




- Security grammar: Are you insecure when writing about unsecure technology?
- Crowdfunding scientific research: Interview with Experiment
- Is the all or nothing crowdfunding approach a good thing, or seriously flawed?
- Crowdfunding Campaign PR: An Interview with Mitch Rosenberg, KinderLab Robotics
- New enrollment period now open: Launch your First Crowdfunding Campaign Success Blueprint Program
- Free online event: How to drive enterprise technology sales with PR
- Myth #10: Prompt’s ten technology sales myths
- Myth #9: Prompt’s ten technology sales myths
- Myth #8: Prompt’s ten technology sales myths
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Author Archive
By PromptBoston
March 10th, 2016
Crowdfunding Campaign PR: An Interview with Mitch Rosenberg, KinderLab Robotics
Crowdfunding Campaign PR: An Interview with Mitch Rosenberg, KinderLab Robotics
Mitch Rosenberg is the CEO and co-founder of KinderLab Robotics – a Boston-based company that’s created a developmentally-appropriate robot kit, KIBO, to help teach programming concepts to four- to seven year olds.
KIBO was funded on Kickstarter. We worked with the KinderLab Robotics team on crowdfunding content, blog content, social media content and working with the press to secure briefings and coverage with The New York Times, Forbes, Boing Boing, Gizmag,BostInno, Boston Business Journal and more.
KinderLab Robotics continues to work with the team at Prompt to share its vision, growth and successes.
We sat down with CEO and co-founder Mitch Rosenberg to talk a bit about his experience. See what he had to say about us below.
Why did you work with Prompt?
Mitch Rosenberg: Well, I went to a lot of firms in the Boston area. When we founded our company, we knew we were going to get it moving via Kickstarter. I asked many of the firms that are well-known in the area if they would sign up to help us publicize that Kickstarter, and most of them said no.
In contrast, Prompt came up with a very effective and creative approach for publicizing our company and a very creative way of financing it so we could afford it even as an early startup. Because Prompt was unique in its ability to provide support for Kickstarter, we felt that it was a great fit for us.
So, we chose Prompt because it demonstrated a results-based program that was specifically designed for crowdfunding-based campaigns. Prompt worked with us on our successful Kickstarter campaign, and gave us valuable advice about our target audiences, helped us work with the press and created excellent copywriting. The Prompt team has a strong process, works methodically, and delivers results.
What results have you seen from working with Prompt?
Mitch: Working with Prompt, we have been featured in articles in The New York Times (more than once), Forbes, The Huffington Post, and many other local and radio media outlets and we’re very happy with the results.
And in addition to the media side, the Prompt team was instrumental in creating a social media presence for us that resulted in a wide variety of inquiries and sales. In summary, the results have been both prolific and business meaningful for us. We’ve gotten a lot of business because of our marketing with Prompt.
What has your experience been working with Prompt?
Mitch: The process working with Prompt has been really professional and fun. We have regular meetings, Prompt supplies us with a dashboard of statistics of how the various projects that we’re working on are fairing and we’re really happy with both the tone and results of working with Prompt.
Would you recommend Prompt?
Mitch: We highly recommend Prompt – especially for young and fast growing startups. But also for any innovative companies looking to make their presence known in the marketplaces they’re doing business in.
Interested in ensuring your crowdfunding campaign’s success? Check out our Crowdfunding Success 60-Day Program which leads you step-by-step on how we set up, run, manage and publicize crowdfunding campaigns.
Posted in Crowdfunding, PR Practices | Comments Off on Crowdfunding Campaign PR: An Interview with Mitch Rosenberg, KinderLab Robotics
By PromptBoston
May 28th, 2015
Free online event: How to drive enterprise technology sales with PR
Free online event: How to drive enterprise technology sales with PR
Are your PR efforts leading to sales? Throughout June we’ll be hosting free online events for enterprise technology marketers and entrepreneurs that want to create more leads and sales. In a 50-minute, information-packed webinar we will detail practical ways and techniques to shift PR processes to link them closer to sales and generate leads.
