The post The Importance of Data Ownership & Security in Digital Platforms appeared first on Affectli.

In simple terms, the more disparate systems in existence, the more loopholes that expose the risk of data being compromised, misplaced or delayed.  Added to that, disjointed sets of data do not facilitate workplace efficiencies, or allow for informed decision making capabilities, especially in a crisis situation.

During Storm Eunice, millions of people around the world watched a live-streaming channel showing aircrafts attempting to land at one of the world’s busiest airports – London Heathrow. It is known to be one of the busiest airports in the world, and pre-covid (2019), the airport employed 76,000 people who managed over 80.88 Million passengers and 475,861 flight movements.  That equates to an average of 221,589 passengers and 1,303 flights per day, or 154 passengers and 0.9 flights every 60 seconds.

Essential to the safety of every aircraft, employee, passengers and everyone in the surrounding areas, it requires Air Traffic Controllers to have consolidated sets of real-time data in order to drive immediate and informed decisions with absolute precision.  Planes cannot be given instructions to take off without visibility and accurate, updated information of planes in the surrounding areas, variable altitudes, or coming in to land.  Added to that, they need to refer to real-time information on weather conditions, wind speeds, and a whole lot more in order to safely orchestrate and execute such a vital role. 

Real-time information also has to be fed to ground crew, luggage handlers and terminal staff to manage the logistics around passenger and cargo arrivals and departures.  It is an intricate web of numerous moving parts that require precision, perfect timing, and leaves no room for error and miscommunication.  This real-time data motion is what allows for streamlined processes that maximise efficiencies; and what enables them to successfully grow and manage such high volumes. 

At Affectli, we eat, breathe and sleep our OPZ philosophy because data is ultimately the lifeblood of any organisation.  If structured and used correctly, it will improve efficiencies across the board, and result in a more robust, profitable and successful business.

If you are looking to increase your OPZ and put your data into motion, feel free to reach out to us for a demo on get in touch. 

The post The Poetry of Consolidated Data in Motion appeared first on Affectli.

As kids growing up, we all played that game:  broken telephone… 

The more people in the “telephone” chain, the more context and information is lost, and the further disconnected we get from the original message.  With each person in the link, it is inevitable that information is added, critical information is omitted, and somehow, the end result is vastly different from where it all started.

People focus on communication, communication tools, communication styles, but not enough emphasis is placed on the criticality of contextual communication in order to better – and more effectively – collaborate on tasks, projects and the like.

It’s expected.  It’s preached.  Tools are provided.  And in essence, they are vital components that determine an organisation’s ultimate success (or failure)… but the question begs:  Are organisations doing everything they can to achieve what we refer to as Hyper Contextual Collaboration?  

Most organisations rely on email as their main form of communication.  I have made no secret of the fact that I detest email and elaborate more on this in a recent blog titled: Ridding the world of email.  Besides the fact that it’s so time consuming, more often than not, it is missing key information and does not include the right people.

Experts will tell you that the hardest part of communicating effectively, is in knowing how to contextualise the content.  Contextual Communication provides the recipient with specific information so that assumptions are not drawn, as well as places meaning into the message.  More importantly, it provides a platform for a true dialogue to take place.

Organisations with a strong customer centricity focus are doing well when it comes to providing context when dealing with their customers.  However, are they applying the same focus on their most valuable assets, their staff and key stakeholders?  Are they doing enough to help make their people as efficient as possible, and in turn, maximising their ROI?

Equally important is the need to provide Contextual Collaboration tools to ensure that groups of people are moving in unison and in sync towards a collective goal. But what happens when a critical area of the business requires attention or an urgent action?  How many channels do employees have to navigate through to ensure they get access to all the relevant information and notify the right people timeously?

Data security then also becomes a major issue, and factors to consider include:

What if someone drops the ball and forgets to relay an important piece of information?  

Or when someone leaves an organisation – albeit suddenly or even foreseen?  

What happens when someone new steps in and is required to pick up where their predecessor left off?  

