Tag: #ENTERPRISE

EPAM helps its customers engineer the future with Microsoft Enterprise Skilling Initiative

A long-standing Microsoft customer and partner, EPAM Systems (EPAM) helps its clients engineer the future using Microsoft cloud solutions. The company, repeatedly awarded for its strong learning culture, nurtures employee cloud competencies through participation in the Enterprise Skilling Initiative (ESI). Available in a variety of formats, the program has already provided over 2,500 engineers with more than 5,500 Microsoft Cloud certifications. Equipped with future-oriented skills, EPAM employees can feel more empowered in their roles and better serve the increasing digital needs of their clients.

EPAM, a leading digital transformation services and product engineering company, invests in its people and award-winning learning culture by offering mentoring programs and unlimited upskilling and development opportunities. “Our client works with us because we deliver results,” starts Dmitry Tikhomirov, Vice President, Head of Cloud Technology and Delivery, EMEA & APAC at EPAM. “And we are able to do that because we invest in our people — from technology and platforms to learning and education.”

A learning culture is deeply embedded in EPAM’s business strategy, providing an outlet for employees to grow and stay engaged. “We work to understand the business objectives of each department and map corporate learning solutions to those objectives,” reveals Irina Kureichyk, Director of Learning & Development at EPAM. “This way, we can offer our clients the most up-to-date, high-quality skills and services.” Seeing the demand for advanced digital and cloud technology expertise, EPAM decided to participate in Microsoft ESI, which provides hands-on interactive courses and certification in Microsoft Cloud technologies for Microsoft customers.

Cultivating an engaging learning environment

EPAM’s certification journey with ESI started in 2019 when the first 250 engineers signed up for training across Microsoft Cloud technologies (Azure, Security, Power Platform). Initially, on-site certification events and in-class experiences were planned, but the pandemic forced a rapid switch online. Yet, the transition occurred with no disruption. “We had a learning platform where we built a learning path, integrating courses from Microsoft,” explains Kureichyk.

By combining our strengths with Microsoft, we can help our clients achieve their digital transformation goals, increase their technological agility and deliver game-changing digital experiences to their customers.

Dmitry Tikhomirov: VP, Head of Cloud Technology and Delivery, EMEA & APAC.

All certification paths are role-based but open to anyone meeting the course requirements. “We offer all learning formats provided by Microsoft, from self-paced courses and virtual classes to expert advice provided by colleagues. That flexibility makes learning easier to accommodate for our employees and keeps them motivated,” continues Kureichyk. To distinguish and engage learners, EPAM also uses gamification and badges.

Certified to make an impact

Commitment to skilling brings resiliency to EPAM. “In spite of global challenges, we continued to make skilling initiatives our top priority.” recalls Kureichyk.

To date, over 2,500 engineers across 14 countries in Central and Eastern Europe have obtained more than 5,500 certificates, the biggest Microsoft certification initiative in the region. For EPAM, this achievement confirms the company’s outstanding cloud expertise. For its employees, certificates provide a chance to elevate or recalibrate their career. “We’ve seen people move from engineering or development roles into UX roles or change their career path from testing to software development,” says Kureichyk.  “This allows us to retain valuable talent.”

The drive for continuous learning is not purely employer-driven; EPAMers are hungry to build their skills to respond to the changing market demands. Apart from the Enterprise Skilling program, the company participates in Cloud Skills Challenge, Microsoft Training Days, and other joint learning initiatives. “The technology landscape is changing every three to four years, so we need to keep our skills current continuously,” comments Tikhomirov. “Through our combined efforts with Microsoft, we can help our clients on multiple fronts, from achieving digital transformation goals and increasing agility to delivering innovative solutions,” he says. “Equipped with cloud competencies, our engineers can continue to support our clients in navigating market shifts and disruption, providing them with strategic resiliency and the innovation to thrive.”

EPAM Announces Strategic Global Partnership with Google Cloud to Help Enterprises Modernise and Transform with the Power of AI

EPAM Systems, Inc. a leading digital transformation services and product engineering company, has announced a strategic, global partnership with Google Cloud to develop and deploy Artificial Intelligence (AI)-first Google Cloud solutions to help enterprises overcome operational challenges and drive transformational growth.

Through this partnership, EPAM will expand its global, cloud-native engineering and integration services and introduce targeted vertical solutions and managed services around Google Cloud AI solutions, including Vertex AI, Generative AI App Builder, Model Garden and more.

“We are excited to expand our partnership with Google Cloud to bring the power of AI to our clients,” said Elaina Shekhter‎, Chief Marketing & Strategy Officer, EPAM. “Today’s technology transformations are built on the foundation of digital and cloud-native developments, many of which we’ve been working with Google since the mid-2000s. Larger-scale success with AI will also be critically enabled by a new wave of EPAM’s industry-leading data engineering and ML capabilities.  By furthering our long-standing partnership, we will help our clients stay ahead of the competition in a fast-changing digital landscape.”

