As my IT subject on my masters degree is about to end I had come to think and realize what learnings and realizations had I gained and earned and is it enough already during my almost 4 months class with IT with a very abled and competent teacher. The first and foremost one thing I had learned is that we have to embrace technology, use applications appropriately and apply it efficiently at work or whatsoever purpose  so as to make life and work a bit easier. Working on my term paper on the subject matter which is the information systems strategic plan for our bureau was indeed very challenging and had brought me very valuable insights and outputs on the IT system of our bureau and office. It had made me realize that with a properly in place IT system work could be smooth and easy to deal with. Writing and creating blogs for the first time was an amazing and learning experience as well. I had learned to express my self, views and opinions on certain IT topics and it had somewhat uncovered the writer in me.

There are now several various applications you can download and apply like waze, wikipedia, twitter, etc. which you could use to your advantage or just about on anything you could possibly imagine if used appropriately. Right from the start I must admit that it was indeed a big challenge for me to learn IT since I’m not the techie type of person who is into IT really. Throughout the entire subject course I had learned to appreciate, understand and value the importance of IT. In these present times, surely this is now the age of technology wherein everything is in a fast pace and without IT surely it will be very difficult and disadvantageous on your part if you doesn’t know and apply IT. I had learned to know also the basics of IT what it is all about and this surely had challenged and inspired me to know and study more about the subject matter. It had also became a habit to study all the topics being discussed since we are given a quiz before our class starts and it was indeed a fun and fulfilling learning experience as well.

But to me I think the most important learning and topic that is of value not just for me but to others as well is the topic of social media responsibility wherein we must be responsible on everything what we write and post on the web. We must really think twice to click before we post and write and be responsible for our own privacy and for others as well and most of all on our ethical and moral manners when it comes to social media. It was indeed a very useful and enlightening topic that I could surely apply at work and throughout my life and to share also to others about social media responsibility.

With regards to our laboratory works the Microsoft Excel and Access it was indeed a very useful and practical when it comes to my work since we use those programs also for our reports and documentation at our office. Although I admit I’m not that still adepth and an expert in those programs and thus still needs to learn, study and practice more. Every class days that passed I honestly could tell to anyone that I had learned something new and interesting about IT which gives me an insight and an advantage on my part if used appropriately.

 IT has also somewhat changed my outlook not just at work but as well on my own personal life since the realization had already sink in that we are now in the modern age of technology and I must adopt to these changing times to be more equipped and competent about IT. To sum it all, I sincerely believe that I can achieve more by using what I had learned all about IT since I am now a positive person and had accomplished more at the moment and that is because I had allowed information technology to become a part of my everyday life and help me learn a lot of new things, tackle the unknown, overcame my fear of technology, and personally and positively influence the lives of others as well.

Software piracy is the stealing of legally protected software. Under copyright law, software piracy occurs when copyright protected software is copied, distributed, modified or sold. Software piracy is considered direct copyright infringement when it denies copyright holders due compensation for use of their creative works.The illegal copying of software for distribution within the organization, or to friends, clubs and other groups, or for duplication and resale. The software industry loses billions of dollars each year due to piracy, and although it may seem innocent enough to install an application on a couple of additional machines called “softloading” and “softlifting”, it may ultimately shatter the profitability of a small software company.

Software piracy is a major issue in the U.S. and Europe, but it is rampant in the rest of the world where major applications are routinely copied by the thousands for resale. According to the Business Software Alliance, software publishers lost 11 billion US dollars in 2002 due to illegall copying of their products, generally referred to as software piracy, with 39 % of the world’s software installations being illegal copies.The attraction of piracy is due to its anonymity and the ease with which illegal copies of software can be made,distributed and sold. However, every person who makes illegal copies is contributing to the monetary losses caused by piracy. Here in the Philippines the problem of counterfeiting and piracy remains prevalent wherein despite the government’s intense campaign and operations against it still most Filipinos who are unemployed or live below the poverty line could not afford to procure the original and expensive copies of software. Still even to those who can afford to buy an original material still would usually  choose to purchase the pirated versions to save money and cut down on costs.