Hosted by Hazel Butters, who has 17 years’ of experience in technology PR and sales, ‘How to drive enterprise technology sales with PR’ will cover:
- How to define your value proposition to increase sales
- The ‘sales-marketing’ gap, and how to close it
- Ten myths relating to PR and sales – and ten things you can do immediately to increase PR’s impact on your sales
Please join us and find out ways to change your approach to PR processes and to link them closer to sales. Register at: http://bit.ly/tech-PR-sales.
Posted in Events, PR Practices | Comments Off on Free online event: How to drive enterprise technology sales with PR
By PromptBoston
April 1st, 2015
The Prompt Byte: April 1, 2015
The Prompt Byte: April 1, 2015
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By PromptBoston
April 1st, 2015
Rising star: Melius
Prompt works in technology hubs on either side of the pond, so we’re always keen to get to know more about the innovators on our doorsteps in both Boston and London. Each week, we’ll interview a local startup to learn more about the technology and inspiration that can be found right here at home. Recently we chatted with RJ Irving, co-founder and CEO of Melius. This Boston-based startup develops an application that collects your basic financial information and identifies inefficiencies to help improve your money planning for the future.
1) Tell us a bit about Melius.
Melius helps financial advisors with the front-end of their business. Most of the technology built for the financial space is geared toward making existing businesses more efficient. The trouble is that most people cannot build a business. That is where we come in. Melius is a simple tool that advisors use with their prospects to educate them about the building blocks of a strong financial plan. Built into our tool is a direct link between advisors and prospects to accelerate the on-boarding process. Most other fintech companies start with the idea of replacing the advisors all together. Melius is designed to enhance the human relationship, not replace it.
2) What does innovation mean to you?
Innovation means so many different things. If I had to narrow it down to two they would be simplification and solving a problem from another angle.
3) Why is New England such a hotbed for innovation?
As New Englanders it is in our DNA to innovate and look for a better way. A little idea about a government for the people by the people started here. We have been innovators since leaving our homelands to start and create new lives for ourselves.
4) Do you have any concerns about New England’s growth and innovation culture?
My only concern would be that after this winter more and more people will question why they subject themselves to this climate. Most new businesses are location agnostic and with that freedom it gets harder and harder to endure eight feet of snow and single digit temperatures.
5) What are some of the trends and challenges you’ve seen in the New England tech scene?
Not all tech companies are setting up shop in downtown Boston. We are seeing tech companies pop up in Portland ME, Western MA, Southern NH – really all over.
6) If you weren’t based in New England, which city and/or country would you want to be based in and why?
If we were not based here in Boston, we would most likely end up in Denver or Boulder, Colorado. There are great people there, a great vibe, and you still get to experience all the seasons. But even when it does snow in the winter, it can also be 70 the next day. If we left the country there is a great fintech startup scene in Australia which I think we could get used too as well!
7) If you could meet any single innovator (alive or dead) over a coffee, who would you want to meet?
I would want to have a coffee with Walt Disney. Hands down one of the greatest innovators I have studied. He went $1.5 million in debt in 1937, hot on the heels of the great depression, to make Snow White. It was the first of its kind, a full-length annotated film, and it grossed over $416 million.
8) Name a piece of technology you’ve bought personally that you love – either recently or in the past – and why you bought it.
I just bought a MacBook Air to replace my MacBook Pro. The old one was only five years old, but the difference in weight and speed is night and day.
To learn more about Melius, please visit their website here. To be our next Rising Star, get in touch today.
Posted in Rising Stars | Comments Off on Rising star: Melius
By PromptBoston
March 23rd, 2015
The Prompt Byte: March 23, 2015
The Prompt Byte: March 23, 2015
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Posted in Newsletter | Comments Off on The Prompt Byte: March 23, 2015
By PromptBoston
March 23rd, 2015
The Prompt Byte: Rising Stars – Rejjee
The Prompt Byte: Rising Stars – Rejjee
Working in technology hubs on either side of the pond, at Prompt we’re always keen to get to know more about the innovators on our doorsteps in Boston and London. Each week, we’ll interview a local startup to learn more about technology and inspiration that can be found at home.