Assuming information hasn’t been lost, misplaced, archived or deleted in its entirety, how long does it take to provide factual, contextual information to sufficiently equip that individual with everything they need in order to carry out the task at hand? 

How many people have to stop what they’re doing, and lose momentum while they get the new kid on the block up to speed?  

Besides the potential cost implications of a project setback, what are the cost implications to an organisation to get back on track? 

Communication and collaboration has turned strategic because at the core of it, data is currency, time is money, and in some instances, could even be a matter of life and death.  If organisations were sufficiently equipped with tools that bring their People, Processes and Systems closer together to realise their Optimal Performance Zone, what would it mean to their bottom line?!  It’s simple:  It would result in a more connected, effective and accountable workforce that would ultimately deliver an increased ROI!

Have you considered how much inefficiency there is in your organisation, and what it would mean to your bottom line if the issue of Hyper Contextual Collaboration was addressed?

Here’s some more food for thought:

• 86% of employees and executives cite a lack of collaboration or ineffective communication for workplace failures. (Source:  Salesforce)   

• 97% of employees and executives believe that a lack of alignment within a team impacts the outcome of a task or project. (Source: McKinsey)

• Knowledge workers spend an average of 14% of their time communicating and collaborating internally. Studies show that internal collaboration through social tools could help increase productivity by as much as 20 to 25%. (Source: McKinsey)

• The average worker spends an estimated 28% of their time managing (internal) email and an additional 20% of their time looking for internal information, or tracking down colleagues that can assist with specific tasks.  However, when the appropriate social media tools are adopted, this can reduce the time by as much as 35%, with additional value being realised through a faster, more efficient, and more collaborative approach. (Source: McKinsey)

It’s with these very basic principles in mind that we have spent the past 15 years building and developing AFFECTLI into a product that brings Contextual Communication and Contextual Collaboration together to provide an organisation with Hyper Contextual Collaboration tools. 

Gone are the days of the broken telephone; he-said-she-said; misplaced or omitted information, documents and the like…  We have worked tirelessly and systematically to deliver a tool that ensures that the right people get the right information at the right time – every time – with our fully auditable Hyper Contextual Collaboration (HCC) platform that drives accountability, and increases the Optimal Performance Zone (OPZ) of any organisation, resulting in a sustainable business with a competitive edge. 

If you are interested in improving the effectiveness of your organisation’s HCC and OPZ through the adoption of our proven toolkit, AFFECTLI, please feel free to reach out to us for a demo on get in touch. 

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As early adopters of your software that pioneered remote working, tools for faster code reviews and excellent security and compliance features, we are strong advocates of your OSS tools, and proud to be affiliated with one of the biggest independent players in the market through our flagship and award-winning product, Affectli.

Wishing you continued success and prosperity,

Glen Scott

CEO:  Mi-C3 International 
#EveryoneCanContribute #GTLB at Nasdaq

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The post Ridding the world of email: Collaboration has turned strategic. appeared first on Affectli.

– Dr Robert C. Maybery

We have spent the past 15 years building and proving a resilient, easily integrated Human Centric technology ecosystem called AFFECTLI.  Our mission at the core of the design and engineering of what we do is to help organisations increase their efficiencies, and on that note, would like to introduce you to The AFFECTLI OPZ philosophy. 

The AFFECTLI Optimal Performance Zone (A-OPZ) is made possible through the ability to streamline organisations and increase the relationship between People, Processes and Systems (PPS) , making organisations more resilient and effective on all levels.

Contrary to popular belief, digitisation; IoT or the 4th Industrial Revolution is not a technology issue, but an Optimal Performance Zone (OPZ) issue… As technology progresses, we need to increase the relationship between our People, our Processes and our Systems in order to increase the Optimal Performance Zone of an organisation.

One of my dear friends and mentor, Dr Robert C. Maybery, has pioneered and mastered Peak Performance Management.  He is known for being very outspoken about the demands that Boards place on their Directors to deliver, noting that nothing is going to change if leaders succumb to short term Q1, 2, 3 and 4 pressures, but rather focus on long-term strategic vision and long term sustainable growth.  It is this insight (among many others) that has resulted in his success as a sought-after advisor to many of the largest companies in Europe, and to some of the top F500 companies in the USA (and beyond).  

