TechSperience Solutions

Episode 100: Windows 11 Is Here

Windows 11 Pro has arrived. Why should you make the switch? Listen in for more information on what you can expect from the upgrade – features, timelines, security, and more.

Host: James Hilliard

Guest 1: Burt Kersey, Lenovo Channel Account Executive

Guest 2: Ashley Lofaro, Microsoft OEM Senior Partner Development Specialist

Show Notes:

[00:19] Introduction of guests

[00:43] What are some of the promises of Windows 11?

[02:49] What can we expect from Lenovo devices as we start seeing Windows 11 roll out?

[06:00] What can we expect from the graphics interface of Windows 11?

[06:49] Can we set up custom desktops based on what you're using with Windows 11?

[08:30] What's the timeline for Windows 11 adoption and what are the conversations you hope to be happening during the transition?

[10:30] Are machines bought within the last year likely to accept Windows 11?

[13:55] What do teams that recently made a move to Windows 10 need to consider?

[14:53] What do teams that recently made a move to Windows 7 need to consider?

[15:46] What if a team buys Windows 11 machines, but needs to be on Windows 10 for a period of time?

[16:22] What are some things we can expect from hardware manufacturers like Lenovo to integrate with the security in Windows 11?

[19:30] What should IT teams be considering while looking at their networks before rolling out a more robust OS?

[21:51]What type of conversations do you anticipate you'll be having with teams looking into Windows 11?

[24:08] Is there something that Lenovo is looking at from a supply chain perspective to get customers the gear they need to support Windows 11?

 

Episode 99: Addressing QSR Workforce Restraints With Elo In-Store Products

Learn how Connection's partnership with Elo can help to address the new changes within the QSR industry, including staffing shortages, changes in customer demand and behavior, and supply chain issues.

 

Host: James Hilliard

Guest 1: Brian Gallagher, Retail Strategy Director, Connection

Brian is a Retail veteran who has spent the past 5 years supporting the adoption of new technologies in retail to deliver amazing experiences to customers and employees.

Guest 2: Luke Wilwerding, Sr. Director of NA Sales, Elo

With over 20 years of interactive technology experience, Luke is at the forefront of innovation as retail customers create new shopping journeys that push engagement, creativity, information, and commerce.  Elo solutions can be found across all verticals, with many of its' over 25 million installations deployed in many of the most popular retail chains and luxury brand stores across the globe. Working with some of the biggest retailers around the world, Luke is in a unique position to understand what’s coming next in retail.

Show Notes:

[0:38] Introduction of guests

[1:28] What industry trends were QSRs seeing in early 2020?

[4:40] In mid-2020, how did the retail industry adapt to Covid-19?

[8:45] From a supply chain standpoint, what technology inventory began to run low as a result of Covid-19?

[10:45] Have the changes been beneficial from a customer standpoint?

[16:38] How can kiosks help with new and evolving employee responsibilities?

[18:30] How can Elo products support the new POS capabilities needed?

[21:01] What's it like to manage the complexities that new technology products bring?

[23:56] What impact would adopting new POS systems have on retailers' networks?

[25:45] What products are available to improve QSR employee productivity?

[29:00] How has the ease of use of employee technology products improved?

[34:52] What's the experience look like when customers start the conversation with Elo?

[36:53] What's an innovation that you expect in the coming months to a year in the QSR space?

 

Episode 98: How TIDC is Navigating the Challenges of the Covid Era

Host: James Hilliard

Guest: Steven L. Crowther – VP of the TIDC

Guest: John Milburn – Sr. Director TIDC Operations

In the unprecedented COVID era, TIDC is still making things happen and doing more with less. Here's how they are mitigating around the current constraints on labor, supply chain constants, and the COVID-19 delta variant.

Show Notes

[0:40] Introduction of guests

[1:00] What are the biggest changes in customer demand?

[2:58] The Amazon effect and customers wanting goods sooner

[4:55] What were some of the things Connection did to adjust to changing customer demands?

[7:22] Where do we stand now with the work disruption that Covid brought on 18 months ago?

[9:33] How can customers rely on Connection to get gear into end-user hands?

[10:32] What has been the change in the labor force and the equipment they need?

[11:35] What impact did the labor shortage have on customers' needs for technology?

