Posts Tagged ‘road warriors’
Here at Davinci Virtual Office Solutions, we take pleasure in seeing companies large and small adopt alternative workplace strategies. The latest example we found of a company that is offering telecommuting options at a high level is VACO Los Angeles.
VACO is a consulting and executive search firm. The company specializes in finding talent in the accounting, finance and technology industries—and it’s known for its alternative workplace strategies.
Indeed, Best Companies Group just named VACO the Best Place to Work. And it’s no fluke. VACO has won this top award for two of the last three years. What does that say to Davinci Virtual Office Solutions? Just that VACO has an exceptional culture of work-life balance. Given that we have our own culture fairy around here, we can certainly appreciate what VACO is doing to make a name for itself among virtual workers in Los Angeles.
“Attracting the best, most loyal and accomplished employees requires great commitment on the part of employers,” says Frances Moreno, managing partner at VACO. “We strive to create a culture and environment of collaboration where people can thrive.”
The 2011 Best Places to Work in Los Angeles is described as an annual celebration of companies that have proven that they know what it takes to create environments where people love to come to work. A virtual office solution can play a key role in creating such an environment. Virtual office solutions allow telecommuting employees and mobile workers to workshift. Workshifting is one of the hottest trends in the workforce today because it offers employees the ultimate flexibility.
Davinci Virtual Office Solutions offers plenty of virtual office locations in Los Angeles. In fact, Davinci has 15 Los Angeles virtual offices. Here are a few:
- Los Angeles Union Bank Business Center
- Los Angeles AT&T Business Center
- MGM Tower Executive Center
- Westwood Tower Business Center
- Howard Hughes Business Center
So if you are ready to be the next Los Angeles company on the best places to work list, consider alternative workplace strategies like telecommuting, workshifting and virtual offices. And be sure to hook up with a reputable virtual office solutions provider.
In case you didn’t now, I’m a technology reporter for various magazines. That means I can keep you up to date on the latest and greatest technologies for small businesses.
When I saw that Dell launched a new Vostro 3000 series laptops aimed at the small business market, I decided to take a look-see for myself—so I could share my opinion with you.
Dell designed the Vostro 3000 series laptops to meet the demand for real-time information exchange, long battery life, and virtual collaboration solutions. That’s a tall promise, and I was a bit skeptical that Dell could pull all that off for around $550.
I was pleasantly surprised when I looked at the specs on this new laptop. Whether you are a road warrior, or just an entrepreneur who works from your virtual office 9-5, these machines let you speed on the Internet fast lane with an Intel second-generation Core 1 series processor. That’s about as fast as it gets.
And when it comes to style, Dell also has you covered with the Vostro 300 series. Apple may turn heads with its sleek machines, but Dell’s Vostro is nothing to turn your back on. The design is pretty sleek in and of itself, complete with a chiclet keyboard, aluminum finish and your choice of Aberdeen Silver, Lucerne Red or Brisbane Bronze. You can choose a 13-, 14-, 15- or even a 17-inch model.
But the real benefits happen underneath the hood. This is the first small-business laptop to feature voice enhancing technology SRS Premium Voice Pro software. A full HD webcam promises lifelike interactions with coworkers and customers, and a digital array mic helps reduce ambient noise for clearer sound. Skype is also pre-installed so you can do video conferencing from your customized dashboard.
Another great feature is security. You can back up your small business data 10 times faster with the Vostro’s super speed USB 3.0. The machine also comes with a built-in fingerprint reader and Trend Micro’s Worry-Free Business Security software.
What’s it going to cost you?
• 13-inch 3350 SAPP – $599
• 14-inch 3450 SAPP – $499
• 15-inch 3550 SAPP – $499
• 17-inch 3750 SAPP – $549
Pound-for-pound, I’d recommend this small business laptop over the other options in the market. Unless you are just a diehard Apple fan, this machine will thrill you.
Tired of office politics? So are a lot of other people. In fact, psychological distress in the workplace costs American businesses about $193 billion annually, according to the National Mental Health Association.
“Psychological distress is often caused by an injustice, either real or perceived, which can lead to depression, anxiety, irritability, exhaustion and disengagement from fellow workers,” says Chester Spell, associate professor of management at Rutgers University. “Obviously none of these are beneficial to an organization.”
