Article: 10 questions non-techie managers should ask about IT projects | TechRepublic

10 questions non-techie managers should ask about IT projects | TechRepublic
http://www.techrepublic.com/blog/10things/10-questions-non-techie-managers-should-ask-about-it-projects/3078

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10 questions non-techie managers should ask about IT projects

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By Keith Faigin

February 28, 2012, 9:13 AM PST

Takeaway: Business managers may lack the tech knowledge to make sure a project is on the right track. Here's what they should be asking IT to improve the odds of project success.

If you are a non-techie responsible for a project that involves developing or enhancing software, it can be hard to ask the right questions. It is critical, though, to stay engaged in the software development process and to keep the communication flowing — this greatly improves the likelihood of a successful project. Below are 10 questions that non-technical project stakeholders should ask their techie counterparts.

1: What's the best way to communicate with the technical resources?

This is a question you can ask an IT manager. Maybe there is a business analyst or project manager from IT assigned to coordinate and communicate with your techies. But if there isn't, that task may fall to you. Some techies will be much better at understanding your "business needs" than others. Make sure that the requirements are written down and that you read them (even if they are boring!). After you read them, go over them with your BA, PM, or techie. Even just paraphrasing each requirement can help avoid costly communication failures.

2: Can you show me what you've got so far? (Ask repeatedly)

The sooner you can provide feedback to your IT counterparts, the less costly it will be to make important course corrections. Let's face it: It's difficult to conceptualize how something like a piece of software will work based on written requirements. It's only when you see it in action that you find all the things that weren't mentioned or were, worse yet, just assumed. Ask to see the latest work — even if it is incomplete — so you can provide feedback. Maybe you will be providing feedback on a login page or a search screen that doesn't do anything yet. It doesn't matter. Get the team used to regularly showing you progress. Also, it never hurts if you've got donuts or bagels when you come around.

3: Are you waiting on me for anything?

Some projects will have a full-time project manager who will be keeping careful track of open issues. If you don't have a resource supporting you like that, make sure you track open questions and issues carefully. It's always a good idea to ask the techies if they're still waiting for an answer from you on something you missed.

4: How will this be tested?

A well-managed software development team will create a test strategy near the start of the project. Understand what that strategy is and ask questions if it doesn't make sense to you.

5: When can I help with testing?

Make sure that you or your users play an integral role in testing. That role may be to help develop test cases or it may be to test, hands-on. Ideally, it is both. Be sure that representatives from the business side are playing an active role in testing. They will have a better intuitive understanding of what is "right" than full-time QA folks who need to rely on test-scripts.

6: How does this system or change affect our other systems?

In a company with lots of systems that interact with each other, it can be difficult — for business users and techies alike — to identify how a change will affect other systems. As a business stakeholder, you should dedicate some time to thinking through how the project affects other downstream processes. You should also have a focused discussion with your technical counterparts on where the new or modified system touches other systems. If your project affects other systems, make sure they're considered in the test strategy you asked about two questions ago.

7: What does the system do when something goes wrong?

Unfortunately, things will go wrong. All well-designed systems should be designed to handle errors as gracefully as possible. Ask this question to verify that your system is being designed this way. Answers like "I don't know" or "They will get some kind of exception message" aren't good. Good answers will include an explanation of how the user and support staff will be notified in a way that makes sense; how bad or incomplete data will be prevented from going into the system; and how the process can be restarted after the error.

8: Can you show me the audit trail?

Most business users assume that all computer systems keep great records of what everyone has done on the system and all the history of changes and transactions. In general, none of this happens unless the people who developed the system thought to add those features. If these features are important to you (and I have seldom seen a business system where audit trails weren't important), make sure that they are part of the requirements and ask for a demonstration.

9: What happens when you are done?

Many projects risk falling apart during the handoff from the technologists to the business. Make sure there is a clear plan for what happens when the programming and testing are done. You may be focusing on a training plan or customer communication strategy, but you need to make sure the technical team has a solid plan for moving the system into production and transitioning from development to operations. This should include establishing who supports the system going forward as well as mundane issues, such as making sure backups are in place. Also, you know there are going to be some changes needed after the first release. Make sure the technical resources are available for those inevitable adjustments.

10: What do you think?

There are plenty of techies who aren't afraid to speak their mind about any number of subjects (regardless of whether they have an informed opinion). However, there are also plenty who really understand what the business is trying to achieve but are reticent about expressing their ideas. Ask them their opinions — you may gain some valuable insights.