Piracy has two sides of issues, wherein on the ethical side it explains that some people think that there is nothing wrong with software piracy and that they believe in the freedom of information and expression. According to them, it is acceptable and ethical to copy the software because they have a right to the information contained in the software. They also hold the idea of that reproduction and distribution of software is a part of fair use within copyright law. Finally, some claim that the software is really not worth the money they are charging. While on the other hand, information really does not want to be free. Developing a software requires team effort that involves the creative ideas and talents of development engineers, writers, and designers. People who develops the software have rights to profit from it, just as people who write books who have the sole right to sell them. Illegal copying and distribution of a software thus deprives the rightful owners of the software their due compensation and wages. Pirating software could costs everyone since not so many copies of legally produced software are being sold worldwide, thus the software manufacturers have to raise its prices. This means that the legitimate users are now incurring its higher costs due to software piracy.

I think it’s not reasonable to justify that the high cost of an original software is the main reason why we buy or patronize the pirated or counterfeit ones just to save on cost and expenses. It is unethical since first and foremeost piracy is considered a crime whichever part of the world you may be. Think of the consequences that it may bring to its creators including authors and related right owners, as illegitimate sales hamper their main source of income derived from the royalties produced by legitimate sales. The workers in all cultural industries, as piracy replace the output of legitimate products and employment. Lastly the state suffers a lot since pirates always pursue their activities, at least partially, on the margins of the established system, and therefore no taxes are ever collected to be reinvested into government projects, cultural development and services to its people.

Approaches that software companies can use to combat software piracy would include copy protection techniques like the token-based copy-protection techniques and this uses an intangible or a physical token to protect the application software from being illegally copied and they are the most common form of copy protection. The application software checks for the presence of the token and refuses to run until the token is present and this process is also referred to as authorization. The token-based copy-protection techniques are similar to those found in other application software like operating systems or entertainment software. Another option is by closing down the hardware and turning it into a black box. This makes it impossible for a user to mess with the hardware and its software. The approach here is to probably encrypt everything at the chip level so that their external interfaces are fully encrypted. A good example of that is the HDCP encryption for the media interface HDMI – a media stream is encrypted before it leaves the player box and decrypted inside of a display unit so that there is no open data stream to intercept.

Software piracy today is really a serious matter and in fact by purchasing counterfeit software, not only are you violating the law and the intellectual rights of software authors, you are also putting your personal computers at risk of damage and security threats. In a nutshell, could cheap software be the solution? If software didn’t cost as much, would people be willing to buy more? I think its about hightime that software companies would be able to weigh in the pros and cons in the software industry about costing for this will surely become a bigger business in the near future. It’s about time that they must establish protocols and measures not just to protect their own interest but the consumers as well so that this will become a win-win situation to both consumers and producers.

The concept of knowledge management and knowledge sharing have been actually around for centuries and it is really nothing new. In fact, people like the great Albert Einstein and Peter Drucker were commonly using knowledge management concepts many years ago by sharing their knowledge with their colleagues. Knowledge Management is a concept and a term that arose approximately two decades ago, roughly in 1990. Quite simply one might say that it means organizing an organization’s information and knowledge holistically, but it is not the whole picture. Knowledge management is the process of capturing, distributing, and effectively using knowledge and also a discipline that promotes an integrated approach to identifying, capturing, evaluating, retrieving, and sharing all of an enterprise’s information assets. These assets may include databases, documents, policies, procedures, and previously un-captured expertise and experience in individual workers.

What are the possible benefits and advantages when applying knowledge management in an organization or company? First of all we say, imagine knowledge as a fuel for your organization as a source of power. Imagine the use of other power sources such as electricity and gasoline. What are its uses and potential benefits ? The list of possible benefits is endless. You can productively use oil and electricity for all sorts of practical and common sense things. So too with knowledge, intellectual capital, and intangible assets. They can be used productively and profitably by your organization in a myriad of ways.The attractive incentive to the intelligent person is that those who can figure out to leverage this asset in new and creative ways, can gain a serious sustainable competitive edge in the market-place.