As the global AI market soars and adoption expands, demand is increasing exponentially for AI, machine learning (ML) and advanced engineering across all industry verticals. This partnership will leverage Google Cloud’s advanced AI and ML capabilities, EPAM’s platform and data engineering DNA and nearly 30 years of experience in engineering, consulting, and software development experience to deliver innovative cloud-enabled AI, data modernisation, migration, data and analytics solutions to the Forbes Global 2000.

“Generative AI has the potential to streamline business processes and even transform entire industries,” said Michael Clark, Vice President, Google Cloud North America Regions. “By combining Google Cloud’s generative AI capabilities with EPAM’s engineering expertise, we will help customers leverage cloud-first technology and generative AI as a catalyst for digital transformation, rapidly realising business value, addressing real-world use cases and driving business growth across industries.”

EPAM and Google Cloud have a 15-year, global 360-degree partnership that combines EPAM’s engineering DNA, strategic consulting, and growing industry-focused technology solutions with Google Cloud’s infrastructure, AI/ML, generative AI and analytics technology. While continuing to focus on the long-standing tenants of this partnership, EPAM and Google Cloud will expand their collaboration to build and deliver AI-driven solutions helping enterprises in key verticals, including financial services, consumer, telecom, media, entertainment, healthcare, life sciences, energy and high-tech to modernise and transform their businesses.

To learn more about EPAM and Google Cloud’s Partnership, visit epam.com/about/who-we-are/partners/google-cloud.

Salesforce Announces AI Cloud – Bringing Trusted Generative AI to the Enterprise

Salesforce today announced AI Cloud, the fastest and most trusted way for Salesforce customers to supercharge their customer experiences and company productivity with generative AI for the enterprise. AI Cloud is a suite of capabilities optimized for delivering trusted, open, and real-time generative experiences across all applications and workflows. AI Cloud’s new Einstein GPT Trust Layer resolves concerns of risks associated with adopting generative AI by enabling customers to meet their enterprise data security and compliance demands, while offering customers the benefits of generative AI. This unique blend of capabilities and security solidifies Salesforce’s position as the #1 AI CRM.

At the heart of AI Cloud is Einstein, the world’s first AI for CRM, which now powers over 1 trillion predictions per week across Salesforce’s applications. With generative AI, Einstein helps make every company and employee more productive and efficient across sales, service, marketing, and commerce.

AI Cloud will enable sales reps to quickly auto-generate personalized emails tailored to their customer’s needs, and service teams to auto-generate personalized agent chat replies and case summaries. Marketers can auto-generate personalized content to engage customers and prospects across email, mobile, web, and advertising. Commerce teams can auto-generate insights and recommendations to deliver customized commerce experiences at every step of the buyer’s journey. And, developers can auto-generate code, predict potential bugs in code, and suggest fixes.

Why trusted generative AI matters in the enterprise: Company leaders want to embrace generative AI, but are wary of the risks – hallucinations, toxicity, privacy, bias, and data governance concerns are creating a trust gap. New Salesforce research found that 73% of employees believe generative AI introduces new security risks and nearly 60% of those who plan to use the technology don’t know how to keep data secure.

AI Cloud will help fill that trust gap with the new Einstein GPT Trust Layer. The Einstein GPT Trust Layer will help prevent large-language models (LLMs) from retaining sensitive customer data. This separation of sensitive data from the LLM will help customers maintain data governance controls while still leveraging the immense potential of generative AI. The Einstein GPT Trust Layer sets a new industry standard for secure generative AI for the enterprise.

“AI is reshaping our world and transforming business in ways we never imagined, and every company needs to become AI-first,” said Marc Benioff, Chair and CEO, Salesforce. “AI Cloud, built on the #1 CRM, is the fastest and easiest way for our customers to unleash the incredible power of AI, with trust at the center driven by our new Einstein GPT Trust Layer. AI Cloud will unlock incredible innovation, productivity, and efficiency for every company.”

AI Cloud will integrate Salesforce technologies, including Einstein, Data Cloud, Tableau, Flow, and MuleSoft to provide trusted, open generative AI that is enterprise ready.

Trusted and Open: The Einstein GPT Trust Layer will enable companies to get started with trusted generative AI faster by optimizing the right model for the right task. It will also provide deployment capabilities for any relevant LLM while helping companies maintain their data privacy, security, residency, and compliance goals.