[13:07] What are some of the top IT requests due to the labor shortage?

[15:28] How can customers get insight through TIDC about current technology offerings?

[16:44] Is the labor shortage crisis easing up?

[18:40] What should organizations be planning for in early 2022 to make sure they get the right gear as more people rejoin the workforce?

[19:38] Where do we currently sit with supply chain constraints?

[24:30] Are we having to introduce customers to new products due to supply chain constraints on their preferred products?

[25:37] When will the supply shortage end?

[26:00] What should we be thinking about to stay ahead of supply chain issues?

[27:30] Are there certain technology products that you think might be limited in the coming months?

 

 

 

Episode 97: The Hybrid Workforce Is Here To Stay

As we celebrate Cyber Security Awareness month, Connection in partnership with Intel, bring you a timely podcast to help your organization stay safe from cyber threats and help educate hybrid workers on best practices.  Intel and the Connection Security practice collaborate and talk candidly with James to unveil some insights you many never have considered. Remember - "Do Your Part Be Cyber Smart"

#BeCyberSmart

 

Host: James Hilliard

Guest: Steve Nardone - Senior Director of Security Solutions

Guest: Yasser Rasheed - Global Director of Enterprise Clients at Intel 

Show Notes

[0:55] Introduction of guests

[1:30] Is the hybrid workforce here to stay?

[3:33] Will there be more cybersecurity attacks as a result of the new hybrid workforce?

[6:10] Will the equipment of remote workers be able to protect them from cyberattacks?

[7:20] The 3 areas we'll be spending the remainder of time: "zero trust", hardware matters, and continuing to be students

[8:08] What does "zero trust" mean in the IT security community today?

[10:00] Who should own the "zero trust" mentality at an organization?

[12:15] How do you prevent user cybersecurity fatigue? 

[14:31] What's an example of a great approach an organization is taking to get their end-users (hybrid workers) engaged with security?

[15:40] The importance that hardware still has in cybersecurity efforts

[18:23] Are there tools built into the hardware that can be added protection?

[20:25] What are newer security capabilities in machines, and how do they compare with what was running three years ago?

[23:10] What does it mean to become a "student of risk"?

[26:15] What's the difference between being a "student of risk" and a "student of threat"?

[27:44] What should an end-user do to raise a security alarm?

[29:30] Do we need to change how often we prepare for security attacks?

[31:50] What's something we can take away with to do something more securely than yesterday?

Episode 96: Embracing cloud IT for business resilience and agility in Manufacturing

In order to survive, manufacturers must be agile in surviving disruption. Industry 4.0 technologies are reinventing how manufacturers do business and, to stay competitive, companies will need to embrace these technologies to capitalize on the efficiencies, cost savings, and improved uptimes that might be gained.

 

Host: James Hilliard

Guest 1: Ryan Spurr, Director of Manufacturing Strategy & Business Development at Connection

Guest 2: Dave Martin, Systems Engineering Manager at Meraki

Guest 3: Jordan Noonan, Solutions Marketing Manager at Meraki

 

Show Notes

[0:55] Introduction of Guests.

[2:05] Where were Manufacturing organizations before Covid?

[3:52] Do companies now have firmer transformation strategies?

[5:15] What are manufacturing table stakes you need to be competitive in Industry 4.0?

[7:28] The plant power problem and how has it changed?

[8:01] Niche use cases that Covid brought to the front for Manufacturers.

[10:01] How do you get Wi-Fi to every part of the factory?

[12:47] Analytics and Data

[14:27] Obstacles towards investment in next generation networking

[15:40] What can this new tech do for your organization?

 [17:00] Who should you engage to start transformation?

[19:28] How do you merge the new network with legacy machines?

[20:53] What do you do to protect your tech when you bring in modern networks to legacy devices?

[24:48] How long does it take to discover a breach?

[26:00] Is there concern about upgrades and automations removing people?

[29:00] The talent shortage.

[30:50] What does the future hold?

