A guide to Enterprise Software Development

Enterprise systems help integrate various business functions across an organization. As good as it sounds, developing an enterprise system has hidden pitfalls that can affect your spending. Read our in-depth guide to get the best out of enterprise software development.

What is enterprise software development?

Enterprise software development focuses on a company’s needs rather than individual user’s needs. Since enterprise apps are used within a company, they are developed based on the internal environment and business processes. Organizations of different sizes and industries have different demands. The goal of enterprise applications is to fulfill a company’s specific needs and meet specific business goals.

The majority of modern enterprise systems implement the SaaS model when software is developed using web technologies and is hosted on a cloud. Sofware as a service approach ensures rapid performance and flexibility of a system. However, some organizations still prefer traditional desktop apps as they provide greater security and control.

The three main types of enterprise systems

The first and foremost task of any enterprise software is to store, process, and transfer data. Most systems provide various workflow automation and document management tools designed for a specific industry or company’s activity field. The larger the organization, the more complex system they need. For example, large corporations combine several applications or choose integrated enterprise systems for their supply chain, inventory, accounting, and sales management.

Here are the most common types of enterprise software used in retail, pharmacy, real estate, manufacturing, and other industries.

Customer Relationship Management systems

Customer retention can be challenging. Companies make tremendous efforts to find new clients, but they put even more resources into establishing solid relationships with existing customers. CRM systems centralize and streamline all customer-related operations by gathering, categorizing, and analyzing customer data from various channels. That’s why the CRM market keeps growing year after year and will reach $114,4 billion by 2027.

The benefits of using CRM systems include:

• Defining consumer trends and insights based on customer behavior
• Enhancing the quality of brand communication and client service
• Automating sales funnels
• Increasing customer retention rates
• Protecting customer data privacy
• Engaging customers through loyalty campaigns and other marketing tools

Here are the top requested features for CRM software:

• Contact management
• Interaction tracking
• Scheduling
• Email marketing
• Pipeline monitoring
• Reporting and analytics
• Integration with other platforms
• Mobile accessibility
• Artificial intelligence
• Workflow automation Summing up, CRM systems help companies sell faster and provide better customer service. To keep all business processes in one place, many organizations integrate CRM within ERP systems.

Enterprise Resource Planning systems

ERP solutions are used to manage day-to-day business activities, including planning, budgeting, procurement, human resources, risk management, etc. ERP systems tie together different business processes and ensure safe data flow within an organization. This type of software is crucial for managing medium and large-sized businesses. The global ERP market worth will hit $48,22 billion by 2022.

There are numerous benefits of using ERP software:

• Lower operational costs thanks to optimized business processes
• Data and infrastructure consistency across departments
• Risk reduction through data integrity and control
• Actionable insights based on real-time data analysis
• Enhanced cross-team and in-team collaboration
• Workflow efficiency
• Lower maintenance costs

The most requested features for ERP systems include:

• Accounting
• Finance
• Human resources
• Planning
• Marketing
• CRM
• Inventory management
• Order management
• Invoicing
• Project management
• Scheduling
• Reporting

Although ERP solutions offer great opportunities for business growth, not every company can fully leverage them. To get the most out of ERP software, make sure it’s accessible for employees and aligns with current company processes. The safest option would be to choose software development services that combine ERP development with excellent client support, software maintenance, and integration.

Supply Chain Management systems

According to The BCI report, 69% of companies don’t have total visibility over their supply chain operations. Supply chain management systems increase visibility and control throughout supply chain activities. SCM applications are involved throughout the whole supply chain lifecycle, from production to logistics and warehouse management. They take care of end-to-end supply chain transactions, data and document flow, supplier relationships, and other related processes.

The advantages of using SCM systems include:

• Lower costs and better financial control
• Eliminating logistical errors and other risks
• Maximizing customer value
• Effective forecasting and decision-making
• Faster time-to-market
• Better customer service and communication

Here is the essential functionality of supply chain management software:

• Inventory planning
• Warehouse management
• Logistics
• Returns management
• Sourcing and supplier management
• Order management
• Inventory management
• Order management
• Data analytics
• Procurement
• Production lines maintenance

Supply chain management software development is vital for companies looking to keep up with the market competition. The best option is to partner with a company that provides custom software development services. This way, you get a system that seamlessly integrates into your workflow and serves your specific company needs.

Find more here

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Say goodbye to traditional cleansing.

Data Cleansing and analysis are the first steps in managing the quality of data. Cleansing is the process of correcting and detecting inaccurate data from your datasets. Being a very critical step it directly affects the accuracy of the data.

Data Analyst spends lots of time in data analysis to ensure there are no inconsistencies, fixing errors, correcting invalid nulls among others. All good analysis relies heavily on clean data. Achieving this result of clean data without any negative impact on the data’s integrity is very difficult to achieve using traditional cleansing methods.

Traditional cleaning methods are tedious and repetitive that will make data analysts exhausted before they even get to the data analysis part. This cleansing has now been made bearable by modern analytics such as DQLabs.ai

Challenges of Traditional data cleansing:

• It is very hard for data analysts to track all the actions in data sets and tables.
• Data analysts spend lots of time cleaning the data.
• Difficult in tracking all the changes.

Modern data Cleansing:

1. Data Structures Visualization – Critical decisions such as removal of data are made from an overall understanding of the impact on the quality of data. Visualization of all the data can help analysts to wrangle some of the data while still maintaining focus on the bigger picture.