  • Use of Third-Party LLMs: As part of Salesforce’s commitment to an open ecosystem, AI Cloud is designed to host LLMs from Amazon Web Services (AWS), Anthropic, Cohere, and others — entirely within Salesforce’s infrastructure. AI Cloud will help maintain customer prompts and responses in the Salesforce infrastructure. In addition, Salesforce and OpenAI have established a shared trust partnership to deliver joint content moderation using OpenAI’s leading Enterprise API and best-in-class safety tools in conjunction with the Einstein GPT Trust Layer to help keep data retained in Salesforce.
  • Use of Salesforce LLMs: AI Cloud will enable customers to use Salesforce LLMs developed by Salesforce AI Research to power advanced capabilities such as code generation and business process automation assistance, fundamentally transforming how businesses interact with their CRM software. Salesforce’s LLMs – including CodeGen, CodeT5+, and CodeTF – help companies increase productivity, bridge the talent gap, reduce the cost of implementations, and better detect incidents.
  • Bring Your Own Model (BYOM): Customers who have trained their own domain-specific models outside of Salesforce will benefit from AI Cloud while storing data on their own infrastructure. These models, whether running through Amazon SageMaker or Google’s Vertex AI, will connect directly to AI Cloud through the Einstein GPT Trust Layer. In this scenario, customer data can remain within the customers’ trust boundaries.

Business Ready: AI will fuel more than $15 trillion in global economic growth and boost GDP by 26% by 2030*. AI Cloud will harness the full power of Salesforce, helping make companies and employees more productive and efficient.

  • Generative AI across every Salesforce application: Salesforce is bringing trusted generative AI to every product with Sales GPT, Service GPT, Marketing GPT, Commerce GPT, Slack GPT, Tableau GPT, Flow GPT, and Apex GPT.  See more about Salesforce’s trusted, open, and business-ready generative AI-powered applications here.
  • Prompt template and builders: The prompts used to generate AI content directly influence the quality and relevance of the generated content. Salesforce is developing optimized AI prompts that use harmonized data to ground generated outputs in every company’s unique context. These context-rich prompts will help sales, service, marketing, commerce, and IT teams get instant value from trusted generative AI, without hallucinations, while reducing time and cost.

The customer perspective:

“Our goal is to deliver more personalized member engagement, make our processes more efficient and cost-effective, and drive innovation across our team within a safe and trusted environment,” said Shohreh Abedi, EVP, Chief Operations Technology Officer, and Member Experience at AAA – The Auto Club Group. “We’re accelerating our digital transformation with Salesforce, and AI Cloud will help us implement AI across our entire business, including devops, support, sales, and underwriting.”

“Embedding AI into our CRM has delivered huge operational efficiencies for our advisors and clients,” said Greg Beltzer, Head of Tech for RBC US Wealth Management. “We believe that this technology has the potential to transform the way businesses interact with their customers, deliver personalized experiences, and drive customer loyalty. We are excited to explore this opportunity with Salesforce and drive the next generation of personalized customer experiences.”

Salesforce and Accenture’s Acceleration Hub for Generative AI

Salesforce recently announced plans to collaborate with Accenture to accelerate the deployment of generative AI for CRM. Together, the companies intend to establish an acceleration hub for generative AI that provides organizations with the technology and experience they need to scale generative AI for CRM — helping to increase employee productivity and transform customer experiences.

Pricing and Availability

Specific feature availability details as follows:

  • The Einstein GPT Trust Layer will be generally available in June 2023.
  • Service GPT is in pilot today, and will be generally available in June 2023.
  • Sales GPT is in pilot today, and will be generally available in July 2023.
  • Marketing GPT will be in pilot in June 2023, and generally available February 2024.
  • Commerce GPT is in pilot today, and will be generally available in July 2023.
  • Apex GPT will be in pilot in June 2023.
  • Flow GPT will be in pilot in October 2023.
  • Slack GPT is in beta today, and will be generally available later this year.
  • Tableau GPT will be in pilot in November 2023.

Zoom Announces Zoom IQ Expansion + Use of OpenAI

Today at Enterprise Connect,  Zoom Video Communications, Inc. (NASDAQ: ZM) announced the expansion of Zoom IQ, a smart companion that empowers collaboration and unlocks people’s potential by summarizing chat threads, organizing ideas, drafting content for chats, emails, and whiteboard sessions, creating meeting agendas, and more. The company also announced it will use OpenAI to bolster its unique federated approach to AI based on flexibility.

Zoom’s federated approach to AI leverages its own proprietary AI models, those from leading AI companies– such as OpenAI –and select customers’ own models. With this flexibility to incorporate multiple types of models, Zoom’s goal is to provide the most value for its customers’ diverse needs. These models can also be customized to perform better for a customer, based on their vocabulary and requirements.