Episode 95: Always Connected, Always Collaborating with Microsoft and Lenovo

Host: James Hilliard

Guest 1: Robert Gates, Cloud Technical Architect at Microsoft 

Guest 2: Trinh Tran, Partner Technology Strategist at Microsoft 

Guest 3: Burton Kersey, Senior Channel Account Manager at Lenovo

Guest 4: Matt Skoog, Partner Development Specialist – Mobility Activations 

 

Description: James Hilliard your host welcomes Robert Gates, Trinh Tran, Burton Kersey, and Matt Skoog to talk about collaborating in the modern office. They discuss the current work from home life, and the future of hybrid work as well as going back in office. One of the current major struggles is maintaining collaboration while at home, in the office, or on the go. Hear ways to solve for this growing issue and improve the way we collaborate and work.

Show Notes:
[4:10] Robert talks about collaborating in Teams.

[5:02] Trinh discusses the expectations we have for our collaboration tools.

[7:42] Matt reflects on going remote and how things have changed over the years.

[9:54] Hybrid workplaces and what long term remote means for you and everyone else.  

[12:37] Are we ready for a modular workplace?

[13:40] The need for a modern device, and how it changes how you work.

[15:12] Keeping employees happy and how a device impacts that and retains talent.

[18:12] How have collaboration tools changed to help us work better.

[19:52] Watercooler chatter can happen remotely.

[25:37] New ways of hybrid working.

[28:00] Pulling devices out of the closet for 2020, and why that doesn't work long term.

[28:42] Questions companies should ask themselves about their devices.

[32:02] What employees need is changing.

[34:01] What new features do we need to continue improving the hybrid environment?

 

Connection Inside Access: Shifting Gears, Impacting Retail Through Operational Excellence

Host: James Hilliard

Guest 1: Brian Gallagher, Retail Strategy Business Dev Director at Connection

Guest 2: Tim Vanevenhoven, Director of Business Development and Strategic Partnerships at Aruba

Guest 3: Tim Kane, Retail Solutions Industry Consultant, North America Retail at Zebra Technologies

 

Description: James Hilliard your host welcomes Tim Vanevenhoven from Aruba, Tim Kane from Zebra, and Brian Gallagher, from Connection to talk about the trends and innovations to get you moving forward in this ever-changing environment. In today’s episode, they are continuing the conversation around retail and dive deep into how to enable a smarter physical store and empower your workforce with solutions from Aruba and Zebra.

 

Reach out to the Connection Team.

Email us at podcast@connection.com 

Follow Connection We Solve IT on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Youtube, Linkedin, and Blog

Key takeaways:

[2:03] Brian talks about the current state of retail.

[3:42] Retailers acknowledge that they will never go back to pre-COVID.

[4:42] Tim from Aruba talks about the trends among customers in the retail environment.

[5:25] Having a clear path forward is the only way for retailers to win.

[6.11] Retail needs a holistic approach.

[7:05] It is not enough with connecting and securing data, it is about analyzing and acting on that data for better business outcomes.

[7:57] Examples of what retailers are doing and it’s having an impact on their business.

[9:56] Analytics are being used to predict if there could be an issue with the network.

[11:22] Are the employees engaged and enthusiastic about the changes brought by new technologies?

[15:21] Telephones have become the one device that is empowering associates.

[17:05] The “hyper-aware store” and what is providing to retailers.

[18:50] What are the specific technologies Aruba and Zebra are building and taking to the market together?

[21:09] Are retailers looking at their business from a whole solution standpoint?

[22:17] Retailers are looking for partners more than they ever had in the past.

[23:05] The digital transformation is not an event, it is a journey.

Connection Inside Access: Shifting Gears,The Power of Employee

Host: James Hilliard

Guest 1: Brian Gallagher, Retail Strategy Business Dev Director at Connection

Guest 2: A special guest from Apple

 

James Hillard, your host, welcomes Brian Gallagher and a special guest from Apple to today’s episode to have a discussion about the current state of retail. Our experts talk about how important it is to empower your retail employees to engage with your customers. They present the latest mobile device solutions from Apple and services from Connection, with which you'll be able to equip your employees with the tools and technology they need to answer customer questions, speed them through the checkout process, and more.

 

Reach out to the Connection Team.

Email us at podcast@connection.com 

Follow Connection We Solve IT on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Youtube, Linkedin, and Blog

Key takeaways:

[1:08] Brian shares his perspective about the state of retail.

[2:30] You need to think about your business holistically.