2. Cost-Effective – Cleansing can now be undertaken by one analyst this saves time and money.

3. Can Track the changes – When the contractor undertakes the tasks of cleansing, clients are able to able to track all the changes they made and the impact they had on data quality.

4. Deduplication – This modern data cleansing is possible to remove the duplicates in order to attain a single golden record. This is a very critical step in data analysis as it increases the overall data quality and the accuracy of the analysis findings.

Traditional cleansing methods are not only time-consuming but also increases the chances of negative data quality. Modern data analytics tools have simplified the process of cleansing and their effective analysis of data sets consistency increases the quality of data. With all these benefits in mind, it is no wonder many organizations are saying goodbye to traditional data cleansing techniques and adopting modern platforms with AI and ML capabilities.

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Web Development Trends For 2021 and Beyond

The figures speak for themselves: there are currently more than 1.5 billion websites on the Internet. According to internetlivestats.com, with new websites created every second. However, there are only about 200 million active websites. These digital benchmarks continue to change, as do trends in web development and technology.

With changing emphases and new technology players, companies must always stay on top of the latest web development trends, technologies, and approaches to take advantage of new opportunities.This means that it is essential for web developers to be well informed about current trends to deliver relevant and quality software products.

There are several key trends emerging in 2021 for web development:

1| Artificial Intelligence (including chatbots

AI and bots are among the major trends in web development 2021. It is not surprising – the demand for automated communication has increased significantly this year. The popularity of AI chatbots and virtual assistant applications is therefore on the rise. Case studies include vacuum bots and Netflix or TechCrunch bots designed to provide movie suggestions or news updates based on deep analysis of human behavior and all previous interactions, to name but a few. As AI solutions gradually replace human intelligence, AI bots can eliminate many customer service professionals, which will undoubtedly reduce costs for companies.

2| Blockchain

Why is Blockchain on the list of the fastest-growing web programming trends? First of all, it is a high level of security. As there is no intermediary between transactions, every transaction is verified. In addition to the safety of the transactions, there are many benefits, including improved cash flow, website interactivity, reduced financial costs for businesses, fewer transaction contracts, etc. So, if your company needs total data security, it is an excellent decision to involve Blockchain in the web project.

3| AR/VR

Augmented and virtual realities have rapidly gained popularity in recent years. E-commerce is one of the sectors where virtual reality and augmented reality enhance the user experience, turning user stories into business success stories. Augmented and virtual realities, on the other hand, are among the most popular new technologies in web design, as they are intelligent tools that help potential consumers choose the most suitable product. The creation of virtual showrooms can hardly do without VR, and virtual fashion shoots look visually appealing while saving buyers time.

4| Progressive Web Applications, or PWAs

According to Wikipedia, a progressive web application (or PWA) is a type of web application software built using standard web technologies such as HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.

The notion of a progressive web application is not original, but PWAs remains one of the most popular trends in web programming. Apple, Google, and Microsoft are betting on its effectiveness, while Forbes and Twitter are reaping the real benefits of PWAs, such as increased impressions and reduced bounce rates.

The main advantage of PWAs is their efficiency. According to Google’s report, 53% of mobile site visits are abandoned if they take longer than three seconds to load. PWAs are always accessible and allow their users to enjoy the whole app experience without sacrificing convenience and quality.

5| Single Page Applications or SPAs

Another trending technology for web development, particularly attractive to developers because of its high performance, is the single page application (SPA). Based on JavaScript, SPAs do not require page reloads during use and provide users with a comfortable web space with clearly organized content. Easy to develop and fun to use, single-page applications are fast and responsive. Their users appreciate their simple, linear UX and comfortable scrolling.

6| Accelerated Mobile Pages, or AMP

AMP is an open-source library created by Google to improve websites, web applications, or web pages and reduce their loading time. The fast loading speed of AMP allows websites built with this framework to rank high in search engine results pages (SERPs). AMP remains the modern technology for website development for several benefits, including higher rankings in mobile searches, impressive loading speed, higher levels of audience engagement, and maximum user satisfaction.

7| Motion UI

Let’s take a closer look at user interfaces and the latest technologies used in web design. Motion UI is a Sass library for quickly creating CSS transitions and animations. Simply put, Motion UI provides a variety of pre-defined animations that can use in web design.

It’s an easy way to combine fun with real value, using primary and background animations, colorful hovers, animated graphics, eye-catching CTAs, and other elements as tools to grab the user’s attention and contribute to a more efficient web browsing experience. Motion UI websites keep users engaged and promote better interaction between businesses and their customers when done well.

8|  Responsive design

When we talked about single-page applications, we already mentioned responsiveness as one of their strengths. Now it’s time to explore this concept in detail.

The more straightforward, the better – today’s businesses feel a direct correlation between the ease of use of their website and the number of loyal customers. Responsive form plays a vital role in the usability of websites. It includes responsive navigation on all devices and screen resolutions. If website users face minimal resizing or scrolling, it promotes their positive experience and increases the website’s ranking positions.

9| Push notifications

Push notifications initially design to inform users about current events and news, but they have quickly become an essential tool for driving conversions. This type of push notification intends to keep users’ attention and increase user retention. Cost-effective and affordable push notifications are actively used by companies seeking to provide a more interactive experience for their website users, whether small, medium, or large.