“Zoom has long built AI solutions into our products to empower customers to be more productive,” said Smita Hashim, chief product officer at Zoom. “We are excited to bring many more capabilities with new large language models. Our unique approach to AI will give customers the flexibility they want and help significantly improve collaboration and customer relations.”

In today’s work environment, workers find it increasingly difficult to balance workday priorities between emails, team chats, meetings, and project management tasks. Teams are also looking for ways to better co-create effectively in real-time. To help solve these challenges, Zoom IQ will have a host of new capabilities scheduled to release soon, including:

  • Zoom IQ chat compose: Zoom Team Chat users can soon use the compose feature to help compose messages based on conversational context in addition to changing message tone to customize suggested responses.

  • Zoom IQ email compose: Harnessing the power of Generative AI, users will get email draft suggestions in response to the conversational context from prior Zoom Meetings, Zoom Phone calls, and email threads. Available initially in Zoom IQ for Sales.

 

  • Zoom IQ meeting summary: Generate a summary, capture next steps, and share via Team Chat, Zoom Calendar, and email without recording the conversation, so those who didn’t attend will no longer have to sit through lengthy recordings.

Additionally at Enterprise Connect, Zoom is showcasing the following innovations to make teamwork more meaningful and strengthen customer relationships:

 

  • Zoom Huddles (formerly Zoom Spots) is a new video-enabled virtual coworking space designed to foster ad-hoc discussions and relationship building, to replicate the “working alongside” aspect of an open office and encourage free-form video-first conversations. Zoom Huddles is now available globally for customers to request early access by visiting the product page.

  • Intelligent Director uses multiple cameras in a Zoom Room to determine the best angle of the individuals in the room to display within the meeting. With high-quality, reliable video and voice, Intelligent Director also provides a best-in-class experience for remote participants. Available in beta soon.

  • Zoom Scheduler makes it easy to find the perfect time for meetings by sharing the host’s availability so others (even external participants) can conveniently book appointments. Zoom Scheduler reduces the back-and-forth hassle of manual scheduling by placing a meeting on the host’s calendar with a Zoom Meetings link already included, saving both participants time. Zoom Scheduler works seamlessly with Zoom Meetings and Zoom Mail and Calendar, and integrates with Google Calendar and Microsoft 365, so hosts can use their preferred calendar.

Read Zoom’s Enterprise Connect blog to learn more about what Zoom will be showcasing.

Ten Irish SMEs announced as winners of You’re the Business Digital’s Acceleration Initiative

Google, Enterprise Ireland and the Local Enterprise Offices are today announcing the ten businesses that secured a truly unique, money-can’t-buy prize as part of the You’re The Business campaign launched last year. ‘You’re the Business’ is a programme that aims to accelerate Irish SME growth through digitalisation.

The successful businesses from across the country and a variety of sectors will receive a customised suite of digital supports from Google, expert sector and industry-specific mentoring across a range of technical areas that will help the ten SMEs to further develop their business. The selected businesses will also receive a €1,000 Google ads package each.

From family businesses to new businesses, from service to retail, the ten innovative and inspiring SMEs using digital to grow their businesses are:

  • Babogue (Kildare) – Certified Child Sleep Consultant, Erica Hargaden’s Babogue offers a suite of online video based sleep courses to help parents to manage the rollercoaster that is child sleep.
  • Camerino Bakery (Dublin) – Caryna Camerino runs the award-winning cafe and bakery and recently developed an online catering and cake ordering service.
  • Cullen Nurseries (Carlow) – Cullen Nurseries is a family owned business in Carlow, supplying top-quality native trees and hedging. Their award-winning site helps them offer an efficient online service with nationwide delivery.
  • DR Dogcare (Clare) – Animal lover Deirdre Ryan offers group or one-to-one training for dogs and their owners as well as a dog grooming service which can be booked through the website.
  • Prints of Ireland (Dublin) – Entrepreneurs, Heather and Peter’s online shop commemorates Irish landmarks with quality prints, totes and greeting cards.
  • Ryan Thomas Jewelers (Tipperary) – A family business selling luxury and hand-crafted jewellery in Clonmel for the last 43 years which can now also be purchased through the store’s website.
  • The Crafty Fox (Louth) – An award-winning fabric, crafts, and haberdashery supplies in Drogheda, supplying a large collection of top-quality products, as well as industry-leading workshops and classes which are available to book online.
  • The Cookie Co-op (Kilkenny) – A family business founded by Brian Walsh in 2020. Shoppers can order hand-crafted artisan cookies, muffins and bars online for next day delivery.
  • Velvet Cloud (Mayo) – Velvet Cloud is a range of handmade natural sheep’s milk yogurt and cheese, made on Flanagan’s family farm, and can be bought directly from their website.
  • Wonky Woolins (Galway) – Chloe Gardiner sells her wonky knitted toys from her well-designed website.