Recently, we chatted with Gary O’Neil, founder and CEO of Rejjee – a crowd-sourced lost-and-found platform set to revolutionize the way you find and replace your most prized possessions.
1. Tell us a bit about Rejjee.
Rejjee is in a category all by itself. We register, report and then replace stolen or lost goods through the use of a smartphone application. We are the first digital platform in lost and found that brings the added bonus of matching users with replacement partners — ensuring that their lost or stolen goods will be returned to them one way or the other.
We work closely with insurance companies, law enforcement and retailers and the platform is free to use for retailers and the community. There is also a public incident-mapping feature — so you can report a stolen item in real time and alert others in the area.
Unlike other finder applications, this is not a battery-driven device vulnerable to technology or process mishaps. It is a complete free SaaS system anybody can use. You can even use Rejjee to find your lost puppy.
- What does innovation mean to you?
My partner and I started in the ad world years ago. In that world, we use the word ‘creativity.’ Creativity and innovation are two words that run parallel; but innovation goes a step further — the step of usefulness. If you can merge creativity and innovation, you have something special.
- Why is New England such a hotbed for innovation?
New England celebrates education beyond belief. It is a perfect place for innovation, because it is all coming out of our universities. The churn of students, professors and ideas is enormous — it drives us all.
The West Coast is sunny, but our development and innovation district is fantastic. If you were holding a light bulb as you emerged from the “T”, it feels as if it could be lit just from the energy in the air. You can’t replace that.
- Do you have any concerns about the New England growth and innovation culture?
The biggest problem for everybody is money. We need to build upon the investor community — angels, VCs — all of that. And you need money to drive that. You have to feed the engine, and the energy is money. Money enables creativity. The investors we’ve spoken with have provided invaluable feedback, but the fact remains that West-Coast deals have more zeros than East Coast deals. It’s the only thing holding the area back.
- What are some of the trends and challenges you’ve seen in the New England tech scene?
Of course, medical innovation is rooted here in New England. But, its also worth looking at what the younger generation is doing — social apps and their revenue streams.
The collaborative nature of the actual people in New England is fabulous. More collaborating is welcome by everybody in the technology community.
But, we haven’t even begun to scratch the surface of what Boston can do. The 2024 Olympics would be an excellent stage to showcase this.
- If you weren’t based in New England, which city and/or country would you want to be based in and why?
I would be in Key West. Of course, there is no innovation economy there … I’d just be sitting down with Jimmy Buffet, learning to love margaritas. To me, Boston is the only place to be. The churn, diversity, and the city itself is gorgeous — it has everything.
- If you could meet any single innovator (alive or dead) over a coffee, who would you want to meet?
Jonathan Ive from Apple.
- Name a piece of technology you’ve bought personally that you love — either recently or in the past — and why you bought it.
My smartphone. My MacBook Air. My Garmin multifunction display for my boat — it does everything. Though, I think the fish display is only designed to make me buy more Goldfish.
Posted in Rising Stars | Comments Off on The Prompt Byte: Rising Stars – Rejjee
By PromptBoston
March 17th, 2015
Prompt to the rescue: New crowdfunding PR packages
Prompt to the rescue: New crowdfunding PR packages
Crowdfunding can be exhilarating with ups and downs against the backdrop of constant momentum. That’s why the team here at Prompt loves working on crowdfunding journeys.
Over the years, we’ve worked on many rewards and donation-based campaigns (think Kickstarter and Indiegogo, though there are plenty of others to choose from) campaigns to help bring innovative, creative and fun products, services and offerings to new audiences. We may come out the other side of a campaign a little tired, but never worse for wear – and with even more ideas and experience.