10| Cybersecurity

Recent trends in web development cannot go without security. Remote working will be a hot topic in 2021, and more and more organizations are looking to secure their data as much as possible to become digital businesses. As mentioned above, technology tops the list of innovations in developing customized web applications, as its distributed nature offers greater security and makes it more difficult for hackers to break into systems.

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Model Versioning: Reduce Friction. Create Stability. Automate.

The research and development (R&D) phase of building an AI model to address a business problem is characterized by rapid exploration and iteration. Everything is on the table and experimentation is encouraged, from understanding how to frame the problem, to determining how to most effectively use the data on hand, to discovering the model architecture with the best performance.

In stark contrast to this, the operationalization phase of AI model development requires that the model be completely characterized, produce reproducible results, and be stable for integration in automation processes. Model versioning best practices and version control tools are essential to successfully navigating and overcoming this gap between R&D and production engineering.

Version Control Fundamentals

The practice of version control is nothing new. What developer isn’t interested in tracking and managing modifications to their software applications? Due to the large number of benefits associated with adopting these practices, ecosystems of software tools and applications exist in order to facilitate frictionless version control. The industry standard for this is Git, with a number of hosted software products based on Git being available including GitHub, GitLab, and Bitbucket.

While these solutions are necessary for managing complex software projects, they aren’t sufficient by themselves. In the data science ecosystem, there are emerging challenges that go beyond versioning software code and require innovation to address. For example:

Challenge: AI model development often produces very large model artifacts that exceed the capacity of traditional version control software.

Solution: Technologies such as Git Large File Storage (Git LFS) allow Git to be extended in order to accommodate very large non-source code files.

Challenge: The fuel for an AI model is data, however, datasets are massive, and storing multiple processed versions of the same dataset can be prohibitive.

Solution: Technologies such Data Version Control provide Git-like primitives for efficiently storing and versioning raw and processed datasets.

Key Takeaway: Developing a team that is well versed in version control principles will position you for success in adopting emerging data science version control tools.

Tracking Experimentation with Code and Data Version Control 

During the R&D phase, fast-paced development has many advantages to allow for rapid exploration of ideas without much overhead. If this process becomes unprincipled, however, it can lead to loss of knowledge, duplicated effort, and expensive technical debt.

Fortunately, rigorous model code and data versioning (even during the experimentation phase) can serve as a fossil record for the iterative process needed to produce high-impact, AI models. In this way, developers can:

1. Preserve and disseminate institutional knowledge about an AI model, especially when there are multiple developers working on a model simultaneously
2. Revisit and reproduce the performance of different versions of a model after being unattended after some period of time
3. Ensure the model is in a state that can easily be transitioned into a production environment

Key Takeaway: Taking a proactive approach to experiment tracking and model versioning creates a streamlined process for achieving sustained value from AI models. In the domain of experiment tracking, tools such as MLFlow  and SageMaker are good tools to evaluate.

AI Deployment and Model Versioning

To build off of version control best practices, the Modzy approach embraces versioning practices at all levels. Not only do we use source code and data versioning during the process of model development, but we also provide a universal template for AI models that incorporates unique identifiers (UIDs) and versions for each model on the Modzy platform.

This provides a single source code repository to develop and release multiple versions of an AI model. These model versions each have their own full description and code state recorded. This is a huge win for development velocity. It also makes for a straightforward process to crank out updates and variations on models in a reproducible manner. 

Conducting model versioning in this way is not just useful for accelerating internal model development, but it is of critical concern when it comes to AI governance and auditability. Since all models deployed via the Modzy platform are packaged and set up for versioning in this way, every model prediction can be associated with a model and its history of development, data source, training procedure, and source code.

Key Takeaway: Modern version control practices are a foundational component for building the right ModelOps pipeline for your organization.

Version control practices consistently applied all the way from R&D to production deployment of an AI model are core to building a strong ModelOps pipeline. Dedicated technologies that are widely available make adopting these best-practices easier than ever. With a dedication to these principles, bringing model versioning to the domain of data science ensures quality, stability, and auditability of models. 

Be sure to check out the other blogs in this series on Modzy.com:

Maximizing Data Use and Reducing Pitfalls: Putting the Right Data Preparation Process in Place for AI

Model Training: Our Favorite Tools in the Shed

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Beginner’s Guide to Task Automation: Automate Repetitive Tasks and Scale Your Business

Over time, tools that act as fundamental advancements became more complex, especially for people who have no experience with writing code. This article will give you an in-depth introduction to task automation.

• How to automate repetitive tasks? 
• How can task automation benefit your business? 
• What are the task automation examples and best practices?

Read on to get more insights and scale your business with robotic desktop automation. 

What is automation?

Desktop automation is a process that requires minimum human effort. Automating tasks allows you to reduce the amount of human effort wasted on the task, cut time, and make the process error-free. Considering the International Federation of Robotics report, 70% of workers believe automation will offer more opportunities to engage in strategic work.

COVID-19 and its influence on the adoption of automation

The COVID-19 pandemic provides us with a sudden glimpse into a future world, where digital has become central to every interaction, forcing both organizations and employees to adopt automation almost overnight. The world has changed.

Digital channels became the primary customer engagement model, and automated processes became a primer driver of productivity and the basis of flexible, transparent, and stable supply chains. In this new world, agile working methods are a prerequisite to meeting daily changes to customer behavior. 