Speaking at the announcement of the winners, Caryna Camerino of Camerino Bakery said: “We launched our online shop in January 2020 just prior to Covid-19. Overnight, the website which had originally been designed to be our virtual shop window became our only shop window. Digitising our business meant that we were prepared for what came next and now the sales we make online are equal to the sales we make through the tills. We even grew the business through Covid. With Google’s help, we are now looking to reach new customers via online marketing, newsletters, and email campaigns”.

Research conducted by Google, developed in partnership with Amárach for the launch of You’re The Business last year found that almost half of SMEs believe they could more than double their turnover (40%) and profitability (45%) with an investment in digital skills. But, the research also showed that more than one in every ten SMEs based in Ireland (11%) are not yet using digital technology in their business – almost half (45%) of SMEs do not have their own website.

Alice Mansergh, Director for Small Business at Google, said: “Ireland is home to more than 250,000 small businesses, providing employment and services right across the country. Small businesses are at the heart of towns and communities across Ireland. With over 90% of Irish consumers now active online, businesses of all shapes and sizes stand to gain by ensuring they have their ‘online shop window’ – their website, their online profile – working well. At Google, we’ve been proud to partner with Enterprise Ireland and Local Enterprise Offices to bring help and support nationwide through ‘You’re The Business’. The program offers free training for all available on the You’re The Business website. We had a tough time picking 10 lucky winners to receive an even more customised prize package, such was the high standard of entries. My huge congratulations to our lucky winners: we’re excited to support their business vision and next chapter of growth online.”

Richard Murphy, Enterprise Ireland said: The You’re the Business initiative has been a significant boost to SMEs across the country.  To be able to open up Google’s expertise in digital and online promotion to all businesses is a huge step forward in helping these companies to maximise their online presence.  Both Enterprise Ireland and the Local Enterprise Offices have been working closely with clients supporting their journey’s to get online and grow online and this will only help those companies further.  To the winners we wish continued success and we look forward to supporting them as they grow both here in Ireland and hopefully internationally in the years to come.”

Padraic McElwee, Local Enterprise Offices said: “The impact of digital for small businesses has never been so keenly felt than over the recent years.  Many companies have had to become more agile, more digitally adept to survive and thrive.  Having helped thousands to get online with our Trading Online Vouchers during the pandemic, this was an opportune time to help these businesses upskill utilising the expertise of Google alongside our partners Enterprise Ireland.  The response to the You’re The Business campaign has been phenomenal up and down the country and to be able to open up these online resources to our clients has had a huge impact this year and will do in years to come.  I want to congratulate all the winners and no doubt they will go from strength to strength on the back of this partnership.”

Launched last year, You’re the Business – a partnership between Google, Enterprise Ireland and the Local Enterprise Offices – focuses on supporting Irish SMEs to upskill digitally and enhance their online capabilities. It continues to provide Irish SMEs with access to a series of live and on-demand training sessions, geared towards supporting companies at all stages of their digitalisation journey, including those at early stages right through to those more digitally-sophisticated businesses. The training consists of three modules that will help businesses.

For further information on the winners and the You’re The Business initiative, please visit: g.co/yourethebusiness

Jabra showcases true wireless expertise for consumers, enterprise and medical #CES2023

Jabra, leader in personal sound and office solutions, is showcasing its extensive true wireless range at CES with the latest additions to its Elite, Evolve and Enhance series.  

Jabra Elite 5 is the newest product to Jabra’s flagship Elite line-up, featuring Hybrid ANC and 6-mic call technology for powerful calls and music from anywhere. Jabra Evolve2 Buds, the newest product in Jabra’s Evolve series, are earbuds designed for flexible, hybrid and remote working. Jabra Enhance Plus, offered in the new over-the-counter hearing aid category, enables hearing enhancement, music and calls in a miniaturised true wireless form factor. 

All three products have been named honourees in the 2023 CES Innovation Awards, with Jabra Elite 5 and Evolve2 Buds as honourees in the personal audio and headphones category and Jabra Enhance Plus as an honouree in the digital health category. 

Jabra Elite 5: true wireless earbuds with Hybrid ANC    

This latest product in Jabra’s Elite range features new Hybrid ANC technology, powered by the Qualcomm QCC3050 Bluetooth chipset. The Hybrid ANC uses feedback microphones on the inside of the ear, and feedforward microphones on the outside. This makes the ANC less sensitive to the positioning in the ear, ensuring a more reliable noise cancellation across a wider range of frequencies.  