Spell and co-researchers Katerina Bezrukova of Santa Clara University and Jamie L. Perry, a doctoral candidate at Rutgers, undertook a study to determine if the composition of work groups could play a role in reducing psychological distress arising from injustice.
“Unfairness in the workplace affecting job performance, satisfaction and other attitudes and behaviors has been the subject of considerable research but we looked at psychological distress as an outcome of injustice,” he says.
Although the Rutgers study focused on demographics, there are other ways to alleviate office politics and feelings of injustice: virtual office space. When employees work remotely, even in flex time situations, they get at least a temporary reprieve from office politics. Virtual offices also allow employees to be more productive and can help companies reduce traditional office expenses.
Virtual offices studies show a positive impact on job performance, satisfaction and other attitudes and behaviors—the exact opposite of feelings of injustice. Sure, a virtual office won’t solve all your problems, but it can cut down on office politics that breed an unpleasant corporate culture.
Are your employees working from a virtual office? Then listen up.
According to a new survey from Runzheimer International, 54 percent of companies cite effective management of remote employees as the biggest concern for executives in managing a mobile workforce. Despite this concern, employee satisfaction (26 percent) and competitive advantage (25 percent were also ranked as the top benefits gained with a mobile workforce as well as cost savings. The Runzheimer survey polled close to 100 executives – director-level and above – from a range of businesses across the U.S.
The survey also offers interesting contradictions that could indicate companies need to tighten management of mobile workforce programs. For example, most survey respondents (60 percent) believe their companies are effectively managing mobile workforce programs, but do not necessarily have measurement mechanisms in place. Thirty-three percent (33 percent) of these same respondents said they have not yet implemented formal, centralized processes that can be tracked or benchmarked over time.
Other Key Survey Findings:
• Only 27 percent of businesses report having centralized management of mobile workforce programs in one department
• Respondents characterized the growth of their mobile workforce programs as follows:
◦ Mobile device use and business travel as the fastest growing programs.
◦ Virtual office, telecommuting and automobile programs/driving for work as steady/slow growth.
“The issues raised in the survey results highlight key considerations for companies as they contemplate future plans,” said Greg Harper, president of Runzheimer International. ”Corporations need to look more deeply at the infrastructure supporting their mobile workforce and truly assess if perceptions match the actual processes and metrics that are in place. The biggest opportunities for improvement can be identified by asking employees and managers what is needed as well as using industry data to compare policies and costs.”
Considerations for 2011 Planning
As organizations develop their corporate strategies for the coming year, a detailed review of their mobile workforce programs should be on the agenda, including a close look at employee satisfaction, manager challenges, and cost/return-on-investment.
Opening lines of communication by asking questions related to what employees and managers like or dislike about current programs and what would increase productivity can go a long way toward increasing employee retention and promoting higher levels of customer service. Formalizing this process through an annual survey and employee reviews offers critical insight.
Third party data that offers industry benchmarks on policy, costs and staff needed to support programs can offer valuable information. An organization may discover that the number of employees supporting a travel program is above a typical organization by 30% and steps should be taken to tighten policy and automate to reduce administration time. A comparison of business driver direct spend might reveal a spend 20% higher than the typical benchmark, which means an organization should revisit reimbursement policy.
The need to take steps to improve mobile workforce organizational planning remain an important corporate issue in light of IDC’s projection of over 1 billion virtual workers worldwide by 2011.
Consider Davinci Virtual Office Solutions your partner in managing a mobile workforce.
Davinci Virtual has been promising a new corporate headquarters that would allow the virtual office solutions provider to bring services to more customers for nearly a year. Today, the Salt Lake City, Utah-based company made good on its promise.
Davinci Virtual hosted a grand opening event for its newly-built North American headquarters this week. The attendant’s list was a who’s who of local political figures and business leaders, including Salt Lake City Mayor Peter Corroon and Chamber of Commerce CEO Marie Marshall.
“We were thrilled to share the opening of our new headquarters with our friends, staff, partners and our community,” says Bill Grodnik, CEO of Davinci Virtual. “The new facilities will allow us to accommodate our rapid growth while providing a great work environment for our team.”
Davinci Virtual’s 25,000-square-foot facility features four virtual support centers, openly configured work spaces for management, finance, sales, customer care, and partner relations and a state-of-the-art technology hub. The new headquarters sets the stage for rapid growth of the company, which was constrained in its previous location.