We’ve spent a long time bringing together all of our hard-earned crowdfunding expertise and created the perfect package – the Crowdfunding Rescue PR Package. It’s a step-by-step public relations program designed specifically forcrowdfunding campaigns.
We’ll provide you with a detailed review of current communication, media and PR activities – because you can’t get anywhere without proper analysis and planning. Then we’ll get going on coaching calls, Q&A sessions and some pre-made templates to nail down messaging, content, goals, media engagement best practices and ultimately, a customized launch plan.
Intrigued? Check it out here – you won’t want to hit launch without us.
Posted in Crowdfunding | Comments Off on Prompt to the rescue: New crowdfunding PR packages
By PromptBoston
March 2nd, 2015
The Prompt Byte – Rising Stars: Riskified
The Prompt Byte – Rising Stars: Riskified
Working in technology hubs on either side of the pond, at Prompt we’re always keen to get to know more about the innovators on our doorsteps in Boston and London. Each week, we’ll interview a local startup to learn more about technology and inspiration that can be found at home.
We caught up with Andy Freedman of Riskified; a company dedicated to eliminating the security risks and inefficiencies in the world of eCommerce. The Israeli startup has recently opened a new Boston office and we’re here to find out why.
- Tell us a bit about what Riskified is all about and how it got started. Riskified is an end-to-end risk management solution. We help more than 2,000 eCommerce merchants to prevent online fraud by reviewing, approving and guaranteeing their orders. We launched Riskified with a goal to build the world’s best eCommerce fraud team. We stop online fraudsters and allow merchants to focus on growing their business without fear of fraud.
- What does innovation mean to you? Innovation is the ongoing process of solving real customer pain. It involves endless iteration, learning by doing, and constantly validating your product or service by maintaining an active conversation with customers.
- Why is Boston such a hotbed for innovation? As an Israeli startup opening our first US offices in Boston, there are several similarities between our two vibrant startup communities. As well as boasting a wealth of talent, Israel and Boston also share a sense of passion and pride for their local ecosystem. Each community seizes every opportunity to collaborate, rejoice in success and be vocal advocates for startups on a global scale.
- Do you have any concerns about Boston’s growth and innovation culture? I think it is natural to fear that successful Boston startups will be lured away into other markets on the promise of greater exposure and financial gains. However I believe that a key driver for the incredible growth we are seeing in Boston is a shared sense of pride in making Boston a global powerhouse across a wide-range of industries.
- What are some of the trends and challenges you’ve seen in the Boston tech scene? Having spent time living in both Palo Alto and Tel Aviv it has been fun to watch Boston’s emergence as a consumer technology powerhouse, alongside traditionally strong industries like SaaS, biotech and robotics. I look forward to seeing Boston continue to attract tech companies of all stages from other global communities – like Israel, Europe and Asia – and continue to expand our international reputation.
- If you weren’t based in Boston which city and/or country would you want to be based in and why? I may be a bit biased but Tel Aviv, hands down. Despite the massive weather upgrade (it will be in the 70s and sunny all next week), the number of game-changing products and services being built in such a small country is inspiring to be around.
- Name a piece of technology you’ve bought personally that you love – either recently or in the past – and why you bought it. I finally started using my Cuisinart Food Processor that was given to me as a wedding present almost 4 years ago. Now I’m addicted. I’m looking for any recipes to try, so if you’re reading this and have any suggestions, I’m all ears!
To learn more about Riskified, browse their site or follow them on Twitter.
Posted in Rising Stars, Technology | Comments Off on The Prompt Byte – Rising Stars: Riskified
By PromptBoston
February 16th, 2015
The Prompt Byte: February 16, 2015
The Prompt Byte: February 16, 2015
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By PromptBoston
February 16th, 2015
The Prompt Byte – Rising Stars: CoPatient
The Prompt Byte – Rising Stars: CoPatient
Prompt works out of technology hubs on either side of the pond, and we’re always keen to get to know more about the innovators on our doorsteps in Boston and London. Each week, we’ll interview a local startup to learn more about the technology and inspiration that can be found at home.
