Technical presentations - part 2

I hope your'll went through the first part as to how to conduct a technical presentation the easy way. This is the second part of it. In this post I'l be discussing about the slide preparation. So follow the simple points and you will have the perfect set of slides for your presentation.

1. Choose your tools 
There are so many tools that can be used for presentations except the ordinary Micrsoft presentation. I learnt about a new tool called Prezi which is available in the following link; http://prezi.com  . It's a cool tool which helps us to think out of the box and create new kinds of presentations.

2. Slides
So if you choose PowerPoint slides you need to make sure that the titles are descriptive, so that readers will know what your hoping to talk about.

3. Use pictures and audios
To avoid clutter and too much of texts in the slides, attractive pictures can be used to explain your point. When viewers see the texts they tend to read the slide without listening to your presentation. So the best way to avoid that happening is to use pictures or audio video clips. This will not only interest the listeners but also they will be engaged.

4. Conclusion
Here you need to emphasize on the unique selling points to again remind the viewers as to why they should buy your product. Remember to give your contact details for them to clarify any doubts and end the presentation on a high note.

So if your done with all this that means your ready for the presentation. The only step that is left is the things  that you need to do in the day of the presentation. It will be in my next post.

Soltura, the next generation mobile app platform

The UNCTAD (United Nations Conference on Trade and Development) ICT report is a component in the World Investment Report which is responsible for dealing with issues related to investment and enterprise development in the United Nations System. The ICT (Information and Communication Technologies) section mainly promotes international dialogue on issues related to ICTs for development and contributes to building developing countries’ capacities to measure the information economy and also to design and implement pertinent policies and legal frameworks.

hSenid Mobile provided its platform to one of Sri Lanka’s leading mobile service providers to enable the company to build their own culture in app development. The company built their own developer community by providing the necessary resources. This humongous task was carried out by hSenid Mobile who identified the potential for such products. The platform enabled the service provider to change the culture of the IT industry by providing the opportunity for all interested developers to create their own mobile applications. The UNCTAD report addresses all the above aspects mentioned above. It further acknowledges hSenid Mobile for providing Supplier support, App development support, app quality and marketing effort for the service provider, which was considered a prestige for the firm.

However hSenid Mobile’s Soltura product is a further evolution from the product mentioned before. The innovative ability together with the tech experts in the organization came up with a newer and a revolutionary product concept which will benefit not only the service providers but also the end subscribers. Its future potential is yet to be known. Soltura not only facilitate mobile service providers to build their own developer communities but also to develop partnerships with other businesses.

Soltura, the Spanish name for ‘freedom’ in reality gives the app developers the freedom to launch their apps. The subscribers are not restricted but can use their imagination to create and earn revenue for their applications. Soltura is an evolution from the product mentioned in the UNCTAD report because this platform facilitates all subscribers irrespective of their technical knowledge to build new apps. This is a tremendous opportunity for both subscribers and service providers as both technical and non-technical subscribers can be part of the developer community. Thus, the revenue generation aspect is not limited to one specific segment. 

Easy way to prepare for technical presentations

So for all the tech beginners out there here is a small guide as to how to conduct presentations for the general public. This post will be followed by 2 more giving your'l a detailed guide as to how to conduct a great presentation. Some tips are what I've learnt and very few are from the web.

Here goes the list,
1. Identify the purpose of the presentation
Before we prepare for any kind of presentation we need to first understand the purpose of it. It maybe to sell a product, share knowledge or bring awareness. Whatever it is you need to see why you have to do the presentation overall.

2. Know your audience
You can easily figure out this step when you have done the first. Say for example if the presentation is to sell your product to a potential customer then, the company marketing manager and operations manager will be present. Make sure that you know who it is before hand.

3. Create a story
This is common for any kind of presentation irrespective of the type. You need to create a presentation that can be used throughout or at least for a part of it. Make it interesting so that listeners will not be bored and they will listen to your presentation until it ends. Avoid Technical jargon. Know that all listeners will not understand all the technical aspects related to your topic. You need to ensure that there are no technical information and even if you have to put, make sure you explain what it is.

These tips are only for prior preparation for a technical presentation. I will explain other tips in my next post. 

Big data

As a promised I would give a brief intro about the concept behind big data. Did you know 30 billion pieces of content were added to Facebook this past month by 600 million users? Did you know that the average teenager sends about 4762 text messages per month? Did you know that there is a 40% projected growth in global data?

So how do businesses process such an enormous amount of information? This is where big data comes in. Big data practically enable companies to process and store large amounts of data in the database. This enable organizations to actually process and identify trends in data. I will explain this using an example.

Tesco is one of the world's largest grocery chain. It has achieved successful results through the use of this "big data" concept. The giant retail chain has achieved the following financial gains;

"£6 million less food wastage in the summer, £50 million less stock in warehouse, optimizing store operations to give £30 million less wastage".

As you can see the financial savings are not small numbers. So how have TESCO done this? 

It has a loyalty card which tracks all the customer information and analyzes the information. These customers are then segmented and individually targeted by way of newsletters and other targeted promotions. It further analyzes weather conditions to evaluate perishable goods like vegetables and fruits. 

Also there is a Depot Stock holding app that monitors all goods that pass through all the depots and Tesco's largest depots hold around 12,000 products. So you yourself can understand how much of information it should hold to process this information. Finally it has the ability to reduce waste in stores by selling products at half the price in the right time. 

There are several business models around big data. But to decide the best model for you, you need to understand the ultimate goal for your organization.

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Constant learning...

