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Liveblogging CBIC Annual Business Forum

By: Marijean Jaggers | 12/06/2007

I'm liveblogging the second workshop at the Charlottesville Business Innovation Council's Annual Business Forum -- the Information Tsunami -- using e-tools for business, with David Chen moderating.

Panelists include Kamin Whitehouse, Uday Gupta and Jim Bain. Panelists share tools they use daily:

• Microsoft Office


• Unix


• Google Docs


• Web-enabled mobile phone


• Open-source solutions


• Instant Messaging

Q. How do you bridge the virtual to reality -- moving from e-contacts to in-person connections?

A. Review conference agendas, Google attendees, call conference organizers and request a connection to people on the list and ask for an introduction. Use social networking tools like Facebook and LinkedIn to make contacts and establish a dialogue.

Q. What is the safety and security of services like Gmail?

A. Tough question -- you are open to security issues. Make sure you use an expert for security issues and to protect your company. What's attractive about Gmail for startups is that it's free -- but it's not bulletproof.

Q. What's the difference between free e-mail like Gmail or hosted-exchange servers offered by IT companies that serve businesses of all sizes.

A. Hosted-exchange services can be as low as $15 per user per month -- affordable for even startups and worth the investment to protect your business.

Q. Has anyone used Skype or any (voice-over IP services) VOIP?

A. We use it extensively especially for overseas communication and integrated with video. It works great and it's cheap. The drawback is that it's useless without internet service, so if your internet access goes down, so does your call. It's important to have secure and redundant internet service to support your business because, in some cases, when your internet access is down, your business is down, too.

Q. What is the next wave of internet technology?

A. More personalized applications, integration between applications as in the integration between Skype and E-bay where calls can be instantly place to sellers by prospective buyers of E-bay listings and more available dynamic content. Wireless internet -- free and more readily available in more areas. Physical applications, such as a key fob that downloads traffic information from the internet and tells you which route to take to go home.

Q. Our company is older -- our Web site is outdated and we don't have an overall strategy for all of our communications. What we need is a communications physical -- you know, like when you go to the doctor and he tells you what you need to do to be healthy? Our business needs that.

A. Communications administrators are available to give your company that once-over and make long-term recommendations to meet your company's needs. (Editor's note: Standing Partnership provides communication strategy for clients that encompasses business communication needs and recommendations including online presence updates.)

I'm moderating the next panel, so hopefully someone else in the audience will be liveblogging it.

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