SigmaWay Blog

Social media has brought revolution in the field of marketing and business. By incorporating social media into business, it helps marketers to keep up with users demand and continuously improving their enhancements and improvement to make their relevance in the marketing world. There are more than 2 billion advertisers who use Facebook as a media platform to market their business. Marketing through social media is much more cost effective as compared to traditional marketing models which requires a size able budget for printing brochures or hiring people. It also gives the brands an exposure to expand its fan base through regular interactions with followers and working on the feedback. Expansion of social networking in business gives opportunity to corporations of all sizes to build a strong network of loyal customers by providing efficient and cost -effective networking and communication. Read more at http://www.socialmediatoday.com/social-business/3-awesome-reasons-why-businesses-need-social-media

Management's responsibility must be met instead of hierarchical reporting. Organization should be redefined and opportunities must be addressed. Most improvement opportunities are directly related to deficient business processes and organization silos. Without a strong business process structure, it is nearly impossible to improve performance. There are 12 Business Systems in any organization which are a collection of business processes that align to deliver the goals of the system. A business process transforms the input by value addition into the output. All business transactions take place through business processes that connect in a series to form Business Systems. We typically find somewhere between 8-16 business processes per Business System. A key to performance improvement is to tackle the silos created by traditional organization structures. Read more at: http://www.businessmapping.com/blog/eliminate-organization-silos/

Budapest-based Hungarian start-up UXstudio has created a chatbot called Nuru. The app can help smartphone users in Kenya and Ghana in four different ways: agriculture, classified ads, finances, and healthcare. Ghanan start-up Esoko offers text-based market price information for farmers, so they can sell their crops at a fair price. The Kenyan TotoHealth service helps women with text message notifications and advice during their pregnancy. Nuru will ask you whether you have seen a doctor and If you have not seen one, it can suggest doctors in your area. If the user asks for job suggestions, the app will list all the opportunities nearby.

Since chatbots work like the current services already in use in Africa, the technology can streamline solving day-to-day problems and make information more accessible for users. Read more at : http://www.zdnet.com/article/nuru-ai-chatbot-helps-to-solve-day-to-day-problems-in-africa/

A virtual private network (VPN) is a network that is constructed using public wires - usually the Internet - to connect to a private network, such as a company's internal network. There are several ways how business benefits from VPN implementation. First, regarding defense against malware, a VPN can be installed in unprotected office devices to keep the communications private, secured and anonymous, i.e. it improves security. The VPN service enables role-based access to data, meaning, it enables one to limit sensitive data flow to only the authorized personnel. Third VPN helps to go anonymous online so that internet censorship can be bypassed and foreign contents can be accessed. The anonymity quotient also means a robust wall against the hackers as no longer they would be able to track the actual IP. Fourth, a VPN can remote access to vital data this way, one can assure the smooth reach to mission-critical business data. And finally, VPN services assure low maintenance costs post implementation. Although there is no dearth of VPN service providers today, yet not all would be perfectly compatible. Read more at: http://www.datasciencecentral.com/profiles/blogs/how-does-vpn-can-help-your-business

Data Lake helps data scientists by reducing their time taken to gather data and start their real work of data analysis. Copying data physically to one centralized environment may be problematic because storing big data can be costly, copying of data can be prohibited. Metadata describing the data is commonly not copied along with the data and therefore not available to the data scientists. Also, technical and organizational management of a data lake is required. Since data scientists ask for easy and quick data access, a more practical solution to it is a logical data lake. A logical data lake, hides where the data is physically stored and whether it has been copied or not. Logical data lakes can be developed with data virtualization servers such as the Denodo Platform. While, copying and physically storing the data twice is the default approach for the physical data lake, it's optional for the logical data lake. It offers access to data without copying if required and to copy data when needed.  Thus, logical data lake is a better solution for data scientists. Read more at: http://www.datavirtualizationblog.com/data-scientists-physical-data-lakes/

Data visualization refers to the techniques used to communicate data or information by encoding it as visual objects (e.g., points, lines or bars) contained in graphics. Visualization of data helps in finding specific information, like tracing data correlations by presenting the data in graphic form, and noticing how one set of data influences another. Also, by live interaction with data one can spot the changes in the data as it happens and get a predictive analysis. Data visualization enables one to not only see the information, but also to know the reasons behind it. With predictive analysis, the behavior of the trends in the future can be predicted. Thus, data visualization tools have become a necessity in modern data analysis. Read more at: http://www.datavizualization.com/blog/the-top-5-benefits-of-using-data-visualization

