The IT Handbook for Business

Posted on January 11, 2011 by Harry K. Jones

The IT Handbook for Business: Managing Information Technology Support Costs
by William C. Couie

I must admit, I’m pretty sure that I wouldn’t have chosen this particular book if it hadn’t been recommended to me. Those who know me are aware of the fact that it took me two years to remember what IT stood for prior to working regularly with those who have chosen it as a career.

However, I think someone sent my description to the author prior to his writing this 177-page handbook. I say that because it reads as though it were written for those of us who may admit an ignorance of technology. It’s the author’s intention to educate the less than technically knowledgeable on certain overlooked methods and IT support subjects and procedures.

This is a great handbook for small to medium businesses as the author educates readers on how to reduce or even eliminate a great deal of current expenditures. The author gives us an inside look at what goes on in today’s Information Technology support industry. He shares information seldom available which guides readers to ask the right questions, recognize “red flags” that could later be costly, learn how to spot IT scams and unfair billing practices, how to interview an IT firm, and what a service invoice or quote should look like!

I personally appreciated the lack of techo babble as the author shared valuable information in a way which was easily understood by those of us who may lack extensive experience in this area.

The author, William Couie, has owned his own business for more than 15 years, has more than 20 years of IT field experience and more than 30 years of experience working in the IT industry with consultation, auditing, computers, networking and training. He speaks knowledgeably from his vast experience.

The handbook consists of 17 chapters which I’ve listed below to provide an idea of what you can expect to learn. I will tell you this: You’ll gain valuable knowledge, increase your confidence on technological issues, make better decisions for your organization, and, of course, SAVE a great deal of money in the future!

Scan the chapter list to realize what a valuable asset this handbook can be for you and your organization.

Interviewing an IT Firm
Being Interviewed by an IT Firm
Technical Integrity
Three Important People
The Internet Acceptable Use Policy
Employee Training
Lowering IT Costs
Corporate User Security
Anatomy of a Quote
Anatomy of an Invoice
Service Call Resolution
Phone Support
How to Recognize Techno-babble
Scams and Unfair Billing Practices
Software Piracy
Transitioning Between Technical Firms
Certifications and Regulations

The IT Handbook for Business: Managing Information Technology Support Costsis available from Amazon. The AchieveMax® company is an affiliate of Amazon.com.

About Harry K. Jones

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of professional speakers who provide custom-designed seminars, keynote presentations, and consulting services. Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership, stress management, teamwork, and time management. For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2629 or fill out our contact form.

Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Social Media, but were afraid to ask …

Posted on March 1, 2010 by Harry K. Jones

Everything You Ever Wanted to Know About Social Media, but were afraid to ask …: Building Your Business Using Consumer Generated Media
by Hilary JM Topper

I’ve never had the honor of being mistaken for a “techy” … nor will I be in the future. In fact, I’m probably as far from being a “techy” as one can possibly be.

About four years ago, I was invited to speak at a major conference for Realtors from several neighboring states. As is my usual behavior, I sat in on several of the break-out sessions in hopes of enhancing my knowledge base. One of the speakers informed the audience of a new technology that was growing very rapidly and would soon be known and used nationally to communicate among its millions of followers. It was called “Twitter,” and the rest is history.

Of course, with my limited knowledge of social media, “Twitter” fell into the same category as “MyFace” and “Spacebook” for me. Obviously, “Twitter” was the only one I could even pronounce properly! If only Hilary JM Topper had published her basic social media 101 book at that time! It would have solved a lot of problems for me and millions of others. However, don’t let me mislead you as the author has written this helpful guide for both non-technical and Internet-savvy readers.

In a mere 172 pages, Hilary provides some insight into a host of various web sites … many you have probably never heard of. She describes each site and, based on a great deal of research, shares the pros and cons of each as well as techniques to best tap the full potential of every site.

At the conclusion of each chapter, the author shares her personal insights in a short summary she calls “My 2 Cents.” I found these comments to be very helpful indeed.