For example, the digitalization of support functions is another pivotal lever for improving efficiency. By automating repetitive tasks such as indirect purchasing, finance, legal, and HR, you can quickly minimize costs and free up time to invest in more practical activities. Companies that have automated their claims collection and financial reconciliation realized that they also increased the agility and accuracy of these processes.  

According to the McKinsey & Company report, The Next Normal: The Recovery will be Digital, “The majority of the benefits may come not from reducing labor costs but from raising productivity through fewer errors, higher output, and improved quality, safety, and speed.” Understanding which activities can be automated could provide an opportunity to rethink how employees engage with their jobs. Also, it’s a chance for top managers to automate their routine tasks and free up time to focus on the things that no algorithm can replace.

Benefits of task automation

Usually, organizations have some routine, repetitive tasks that take a lot of time and human effort. Automating such tasks allows you to eliminate errors and speed up the whole process. You may wonder if ‘That’s it? That’s all how automating tasks can benefit me?’ Of course, no, that’s just the tip of the iceberg. Let’s have a closer look at the benefits of task automation, as identified by WinTask.

1. Increased productivity

Automating particular processes gives you a chance to optimize the service provided and the costs of the organization. With employees having more time focusing on complex tasks that only humans can perform, you increase your income and improve the effectiveness of your workforce. 

2. Reduced errors

When your processes are automated, the chances of making errors decrease dramatically. When the procedures are familiar for the employees, it is easier for them to perform their job correctly. Eventually, you get processes that give you the best end-result. 

3. Reduced time in task execution

One of the main advantages of automating tasks for companies is that software tasks take less time than the ones performed manually. All you have to do is to schedule a task that should be repeated, and from then on, it will be repeated accurately, taking less time and eliminating errors.

4. Improvements in internal communication

Sometimes it’s really tough for a person to organize between meetings, emails, notes, and reminders. With workflow automation, communication within the company becomes simpler. When everyone knows the work that colleagues are developing, the communication between departments becomes easier.

5. Integrated systems

Systems can become more effective if integrated through automation. For instance, if you integrate payment software with some financial management application using API, it will be much easier to analyze the company’s state.

6. Reduced operating costs

Automating repetitive tasks generates a lot of savings. For example, it eliminates errors, reduces time to perform specific tasks, and requires fewer employees than the task usually would need. Correct automation allows you to speed up the process from the day being.

Common features of desktop automation

Here are some examples of what can be automated with the help of software robots.

1. Excel and database automation

Manipulate and transform data for excel or database automation. Automate data entry, transfer data between spreadsheets or different databases. To make setting up more accessible, you can record your actions and let the automation software replay them for you. Also, you can automatically run queries and extract data from the web to Excel spreadsheets.

2. Task scheduling

That’s a great feature to keep everything under control: you can schedule logins and automate other web tasks. Create a list of actions to automate and stick to it. This feature can save you hours by running scripts automatically. Set it up (Windows logins, for example) and comfortably go about your business. RDA tools will do everything for you.

3. Web data extraction

With this feature, you can easily extract unstructured data from web pages and convert it into an Excel file or database. Thanks to RDA, you can do it error-free and much faster than a person could do it manually.

4. Implementation of task automation  

It’s never too early to prepare for the future. At first, identify the problem you need to solve with automation. Think about the tasks your employees perform daily and consider automating them. Especially if your employees are struggling with repetitive tasks spending too much time completing them, desktop automation is right for you.

Businesses that use automation software report high customer and employee satisfaction. With no complex integrations or modifications to your current systems, any company can deploy RDA in a matter of days. RDA tools give immediate benefits realization, fast payback, and high ROI.

To get more in detail, you can use different task automation tools in various industries. According to Harvard Business Review, ‘60% of existing US jobs, 30% or more of current work activities can be automated with available or announced technologies.’ For instance, maintaining data consistency is quite a tedious task that sales representatives tackle daily.

First, the salespeople should enter data into CRMs; finance analysts must replicate the data and enter it into another system. Eventually, this results in duplication, errors and impacts productivity. Desktop automation helps avoid repetitive tasks and eliminates errors, performing end-to-end sales activities like data entry and invoicing. 

Conclusion

If one considers desktop automation versus RPA, there is no doubt that desktop automation is the perfect choice for companies that are just beginning to automate desktop applications. That’s totally fine to start small, automating one process at a time. This way, you can determine how desktop automation can help you scale your business.

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Benefits of Hiring IT Consulting Services

IT consulting services have become a prominent part of the business culture across the world. A consultant is synonymous with niche expertise, outsourced in the hour of need for perspective. This has allowed companies to compartmentalize their core business activities by saving time and improving business sustainability. The technology transformation wave growing over the recent years has made IT consulting services a business necessity. Technology has transformed the way businesses now operate. 

With the versatile and ever-changing trends in IT, maintaining a full-time, in-house IT department happens to involve great costs. An IT solutions consulting services company provides efficient solutions with low costs and higher Return On Investment (ROI). Therefore, many small or medium scale businesses take up IT consulting services for small business companies for their IT-based work. The world may see a big shift within the consulting industry in the next 5 years, taking into account its massive contribution to the global economy. 

Types of IT Consulting Services

There are plenty of categories of IT consulting services examples ranging from helpdesk services to data backups. No matter small or large, businesses are always on the lookout for finding smarter technology solutions to incorporate. Both IT products and services help companies to grow their ventures in existing and newer domains.  