Over the years, we have shared insights on how we can apply his program from a People perspective, and translate it into a digital solution that delivers the best ROI for our customers and organisations adopting digitisation through our AFFECTLI platform.

On the back of the Global Crisis of 2012, he was quoted as saying “There is no short term fix” and the same is true today amidst the global crisis we are currently faced with as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Organisations and their people have been pushed to their limits as the financial implications and mental health & wellbeing of people take a toll, unlike anything we’ve ever seen before.  

“Today, more than ever, forward-thinking organisations must augment and invigorate a cultural transformation to extol operational excellence; far and beyond the generic focus of size and scale, diverse cash flows, fixed cost reduction, ring fencing core resources, expertise and customer loyalty initiatives.”

– Dr Robert C. Maybery

The pandemic has shed a spotlight on the resilience & agility (or lack thereof) within a number of organisations varying in industry and size.  Businesses that have been able to sustain themselves over the extended lockdown periods have been forced to trim the fat, revert to zero-based budgets and rebuild from the bottom up, and some companies have had to reinvent themselves in order to remain relevant and sustainable. But it goes beyond that…

If organisations are going to rise from the ashes of this pandemic, and grow into sustainable, profitable businesses, they will be forced to work more efficiently and effectively.  There is no question that PPS will need to be orchestrated in perfect unison in order to achieve their OPZ, and the only way to do that, is to adopt the right technology that simultaneously brings these 3 things together in a way that creates a transparent, informed and engaged, accountable workforce. 

“Meritocratic organisations commit to and vigorously drive to imbed a no-nonsense performance orientated culture, epitomised by intentionality and highly effective decision making. This culture eschews mediocrity and resistance to change.

The many benefits include, but are not limited to, increased revenues, margin and earnings before tax, satisfied customers, authentically engaged people and significant gains in the speed to market and execution prowess.”

– Dr Robert C. Maybery

Quick wins can be achieved with the right solutions – insights drive excellence.  However, even with the best people and systems in place, it will not solve the problem because digital maturity cannot be achieved overnight. A successful strategy is a steady hand on the rudder, – not a sprint chopping and changing solutions – and it requires the sustained application of PPS logic within the business to achieve best in class, increase relationships and reduce complexities – the core ethos that is at the very heart of our engineering, and the philosophy that unites the interconnected elements and logic to deliver the AFFECTLI OPZ for sustainable growth and longevity and to delight our customers.

Also important to note, is that Hyper Contextual Collaboration is another major part of The AFFECTLI OPZ model – which I cover in another Blog that will be published soon.

Simply put, AFFECTLI is a manager of managers toolkit that improves efficiencies by automating business processes through the implementation of a Hyper Collaborative Business Operating System.  It is easily integrated into existing systems, or whatever technologies companies have already deployed, and delivers a trackable and auditable solution that will digitise and streamline ANY business, providing a single real-time overview of the entire organisation to drive informed decision making.  In doing so, maximum efficiencies are achieved through attaining and (over time,) improving the OPZ, reducing operating costs significantly, and setting organisations on the path to long term sustainable growth. 

If you are looking for meaningful intelligence to drive and improve your A-OPZ (The Affectli Optimal Performance Zone), feel free to reach out to us to request a demo or discuss your needs for a tailored A-OPZ solution by emailing  get in touch.

The post The Affectli OPZ – Insights to drive sustainable excellence appeared first on Affectli.

After many years in software development he reconnected to his early interests and now practices as a data scientist, helping organisations analyse their data to detect patterns that can be used to solve business problems. Current projects include the accurate valuation of used vehicles for getWorth (getworth.co.za) and automating the marking of adult maturity assessments for Aephoria (aephoria.co.za). Data-centric organisations like these invest in AI because decision making based on accurate data clearly gives a competitive edge. Heads up programmers, the industry is growing rapidly as organisations realise that these valuable tools are becoming more accessible.