This all-round hero is made for those needing to take calls from anywhere and is great for enjoying media during leisure. This is thanks to 6-microphone call technology with external mics that are constantly active, as well as internal mics that give your voice a helping hand when it’s windy outside.  See our review HERE

Jabra Evolve2 Buds: pocketable earbuds for hybrid working  

Designed to boost concentration and improve collaboration, the Evolve2 Buds are perfect for professionals working on the go. The true wireless buds are certified for leading virtual meeting platforms, including Microsoft Teams and Zoom, and use the latest technology to reduce disruptive background noise and enable clearer calls.   

The Evolve2 Buds enable users to have high-quality conversations with Jabra MultiSensor Voice™, which uses a unique combination of four microphones, bone conduction sensors, and advanced algorithms to block out as much of the surrounding noise as possible.  

Jabra Enhance Plus: OTC 3-in-1 earbuds for hearing, music and calls  

Jabra Enhance Plus sets a new standard for bringing together the convenience of true wireless earbuds with advanced hearing technology to alleviate unaddressed hearing needs. As part of the new OTC hearing aid category and cleared by the FDA as a self-fitting hearing aid, Enhance Plus empowers millions of Americans with mild to moderate hearing loss to take the first step on their hearing health journey. 

Jabra Enhance Plus delivers a 3-in-1 experience in a miniaturised true wireless form factor design, around half the size of Jabra’s smallest true wireless earbuds. It includes the calls and music functionality that users expect from true wireless earbuds and provides hearing help for users in a discreet and comfortable design.

Taking true wireless tech to new levels, the device packs four key audiological features: Warp Compressor for analysis of sounds similar to human ear, Digital Noise Reduction for keeping speech clear, Digital Feedback Suppression to keep feedback from interfering with sound quality, and Binaural Beamformer with directionality to isolate sounds. 

Calum MacDougall, SVP at Jabra said, “We are delighted to be back in Las Vegas to showcase the newest products in our true wireless line-up. In the past year we have brought several unique additions to our offerings, from earbuds engineered for hybrid work to hearing enhancement earbuds in the new OTC hearing aids category. CES marks the start of yet another exciting year of innovation to come.”  

Find out more about Jabra at CES at www.jabra.com/ces.  

Availability and pricing  

The Jabra Elite 5 (£149.99), Jabra Evolve2 Buds (£279.60) and Jabra Enhance Plus ($799), are available at selected retailers. For more information visit www.jabra.co.uk 

4 Steps Small Enterprise Owners Should Take If Their Business Data Were Breached

No matter how good your security measures are, you are always at risk of having your business data breached. Whether it is your work, documents or data about your clients or employees, all this valuable information can become someone’s target. And even though you are trying your best to prevent such incidents, sometimes, it is not possible. Therefore, knowing what you should do in such a situation is highly important. It will protect your business, employees and customers at the same time. Here are steps small enterprise owners should take if their business data were breached.

Invest In Tools That Will Reduce The Risk In The Future

Every business should have tools that will minimise the risk of data breaches. You should have software that will protect the computers of your employees, and you need to do your best to protect any data you have on your business, employees and clients. Companies such as SaaS Protection offer cloud storage that will reduce the risk of losing your data from Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace. The data will be protected from malicious activity and other harmful elements in three backup points. And if by any chance you lose any data, there will be a higher possibility of their recovery.

Find The Cause And Extent Of The Breach

When your business data gets breached, you need to find the source and determine the extent of the malicious attack. The experts working for https://www.velocityit.net can explain how this step helps identify how the breach happened, what data was compromised, and whether it is still at risk.

Ideally, you should have in place tools and software that will notify you of any unauthorised log-ins and intrusions. With the information available, you will be able to address the problem as soon as possible and take other steps to prevent a similar incident in the future. You will be able to find out where the attack came from and which files were compromised. Based on the data you find, it will become easier to decide what you need to do next to resolve the issue.

Address The Problem As Soon As You Can

A solution to the problem will heavily depend on which files were attacked and how. However, no matter what you find out, you should immediately notify your IT experts, who know how to deal with data breaches. They will be able to act fast and control any damage. You might also have intrusion prevention systems that might be able to resolve the issue automatically. Nevertheless, you should still have your team involved. You also must remember that you should keep any evidence of the malicious attack that you can for your record and any legalities you might need to deal with.

Inform The Authorities And Anyone Affected By The Breach

In the event of a data breach, it is necessary for you to notify the authorities and anyone who might be affected. If your customers were affected by the malicious attack, you must ensure that they are aware of what happened and what was the extent of the breach. Telling them soon after the attack will give them enough time to protect their identities and take any measures they need. You should also tell the authorities who might be able to give you advice on any regulations you need to comply with.

 

Fairphone 4 joins Android Enterprise Recommended programme

Fairphone, the Dutch social enterprise building a market for ethical smartphones, is proud to announce that it has received Android Enterprise Recommended (AER) Certification for Fairphone 4. The AER program aims to make it easier for enterprise businesses to integrate mobile solutions into their operations, providing a security and management framework built into Android.