If you’re looking for the fastest was to communicate your ideas today, you’d better be investigating in social media. In this revealing guide, the author will:

Describe how to use social media sites, blogs, and microblogs.
Review more than a dozen social networking sites.
Provide an understanding of the importance of podcasts and video podcasts.
Discuss what it means to “Go Viral.”
Give suggestions for handling crisis situations via the Web.

Are you familiar with Brightkite.com, Bebo.com, FriendFeed.com, hi5.com, Identi.ca, koornk.com, Plaxo.com, Plurk.com, Spoke.com, Tumblr.com, Yammer.com, or YouAre.com? Well, you will be after finishing this useful guide, and you’ll more than likely be much more familiar with more common sites such as Facebook, Flickr, LinkedIn, YouTube, and Twitter.

Get the most out of social networking, whether your goal is to cultivate an online following, build a business, reach new markets or find quick and useful information. This book will certainly assist you in meeting your needs.

About Harry K. Jones

Send

Posted on January 26, 2010 by Harry K. Jones

Send Send: The Essential Guide to Email for Office and Home
by David Shipley and Will Schwalbe

The world’s first e-mail message was sent in 1971 by Ray Tomlinson.

171 billion e-mails are sent each day, meaning almost 2 million e-mails are sent every second!

The New York Times reports that 62% of all e-mail is spam and about 10% contains viruses.

Unsolicited e-mail earned the name “spam” because it resembled a Monty Python skit where a chorus of Vikings drowned out other sounds by singing “spam, spam, spam.”

The time spent deleting spam costs United States businesses $21.6 billion annually.

The Productivity Institute of Stratford, Connecticut, reports that the average person today receives around 150 communications each day via e-mail, phone, hard mail, memos, circulars, faxes, etc.

Communication consists of 55% facial expression and body language.

Communication consists of 38% voice inflection.

Communication consists of 7% words.

Therefore, when communicating by e-mail, you lose 93% of your effectiveness.

Add those stats to the fact that the majority of us learned how to e-mail through osmosis at home or on the job, and it becomes quite evident why e-mail can cause major problems, misunderstandings, and hard feelings on a regular basis. This book will most likely be your first introduction to the do’s and don’ts of proper e-mail etiquette.

The name of this book is actually an acronym derived from an easy, four-question checklist designed to help you determine whether you should hit the Send key after composing your e-mail.

S stands for Simple.
E stands for Effective.
N stands for Necessary.
D stands for Done.

In the spirit of revealing how little we actually know about the fine art of proper e-mailing, take a look at some of what you’ll learn within a mere 228 pages:

A Brief History of E-mail
The Anatomy of an E-mail
The Six Essential Types of E-mail
How to Write (the Perfect) E-mail
The Emotional E-mail
The Eight Deadly Sins of E-mail
The Seven Big Reasons to Love E-mail
Eight Reasons You May Not Want to E-mail
Six Reasons to Send a Letter Instead of an E-mail
Three Reasons to Send a Fax Instead of an E-mail
The Seven Reasons to Use the Telephone Instead of E-mail
The Five Reasons to IM and Text Instead of E-mail
Big Moments in E-mail History
The Anatomy of an E-mail
The Politics of Cc
The ABC’s of Cc’s and Bcc’s
The Eleven Most Common Types of Attachments
The Six Essential Types of E-mail
The E-mail That Can Land You in Jail

(This book review was originally published in 2007 as one of the Top 10 Books – Edition 16.)

About Harry K. Jones

Harry K. Jones is a motivational speaker and consultant for AchieveMax®, Inc., a company of professional speakers who provide custom-designed seminars,
keynote presentations,
and consulting services.
Harry's top requested topics include change management, customer service, creativity, employee retention, goal setting, leadership,
stress management, teamwork,
and time management. For more information on Harry's presentations, please call 800-886-2629 or fill out our contact form.