This week we hear from Rebecca Palm, co-founder of CoPatient; a system designed to help enable patients to manage and minimize medical expenses.
Please tell us more about CoPatient and how you got started.
It all started while my co-founder Katie Vahle and I were working at AthenaHealth. We consistently noticed that people weren’t paying their medical bills on time. Through research we found that people were actually just confused and skeptical about what they owed, and had no resources to guide them. Together we left Athena to create a technology driven, patient-centric solution. Just like that, CoPatient was born. CoPatient acts as every consumer’s trusted advisor for healthcare bills. We review and negotiate bills on each consumer’s behalf and typically find errors or overcharges on 80% of the bills we review.
What does innovation mean to you?
I think of innovation pretty simply. It really is just solving a problem in a new way to make a positive difference.
Why do you think Boston is such a hotbed for innovation?
We have so many highly rated institutions in the area bringing top-level intellectuals to the city. Mayor Marty Walsh is also making great efforts to support innovation and the success of startups. I know that he is appointing a ‘startup czar’ to help entrepreneurs thrive, and is also in the process of implementing a cross-departmental Office of Analytics to bring big data to city operations.
Do you have any concerns about Boston’s growth and innovation culture?
My biggest concern about growth and innovation in Boston is that the infrastructure and cost of living is prohibitive, making it hard for younger people to live in the city.
Describe some of the trends and challenges you’ve seen in the Boston tech scene?
Collaboration and community learning are very hot topics right now. Our office is located at WeWork, which is a co-working office space community. It has been described as a ‘physical social network’. Places like this are becoming more and more common today, allowing startups to collaborate, lean on each other and develop an entire community. In a cutthroat world, that is a great backbone to have.
If you weren’t based in Boston which city or country would you want to be in and why?
Hands down it would have to be Chicago. It offers so many of the same benefits as Boston, but on a larger and yet more affordable basis. It is also a major transportation hub, making it incredibly valuable.
Name one piece of technology you’ve bought personally that you love – either recently or in the past – and why you bought it.
While today it is considered outdated and old, I really loved the very first Nav System for my car. I remember that for my first job, I was constantly traveling and had to buy these massive foldout maps. Getting my hands on that little computer just changed my whole world.
To learn more about CoPatient, check them out on Facebook and Twitter.
Posted in Rising Stars | Comments Off on The Prompt Byte – Rising Stars: CoPatient
By PromptBoston
February 6th, 2015
The Prompt Byte: Rising stars – Usability 24/7
The Prompt Byte: Rising stars – Usability 24/7
Working in technology hubs on both side of the Atlantic, we’re always keen to know more about the innovators on our doorsteps in Boston and London. Each week in our newsletter – The Prompt Byte – we interview a local startup to learn more about technology and inspiration that can be found at home.
This week, we garnered some great insights from Paul Blunden, creator of Usability 24/7 – a UK-based innovator revolutionizing multi-platform user experience. Get in touch with them on Twitter at @Usability247.
- What does innovation mean to you?
Innovation is all about improvement. In some instances it means being brave enough to challenge the system. In others, it involves painstaking work to bring about incremental gains that result in positive change. It can be the work of one person or a team collaborating. It may not be a lightning bolt moment, but instead something seemingly trivial that still brings about a positive change. In the age in which we live technology is very exciting, but it is not the limit of innovation. In my view process innovation can be just as rewarding.
- Please tell us about Usability24/7’s vision.