Some of the most popular types of IT consulting services are:  

• Enterprise IT Consulting Services

Enterprise IT consulting services include Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), a business process management software that allows an organization to use integrated applications. It helps businesses automate the various functions- technology, services, and human resources, thus reducing the cost of manpower.  

• Cloud Services

Cloud Services lead the IT consulting services list due to its increasing demand across all businesses. They are not only budget-friendly but also ensure high performance and efficiency. With the help of cloud services, businesses have access to everything they need on the go without having the burdens of physical data storage. This is one of the best IT consulting services for small businesses which run on lower operational costs.  They also provide better security and control strategies to the companies. 

• Help Desk IT Services

All offices have IT support equipment such as printers, servers, scanners, etc. These often happen to be the road bump in day-to-day operations, thereby responsible for the low productivity of office spaces. With the Help Desk IT services helping with installation, set-up, maintenance, and repair of the office equipment.  

• Network Security

 Data is the heart of any business. It is one of the most valuable resources and forms the foundation for decision making, strategy planning, and business growth plans. The data is shared among company stakeholders, and hence, network security and cyber data protection are of utmost importance. 

5 Benefits of Hiring IT Consulting Services

The IT consulting services list is not limited to the ones mentioned above. It includes a range of other IT consulting services examples like data storage and management, data backup services, social media consulting, repair services, web designing services, to name the popular few. 

According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, IT consulting services in the USA have proven to scale up small businesses without creating additional overheads. IT solutions consulting services have a huge financial and logistical impact on businesses, especially small businesses. An outsourced IT consulting services company reaps many benefits such as:  

• Cost and Time Saving

In comparison to using an in-house IT department, an outsourced IT consulting team reduces costs on the employee training, taxes, employee benefits, and overheads incurred. A substantial amount of money is also saved on lost downtime, prevented by quick detection and problem-solving. According to a Forrester Research study by BCM Software, “the routine IT problems across all employees cost Fortune 100 companies more than $100 billion dollars annually.”

On the other hand, using an IT consultancy service comes with the option of pay-py-project or pay-by-hour. Such payment flexibility also benefits small businesses to control and optimize their costs.  

• Expertise and Experience

The decision to hire an IT consultancy is promising because of its company’s collective knowledge and domain expertise. IT consultancies employ experienced IT experts who hold expertise in various IT fields across industries.

This attribute of cross-functional and industry-wide knowledge provided by IT consultancies ensures top-notch technology development to companies. They ensure that their clients have the most effective and latest technology as per market trends. As long as businesses choose the right IT consulting services, they are always one step ahead of their competitors. 

• Higher Productivity, Higher Sales

Technology helps in improving business productivity by allowing communication, collaborations, and knowledge sharing. When the best technology practices are properly planned and implemented, true productivity is achieved by companies. This improves the quality of work for its employees, and in turn, makes them more productive.

On the parallel road, to improve customer relationships, companies turn up to IT consultancies to effectively manage big data and reach their customers. Turning to big data is a daunting and time-intensive task which the service providers do very efficiently. Businesses use this service to come up with effective marketing campaigns and better audience targeting methods. This, in turn, leads to a substantial boost in company revenues.  

• Network Security

In the growing era of technology, even technology breaches are growing at a rapid speed. Cyber attacks and security threats are happening across all business sizes, industries, and countries. By outsourcing IT consulting services that hold expertise in internet security, companies can rely on them and better focus on the core business activities. IT consulting companies also provide best-in-class training to their employees for the technology they are working on and the prospective threats to it.  

• Round-the-Clock Availability 

In today’s world, there is no buffer for downtime. Security threats and cybercrimes occur at all hours of the day and night. Businesses must constantly be vigilant and available at emergency notice.

An IT consulting service takes on the responsibility for this and is a call away to its clients. They also provide continuous monitoring that helps detection of threats much before they cause harm to the business. IT consultancy provides conduct fixes and upgrades during odd hours (night and weekends) so as to keep the business productivity intact.

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What COVID-19 Has Taught Us About the Importance of Digital Transformation in Business

The Corona Virus (COVID-19) has taught us many hard lessons, not the least of which is the importance of being prepared, the importance of anticipating what may be just around the corner, and the importance of being able to theorize, hypothesize and predict. All of these skills are amply supplied by data scientists and analysts. But, in today’s world, it is crucial to prepare and educate the average business team member to improve data literacy and engage in digital transformation (Dx). As the idea of data popularity becomes more mainstream, and team members and industries embrace data sharing and fact-based decision making, our understanding of looming issues, collaborative possibilities and possible solutions to address these issues will improve and so will our response time and efficacy.

There is nothing like a global crisis to incite panic but, when you are facing large, multi-faceted issues, it is important to work in an environment that is prepared to provide the data and the views you need to address the issues you face. In businesses and government agencies where Digital Transformation (Dx) is ongoing, the business has a much better foundation for understanding financial and geo-political issues, security problems, weather-related emergencies and delays and the effects of these problems on stakeholders and supply chain. Data, analytics and an agile Dx workflow and environment weighs heavily on success in these instances.