By joining the program, Fairphone is working to provide enterprises with the best and most secure mobile experience possible. Fairphone’s inclusion in the program gives customers added assurance that Fairphone 4 meets Google’s strict enterprise requirements for hardware and software and they can feel comfortable about setting their business up on mobile with Fairphone 4. AER also means that customers get timely security patches and clear information about major updates.

Wayne Huang, Vice President of Product at Fairphone states: “We’re proud to have received AER certification for Fairphone 4. As a small smartphone brand, it’s quite a challenge to meet Google’s high hardware and software standards. Our inclusion in the program allows us to expand our reach into the enterprise space by demonstrating that although we are a small company, we can offer customers the same standard of support in terms of frequency and longevity of security upgrades, zero touch updates and mobile device management (MDM) as other major smartphone companies around the world. The enterprise space has been dominated by bigger brands and there hasn’t been a sustainable phone that meets all of Google’s high standards in the AER offering until now.  And now that we have overcome these challenges, we want to encourage businesses to include more sustainable smartphones in their mobile offering”.

With Fairphone 4, the company is raising the bar for itself and the industry by introducing a five-year warranty at no additional cost to encourage people to use — and enjoy — their phones for longer. This is an unrivaled commitment in the electronics sector and is an addition to Fairphone guaranteeing long-term availability of spare parts combined with software support. For Fairphone 4, software support is guaranteed until the end of 2026 and includes upgrades to Android 12 and Android 13 (and aiming for Android 14 and 15). With this unparalleled ambition, Fairphone aims to repeat what it succeeded in doing with Fairphone 2: almost seven years of software support from the launch of an Android device. Joining the AER program goes hand in hand with the company’s plans for extended software support for Fairphone 4.

About Fairphone

Fairphone is building a market for ethical phones, motivating the industry to act more responsibly and pioneering more sustainable ways to make smartphones. Our latest device, Fairphone 4, is described with the tagline ‘Sustainable. Long-lasting. Fair. Fairphone 4 offers an unprecedented 5-year warranty*, is a unique electronic waste-neutral handset and contains fairly sourced materials, challenging the electronics industry to take a more responsible approach. It is the only smartphone on the market certified with the German eco-label Blue Angel and TCO Certified (for sustainable IT products).

  • 5G and dual SIM
  • Modular design for easy repair
  • 5-year warranty* for maximum longevity
  • 48MP dual rear cameras with supporting sensor and 25MP selfie camera

The smartphone was launched in 2021 at a suggested retail price of €579 (6GB RAM, 128GB internal memory) or €649 (8GB RAM, 256GB internal memory). The two variants of the device are available in Europe from a wide distribution network of (online) retailers and network operators and Fairphone’s website. To learn more about Fairphone 4 click here.

*if bought before 31/12/2022, and warranty activated within 90 days on Fairphone.com/warranty

See our review

Rethink Ireland award €530,000 to 28 Social Enterprises across the country

Rethink Ireland has announced the 8 Awardees of its Social Enterprise Development Fund and 20 Awardees of its Social Enterprise Start-Up Fund at a lunch event at Airfield Estate, Dublin. These Funds aim to support and develop social enterprises across Ireland who work primarily to improve the lives of people and communities.

The Social Enterprise Development Fund (2018 – 2023) is a €4.4 million Fund created by Rethink Ireland in partnership with Local Authorities Ireland and funded by IPB Insurance and the Department of Rural and Community Development through the Dormant Accounts Fund that aims to discover and enhance social enterprises that are already creating a social and economic impact on their communities.

To date the Social Enterprise Development Fund has helped over 500 people gain employment through 112 social enterprises and has mobilised over 16,507 volunteers.

The Social Enterprise Start-Up Fund, now in its second year, is an €800,000 Fund developed by Rethink Ireland in partnership with the Department of Rural and Community Development via the Dormant Accounts Fund. The Fund aims to support social enterprises at the startup and early stage of existence, with organisations from 10 counties throughout Ireland recognised as Awardees.

 Awardees include:

  • An Mheitheal Rothar: An Mheithal Rothar focuses on providing bicycles to those who do not have access to cycling, particularly those who are unable to participate in the Bike to Work program, while also creating an impact on the areas of employment and sustainability. Their one-of-a-kind approach combines recycling and waste reduction with delivering affordable bikes, as well as personalised information sharing and problem solutions for each user.
  • Carrickmacross Toy Library: Carrickmacross Toy Library tackles the problem of toy waste by offering a toy lending service to their local area, and offering an affordable and sustainable service to families.
  • Common Ground: Common Ground Community-Led Housing has been working in response to the housing crisis in Ireland since 2018. The project offers a win-win solution for State bodies, households and the wider community for developing a new housing sector for our country. Their replicable and internationally proven model makes housing more attainable, community-focused and sustainable, for the benefit of everyone. They offer a viable proposal for a pilot scheme in North County Wicklow which aims to be the first of its kind in Ireland and to offer a template for other groups around the country to help achieve a similar goal.