In my organization which is the Department of Health-Bureau of Quarantine knowledge management and knowledge sharing is of prime importance since we are for the promotion of public health and safety from public health emergencies of international concern which is our given mandate. This includes public education and information drives about the different kinds of emerging and re-emerging diseases like the ebola virus, SARS, middle east respiratory corona virus and many more. It is through knowledge management and sharing that we are able to share information, new ideas, treatments and updates on a certain disease and document this properly for references. Our organization also benefits from sharing of knowledge, insights, experiences and skills by mentoring of our newly hired employees about the ins and outs of quarantine work by our elder statesmen employees which is vital for them to function effectively and efficiently.

In our organization nobody is indispensable which means we have to know or have an idea of the work of others and somehow  there will come a time that a certain employee could not go on duty for a certain reason and you will be required to assume his work temporarily and this could be achieved through mentoring, shadowing and documented information like job recordings, description and responsibilities. Our organization also saves on costs,time and effort since all the best practices by the bureau are well documented and put into practice by the employees so that they function effectively, efficiently and become more productive at their work.

I think the biggest barriers in implementing knowledge management in our organization is organizational politics which is the internal competition rather than collaboration of activities and the know-all attitudes by our senior employees.  Ego-clashes, jealousy, feeling threatened by competency and skills of others, looking only for power and popularity are attitudes of some employees that hinders the implementation of quality knowledge management thus diminishing the organization’s culture and growth.

When you have power, you have the ability to negotiate and influence the outcomes in a particular environment. Empowerment is, therefore, the process of gaining such an ability to influence the outcomes and has socio-economic, political, gender and knowledge implications. By educating ourselves through education and learning we are able to learn new things that we were previously not known to us.This gives us the ability to make better decisions in life, come up with a more evolved and intelligent thoughts, improve our lives and others as well, and thus makes us more valuable people overall. Management practice of knowledge sharing to employees enables him to take initiatives, and make good decisions to solve problems thus improviving his service and performance. Giving employees the resources they needed, skills, authority, motivation, and opportunity will contribute to their competence and satisfaction but holding them accountable and responsible for the outcomes of their actions.

As organizations, we are learning faster, and that means that individuals are learning faster. People are developing their competencies and confidence faster in organizations that practice effective knowledge management. In summary, we simply cannot afford not to mainstream, to embed and embody knowledge management principles, strategies, policies, processes, methods, tools and technologies into our daily personal, team and organizational lives.

Business intelligence tools are a type of software that is designed to retrieve, analyze and report data. This broad definition includes everything from spreadsheets, visual analytics, and querying software to data mining, warehousing, and decision engineering. Most of the time, business intelligence tools are standalone tools or suites of tools that are targeted to a specific industry and that is the technical definition. But what is it really?  Business intelligence is basically just getting important business information to decision makers when they need it in a way that they can actually use it. It’s a matter of figuring out what data you need, collecting it in a way that it’s meaningful, analyzing in a way that’s usable, and storing it in a way that you can keep referring to it in the future.

Some years ago, long before business intelligence and other types of software were introduced, businesses were essentially and successfully run with little more than bookkeepers, manufacturing staff, and a whole lot of paper.This meant they had to find manual ways to access efficiency and yet this did not prevent them from operating productively and turning a profit. In contrast, organizations and businesses are being operated and managed differently in today’s present times and in order to cope up and to be competent with their business rivals they must employ business intelligence tools to create, sell, and deliver products and services.The point is that businesses don’t run on business intelligence tools alone but they simply run even better when timely information can be used to detect and correct problems  or even prevent them proactively before they have a major effect on the performance of an organization.

Fast growing companies recognize that the key to success is having a strategy in place before the business is launched.  Business intelligence then becomes the tools for communicating that strategy to everyone in the organization, regardless of his or her role.  With this in place, companies can be more prepared for success as they can react to business changes and be more agile than the competition. Because there is so much information and data out there in an organization and businesses to analyze and interpret, and because the amount of data that is being collected is growing exponentially businesses need tools that can help them analyze this data. And when it comes to using this data, visualizations and infographics are some of the best ways to present the data. Applying a graphical outlook to information that will be distributed across an organization makes that data easier to understand and to act upon. And when businesses have the right information at the right time, that means more profits and more efficiency.