Our vision is to change the world one interface at a time (if we have to). We want everything to be usable everywhere, for everyone all of the time. If we achieve this then it will be better for businesses and better for consumers. No one has ever disputed the ROI of user experience (UX) and usability research with me. In fact, most agree that it’s a good thing. And yet not all companies invest in it. I set up Usability24/7 to address this contradiction. In order to achieve our vision we are building an international network of senior, experienced UX researchers accredited to our quality standards. We are making sure that they are familiar with our methodologies, all of which have been designed to be repeatable so that outcomes are not entirely determined by those conducting the research. We’re structuring our services in a pragmatic way so that our customers don’t feel that they are paying for things they don’t need. We have invested in technologies to allow us to conduct research with almost any device in almost any location, and then stream that research to the client wherever they may be. If the client doesn’t want a report then that’s fine; we simply provide a verbal debrief instead. It’s all about being customer-centric and delivering services that are easier to understand and buy, while at the same time ensuring that the value in the deliverable is clear for the client.
- What do you predict or look forward to in 2015 with regards to London’s innovation culture?
It’s a really exciting time for London. We’re attracting talented people and combining that talent pool with investment capital and facilities. Incubators and hubs like the Google Campus are providing an environment where people can get together and develop their ideas. The job market for graduates is tough but I think that may drive innovation too. Young people, who can often be more fearless around innovation, strive for opportunities for work experience, and work harder to get their ideas off the ground. Major technology brands are injecting greater funds into the digital industry and driving individuals and organisations to be more innovative. This enables places like the Flux Innovation Lounge, which is genuinely driving innovation, to exist at all. Ten years ago these levels of financial investment simply weren’t available from big brands, and so the scale of innovation was different and the culture more constrained.
- What trends and challenges have you seen in the London technology scene?
A slightly worrying trend I have seen over the past few years is that in some areas innovation and design seems to have become disconnected with users. UX designers are increasingly expected to act as proxy for understanding the user, but not everyone is Jonathan Ive! This is a major challenge because as mobile adoption has increased our understanding of user behaviour struggles to keep pace. Users, consumers, customers – whatever we want to call them – are using technology in ways that we don’t fully understand. For example, users complete activities across smartphones, tablets, PCs and laptops, often using all devices to complete a single task. Technology is not designed to track that diversity of horizontal behaviour, and is generally more suited to vertical action. This situation is going to become more complicated with the arrival of wearable technology into the main stream (think Michael Gove’s smartwatch), swiftly followed by different interface and display metaphors. All this in addition to putting remote drones in the hands of the public at large! With so much innovation and new technology reaching consumers, ensuring that it supports user behaviour is a major challenge. It can make or break an idea, however good that idea is. Innovators need to find new ways to understand users, get their ideas tested, and not be put off by failure.
- If you could meet any single innovator (alive or historical) over a coffee, who would you like to meet? What would you ask them or tell them about?
I’d like to meet Sir Ken Robinson, an innovator in the area of creativity in business and in education. I think he has answered almost every question I have about how we can help people be more creative so I would simply tell him what a profound impact he has had on me and the way I think about myself, run my business, motivate my colleagues and bring up my children.
- Please name a piece of technology you’ve bought personally that you really wanted, and why you bought it.
I’d prefer to talk about a number of pieces of usability technology which together fix a big problem in mobile research. It took me months to identify all the elements and work out how to use them together, but what they do is enable us to intelligently research people using mobile phones. The only alternative methods available previously involved attaching a camera to a phone or a person, and then have a researcher lean over the shoulder of the participant. Either that or use a software solution like Reflector which often proved unreliable over wireless networks. The new technology I’ve assembled now allows me to display the screen of a mobile phone on a test laptop which a researcher can see easily. We can then record and even stream the results to clients viewing remotely. It has literally changed the way in which we work, and it’s brilliant.
Posted in Technology | Comments Off on The Prompt Byte: Rising stars – Usability 24/7
By PromptBoston
January 30th, 2015
The Prompt Byte: Rising stars – Mobco
The Prompt Byte: Rising stars – Mobco
Working in technology hubs on both side of the Atlantic, we’re always keen to know more about the innovators nearby. Each week in our newsletter – The Prompt Byte – we interview a local innovator to learn more about technology and inspiration on both sides of the Atlantic.