Richard Gavin, Assistant Principal at Department of Rural and Community Development stated: “Recipients of this funding and support are playing a key role in developing communities nationwide and I want to extend my congratulations to all Awardees. With their commitment and dedicated work, these enterprises are making a true social and economic impact on their local communities, while also tackling key social issues that we face today. They are inspirations for the next generation of social enterprises and we look forward to continuing to support them as they progress and develop further.”

CEO of Rethink Ireland, Deirdre Mortell commented on the Awardee announcement stating: “This year Rethink Ireland published our 6 Year Impact Report, detailing the level of progress that has been made towards developing a more sustainable and fairer Ireland by supporting social enterprises.  I’m delighted to announce that Rethink Ireland is awarding additional support and funding to 28 social enterprises who are on their journey to creating a lasting positive impact on communities across the country.

“Social enterprises are part of the social fabric  of our communities as they play a key role in developing solutions to the biggest challenges we face on a daily basis. From a toy library that offers rental toys to families to reduce waste, to a therapeutic adventure group focused on tackling youth mental health difficulties, or a heart-warming community centre that is integrating and including immigrants and refugees into Irish society through support and learning opportunities, social enterprises show a deep level of care for everyone in a community across Ireland. We are so thankful to our supporting partners and are delighted to have the opportunity to support these wonderful organisations.”

IPB Insurance Chief Executive Michael Garvey said: “Working alongside our local authority Members, our collaboration with Rethink Ireland and the Department has proven hugely successful in attracting and supporting social enterprises that are making a real difference in addressing social needs in their communities. The social enterprise sector in Ireland is going from strength to strength and is playing an increasing role in strengthening the sustainability and resilience of communities across the country. It is important that social enterprises continue to be nurtured by recognising the importance of the sector and providing assistance through financial and business supports.”

Michael Nicholson, Deputy Chief Executive of Local Authority Wicklow County Council said: ‘We would like to extend our congratulations to each Awardee on their success in receiving a Social Enterprise Fund Award from Rethink Ireland. Coming out of an extremely challenging period for Irish society, we’re delighted with this good news story for Wicklow. Social enterprises have an important role to play in guiding Ireland to become a more inclusive and equal society. Organisations like Common Ground and Rise at the Cove are leading the charge by not only creating jobs but working towards bringing about positive social change.“

For more information on each Awardee please visit https://rethinkireland.ie/our-funds/social-enterprise/

Social Enterprise Development Fund

The Social Enterprise Development Fund is a €4.4 million Fund being delivered from 2018 – 2023 and has been developed by Rethink Ireland in partnership with IPB Insurance and the Department of Rural and Community Development via the Dormant Accounts Fund. The Fund aims to find and support social enterprises that add to the social and economic fabric of their community by way of social impact. Since the Fund began in 2018, it has supported social enterprises in each county of Ireland and has helped to enable 500 people to access employment and to mobilise 16,507 volunteers.

Awardees are:

Name County
Common Knowledge Clare
Together Razem Centre Cork
No Barriers Foundation Donegal
Books at One Dublin
KASI Kerry
Way 2 Work Dublin
An Mheitheal Rothar Galway
Generation: You Employed Meath

Social Enterprise Start up Fund

The Social Enterprise Start-up Fund is an €800,000 Fund to be delivered over two years: 2021 – 2022 and has been created by Rethink Ireland in partnership with the Department of Rural and Community Development via the Dormant Accounts Fund. The Fund seeks to support social enterprises at the startup / early stage of their life cycle and will support them to embed strong business principles and, in turn, deliver social impact, create jobs and inspire emerging, next generation Irish social enterprises.

Awardees are:

Name County
Clare Community Energy Agency Clare
KindFolk Cork
Saoirse Ethnic Hands on Deck Cork
The Dialogue Code Cork
Trauma Responsive Education Cork
Pocket Forests Dublin
Smashing Times International Centre for the Arts and Equality Dublin
The Bike Hub Dublin
The Good Summit Dublin
The Sustainable Life School Dublin
Community Retrofits Ireland Galway
New Wave Wild Project Kerry
Gorm Media Limerick
Health Hub Limerick
Carrickmacross Toy Library Monaghan
Open Food Network Monaghan
Cycle Up Roscommon
Common Ground Community-Led Housing Wicklow
Rise at the Cove Wicklow