Enterprising value(EV) is a better measure of a firm's real market value than market capitalization as it takes debts and cash reserves into account. Market capitalization does not give a clear idea of the amount an investor needs to buy a firm. If a firm has cash reserves, the buyer is incurring lesser costs than the amount he is paying and it is opposite when the firm has debts. EV is the sum of a firm's market capitalization and its net debt. The drawback of EV is that it does not consider the interest costs and income over time. So EBIT is necessary despite the fact that EV gives a rough idea of the true value of a firm. Read more at: http://value-picks.blogspot.in/2017/05/using-enterprise-value-to-compare.html?m=1

According to the author, there has been an increase in global workforce turnovers. Recruiting and retaining skilled employees with high potential is a challenge nowadays. According to statistics, about 87% of the companies are considering redesigning their talent management programs. The best human capital management programs are strategy driven and try to accommodate the following trends. 1. Widespread globalised population. 2. Shifting Demographics. 3. Increased burdens on HRs, which can be relieved by integrating systems and functions .4. Increasing compliance requirements. 5. Increased cost, which may arise due to inability to acquire and retain key talent. Read more at https://www.adp.com/spark/articles/5-trends-that-will-redefine-human-capital-management-7-205

According to the authors, the returns on emerging market investments have been disappointing for Multinational corporations, primarily, because • They import their domestic models into emerging economies.

• Winning emerging economy, consumers involve a change in mindset, capabilities, and allocation of resources.

• Failure of going down the socioeconomic pyramid.

Obtaining Market Intelligence of one market section before entering the market might not be useful because of the higher internal heterogeneity of these rapidly changing emerging economies. Market intelligence methods and approaches differ among countries. A frequent adaptation of product lines and operating models to changing consumer behavior and market conditions is the key to success in emerging economies. Read more at: http://sloanreview.mit.edu/article/mastering-the-market-intelligence-challenge/

The cohort analysis tool can help to dig in deeper which traffic and page views don't allow. The cohort is grouping because of similarities. It's perfect for finding certain things at a glance. But the website keeps changing very often. When those changes happen, it's important to put these metrics in context. Cohort helps by layering on a filter to add context to the data you're looking at. By viewing those segments, one can produce more accurate findings. Also, cohort sorts the data in every way possible. There is a list of factors, one can analyze using this tool. Cohort analysis allow you to view data by segments of people, helps determine changes and facilitates comparison so that the strategy can be set accordingly. Read more at: https://blog.kissmetrics.com/cohort-analysis-google-analytics/

Chatbots are fast becoming a business imperative for businesses that want to engage with their customers. , with artificial intelligence and natural language processing, online chat is becoming the preferred way to communicate with the brand for many users who want an on-the-spot answer to their query. It partnered with enterprise-focused chatbot developer SmallTalk to provide tailored insurance policies for small businesses via a social channel. 

Chatbot technology is redefining the way we view and engage with some of the largest and most traditional industries, including insurance. Palo Alto, Calif.-based start-up Next Insurance has launched an insurance chatbot to enable small businesses to quote and buy insurance via a Facebook Messenger chatbot. Thus bringing simplicity, transparency, and easy access while buying insurance.

Read more at : http://www.zdnet.com/article/next-insurance-launches-facebook-messenger-chatbot-to-replace-the-insurance-agent/

In these times of uncertainty, banks need to focus on five specific areas to grow and innovate. Banks must decide on an appropriate business model which can tailor to their needs. According to a study, banks also need to focus on improving five specific areas inside their organizations. They are: Control, Protection, Optimize, Growth, and Reshape.. Read more at: https://thefinancialbrand.com/65210/banking-customer-technology-growth-investment-trends/

Web technology has greatly impacted education. Following are the ways in which technology can benefit the students. One of the most effective tools students can use to communicate is an infographic which helps to present dense information through graphics. Students might need to create surveys to strengthen the point of a paper they are working on. Here polling comes in handy which helps share to thousands of people throughout the country. Then comes spell check which helps the students concentrate on the important things. Technology now plays an important role in communication, making it a lot easier. Read more at: http://it.toolbox.com/blogs/understanding-crm/the-role-of-information-technology-in-education-76589

Rosenbaum was accused of searching Reed’s medical records and violating HIPAA (she has been cleared of that by an investigation) because she mentioned the stage of uterine cancer in the essay, begging the question how she knew the stage of the cancer.While banning morcellation certainly saves women from the dreaded complication that Amy Reed regrettably faced, what about women who do not develop complications from open procedure, such as pulmonary embolism, because of using the less invasive technique? Who cheers for events that don’t happen? Safety for some patients comes with unsafety for other patients.How did our skeptical healthcare journalists respond to this accusation? Presumably they decimated the sloppy, self-serving, logic of the accusation, which is nothing more than a jejune and desperate personal attack on the author.Read mroe at : http://thehealthcareblog.com/blog/2016/03/20/overoutrage-and-the-asymmetric-skepticism-of-healthcare-journalists/