Good technologists — such as the ones on my team — will bring up these questions themselves. But it never hurts to make sure. Take the time to ask these questions and any others you can think of. Use the project as an opportunity to expand your horizons a little and learn about how these systems work and are built. More than anything else, stay engaged in the project from start to finish. This will help ensure that you can ask the 11th question: "Where should we celebrate the successful completion of the project?"

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Article: The 10 most important things to teach your Outlook users

The 10 most important things to teach your Outlook users
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The 10 most important things to teach your Outlook users

By Susan Harkins

February 11, 2012, 8:25 AM PST

Takeaway: Outlook is complex enough to confuse your users and create support headaches. These basic concepts will give them a better grasp of how things work.

Training users on Outlook is often as simple as showing them how to download their mail. But some users push Outlook to extremes and need to know quite a bit more than that. If you want well-informed users, be sure they understand these key concepts.

1: Outlook comes in various configurations and flavors

Users should know that they might encounter different features as they move from one machine to another. For instance, when using Outlook or Outlook Web Access at home or offsite, they might be confused or frustrated when Exchange-specific features or options aren't available. In addition, Outlook Express is only a mail client. Knowing the differences isn't necessary — but knowing there are differences should ward off a few support calls when favorite features aren't available.

2: It's all too easy to make embarrassing mistakes

It's easy to do things wrong, regardless of the email client being used. Perhaps the most common mistake users make is to click Reply All when replying to just the sender. (Fortunately, this isn't as easy to do by mistake in Outlook 2010.) Good training is the only way to prevent such errors. You can head off other types of mistakes by creating a policy regarding appropriate use of company email. That way, users won't be confused about what they can and can't do. The following links should help your users avoid potential disasters and use email more effectively:

3: It's essential to protect against viruses, phishing, malware, etc.

Keeping Outlook users safe from nasties is easier than it used to be, and this is really a job for IT personnel, not the users themselves. On the other hand, well-informed users are your first line of defense. If you give them the information they need, your job will be easier. Here are a few basic guidelines to share with users:

• Don't open email from unknown sources.
• Don't open attachments from unknown sources.
• Don't enter your company email address on Web sites.
• Don't turn off your virus protection software.
• Keep your virus protection software updated.

If you think the first three are impractical, you're right. In fact, in many organizations, those guidelines would be impossible to follow. The more practical approach is to help users recognize and respond to potential threats — phishing and malicious email messages that appear to be legitimate — as they arrive.

4: The interface can be customized

Outlook has a lot going on: email, contacts, tasks, calendar. Most users will want to tweak the interface to work more efficiently, and every user's needs will be unique. You could spend a lot of time fine-tuning the interface for each user, but instead, teach them how to customize the interface themselves. You'll save time and ultimately, your users will be happier.

5: Email is stored locally

Perhaps the most important thing for your users to remember is that email messages downloaded to an offsite system will be saved on that machine; those messages won't be accessible to other machines. If they need a message at work, they can forward it to their work account before logging off. Exchange Server and other mail servers have other options, but administrators don't always support them.

6: Data files can blow up

Outlook data files (.pst) are susceptible to corruption if they grow too large. To avoid trouble, train users to keep an eye on the size of their data file. The limit is 2GB; users should regularly delete unwanted mail and archive old messages long before the .pst file reaches that size.

7: Data files can be repaired

When corruption does occur, users can run Inbox Repair Tool to diagnose and repair the error. If that fails, users can run the crop tool. Doing so will reduce the size of the data file, resulting in some data loss, but it should get Outlook back on track. Exchange users should contact their administrators for help before running the crop tool; it might not be necessary. Here are a couple of other useful resources:

• Repair Outlook 2007 Data Files (.pst and .ost)
• How to understand the repair feature in Office 2003 and in Office XP

8: Data files should be backed up

Knowing how to regularly back up Outlook data files is the best protection against corruption. When the worst happens, your users can still access their backup files. How often depends on the users, but every day isn't too often for users who do a lot of work in Outlook. Show them how to back up everything, including their calendar, contacts, journal, and tasks. Exchange users should contact their administrators because the administrator may be backing up all files already. If that's not the case, the administrator can provide specific instructions for manually backing up data files.