I think every company or organization should have an appropriate rewards program for their employees and this should include compensation, benefits, recognition and most of all appreciation. An employee should be recognized and rewarded for his or her performance for attaining the highest sales based on periodic goals and for specific behaviors that made a difference in the company or organization like coming up with new ideas on how to complete their work effectively and efficiently. Rewarding deserving employees would surely boost their morale and motivate them towards their work thus it becomes an advantage also on the part of the organization on achieving their mission, vision and objectives. A punitive program for me is not appropriate in the sense that it makes the employees work like machines and robots just to reach the goals of the company wherein they are forced to work and work just to produce the desired results. This also can create an athmosphere wherein working relationships between employees and management becomes a competitive one and inharmonious anymore and this sometimes could lead to misunderstandings brought about by work overload and pressures.

The use of business intelligence applications and tools by employees can significantly improve the organizations efficiency and productivity thus gaining more profits in return. In this context a pay raised program based on job performance would surely be appropriate since this will become a cycle wherein both the employer and the employee will be benefited. It is also a fact that most employees are driven to strive for excellence in their work if they know that an incentive or merit in any form would be given as a result of an oustanding peformance on their jobs. An employee would be motivated to work hard in order to reach the targeted goals in order to get that incentive or merit and whenever the organization would reach its targeted goals this equates to productivity, efficiency and profitability.

An online shopping or e-shopping is a form of electronic commerce which allows consumers to directly buy goods or services from a seller over the Internet using a web browser. Alternative names are: e-web-store, e-shop, e-store, Internet shop, web-shop, web-store, online store, online storefront and virtual store. Mobile commerce or m-commerce describes purchasing from an online retailer’s mobile optimized online site or application.

The number of Internet users has increased exponentially in the last few years, and this is expected to continue in the future. The notion that Internet use has grown exponentially in just a couple of years has lead us to believe that Internet commerce is expected to boom in the near future and that is why Internet shopping nowadays has gone a long way since its introduction a couple of years back and many organizations and companies are taking advantage of this trend and technology to attract and gain clients and customers.Online stores and shopping nowadays are becoming increasingly more sophisticated and they offer the ability for customers to shop in a more personalized manner, make their own decisions, and all without being influenced by the bright lights and ads that are so prevalent throughout physical store.

Shopping on the internet can be more convenient than shopping on an actual store for the following reasons. First, when you go shopping at a mall you first have to get dressed with the proper clothing to be presentable and this could be a hassle to some but if you decide to shop on-line, you can shop in your pajamas or household clothing literally at anytime of the day and at your most convenient time. Online shopping can save you on gasoline and your time since driving for a period of time can really be time consuming and also add the traffic which could cost you a considerable of time on the road and mind also your gasoline expenditures. Remember those days of wasting time driving between stores or calling them up to find which one had the cheapest prices but shopping online  makes this a breeze with a few mouse clicks and you can do it from the comfort of your home if you want.There is less intrusive advertising in online shopping and another aspect is the incessant bombardment of advertising that you experience the moment you walk into a store. Everywhere you look there are signs for specials or sales and it can often be difficult to look at exactly what you came for without being distracted by the sales and signs. While online stores do have specials, often through banner advertising, it is easy to skip past them. Lastly, online shopping gives you the time to decide on what you want to buy since many sites offer the ability to search for specific products therefore making it much easier not to get distracted while shopping.It also offers the consumer the ability to make all of their purchasing decisions from a single location, often their homes, without the need to travel through different stores. This results in a more intimate shopping environment, and experience, where consumers are free to make their own decisions, without feeling  like they have been tricked into spending their hard earned money.

