by this time.
If organisations fail to implement innovative solutions, like Robotic Process Automation (RPA), which enable valuable staff to work on what they are trained to do rather than spend excessive amounts of time on mundane and monotonous administrative tasks, their employees’ job satisfaction and workload is affected.
William Flanagan, Technology & Commercial Director, OpenSky, said: “Even though workplace operations were transforming before the pandemic, the current situation has highlighted, more than ever, how vital technology is in terms of supporting businesses to remain competitive and secure long-term continuity during a crisis.
“Irish businesses really need to consider investing in technologies that increase productivity levels, reduce costs and enhance customer service levels, enabling them to achieve competitive advantage. The businesses that invest in the tools to uphold competitiveness are the ones that will survive in the long-term – the ones that don’t are more likely to see catastrophic implications, as so many have unfortunately seen recently.
“Not only that, but businesses also need to meet the growing demand among employees to work smarter, not longer. If organisations fail to implement innovative solutions, like Robotic Process Automation (RPA), which enable valuable staff to work on what they are trained to do rather than spend excessive amounts of time on mundane and monotonous administrative tasks, their employees’ job satisfaction and workload is affected. It also impacts staff retention as employees will simply leave to work for organisations that support more automation.
“Automation is designed to benefit people – not replace them. And while the role of emerging technologies, including AI and robotics, will continue to increase in the world of work over the next few years, the most effective strategy is technology and people working together to be innovative and drive growth.”
Nestlums – an innovative app to teach children about the working of money in our virtually cashless, digital world, where it may seem invisible to them – launched today and is already trending on the App Store and has been for us on site too which is really great news for the company.
Wayne Travis (Creative Director of a leading fintech company, Thought Machine) and his team mates, as parents concerned about their young kids limited understanding of money in our increasingly cashless digital world, decided to create an app to teach them the essentials, in the form of a game so enchanting they will be begging to keep on playing and learning:
Neslums is a new mobile app which offers modern money training for children through a unique, character-driven, gamified experience, without connecting to a bank account or touching any real money.
The modern digital world presents new challenges in teaching children about money. Research released today by Thought Machine shows that in 1 in 4 UK families, a child had made an unauthorised purchase online. When it came to parents teaching their children about financial literacy, 80% believe it is important that their child learns financial literacy concepts from an early age. Although 1 in 3 parents said that they were unsure their child currently has the necessary understanding of financial literacy concepts for their age.
The release of the research coincides with the launch of Nestlums, a new mobile app created by Cauldron in partnership with BAFTA nominated game developers Glitchers. The app offers modern money training for children through a unique, character-driven, gamified experience, without connecting to a bank account or touching any real money. The Nestlums team hope the app can provide tangible support in building financial understanding, especially where digital money is concerned.
“We know that getting to grips with money can be hard for kids, especially as it becomes increasingly less visible in the modern world. My seven year old daughter barely has a clue what’s going on when I tap my card in a shop!”explains Wayne Travis, Creative Director from Cauldron. “With the growing prevalence of virtual currencies and the rise of the dreaded in-app purchase, we wanted to reinforce the idea of earning money honestly, appreciating the value of money even if you can’t see it or touch it, and not blowing it recklessly.”
As families have been spending more time at home, it is likely children are also spending more time online. The Nestlums team hope the app can provide tangible support in building financial understanding, especially where digital money is concerned.
Nestlums can be downloaded from the Apple App Store or Google Play Store for a one-off payment of £2.99, and features no subscription charges, in-app purchases or advertising.
Own The Room, an international leader in learning and development, announces an innovative approach to communications training that combines world-class virtual coaching sessions and LifeHikes, an AI-driven mobile application. As companies adapt to virtual operations and take initiatives to foster a culture of openness and change, this digital learning solution empowers teams to strengthen their communications with added layers of impact, connectivity and engagement.
Own The Room’s virtual training programs feature live, interactive, skill-based lessons led by certified Coaches who have helped thousands of professionals advance their communication and presentation skills. Companies who enroll in the online training pair their virtual sessions with the newly launched LifeHikes® app to enhance the learning experience, get actionable metrics, and track progress during and after the virtual training. Together, it’s a transformative experience that leads to long-lasting results for participants and delivers insights to help employers quantify their training investment.
“At Own The Room, we want to train the world and give everyone the tools to unleash their potential,” says Own The Room Founder and Coach Bill Hoogterp. “In a time when it is more important than than ever to listen and speak out, our virtual offerings with human-centered technology empower everyone to find their voice and have as much impact as possible.”
Developed by a team of industry-leading engineers, scientists and communication Coaches, LifeHikes® features interactive lessons led by expert Coaches. It offers a robust library of practice prompts that can be completed in-between virtual team trainings, visual reports, video playback, and personalized feedback that reveal each user’s strongest skills and areas for improvement. The app also includes a Virtual Reality feature, which enables users to deliver presentations to a realistic audience in a conference room or interview setting.
To learn more and enroll in an Own The Room virtual communications training program, please visit: https://owntheroom.com/virtual-sessions/or contact team@owntheroom.com.