Think about it for a minute. Davinci Virtual already provides virtual office solutions to more than 7,500 companies and entrepreneurs across the U.S., Canada, Europe, Central America, Asia and Australia. The company also offers over 750 virtual office locations including virtual offices in Miami, virtual offices in Dallas, virtual offices in San Francisco, virtual offices in Atlanta and any other metropolitan area throughout the world. Clients can select prime business addresses, meeting space and business support services—instantly—online.
What can Davinci Virtual do with this new space? Plenty.
“We finally were able to tailor a complete build-out to our needs,” says Davinci COO Martin Senn. “The combination of cutting edge technologies, ergonomically correct work spaces and a productivity friendly design enable us to take our mission to the next level. We are very pleased with the outcome.”
It seems everybody wants an iPhone, or some other consumer device. Even business users are eyeing consumer technology these days. So says a study from RSA, the security division of EMC.
The survey looks at the rapid use and adoption of consumer technologies like the iPhone and iPad within the enterprise and the pivotal role users are playing in driving this trend. And this trend goes hand in hand with the use of virtual office space.
“The trend toward leveraging non-corporate-controlled assets and using social media for accessing and distributing information is inevitable,” says Security for Business Innovation Council member David Kent, vice president of Global Risk and Business Resources at Genzyme. “It would be a mistake for any company to put its head in the sand or to dig in its heels; because the tide will be working against you. It would be much better to recognize it and then create the parameters to make it work for you.”
Indeed, with so many executive road warriors traveling from city to city to close the next deal, consumer technologies are sexier than many enterprise platforms. But even consumer mobile technologies alone aren’t enough to keep execs up to speed with communications these days. Long flights, and sometimes even longer layovers, demand innovative ways to keep the communication flowing with clients.
Enter virtual office technologies. Virtual office technologies, like virtual office space and virtual receptionist services, give road warriors maximum flexibility in their quest to keep the lines of communication open. With virtual office space in cities around the world, the traveling executive can tap into the convenience of day offices or conference rooms on demand. And with virtual receptionists, mobile execs don’t have to miss any important calls. Virtual receptionists can handle client calls in a professional manner, complete with offering specifics on availability.
Virtual office technologies also let traveling executives have their calls forwarded automatically to any device or any location where they are staying. The caller never knows the difference. Add to that web conferencing abilities like Cisco WebEx and the mobile executive has a cadre of virtual office technologies to at his fingertips to help him stay productive, even during flight delays.
Check out this video about the rise of virtual office space on CNBC:
One of Australia’s top 50 best places to work is a virtual company. Led by 39-year-old CEO Kristin Ferguson, Sentis ranked five in BRW’s 2010 list—right behind Google.
The corporate culture at Sentis, a company that trains mining, resources and utilities companies on safety and leadership, is relaxed. The company doesn’t have fixed office hours. They wear jeans if they feel like it. And they travel most of the time.
“Because we are a virtual business and we don’t get to see each other a lot, we take two days every six or eight weeks to bring all the staff off the road,” Ferguson told The Courier-Mail. “On the first day, we go wine tasting or rock climbing or go-karting and then the second day we spend as much time on the personal development of our staff as we do on professional development. We need to make sure everyone is passionate about what they do because, if they are passionate, everything else will follow.”
Sounds like the perfect fit for a virtual office. I’m not sure whether or not Sentis uses a virtual office in its Australia location. But with so many traveling workers, it would make sense. It’s possible that the employees work from home, so many use virtual office space and others may not. But the rise of the virtual business, and the recognition that such a place could be one of the best places to work, right alongside Google, is telling.
More and more, companies are exploring the benefits of virtual workers, and virtual office space for mobile workers. With virtual office space, Sentis employees could give clients a single 800 number or local number that would reach them wherever they went in the world. With a virtual office, the company could enjoy mail receipt and forwarding services, as well as rent a conference room for the virtual business to get together for staff meetings in between the rock climbing and wine tasting excursions.
Whether your virtual business is located in Australia or Atlanta, you can depend on a virtual office to handle your important calls, receive your important mail, host your important business meetings and help your mobile workers drive more productivity as they fly from place to place around the world.
Check out this video on Brisbane! Beautiful place…
Apple’s much-anticipated iPhone 4 will be available later this month—and it’s the perfect compliment to the virtual office.
The iPhone 4 features an incredible new feature called FaceTime that brings video calling to market. It also dons Retina display, the highest resolution display ever built into a phone. That means super crisp text, images, and, yes, video. With the iPhone 4, you also get a 5 megapixel camera with LED flash, HD video recording and more—all for just $199 when you sign a two-year contract with AT&T.