Machines are getting better at making decisions like humans, but still have a long way to go. For example, with the Aephoria’s maturity assessments, machines struggle to process subtle incongruences or ironic nuances in questionnaire responses. But the ability to process human language is rapidly developing. To help solve linguistic problems Rikus uses AI tools made freely available to the public by companies like OpenAI (founded by Elon Musk), Google and Facebook. The latest version of OpenAI’s Generative Pre-trained Transformer (GPT-3), an autoregressive language model that uses deep learning to produce human-like text, has not been released for public use as it is deemed unsafe. The quality of the text it produces is frequently indistinguishable from human writing, posing risks that outweigh the benefits. In the wrong hands it could be used to impersonate users communicating online for criminal gain.

Rikus acknowledges the fear of computers replacing us in the workplace, along with its social and economic complexities. However, as a result of AI becoming more pervasive, products and services will become affordable to people who do not currently have access to them. This includes critical services like healthcare and education. So the shrinking job market may be offset by a decreased need to earn as much as we do now. This is a generalisation but the idea is that if all goes well, AI could actually serve us whilst tasks that require a personal touch will remain in our hands.

Rikus speaks of an online backlash against freebie-based advertising, adding that Google is in the process of eliminating third-party cookies in favour of less invasive ways to gather browsing statistics across large groups. People simply won’t stand for surreptitious and unsolicited marketing practices for much longer. Although lack of privacy is mainly a threat to those who have something to hide, there are also security issues at play. As time passes and technology matures our concerns will hopefully be better addressed. In Rikus’s opinion we are already cyborgs as information technology is seamlessly integral to our daily functioning.

For more thought pieces by Dimitri, please visit www.dimitriotis.com.

If you are looking for a trusted solution to help your organisation orchestrate and analyse your data, mitigate risks, increase productivity, improve efficiencies and increase your bottom line results, reach out to us by emailing get in touch and one of experts will get in touch to schedule a demo and discuss a tailor-made solution.

The post Machine Learning appeared first on Affectli.

Leading international IoT service provider works with Percona for industry-leading support and service for PostgreSQL

Raleigh, NC:  Percona, a leader in open source database software and services, today announced that Mi-C3, a specialist in digital transformation solutions and real-time data management, has signed with Percona for Support and Consulting Services around its critical PostgreSQL databases in their flagship product, Affectli. 

Mi-C3 implements and manages a powerful Business Operating System and digital transformation solution for organisations looking to own their data, improve risk management, increase innovation, improve efficiencies and make meaningful data-driven decisions through its unique ability to orchestrate disparate systems seamlessly into a single real-time overview of the organisation.

They support a range of industries within highly complex environments, including oil and gas, transport and logistics, telecommunications, mining, park management and conservation. Mi-C3 is the creator of Affectli, which combines Internet of Things (IoT) edge devices, big data analytics, process automation, AI and contextual collaboration to enable organisations to manage their entities and processes in one workplace and make them more effective. 

This partnership allows Mi-C3 to take advantage of Percona’s team of open source database experts, who have years of experience providing unbiased open source database advice, solutions and best practices. 

Martin James, Vice President EMEA at Percona said: “When you are dealing with complex systems implementations and real time data, you need the utmost performance and reliability. PostgreSQL is an obvious choice for this scenario and Percona’s team of PostgreSQL experts are well placed to help Mi-C3 make the most of this database technology. Percona helps enterprises successfully utilise open source PostgreSQL to get the most out of their applications and reach their business goals.”

Glen Scott, Founder & CEO at Mi-C3 said: “Affectli is a trusted, mission critical platform for our customers.  With our SOC2 examination with a Type 2 report, and ISO certification, we continuously strive to provide world-class features, tools and services that exceed our client’s expectations on all levels.

Working with Percona, we now have increased Enterprise Support access for our critical PostgreSQL database instances so we can ensure we meet our customers’ needs around availability, reliability and performance.”