If there are conveniences brought about by online shopping I think there are also some inconveniences one should take into account and consideration since first you cannot physically see the items you would want to buy unlike in a regular store wherein you can visually inspect, touch and feel what the product is really all about and made of. Usually the photo of the items you see online are much better than once you have the item in front of you.You should also be aware that shopping online can also expose you to identity theft. When you send your personal details online, these can be intercepted by hackers and they can use these pieces of information for their own financial gain.The inevitable waiting time and inconvenience of having to wait around for days and weeks for the delivery to be made of the items bought can be also quite frustrating and there might also be chances of mishandling during delivery and the items might be broken or damaged and probably worst of all the item might be lost and never to arrive at your doorstep.Online shopping can also be a dull shopping experience and can be boring because to some nothing beats the experience of enjoying going to a mall or store and enjoy the ambiance and feel more to interact and socialize among other shoppers.

Electronic Gadgets, Clothes and Footwear are the three products that I would likely buy on the internet or online shopping with no hesitation at all since these products are generally cheaper as compared to the ones when they are already sold in the malls or any authorized outlets and you can find rare brands and designs of these products on the net without worrying of having the same kind and design that almost everybody have when buying on malls plus these products can be readily returned if you are not satisfied and gadgets are also covered by specific warranties.The three products I might want to think about when buying online are big and bulky items like refrigerators, washing machines and televisions, for these products are big and bulky and fragile the shipping and handling cost might be expensive and could just add up to the price of the bought items, another is fresh food products since the delivery might be compromise and the product would just be spoiled if not delivered on time.Used cars is another item I would want to surely think of buying online since any car owner has a reason why he would sell that car and this might include car engine problems, flooded cars and other defective parts which would be passed and would be a big burden to the buyer.Finally, the following items that I would not buy online would include jewelries, antique items and pets since these items would involve a large sum of money and the issue of authenticity would come into place plus the fact that the shipment and handling would be a big factor too since it might be stolen if not properly handled.Pets bought online is like cruelty to animals since during shipment and delivery they are exposed to miserable situations and they might be injured or die during the process.

In parting online shopping can be a worthwhile experience for everybody since you can find a wide selection of items and products that are on sale and mind you some rare items as well but we all know that it has some downside too like hackers stealing credit card information and using them as well as products  not delivered on time and not being contented of the products that you bought and it is up to you to balance the pros and cons of online shopping and be a responsible shopper online to avoid having problems when shopping through online.

A wireless network as defined by wikipedia is any type of computer that uses wireless data connections for connecting network nodes.Wireless networking is a method by which homes, telecommunications network and enterprise (business) installations avoid the costly process of introducing cables into a building, or as a connection between various equipment locations. Wireless telecommunications networks are generally implemented and administered using radio communication. This implementation takes place at the physical level (layer) of the OSI model network structure.Examples of wireless networks include cell phone networks, Wi-Fi local networks and terrestrial microwave networks.

The wireless era has arrived and many gymnasiums, campuses, bank offices, supermarkets, and shopping malls have deployed large-scale WiFi networks and witnessed considerable changes that have brought more benefits to consumers and more profits and business opportunities to merchants and service providers. Wireless networks built in places such as scenic spots satisfy visitors’ requirements for ubiquitous access to the Internet. Additionally, wireless networks along with the wireless location function and the scenic spot map make possible directed “push” advertisements, depending on the terminal’s location. Background-running records of terminals are collected to provide data analysis for scenic spot service operations.

The opportunities and benefits brought about by a wireless network would include convenience since you can access your network resources from any location within your wireless network’s coverage area or from any WiFi hotspot. Mobility on the part of the employee can also be an advantage since they are no longer tied up to their desk, as they are with a wired connection and can go online in conference room meetings. Productivity is also enhanced using wireless access to the Internet and to your company’s key applications and resources helps your staff get the job done and encourages collaboration. There would be easy set up also as you don’t have to string cables, so installation can be quick and cost-effective and also expandable since you can easily expand wireless networks with existing equipment, while a wired network might require additional wiring.Lastly, cost is lowered down because wireless networks eliminate or reduce wiring cost, they can cost less to operate than wired networks.

The use of a wireless network technology such as WiFi is really a big help to our organization when it comes to our work.  An example of which is that we could use our respective mobile phones with the use of an application called flight tracker which determines and estimates the time of arrival of an aircraft wheter it will arrive on time on its schedule arrival or be delayed. Another use of this technology is that we are able to update ourselves of latest news updates, informations and office memorandums through our organizations website and our office facebook group page wherever we are with the use of available WiFi networks. Lastly, we could communicate to each one of us through different social media sites when it comes to updates about our work, schedule of duties and progress of work even though we are assigned to field work and this is possible with the advent of wireless technology communications.

