Successful Meetings - April 2008 - (Page 47)

> Professional Development of-license letters and audits from software manufacturers to businesses are on the rise. Training. Having to spend money training your staff might sound like a waste, but most employees understand less than 20 percent of the software packages they use. The gain in productivity far outweighs the training costs. Firewalls and Security. The Internet is full of hackers who regularly try to access computers for nefarious purposes. If they get in (either directly, or with the help of exploits from malware or viruses), the list of problems they can cause is pretty long, including stealing files or customer records, and deleting important data. It’s important to be sure that all computers in your organization are updated with the latest security patches from Microsoft or Apple, and that firewalls are installed and maintained properly. Backup Data. It sounds so obvious, but most companies fail to keep 100 percent of their important data backed up 100 percent of the time. There are often gaps in what’s being backed up, which are only discovered when it’s too late. The consequences of lost data can put a company out of business on the spot, and data retrieval is frighteningly expensive. Spam, Viruses, and Spyware. Eighty percent of all Computer Troubleshooters’ service calls worldwide are from people with problems directly linked to these issues. You should consider good virus protection, spam filters, and anti-spyware programs as mandatory if you want a trouble-free computer. With a small amount of common sense, weekly maintenance (much of which we can set our computers to do themselves), and some small financial SUCCESSFUL MEETINGS APRIL 2008 Planner’s Workshop 4 5 “Maybe we should reconsider those placecards, Ms Harris?” outlays, we can have many more troublefree workdays and spend far less on the IT repair man. This will allow us more “up” time to complete our work and give us the chance to explore the myriad other technology opportunities that can help us improve our businesses, or our lives. Now that’s technology in action. Chip Reaves is the national director of Computer Troubleshooters, a tech support supplier with 230 locations in North America. To contact Reaves, visit www.comptroub.com. 6 7 CARTOON: DAVE CARPENTER P PET SHARKS HA in the Midwest’s BESTAQUARIUM AQ nkycvb.com/SM Where else can you ? mimegasite.com http://www.comptroub.com http://nkycvb.com/SM http://mimegasite.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Successful Meetings - April 2008

Successful Meetings - April 2008 Contents Editor's Note Industry Trends Suppliers Events On the Record Suppliers Planner's Spotlight Technology Talk Personal Success Websites of the Month Food & Beverage On Site Professional Development On Site Pre-Event Professional Development Miforum Q&A Beyond the Flames Reservation for—21,000 Casino Riches Entertainment Jackpot Who Needs a Passport? The International Swing Around the World in 18 Holes Places & Spaces Denver Orlando Missouri Puerto Rico Show Special: Washington DC / Frankfurt, Germany Gurus

Successful Meetings - April 2008

For optimal viewing of this digital publication, please enable JavaScript and then refresh the page. If you would like to try to load the digital publication without using Flash Player detection, please click here.