Lean manufacturing techniques can be employed to supply chain management as well. Before that we need to have an overall view of priority and inefficient areas. Maintaining a minimal level of inventory by cooperating with suppliers and having accurate forecasts is the key. Efficient transportation system through long term contracts and shipping agreements is needed. Keeping up-to-date with latest Warehouse Management System (WMS) software to store and evaluate data.  Picking processes constitute a major portion of overall expenses thereby optimizing it would trigger shortened lead times and improved quality. Returns need to be managed properly in the supply chain management, especially for e - retailers. Lean requires discipline, potential investment in technology, and a continued commitment to its principles and approach.Read more at: http://www.sdcexec.com/article/12336165/eight-tips-for-running-a-lean-supply-chain

CRM is the major contributor of many businesses, but sometimes it turns out to be an inefficient and expensive sales killer. The truth behind this is most CRM platforms aren’t intended to help the end users who work with them day in and day out that is your sales representative. Most of them waste time in doing manual data entry. When there is poor execution of CRM, the organization has an insufficient picture of how it is selling its products. The data we are seeing is incomplete and possibly misleading. To know more, please read the following article: http://www.business2community.com/big-data/4-reasons-big-data-failed-impact-sales-01787213#R6gklCOP8mL83XgS.97

When you have a small business, you need to draw attention of customers. So writing blogs will help to bring traffic to your website and also helps in the generation of leads. When your small business grows, you can outsource it. These are 3 sign’s when you should realize of outsourcing blog writing:

• When you are posting late or don’t post regularly then visitors may lose interest, which may also impact in attracting new visitors.

• When you feel that you are bored or sick of writing about the same topics, you may outsource it.

• When you don’t find any improve in traffic, leads and ultimately customers, you may need to bring some change or hire a professional who can fix the issue of your business blogs.

To know more please read the following article by Jennifer Mitchell:

http://www.business2community.com/blogging/3-signs-time-business-outsource-blog-writing-01817114#U605wbKfpySXOJVP.97

Nowadays we can start an e-commerce online retail business a lot easier than ever. Thanks to the internet which helps us to start our business with very little overhead or fixed cost and if we go with the trend that is creating something that people want then we can make much out of it. Here are some tips for starting a successful online retail business: We should create a business plan that should clearly show the route to achieve goal or success.

• Choose a creative business structure which includes tax benefits, requirements and how to legalize with government.

• Start a self-storage which will lower your cost of rent.

• Make a catchy website and make sure it includes all the information like store name, location and contact information for the betterment of customers.

• You should provide a convenient price chart and description of all products.

• Make your ordering process easy.

• Last but not the least show your policies of return, refund and warranties so that customers don’t jump to some other site.

Read more at: http://www.business2community.com/ecommerce/7-tips-starting-successful-online-retail-business-01798247#OCvXfd1Det8hkZMy.97

Now a days we are receiving phishing emails. Security experts have discovered that these phishing emails contain Pony malware which when downloaded and opened, crashes the system moments later. In the background the infected attachments start invading the system and give access to all important credentials to the hackers. Now follow these tips to avoid becoming a victim to phishing emails:

• Note that publisher is not used for file sharing or word processing. If you receive these type of file, just be cautious of phishing attack.

• Install antivirus or anti-malware which will detect these types of files and alert you if any suspicious activity is running in background.

• Continuous changing of password and having a strong password will help you from hackers from hacking or accessing all your important credentials.

So, continue using these cybersecurity tips to be protected from these malicious activities.

Read more at: http://www.business2community.com/cybersecurity/phishing-emails-spread-pony-malware-01783728#ifY3P7jKyFeVx4Y7.97

Everybody in this world has a feeling of getting liked by their workplace peers. For that reason, you start to create respect and try to collaborate with your peers. From your perspective, you do everything right, but somehow you fail to create that bonding or relation and can't get along with them. Here are some reasons for which your team members may not be liking you:

• Peers start insecurity when you name-drop as nobody likes when you talk about your past or famous personality you worked with.

• Peers feel annoyed when you back brag. Never mention “you are the reason behind the team’s success”.

• Peers don’t like when you don’t a chance to share their ideas.

• Don’t try to talk anything bad about peers while gossiping because that may eventually get back to him and you may lose your reputation.

Read more at: http://www.business2community.com/human-resources/unlikeable-one-office-01813715#xDCYK4d4RSRkzyJl.97