I found out that using cloud services for a loyalty program is a cost effective way to retain customers. Even small scale business can offer loyalty programs which are hosted in the cloud because it is cheaper. Customer retention and attracting new customers is the way for modern businesses to survive. Loyal customers are an asset to the firm. Thus, organizations should take necessary measures to retain them. So these loyalty management campaigns are one way forward.

Analyzing information from a business perspective takes time and require extensive research. That is exactly what I'm doing now.

Now my task is to critically analyze the concept of big data and identify how business use big data in day to day activities.

In my next post I will discuss the concept behind big data from a business perspective....

Tech, tech, tech. etc.

I realize I was gone for a few days. That was because I was stuck up with one work after another to complete. I thought I was a pro in time management but now it seems to be gone. So this is what I've learnt and I've been learning during my absence.

How loyalty management campaigns work
So they gather data from all different places and identify the types of customers that need to be rewarded. Some products has the ability to profile but some do not. It's all up-to the marketing manager to decide what kind of campaign that needs to be created.

Benefits
The obvious benefit would be to build customer loyalty while attracting new customers to the business. Giving free stuff for people is the best way to keep them with you because that is human nature. Where there are gifts and other giveaways people are present. This is not the only good thing about loyalty management but it is one main benefit. Also it would integrate all different data sources of the business to give optimum results.

mChoice Rewards
This is the product I'm supposed to sell and what I'm currently working on. Well I can't give much information because it's confidential and I don't want to loose my employment before 1 month. But I can tell that are many features that differentiate the product from other competitors. It integrates an unlimited amount of data sources to enable people to make better and effective loyalty campaigns.

Human race..

It is a common fact that everyone in the 21st century is running for their life. I mean literally they run. I can't help but wonder whether this race is good or bad for people. Some say good some say bad. Me too cannot arrive at a final conclusion. I had so many things in mind (fun stuff) to do even while I'm working but now that I'm actually working I just can't find the time.

Things that I wanted to do even when I'm employed

1. Go to Gym
2. Play badminton
3. Go swimming
4. Meet my friends as often as I can
5. Be sociable

As of now I haven't done anything in the list. Time just FLIES. It actually do. I come to work at 8 go home by 7, then I'm dead tired to do anything at all so I go to sleep and come back to the same place.

Holy Shit....now that I'm thinking about it, that freaks me off. Once I'm comfortable with my schedule I'm determined to make time to do at least few of those. This will go in my to-do things list.

Working...good or bad?

After going to work for a full week the weekend I got was amazing. Well not amazing as such I still had presentations and assignments to do but the fact that I get to stay at home with my kitten alone is enough to keep me happy the entire day. I'm not a maniac lonely cat lover but i DO LOVE and ADORE cats. I miss my other 3 kittens and their mam but the one I have is a handful. He's bigger than all his siblings coz he needs to eat more than 4 meals a day. He's the reason I rush and go home and the reason I smile early in the morning when he needs his full body massage.

I didn't get much work done but I learnt what cloud computing is. First i thought it was complicated but the more i read the more I realized that it is a simple concept. I don't know the entire theory behind it but I do know how it works and that's progress. The stuff I've learnt up-to now is invaluable. After being stuck in books and exams, the real world is certainly different. The application of models and theories is entirely different than what's mentioned in books.

The advice I give for my sisters and younger friends - Work as soon as you can. Don't get lost in books and 100 year old models because your work place (no matter how crappy it is) is the best place to learn. 

Insomnia or sleeping problem?

I got bed and lay there thinking what I'm going to do at work tommorow, what work do I have left, what do I have to study for the exam etc. and my thoughts just stopped and I'm wide awake. So I made my mind for a sleepless night but expecting that I would fall asleep and as usual I didn't. So here I am at work trying to be happy with the few hours of sleep I got.

Just now I read an article that we need to make peace with the sleepless nights and that's exactly what I'm gonna do. Fingers crossed it would work!

Now I have to get back to work and be prepared for my exam. 

Maybe today or tommorow or later I would get a good nights sleep.

Making mistakes

Life is about making mistakes and learning from them. But why do we keep on doing the same mistake which gives the same outcome? Why do we do things knowing the result of it? Maybe not everyone but most. Well maybe only me. Last night I did the same mistake I've been doing in the past 2 years. Why the hell aren't  I learning my lesson? Am i a Dumbass like the jackass?
I think I know the answer to this one....

I need to take a life changing decision today or at least think about it. I've got so much of work and responsibilities to do. I can't let the past come back to me all the time. It's time for the future. I just do not have the liberty to waste time on such stupid things. I miss watching TV, I miss playing with my kitten, I miss everything....but life has to go on.

Change

Well.....what people say about resistance to change is all true. Learning about new things scares people off, even me. I told myself when i was young that I'l adapt change whenever it comes. But now I'm finding it hard. Staying at home and going out with my friends all this time and now suddenly I've to wake up early morning get dressed and come to an office. Is this good change or bad change?
True, I wanted to be a successful corporate women and I'm a workaholic. But is this what it takes? Will this be my daily routine for the rest of my life? Will I be able to take the pressure? I will be waiting till the day comes carrying the answers to these questions...
On a positive note I learnt some new things today like what USSD means and what it does. It's complicated and never in my life I thought I would be learning these tech stuff but I think I'm OK. OK is not enough either but i guess that is better than hating it. Hopefully with time I will be comfortable with all these and in that day I'm going to read this blog and think how much I've changed. I can't help but fell jealousy of housewives whose life seem so predictable.