9: Archiving is a good practice

Outlook can archive mail automatically, and most users will probably benefit from this arrangement. Determining how often Outlook archives mail will be up to you and your users (or dictated by a department policy). They should know how often Outlook is archiving their mail. They also need to know where their archived mail is stored and how to recover it if necessary.

10: There are ways to avoid spam filters

Users don't want their messages filtered into spam folders. There are a few dos and don'ts your users can practice to avoid triggering these filters:

• Avoid using words and phrases that trigger spam filters. Use the phrase "spam keywords" in your favorite search engine to find current lists of problematic text.
• Use plain text and avoid HTML, images, and links when possible.
• Write a detailed subject line.

Additional help for Outlook users

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About Susan Harkins

Susan Sales Harkins is an IT consultant, specializing in desktop solutions. Previously, she was editor in chief for The Cobb Group, the world's largest publisher of technical journals.

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Susan Harkins

Susan Sales Harkins is an IT consultant, specializing in desktop solutions. Previously, she was editor in chief for The Cobb Group, the world's largest publisher of technical journals.

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Article: 10 ways tech can boost sales for SMBs | TechRepublic

10 ways tech can boost sales for SMBs | TechRepublic
http://m.techrepublic.com/blog/10things/10-ways-tech-can-boost-sales-for-smbs/3055?tag=nl.e101

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10 Things

10 ways tech can boost sales for SMBs

By Justin James | February 17, 2012, 2:15 PM PST

In the DIY culture of small businesses, it is easy to be overwhelmed by the options out there, and finding the time and money to dedicate to IT projects is not easy. All the same, IT is becoming an increasingly important aspect of being able to connect with customers and close sales. Here are 10 things you can do (some of which are pretty easy) that can help you use your IT resources to increase your revenues and profits.

1: Turn off the spam filters for sales accounts

Time and time again, I see businesses that have their accounts for inbound customer communications set up like personal accounts. Unless you make very little profit, the time needed to manually sift through spam is far less than the cost of lost sales, as important communications go astray. No spam filter is perfect, and lots of customers' emails somehow end up in the junk email bin or get deleted outright. If you are going to use a spam filter on these critical emails, use one that does not permanently block the emails.

2: Beware the coupon sites

Coupon sites are all the rage right now, but many small businesses have been burned by them. Not only are you giving a deep discount, but the terms are often tough for a small business to work with. Things like not being able to restrict the number of coupons sold, delayed payouts (to account for refunds), and the site's fees often mean that the business takes a beating. If you come out of pocket on inventory or have other per-sale costs, you can lose your shirt in a hurry.

Even for businesses without a per-sale cost model, the deals can be damaging. For example, a local gun range owner reported to me that his deal for inexpensive lane time sold a lot of coupons, but the coupon customers all showed up right before the coupons expired, causing big lines for the full-price customers.

3: Always provide an incident or reference number

While no one is a big fan of automated replies of the "Your email is important to us" variety, one valuable purpose they can serve is to provide a reference number for the incident or contact. Even if you do not use anything fancy for this, giving customers some sort of number to refer to is an important part of being able to follow up with them (or for them to follow up with you). It also helps ensure that when you talk to a customer, you both know what the call is in reference to.

4: Automatically notify customers as the status changes

The "big boys" with their automated systems often get a few things right — like status change notification emails. You need to be doing this, especially if your products are custom items. I've recently been dealing with a lot of vendors selling made-to-order or on-demand items, and a common theme is that communications are very poor. After a while, you wonder if you should just cancel your order and place one with a company that has the items in stock but not quite as customized.

Keep your customers in the loop and they'll be less likely to start looking at other vendors and cancelling orders. Many e-commerce solutions offer this functionality, so it's worth checking the documentation. If your system doesn't offer such a feature, you should make a habit of sending emails manually.

5: Get a CRM

Customer relationship management (CRM) systems are typically associated with big businesses, and this has been the case for a while. CRM systems usually require a ton of maintenance and upkeep, and they have high costs and difficult installations. But a new breed of CRM vendors are changing the rules and offering CRM systems (usually Web-based, with zero install or IT department needed) that are targeted at the small business. A CRM system is much more than a fancy email client; things like those order status change notifications and contact reference numbers are usually baked right in. Add on top of that CRM's other uses, and it is well worth your time to look into using a CRM in your business.

6: Search for yourself

Do some searching on the Internet for your business, and you may find yourself with a pile of things to take care of. For example, many sites list businesses' contact details, hours of operation, etc., and if those are wrong you will need to correct them. If there are reviews sites talking about your business, take the time to read each review. Then honestly evaluate whether they point to any problems you need to address or whether they give you a new opportunity for business.