Wireless communications obviously provide potential security issues, as an intruder does not need physical access to the traditional wired network in order to gain access to data communications.This has led to the common misconception that wireless communications cannot be eavesdropped at all. However, eavesdropping is possible using specialist equipment.The following standards and guidelines can help secure a Wi-Fi network against unauthorized access. Avoid using the default password since it is easy for a hacker to find out the manufacturer’s default password for your wireless router and then use that password to access your wireless network. So it’s wise to change the administrator password for your wireless router. Another one is that do not let your wireless device announce its presence by switching off SSID (Service Set Identifier) broadcasting to prevent your wireless device announcing its presence to the world. Change your device’s SSID name since it’s easy for a hacker to find out the manufacturer’s default SSID name for your device and then use that to locate your wireless network. Encrypt your data and in your connection settings, make sure you enable encryption.Protect against malware and internet attacks by installing a rigorous anti-malware product on all of your computers and other devices.

Your employees can be your most valuable asset in protecting the network. Without education on the need for this protection, most employees are simply not aware of the risks. Get your employees involved in protecting the network. Informational posters and training about security, passwords, and privacy can help you keep your critical business communications secure.Deploying any type of network securely is always a balancing act, establishing a happy medium between security for security’s sake and pragmatic protection of mission-critical assets. Lastly,don’t assume that piblic wireless networks are secure.

Information security, sometimes shortened to Info Sec, is the practice of defending information from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, disruption, modification, perusal, inspection, recording or destruction. It is a general term that can be used regardless of the form the data may take like electronic or physical. Cybercriminals are relentlessly hacking websites to attack unsuspecting visitors, breaking into databases to steal customer information and trade secrets, and infiltrating executives’ personal computer to filch financial account information. Hackers are discovering vulnerabilities in software and systems 24/7 and they will always find new ways to steal data, infect computers and wreak havoc in the digital world.

Outsourcing IT support, desktop support and infrastructure is relatively common and an increasing number of organisations are investing in outsourcing e-commerce systems, datacentre hosting and software and application development, but security outsourcing remains a challenge for many. Typically, only the largest companies can afford an in-house security team with the tools and expertise to defend them in this kind of cyber war and that is why a growing number of smaller companies are outsourcing the job to so-called managed security service providers. Turning over computer security to an outsider firm makes many managers nervous because they must give up direct control of critical systems and even if you can afford to hire your own security staff, it could be a challenge.

If deciding whether to outsource security is difficult, deciding what to outsource and to whom seems impossible and the stakes are high, so it’s no wonder that paralysis is a common reaction when contemplating whether to outsource or not. The promised benefits of outsourced security are so attractive.The potential to significantly increase network security without hiring half a dozen people or spending a fortune is impossible to ignore. The potential risks of outsourcing are considerable. Stories of managed security companies going out of business, and bad experiences with outsourcing other areas of IT, show that selecting the wrong outsourcer can be a costly mistake. Companies won’t outsource everything, because some things just don’t outsource well. Either they’re too close to the business, or they’re too expensive for an outsourcing company to deliver efficiently, or they simply do not scale well and knowing what to outsource is the key.

When considering what should and should not be outsourced in IT terms, organisations really should be driven by three main considerations: what makes economic sense or the cost; what can be done securely or due diligence; and the risk to the business or risk assessment. Outsourcing is not advised for governance-related security functions, but for operations-related security functions there are several candidates. These include application security, identity and access management and virtualisation. It can also be argued that all of the technology security stack can be outsourced except governance, risk and compliance, because it is one of the key processes in IT security. This means that things like firewall management, network security, vulnerability scanning, anti-malware, host security and database firewall management are all good candidates for outsourcing.