[3:27] Our Apple guest talks about the changes that we are seeing now started long before 2020.

[4:22] How is the retail industry approaching employees?

[7:03] Our Apple guest talks about the training directed to empower employees to give more personalized service.

[10:03] Incorporating technologies that make the consumer feel comfortable with.

[12:50] Our Apple guest and Brian talk about employee productivity.

[16:39] Brian and our Apple guest describe the relationship between Connection and Apple to enable retail employees.

[21:03] Focus on a simpler environment and placing the user as the center of the experience.

Connection Inside Access: Shifting Gears, Retail to E-Tail: Understanding the E-Commerce Journey.

Host: James Hilliard

Guest 1:  Brian Gallagher, Retail Strategy Business Dev Director at Connection

Guest 2: Jamal Khan, President Global Digital and ECommerce at Connection

 

In today’s episode, James Hilliard, your host, welcomes Brian Gallagher, Retail Strategy Business Dev. Director at Connection, and Jamal Khan, President Global Digital and ECommerce at Connection, to engage in a thoughtful discussion around the current state of retail, as well as the importance of developing an omnichannel strategy to meet your customers wherever they are.

 

Connection’s retail experts discussed understanding the fundamental impacts of digital retail today, evaluated true omnichannel health coming into the holiday season, store operations and labor hours strategies, and how to avoid critical mistakes along the digital retailing journey.

 

Reach out to the Connection Team.

Email us at podcast@connection.com 

Follow Connection We Solve IT on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Youtube, Linkedin, and Blog

Key takeaways:

[1:28] Brian talks about the current situation in regards to the impact of COVID on retail.

[2:55] Jamal describes the core fundamentals that teams need to have under consideration in the retail transformation.

[3:46] The six legs of the e-commerce stool.

[7:30] Jamal talks about the value of data right now.

[7:58] Jamal explains the concept of hipper individualized buyer psychology.

[9:17] Brain talks about the customization of the retail experience.

[10:52] What are the mistakes that are happening in retail and how can they be avoided?

[13:24] Brian shares the example of Amazon’s growth.

[14:26] Can your retail company measure progress?

[17:08] Jamal explains the critical value of having the right culture in a company in order to make transitions successfully.

[18:02] What is Connection bringing to the different retail ecosystems?

Episode 91:Three Ways to Support K12 Education Through the CARES Act

Host: Penny Conway

Guest 1: Pamela Aulakh, Vertical Alliance Manager for K12. Connection

Guest 2: Kevin Schmid. Public Sector Alliances Manager. Intel.

 

Description: Penny Conway, your host, is joined by Pamela Aulakh and Intel's Kevin Schmid for today’s episode to talk about the three ways that the CARES Act can support K12 education and how schools are laboraging founding for technology and the work they still have ahead of them. Now that schools are deep into the first half of a new school year, it is interesting to evaluate how things are going for teachers and school administrations.

 

Reach out to the Connection Team.

Email us at podcast@connection.com ,

Email Pamela Aulakh at K12solutions@connection.com 

Follow Connection We Solve IT on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Youtube, Linkedin, and Blog

Key takeaways:

[1:25] Kevin introduces himself.

[2:20] Pam talks about her role at Connection as well as her background in education.

[3:58] Pam and Kevin talk about the current situation of teachers and school administrators while navigating the pandemic.

[6:17] What is the new piece of advice that Connection and Intel have to face the near future’s challenges? 

[8:44].Pam talks about how to chose devices to fill not only the current needs but the future ones too.

[11:34] What are the priorities that can be expected at a national education level in 2021?

[12:02] Digital equity.

[13:30] Kevin dives deep into the topic of device selection in order for students to be more productive and teachers more effective in a hybrid educational environment .

[15:23] Pam talks about the current demand on devices.

[16:56] Pam gives advice for schools to ask for and administer the founding received through the CARES Act.

[17:38] How is Intel working with schools to manage timelines and laborage the CARES act founding?

[19:46] Kevin explains how to approach positively the uncertainty of the near future in regards to education. 

[21:21] Pam explains why the disruption that has occurred in education is not a bad thing at all. 

[23:40] A student’s laptop is now a required instruction material the same way a textbook was.

[25:38] Pam and Kevin share the best ways of reaching them.