While the temptation may be to post bogus reviews or to respond with nasty comments on the bad reviews, don't. Instead, use these reviews as an opportunity for customer service! If a customer had a bad experience, publicly offer to make it right. You need to make this a regular part of your workflow too, because taking a month to respond is just as bad as not doing it at all.

7: Analyze your Web site

It's easy to put up a Web site, but it is a lot more work to determine whether it is helping you generate sales. Start with Web log analysis software or Google Analytics to get an idea of what users are looking for, what pages are popular, how long it takes users to find the information they need, and so on. If you have a complex site or online applications, you may want to seriously consider hiring a usability expert. The cost of an expert can easily be paid for by an increase in sales if you do enough business online. Even if you can't afford a usability expert, using your logged traffic and conducting informal listening labs can provide you with valuable data to improve your site.

8: Put Skype to work

I cannot say enough good things about using Skype for business. Is it perfect? Of course not. But it combines a ton of useful functions, such as VoIP, IM, international calling, Web conferencing, and screen sharing, into one package. And it has enough market penetration within businesses that you can use it for dealing with customers in a business-to-business situation much of the time. For me, being able to do Web conferencing and screen sharing is a critical part of doing business, and I can't work without it. I like to backstop Skype with dedicated screen-sharing systems too, just in case I'm working with someone who does not have Skype, but I find that this is increasingly rare.

9: Hire a pro for your Web site

One of the great temptations for any small business is to try to save money by doing things themselves or having an unqualified friend or family member do them. And while that may work in the short term, the long term costs are often much higher than you think. This is especially true for a Web site, where the difference between an amateur job and a professional one is glaringly obvious. Sure, it may cost you some money to have a professional do your Web site, but they will get it done much faster than you will, and your time does have a value to it. More important, the professional will do things much better than you will. If you've ever decided not to purchase something from a company because its Web site did not feel professional or lacked things like a proper shopping cart and ordering system, you can see how easy it is to lose sales by doing your Web site yourself.

10: Use "Real email" — no excuses

I see this time and time again: The small business that would rather save $5 or $10 a month by using a free email account from Gmail, Hotmail, Yahoo!, etc., than to just buy a proper domain name and get good email. What's the problem here? Well, for one thing it is unprofessional. It looks absolutely horrible to a potential customer to be dealing with a company too cheap to get email. If your target market is individual consumers or you have a unique offering that no one else does, you may be able to get away with it, but certainly not when working with other businesses.

Another problem is that the free email often has overly aggressive spam filtering that you can't control. You do not have to give up the things you like about these services by getting "real" email, and in fact, some free mail providers (including Google) have a paid option that gives you additional control, lets you use a domain name, and so on.

More advice?

What other suggestions do you have for SMBs that are trying to increase sales? Share your advice with other TechRepublic members.

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Article: How to set up iOS calendar syncing | Phones | Macworld

How to set up iOS calendar syncing | Phones | Macworld
http://www.macworld.com/article/165375/2012/02/how_to_set_up_ios_calendar_syncing.html

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How to set up iOS calendar syncing

Posted on Thursday Feb 23, 2012 9:30 AM
by Lex Friedman , Macworld.com

When the iPhone first launched, you synced your calendar by syncing your iPhone itself. You connected it to your Mac via USB, and your Mac's copy of iCal and your iPhone would share calendar events. That's a clunky approach to sharing data, even after iOS 5 introduced Wi-Fi syncing to the picture. Even with over-the-air syncing, you still have to re-sync your devices every single time you want your calendars to be current.

In an ideal world, your calendar would be in perfect sync on your Mac and your iPhone, without any manual syncing required. There must be a way to pull off this feat.

As a matter of fact, there are two. Let's look at how each one works.

Apple's way: iCloud

You turn on iCloud calendar syncing from Settings -> iCloud.

With iOS 5, you can use Apple's iCloud service to sync your calendar. iCloud is free, it's not too painful to set up, and it works seamlessly with both the iCloud website and iCal. And best of all, the syncing occurs over the Internet, in the background, without any extra effort on your part.

If you're not yet using iCloud on your iOS device, here's how to get started: Launch the Settings app, scroll down to iCloud, and tap it. If you haven't yet created or logged into an iCloud account, you'll be prompted to do so now; you can use your existing Apple ID, or create a new iCloud account in seconds using your email address. Once you're in, make sure the slider next to Calendars is in the On position; that ensures you'll be using iCloud to sync your calendars.