“iPhone 4 is the biggest leap since the original iPhone,” said Steve Jobs, Apple’s CEO. “FaceTime video calling sets a new standard for mobile communication, and our new Retina display is the highest resolution display ever in a phone, with text looking like it does on a fine printed page. We have been dreaming about both of these breakthroughs for decades.”
If you are a road warrior who relies on a virtual office as a home base, the iPhone 4 will help you meet your communications objectives just as well, if not better, than any smartphone device out there. With the ability to do video calling, it sets the stage for on-the-go web conferencing-type capabilities that give you a professional edge.
While you are away from your virtual office you can get up to seven hours of talk time on the new iPhone 4. And when you get back to home base you can download all the photos you took and send them to clients. You also get up to 40 hours of audio playback if you need to record parts of business meetings.
Virtual offices offer you the convenience of having a premium business address and a follow-me phone number so you don’t miss any calls while you are at lunch or in another country. And the iPhone 4 is a great choice for taking those calls, receiving your e-mail, taking photos, shooting videos and just about anything else you need to do on the thinnest ever mobile device.
If you hope to get your hands on a new iPhone 4, you may want to run by your Apple Store and pre-order it. Typically, iPhone launches leave long lines in cities like Manhattan and San Francisco. If, on the other hand, you want to reserve a virtual office space in metros like New York, the Bay Area, Miami and beyond, click here and Davinci Virtual will help you through a quick process.
Check out Jobs as he presents the flashy new iPhone 4.
If you’ve been inconvenienced by the volcanic ash cloud that continues to delay air travel across Europe, it may be time to look at new ways to keep business meetings moving along as scheduled. The Icelandic volcano is reportedly costing airlines $200 million a day.
The good news is, the volcanic ash doesn’t have to slow down your business—if you tap into Davinci Virtual’s virtual office technologies. Davinci Virtual’s business model was built on delivering convenience to road warriors, international businessmen, and entrepreneurs who need cost-effective solutions for communicating across the city or across the Atlantic.
Let’s say you were scheduled to travel to Europe for a meeting with a potentially large client. The volcano in Iceland could potentially cause you to lose the deal to a competitor in European who could drive to the prospect’s to give his presentation while you are stuck in your home town waiting for the airlines to signal safe travel.
But it doesn’t have to be that way. Davinci Virtual’s virtual office technologies include virtual offices, live receptionists, and perhaps most importantly in the context of the volcano, web conferencing. With Davinci Virtual’s low-cost monthly access to Cisco’s WebEx, virtual office customers can avoid losing potential business deals due to travel restrictions.
Of course, that’s not where the value of Davinci Virtual’s virtual office technologies end. Even when there’s not a volcano or a terrorist issue, or a hurricane or some other obstacle, web conferencing comes in handy. As part of a virtual office suite, web conferencing can significantly reduce and even eliminate the need for air travel—and it’s affordable.
Check out coverage of the volcano in this quick video:
It seems the whole world is going virtual. Google just opened an online store for business apps. The Apple iPad is making life easier for multimedia-loving road warriors. And Davinci Virtual is giving 21st century business travelers more options for meeting rooms.
In case you didn’t hear yet, Davinci Virtual just its progress toward better serving the growing population of business people who need meeting rooms. Davinci Virtual has opened more than 250 new conference rooms in North America this year.
No matter where you are traveling, you’ll be able to find a Davinci Virtual meeting room that suits your needs – there are more than 600 locations and 1,500 meeting spaces around the world. Davinci Virtual makes it simple. All you have to do to make your reservation in an instant is log on to Davincimeetingrooms.com. There you’ll find an online reservation system that hooks you up with a meeting room in the right city, at the right time and at the right price. It literally takes seconds to book a meeting room.
I’ll let Bill Grodnik, president and CEO of Davinci Virtual, get a word in edge-wise now:
“We are enjoying the continued growth of our online meeting room reservation platform. The continued addition of prime office locations and meeting rooms enables Davinci Virtual to offer our customers a great selection of International countries and metropolitan cities. Whether you need a virtual office in Atlanta, a virtual office in Chicago, a virtual office in New York, a virtual office in Los Angeles or meeting space anywhere in the world — Davinci offers the right space at the right price.”
Follow Us