The primary argument for outsourcing is financial wherein a company can get the security expertise it needs much more cheaply by hiring someone else to provide it. The starting point for the decision-making process should be a risk assessment internally. This should identify all the types of data which fall under either regulatory compliance or risk to the business: credit card data; personal data and intellectual property. Another aspect to consider in the move to outsource IT should be existing utilisation of hardwarte resources, and wheter on-demand services would produce a cost benefit to the business, rather than a costly over-engineered solution for a limited peak-demand period.

Selecting a supplier with which to host your data, services or virtual hardware, should not be based solely on cost, but also on security-sometimes the former is over-emphasised at the expense of the latter. When deciding upon a framework for selecting a supplier in the bidding phase, you should clearly decide what you are trying to achieve for the business in terms of cost, functionality and security, and then have a scoring system that you will apply to the potential suppliers. This means identifying by contract what is being outsourced; the standards the outsourcer must meet; how the outsource is to be monitored; and how redress is to be handled should things go wrong. Selecting an outsourcing supplier should not be based solely on cost, but also on security and should choose an outsourcer they trust. Talking with others and asking industry analyst will reveal the best security service providers and go with the industry leader.

The stipulations that should be included to ensure a worry-free outsourcing of IT security due to security issues includes that the organisation should have a good security policy. The first step to be followed before outsourcing is to ensure that your organization is in order. You must also check your security policy and it must be sound and rational. Some of the important facets of your policy should include a data classification that can distinguish between sensitive and common data. The policy should also state clear standards and guidelines and should be finalized by the stakeholders, managers, and employees of your organization.

Another stipulation to include is to ensure that the outsourcer does have a sound private and intellectual property policy. This includes checking if your vendor has sound intellectual property protection laws. Make sure that your vendor will go by your privacy and intellectual property policies and make these clear to avoid later misunderstandings.

The vendor must also provide education on handling data. You must also see to it that the vendor is educating their employees on how to handle and protect sensitive data and this is very important, as this will help ensure the security of your data. Ensuring application and network security audits should be also conducted regularly. This will help in ensuring secure outsourcing. Audits can help identify issues and potential vulnerabilities with the applications, databases and devices on the network.

Lastly, ensuring that prevention technologies are employed. Check the prevention technologies that the vendor is using and inquire if they have a technology to control data flow and if policies are being followed by the employees. Make sure that your vendor has technologies to protect sensitive data from being emailed or copied to removable types of media.

In summary, outsourcing is a double-edged sword. On one hand, it is a viable business option which yields economic benefits for organisations; on the other hand, it can be an avenue for security risks to be introduced into organisations if proper understanding and planning have not been reasonably afforded. As such, organisations adopting outsourcing as a business approach should achieve a balance of these two spectrums of needs. For organisations adopting outsourcing to remain secure, it is therefore important for them to understand their own outsourcing needs and the related security risks, and to handle outsourcing in the right manner and in the correct context. Only with this, will it then be possible for the security risks of outsourcing to be effectively mitigated to an acceptable level.

Many books have been written about the skills and personality traits that express themselves in truly great managers.Much like a basketball player needs to know how to dribble and shoot a basketball or how a carpenter understands the process of building and framing a house, managers also need to have a specific set of skills in order to effectively perform their functions and responsibilities.Managerial skills are what the managers uses to assist the organization in accomplishing its goals.Specifically a manager will make use his or her own abilities, knowledge base, experiences, and perspectives to increase the productivity of those with whom they manage.

Simply, managerial skills represent a knowledge and ability of the individual on a managerial position to fulfill some specific managerial task or activities.This knowledge and ability can be learned and practiced.However, they also can be acquired through practical implementation of required activities and tasks.Therefore, each skill can be developed through learning and practical experience from the individuals.Most organizations use information technology to store data and information.I think managers must posses these three skills namely technology skills, analytical skills, and interpersonal and managerial skills in order for them to participate effectively in Information System decisions.

Technology skills is needed by the managers in the sense that technology keeps on changing from time to time every now and then.New technology emerge all the time like social networking sites, new computers, cellphones and gadgets and these are technologies that had become widespread and are used on a regular basis by most of the people. I did not mean that you have to be an expert on all these new emerging technologies and gadgets available on the market but I think you should have somewhat have an idea on how to use these technologies effectively and efficiently on your company so as to achieve the realization of the company’s goals and objectives.Companies use information technology for various purposes, and your job will be to manage these systems for them to be most effective and if you enjoy learning about technology and using technology to improve people’s lives and that is a key skill needed to be a good manager in IS decision makings.