This week, we talked with Ulrik Van Schepdael, the founder of Belgium-based Mobco. Mobco is helping companies mobilize their IT infrastructure with secure device management and mobilizing applications.
- What does innovation mean to you?
Innovation is for me the practical application of an invention (technology, process, ….). One of the key roles of our company is just to do that for our customers. We scan the mobile technology, apps and possibilities and translate that into practical and applicable “tools” for our customers businesses.
An iPad in business is not an innovation as such, but the fact we can remotely configure those devices and enable mobile sales or field force to do their job more efficiently, that’s innovation.
- Tell us about Mobco’s vision:
There is an evolution ongoing where the IT department gradually no longer
‘purchases’ employee hardware. Focus now goes to the management of the Corporate Data and Apps on those devices. That’s certainly true for mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets, but this is also the trend we see happening with Macbooks and Windows 8.1/10. In our vision we see IT evolving from controlling hardware to controlling data. Our job, our mission, is to support the business in that transition, hence our baseline: ‘we mobilize your business’.
- What do you predict or look forward to in 2015 with regards to Belgium’s innovation culture?
When we started 5 years ago with Mobile Device Management people looked at us and asked us ‘why’? Today, we see that every IT integrator has a mobile offering, and that’s great. Mobile is generally accepted in the business, no doubt about that. For 2015 and beyond, this mobile innovation trend is becoming more
important than ever before: companies are actually thinking mobile first. Or better – they’re basically thinking out of the (PC) box. This opens new opportunities and new possibilities. Doing business in Belgium is typically only possible on a small scale given the size of the market, the language. With the rise in importance of mobile technology, it’s no longer an issue and the market is global.
Nobody in our region should feel like “if I’m not in Silicon Valley, I will fail.” On the contrary, you’re better of NOT being in SiliconValley – the talent you need might live next door and you will not suffer from fierce HR competition to get it. Traditional businesses need to re-invent themselves (see the rise of online sales versus traditional sales) and new technology brings new opportunities for innovation, also on a small scale.
This is for me the trend forward, it’s smaller IT companies, innovative companies with in-house expertise. Companies with a focus. You could basically compare it with the trend we’ve seen in retail, we all saw the small shops disappearing in favor of the oversized supermarkets.
The consumers are turning their back to supermarkets if they want special advice, but for fast shopping of the basics the supermarket is fine. Bottom line; in IT we see the large integrators and operators suffering from cloud services which are providing the ‘basics’ and we see small expert companies providing the ‘top value’ the business needs
- What are some of the trends and challenges you’ve seen in the Belgium technology scene?
The challenge in Belgium is currently no different than anywhere else. I believe we have just as much talent as anywhere else. This makes the challenge universal.
Business apps that are specific to the local economy and focused on the business are the 2015 opportunity.
- If you could meet any single innovator (alive or dead) over a coffee, who would you want to meet?
Steve Jobs would be top of mind. I admire the way he built values that are used today to create new products and the way he took the computer industry from “look how fast this PC is” to “look what you can do with this device” – an innovation on its own.
- Name a piece of technology you’ve bought personally that you really wanted (recently or a past purchase) and why you bought it.
I buy a lot of stuff and not all experiences are brilliant I must admit… but there is one I want to share with you and that’s the Harmony Home Hub. This ‘hub’ is simple to set-up, simple to use and combines basic technologies to deliver a user experience you’re looking for.
It combines Bluetooth for your remote control, no more point and shoot to reach the TV or amp, it interprets your commands into signals IR to different devices at once and you control the whole set-up over Wi-Fi via a web interface that knows just about any brand and device out there.
It comes for 100 USD and solved all my home remote problems. I’m not saying we’re doing the same in our business, but we do simplify the life of the IT admin and take away the mobile complexity. At the same time we enable more functionalities on the mobile devices and we do bring a brilliant user experience to the employee!
Posted in Technology | Comments Off on The Prompt Byte: Rising stars – Mobco