You can add additional calendars from your iOS device. First, tap Edit, and then the Add Calendar button seen here will appear.

Switch over to the Calendars app. Tap the Calendars button at the upper left to see a list of all the calendars your device is currently accessing. The default iCloud calendars are Work and Home; tap the Edit button at the upper left to add additional iCloud calendars.

On your Lion-running Mac, fire up iCal. Click on the Calendars button—again, it's at the upper left—and verify whether your iCloud calendars are listed (and checked) there. If you don't see your iCloud calendars there, go to the iCal menu and choose Preferences.

Go to the Accounts tab of iCal's preferences to connect your Mac to your iCloud calendars.

In the Preferences window, click on the Accounts tab. Then click the Plus (+) icon at the lower left to add an account. For Account Type, choose iCloud from the drop-down menu, and enter your Apple ID and password. Click Create, and you're done.

Now, when you add events on your iOS device, they'll show up in iCal. Add something in iCal, it shows up on your iOS device. If you use an iPod touch to put your next dental checkup on the calendar at the reception counter, the appointment will automatically sync to iCloud the next time your iPod touch gets online—without your even needing to launch the Calendar app.

Sometimes, it might take a few moments for a new event to show up on your Mac. You can force iCal to refresh your events from the Calendar menu: Choose the Refresh All option. One word of caution: Though we hear fewer reports recently, some folks—including various Macworld staffers—have encountered issues where iCloud ended up duplicating their calendars. If you encounter such an issue, the solution is to ensure that you only sync a given calendar in a single way. That is, if you use iCloud to sync a calendar, but you also separately sync some of your calendars via iTunes, duplicates may ensue. You can ensure that your iOS device isn't syncing your calendar with iTunes by clicking on the device in iTunes, choosing the Info tab, and ensuring that Sync iCal Calendars is unchecked.

Google's Way: Google Calendar and Exchange syncing

iCloud's a good option, but it's not the only option. Folks already invested in Google Calendar should be happy to learn that Google offers a free approach to syncing your calendars between the website and your iOS devices. You'll still use the Calendar app on your iOS device, and you can use Google Calendar, or an app that connects to it (including iCal) on your Mac. (Note that this same basic approach works if you're using Google Apps, but your administrator will need to enable Google Sync.)

Google enables its form of calendar syncing through its use of Microsoft Exchange. To start syncing, you'll add your Gmail account to your iOS device as an Exchange account, and then use some Google-specific steps to determine precisely which calendars sync.

If you use Gmail or Google Apps, you can use Google's free Exchange integration to sync your calendar.

On your iOS device, launch the Settings app and tap on Mail, Contacts, Calendars. Tap Add Account, and choose Microsoft Exchange. Put your full email address in the Email field, leave Domain blank, use your full email address again as the Username, and finally provide your password.

Now, tap Next at the upper right. You might then see an error message indicating that your iOS device is unable to verify a certificate; you can safely ignore this message. In the new Server field that appears, enter m.google.com. Then tap Next at the upper right.

In your account's settings, you can configure slide Calendars syncing to On.

At this point, you choose which services you'd like to sync via Google's Exchange server. You could use your Exchange setup for syncing Mail and Contacts, but for our purposes, you only need to leave Calendars turned on. Once that's set up, you need to tell Google which of your calendars you'd specifically like it to sync with your iOS device.

To do so, launch Safari on your device, and navigate to m.google.com. Sign in if necessary, using your email address and password. (If you're a Google Apps user, first scroll down and tap the Google Apps User link at the bottom of the screen.) Once you're signed in, tap Sync. You might get prompted to log in again; if so, suffer through that indignity.

Google will present you with a list of iOS devices that you've linked to your Google account. Tap on the one you're currently using, and scroll down to the list of calendars. You can check to sync up to 25 calendars.

Once the setup process is behind you, Google offers the same benefits as iCloud calendar syncing: You can access your calendars from multiple devices and they sync seamlessly over the Internet.

Which approach to choose

Setting up Google Exchange syncing is the tougher option. iCloud os simpler to set up and offers no less functionality. But if you already use Google Calendar for work or out of personal preference, it may well be worth the more complicated Exchange setup instead.

[Lex Friedman is a Macworld staff writer.]

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