Analytical skills in management are often defined as the ability to break problems into parts to see relationships or inter-dependencies. Managers with analytical abilities plan well and lead projects successfully. They are able also to accurately forecast financial results and develop plans to meet goals and objectives. Analytical leaders work with their people to plan and create action plans for their area of responsibility and work to accomplish these goals. Managers who possess analytical skills systematically accomplish their plans and logically produce predictable results.

Since the company and the people will use technology to improve business processes, you should know how to analyze business processes and assess what the information requirements are to come up with solutions that deal with these inadequacies. Managers should also provide inputs and information for the design and development of databases as part of analyzing the company’s information systems. For instance, a department store could use a database to track which products are selling the most.

Human or interpersonal managerial skills present a manager’s knowledge and ability to work with people. One of the most important management task is to work with people because without people, there will not be a need for the existence of management and managers.These skills will enable managers to become leaders, to motivate employees for better accomplishments and to make more effective use of human potential in the company and so on. Managers are not working with the technology and systems alone but also with other people in the organization and this calls for communication and interpersonal skills and you need management skills to put into place the changes needed to improve the information systems. This calls for management of time and resources  and in addition to seeing the big picture, you need a lot of attention to detail in managing information systems.

A mark of a good leader is to be able to provide consistent motivation to his team and encouraging them to attain excellence and quality in their performance and is always looking for ways to improve production and standards. Excellent leadership is always pro active rather than reactive and managers will need skills that will help them to manage people and technology to ensure an effective and efficient realization of their working tasks.

When our professor in management 286 (Management of Information and Systems Technology) in our masters degree class had announced that we will have an assignment wherein each one of us is required to make our individual blogging platform and then write and post our own blog about the topic Information and Technology which of course is the main content of our subject.I suddenly looked around and saw different reactions from the faces of my classmates and I assume that they had mixed emotions as well just like me and I can see that some are happy, excited and anxious.

On my part I admit that I am somewhat a little bit lost since I really had no concrete idea of what really is a blog and how to create one and although I often heard the word blog, blogging sites and bloggers from everyone I am not really aghast into that blogging thing and assumed that those are only for the younger generation and the techie ones but I just said to myself that this would be another challenging task ahead for me.

To somehow have an idea of what is a blog I researched through the internet about it and found out that it simply refers to an online personal diary or journal that is frequently updated and a place to express yourself and anything you want it to be and to say it all a blog is your own website that you are going to update on an ongoing basis as long as you want to.

This would also be quite new to me somehow since in time memorial as far I could remember I usually do not write or is fond of writing journals and diaries and I’m also the type of person who would like to be private at times since I also had read that blogging are for the fearless type of people who would be willing to post about their lives in a public forum such as the Internet. On a positive note I now view blogging as a tool wherein every human has a voice and wishes their voice to be heard and the Internet is a good medium that is unparalleled in its reach and blogging for me now will be a window of opportunity to reach hundreds or even thousands of people everyday.

Information Technology or I.T. as defined by Techterms.com refers to anything related to computing technology, such as networking, hardware, software, the internet, or the people that work with these technologies. I.T. has impacted my personal life and work in so many ways I could possibly imagine from the moment I would wake up when I would use my cellphone to communicate with other people about work and anything and most especially to my family since most of the time I am away with them when I’m at work. At my workplace I use computers to encode, update and transmit data which is very essential for me to do. I also do reporting and gathers data about the different activities that our office is doing at Kalibo International Airport such as setting of ovicidal traps, screening of international passengers and monitoring, screening and educating the different food establishments inside the airport with the use of our computer.

During my spare time I would usually use the internet and browse on social media like facebook about updates on my friends and relatives and to chat with them once in a while on how they are now today but most especially to check our facebook group page in my masters degree class about updates regarding our different subjects.To sum it all, since we live in the “information age” information technology has become practically a part of our everyday lives.