As long as we are using COVID-19 as an example of a complex issue that requires rapid response, the ability to plan in an uncertain future and the need to work with facts to ensure appropriate action, let’s dive into this issue in a bit more detail. As we work through this example, consider your most crucial business issues, the changing market in which you compete and your need for timely, accurate data. You will find the comparisons to be thought provoking!

A recent survey revealed that:

• Nearly 50% of businesses are using data analytics more now than they did before the pandemic. They use the data to plan and address issues of revenue decline, resources issues etc.
• Small businesses (those with 200 or fewer employees) are using analytics and data even more than large enterprises. This is not really surprising, since small businesses have less fat to cut and are at more risk of losing customers and team members during this crisis.
• Over 60% are using analytics in operations, 50% are using it for sales, over 40% are using it in product support and over 55% are using it in financial support.
• Over 50% of all companies are using data to improve efficiency and address resources and workflow issues.
• Over 60% of all companies are increasing or maintaining their data analysis budget. That might surprise you, but it shouldn’t. There is nothing more motivating than a global crisis and, in the case of ongoing business management, there is nothing more motivating than dramatic changes in the market or in customer response to products and services.

Investing in Digital Transformation, technology infrastructure, systems, software and user data literacy ensures that the business is working with up-to-date, accessible systems and tools that are easy for team members to embrace so every team member is empowered and accountable for data-driven decisions and recommendations. When a crisis hits, e.g., cyber-attack, significant market shift or competitive initiative, OR loss of customers or revenue to an economic downturn or a global pandemic, a business must have the tools, processes and technology in place to respond with agility and speed. During such a crisis, there is no time to implement changes that will take months or years to execute.

So, what have we learned from COVID-19? A lot. But, perhaps the most critical lesson for businesses trying to survive or emerge from this pandemic is that digital transformation and improved data literacy are initiatives for NOW. If your business wants to be prepared to address the lingering after effects and permanent market changes that will result from this pandemic, the time to implement digital transformation (Dx) and data literacy initiatives is NOW!

If your business is trying to survive and thrive during these significant market and business shifts, it must build a cohesive, stable foundation to help the business succeed and thrive in uncertain times. For more information about Digital Transformation explore our white papers: ‘Understanding Digital Transformation: What it Is, What it is Not’, ‘Preparing Your Business for Digital Transformation and Data Literacy.’

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Deep Learning and Google Search: The Future of SEO

How Deep Learning is Changing the Future of SEO

Algorithms have become smarter. They’re learning what websites you frequent, why you typed a certain query and what other search suggestions you’re likely to click. Behind the online results you’re seeing is a highly advanced form of AI: deep learning.

It’s based on artificial neural networks that allow the machine to learn without human supervision. Deep learning requires more data because neural networks need to process more information to be more efficient, to gain better insights — to better answer queries.

So how does it change the way Google does its work and what does it mean for SEO?

The Impact of Deep Learning on SEO

With the help of deep neural networks, machines can now analyze vast amounts of data and learn more tasks. Features like identifying photos, accurately recognizing voice commands, and correctly interpreting search queries will be done faster, and at a much bigger scale.

Google’s RankBrain was one of the first algorithms that exhibited deep learning. It’s able to understand the user’s search intent, resulting in more accurate search results. But this is just the beginning.

In an interview with former Google search engineer Edmond Lau, he stated that with machine learning, it’s hard to explain why a particular search result ranks higher than the other. Because the algorithm and ranking signals were designed by humans, it’s difficult to tweak machine-learning based systems to boost certain ranking signals. Engineers are still required to tweak the algorithm whenever they discover a loophole.

With deep learning, they are expecting AI to take over the tweaking. Deep learning technology is expected to achieve more accurate results. But the engineers won’t always be able to explain what led the machine to come up with the result.

Ultimately, what Google aims to do is create successful searches that satisfies users. No matter what pattern deep learning technology discovers, a website that satisfies user queries is more likely to clinch marketing success.

What SEOs are Doing

Businesses see a bright future with deep learning. But SEO experts and SEO companies may be anxious at the probability that machines may figure out unique algorithms that deviate from the normal practice and SEO techniques.

As with any top trending technology, marketers will need to adapt to deep learning.

How are other SEOs adjusting to this search innovation?

Focusing on User Experience

The goal for any business is to make customers happy. This goal is no different from Google’s aim of continually improving the user experience. Although the rules of ranking will change, the goal and purpose will not. 

As search engines become smarter, an SEO company or professional will need to focus on providing the best user experience to make sure that they keep attracting the right visitors, persuading them to return to the website.

How do you get this result?

Make sure your web design is responsive, and that it loads fast. Over 5 billion people in the world are unique mobile users, which is about 66 percent of the global population. Site owners who optimize for mobile will be the ones who will come out on top following the upcoming updates.

Targeting Long-tail Keywords

Now that people have the ability to talk to their devices and issue voice commands, it will be smart to target conversational keywords or long-tail keywords. This approach creates a more targeted strategy. It will require you to dive deeper into your audience’s psychographics to know what they’re asking and what they expect.

Producing Relevant and Quality Content

Always create fresh and updated content for your website. No matter the update, both users and Google will prioritize websites that churn out quality and valuable content. One of the main goals of algorithm updates is to sift out irrelevant and low-quality materials.

Deep Learning in the Beginning

In 2014, Google acquired DeepMind, a British company specializing in deep learning technology. Fast forward two years later, AlphaGo, an algorithm using Google’s deep learning technology, was able to beat the champion of the world’s hardest game, Go. A historic moment in the world of AI.

So what exactly happened there, and why was it so monumental? 

The ancient game of Go is seen as the most challenging game to master because the strategy and objectives are endless, and it’s a much more intuitive game compared to chess — which is more logical. A single game has about 250150 or 10360 probable moves, compared to chess, which has 3580 (or 10123). 

This makes it the ideal game to test deep learning since there’s no way to input all the moves into the system, which equates to the number of atoms in the universe. To beat a human, the machine has to learn and absorb new patterns and data to come up with the next move. Mimicking the process of the human brain.

Although machine learning functions to address a predefined purpose, deep learning technology like AlphaGo is not pre-programmed and it learns from experience. Developers and data scientists then use reinforcement learning, feeding it all the information it needs to learn and process new patterns.

The technology can be used in many industries, including healthcare, science, electronics and media.

The Future is in Deep Learning

Deep learning is still in its infancy, so more will be discovered about it. The technology may come up with new ways of helping search engines filter and rank websites. The major factors we’re seeing today, like anchor texts, page speed and meta descriptions may be factors that might not matter so much in the future. 

So what’s our takeaway?

• Adapt and learn as deep learning evolves; inaction is bad for business
• Never lose sight of user experience as you’re refining your strategies
• Consistently produce engaging and valuable content

New technologies will continue to be developed. And they will continue to disrupt and improve the way you market your business. The key is to make sure you’re always prepared for the future.

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Potential Risk AI can cause to the world!

Source: Google

Artificial intelligence is among the most talked-about trends in recent years, and It is a 2 side blade with positives and negatives. Talking about positives, technologies are starting to improve our lives in multiple ways, from enhancing the healthcare experience, shopping and also making the businesses undeniable. 

According to Statista, The market research firm IDC projected that the global AI market would reach a size of over half a trillion U.S. dollars by 2024. It is obvious to say that AI has a long way to go and benefit the industry with its brilliance. 

Yet AI can be beneficial for all industries, but it can also give rise to unwanted threats and serious consequences. In this article, I will be discussing some of the problems that AI can cause in the future, or someone might misuse it in different ways.

Let’s dive into that without killing much time: 

1. Data misuse

Ingesting, linking, sorting, and using data properly has become a lot difficult as disorganized data being ingested from sources such as the web, sensors, mobile devices, and the IoT has increased. 

All the information coming from the data can cause threats or problems. Victims can easily fall into the pitfalls created by threatening them about revealing their hidden data or sensitive information to the world. A lot of scams can happen by using this technology and develop nuisances in the world.

To solve this issue, AI has made several AI Tools that can help in reducing and eliminating data misuse: 

• AI in EndPoint Data Protection
• AI in protecting the privacy
• AI-powered data protection solution
• AI in Protection Data from phishing and social Engineering 
• AI in the protection of data from Malware/Ransomware/APTs

2. Safety Problem

Experts like Elon Musk, Bill Gates, and Stephen Hawking have already warned and are concerned about safety and asked to pay attention to its safety issues. 

There are various instances where AI has gone wrong; for example, Facebook AI bots started interacting with each other in a language no one else would understand, leading to the project shut down.

There are possibilities in which they can harm humankind, and in the case of autonomous weapons, they can be programmed to kill other humans.

There are few things that need to be taken care of: 

• We need to have strong regulations, especially when it comes to the creation or experimentation of Autonomous weapons
• Global Cooperation on such kinds of weapons is required to ensure no one gets involved in the rat race.
• Complete transparency in the system where such technologies have experimented is essential to ensure its safe usage.

3. Interaction issues

The interface between machines and people is another critical risk area. Among the most evident are challenges in automated transportation, infrastructure systems, and manufacturing.

Accidents and injuries are possible if operatives of heavy equipment, vehicles, or other machinery do not understand when systems should be overridden or if they are late to override them because the operator’s attention is elsewhere – a clear possibility in applications such as autonomous cars. 

In contrast, human intelligence can also be defective in prioritizing the results of the system. Behind the pictures, in the data analysis organization, script errors, data management failures, and errors in judgment in model training data can easily compromise fairness, privacy, security, and safety compliance. 

Accidents caused by AI Autonomous cars are mainly due to lack of data given to them, AI performs well when it is served with a lot of informative data, which helps them become more decision-making. 

4. AI Models Misbehaving

AI models themselves can cause many problems when they provide biased results ( which can occur, for example, if a population is underrepresented in the data used to train the AI model).

They become unstable, or they draw outcomes for which there is no Actionable recourse for those influenced by your decisions (such as someone who was refused a loan without knowing what they could do to change the decision).

Consider, for example, the potential for artificial intelligence models to accidentally discriminate against defended classes and other groups by combining zip code and income data to create targeted offers. 

Harder to spot are cases where AI models lurk in software-as-a-service (SaaS) offerings. When merchants introduce intelligent new features, often with little fanfare, they are also proposing models that could communicate with data on the user’s system to generate unexpected risks, even lead to hidden vulnerabilities that hackers could exploit. 

The assumption is that leaders who think they are protected if their organization has not purchased or built artificial intelligence systems or are only experimenting with their implementation could be wrong.

You can control the AI models by applying the following things: 

• Transparency and Interpretability
• Feature Engineering
• Quality Control
• Hyperparameters
• Model Bias
• Model governance

After deploying the data into your Machine Learning Application, it is beneficial to review and reinforce your model for sustaining the changes in environments, data, and actors. And this is very important in moderating the risk associated with ML. 

Conclusion

All the things listed above can be hazardous for humankind, as many AI models can misbehave or be programmed to harm humans. To be secure and safe, try to develop AI solutions better and always try to benefit the world and make the world better.

Author Bio: Ved Raj is the business analyst at ValueCoders (https://www.valuecoders.com/), Which provides consulting and AI-based solutions to high-tech companies in the tech and digital industries.

Source Prolead brokers usa

Top Technology Aspects Shaping Online Delivery Business Across The World

Technology is transforming the world to be a better version of itself, and it has made a revolutionary impact. People have admired the technology as it has given them a better lifestyle by offering comfort and conveniences. The way the internet world has grown and taken charge by offering various services it offers has grabbed the attention of people. One thing is sure: the internet and technology are a brutal combination that this generation of people won’t be able to live without. Thus, technology is an important aspect these days for all aspects. 

The combination of the internet and technology has given birth to the modern-day business concept, like an online delivery business that is running successfully. The online delivery business concept is getting popular all over the world as it is a flexible and convenient mode of achieving business targets for business people. At the same time, people are enjoying the perks of online services and getting doorstep deliveries. 

Currently, food delivery service remains at the top of the chart in the online delivery business, which amounted to US$151,526 million in 2021. Food delivery service is something that has grabbed attention and popularity earlier, but with time, most businesses have started to go online and deliver doorstep services. 

Artificial Intelligence 

Artificial intelligence is a demonstrated intelligence performed by machines that try to clone the factors like how humans will think and adapt to certain situations. Consciousness and emotions are the crucial elements in artificial intelligence. Artificial is a technology trend that can be proved beneficial in the online delivery business. It can be beneficial in forecasting the demands and betterment of services. 

AI can be very helpful in recommending products and services to potential customers. Also, AI-powered services are helpful in offering better service to customers, which is a good advantage. According to Mckinsey, AI industries are currently valued at around USD $9-$15 Trillion, which is assumed to grow more as more businesses are going digital. Thus, Artificial intelligence is one of the technologies that can take online delivery service to ultimate heights and success. 

Internet of Things

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The Internet of Things is an impactful technology that has created a massive impact on the business sector. It is the technology that enhances the connectivity of all physical devices with sensors and advanced software. It is a development business infrastructure using intelligent and digital technologies to automate various tasks like tracking and safety and running a business online. The data sharing is manifestly done using this technology over the vast network connected with each other. Thus, it is a great and useful technology, especially when you want to run an online delivery business. 

App development is one of the important elements that is required when you are going online for your delivery business. The Internet of Things is nothing but taking your business online through this digital platform that connects things easily. The food delivery service, one of the popular amongst delivery services, has pioneered this concept. Like food ordering app development, any other delivery business can take advantage of it and have their app one of the mains in IoT infrastructure. 

Drone Delivery

Drone delivery is the latest concept that can be incorporated into the online delivery business. This delivery system will take a step ahead in the enhanced online delivery service. The concept of drone delivery will be more flexible and helpful and will greatly impact the online delivery business. In these fast-paced lives, people have become more demanding, and they need everything quick and exclusive. Thus, drone delivery is the concept that will fulfill that demand for people. 

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The business people will have the advantage of offering excellent service to customers and won’t require much manpower to perform delivery tasks. There are many benefits of introducing drone delivery concepts in the online business, and one of the advantages is completely automating the delivery services. According to reports, the drone delivery market, which is around 500 Million USD, is expected to grow at a rate of 42% in the upcoming years. Thus, drone delivery is the latest technology aspect that will shape the online delivery business. 

Big Data

Big data is one of the technical aspects that most businesses are heavily focusing on these days. It is undoubtedly one of the technologies that can do wonders for your online delivery business. Businesses are going digital because of the advantage of having databases. The online delivery concept in the business will require a digital platform like mobile app and websites. Digital technologies will allow business people to collect and store essential data related to business, including customer data and profile. 

These data are very helpful for businesses, and delivery businesses can use it to know customers’ interests by knowing past buying patterns. Business people can convince and recommend products using this technology. It can also be used for carrying analysis that is beneficial for the business. 

Robotics

Robotics and automation are emerging technologies that will rule in the coming years. Some of the players in the industries have already proposed the robots in their delivery service for a trial basis. With the help of this technology, the delivery system can be automatically managed and performed. The robots will deliver the products and by finding the route of the client’s address. These smart technologies can be very helpful in changing the dynamics of the online delivery business, and business people will be relieved using such technology. 

Robotics is a technology that is still in the initial phase, but it has a strong potential and capability to change the market and business sector scenario. The good thing about such technology is that it is accurate, and there is no possibility of human errors. With enough testing, there is no chance of technology error, and it is reliable. 

Ending Note

The businesses are being run online due to the concept of online delivery service. It is their backbone and gives flexibility. The online delivery service is getting popular day by day because people find it very convenient. Technology is advancing these days, making it more popular and one of the most effective elements for the growth of the business. These technologies are constantly backing the online delivery systems and making them more effective and efficient. The unimaginary and revolutionary impact these technologies have created in the business sector is ultimately going to be helpful to the entire global population, and this is how it goes on.

Source Prolead brokers usa