Working with Percona

Percona helps companies maximise application performance and achieve a high ROI, by ensuring their open source databases achieve high performance levels regardless of the architecture on which it is built, and where it is deployed. 

Percona Support provides comprehensive, responsive, and cost-effective database support 24 hours a day. Percona Consulting ensures your database is fully optimised to ensure the best possible performance for your business-critical applications and websites.

Percona employs a global network of experts and has helped more than 3,000 customers, including Cisco, Adobe, Intel and Netflix, make the most of their open source databases. 

Links

• Percona Distribution for PostgreSQL – https://www.percona.com/software/postgresql-distribution 
• Percona PostgreSQL Support – https://www.percona.com/services/support/postgresql-support
• Percona Consulting – https://www.percona.com/services/consulting
• Mi-C3 International – https://mi-c3.com/ 
• AFFECTLI –  https://www.affectli.com/

Company Information

Press Contacts
Declan Proudfoot
onebite for Percona

percona@onebite.co.uk

About Percona

With more than 3,000 customers worldwide, Percona is the only company that delivers enterprise-class solutions for MySQL®, MariaDB®, MongoDB® and PostgreSQL across traditional and cloud-based platforms. The company provides Software, Support, Consulting, and Managed Services to large, well-known global brands such as Cisco Systems, Time Warner Cable, Alcatel-Lucent, Rent the Runway and the BBC, as well as smaller enterprises looking to maximise application performance while streamlining database efficiencies. Well established as thought leaders, Percona experts author content for the Percona Database Performance Blog, and the Percona Live Open Source Database Conferences draw attendees and expert technical speakers from around the world. For more information, visit www.percona.com.

About Mi-C3 International

Generations of the Mi-C3 software started as a project in the early 2000’s as a solution to support a large oil and gas company operating across multiple countries to help manage its complex operation and considerable security risk spread over a wide and poorly accessible geographical area before the Internet of Things (IoT) was widely understood, and has subsequently grown to over 30,000 sites, and monitoring more than 1 million end points.

Over the years, this solution has evolved into our award winning* flagship product, AFFECTLI, and has delivered significant value to clients through the use of a combination of cutting-edge technologies in the fields of Digital Process Transformation, smart workspaces, AI, machine learning, data management and analytics.

For more information, visit www.affectli.com.

* AFFECTLI – Winner: Malta MCA eBusiness Award for Best B2B Application 2018; Shortlisted: World Summit Awards 2018 – Business & Commerce category; 

ISO 9001:2015; ISO/IEC 20000:2011; ISO/IEC 27001_2013 and SOC 2 Examined (with a Type 2 Report) .

###

Percona® is a registered trademark of Percona LLC. All other registered and unregistered trademarks in this document are the sole property of their respective owners.

The post Mi-C3 & Persona Collaborate appeared first on Affectli.

At Mi-C3 International, we place the trust of our Customer at the center of everything we do. That includes understanding the confidential and sensitive nature of our Customer’s data, coupled with our ongoing commitment to delivering a world-class customer experience through our flagship product AFFECTLI that is driven by trust, integrity, and the highest security standards.

Over and above being ISO Certified*, we have always advocated for security and organisations owning their own data – and are pleased to announce that we have recently completed our SOC 2 examination – providing further reassurance to our customers of our ongoing commitment to ensuring that their data is managed in a controlled and audited environment.

SOC 2® is a component of the American Institute of CPAs (AICPA)’s Service Organization Control reporting platform that audits and monitors a complex set of requirements that must be reviewed and carefully addressed by SaaS technology-based organisations. It involves a technical audit to ensure that comprehensive information security policies and procedures are written and followed and forms a crucial framework for technology companies in ensuring the security, availability, processing, integrity and confidentiality of Customer’s data.

The benefits and assurances that SOC 2® examinations gives our AFFECTLI clients is a guarantee that substantial processes and practices have been put in place to secure client data. Adhering to SOC 2® involves methodical Risk and Change Management that demands granular activity into user activity, processes, network connections and more. Real-time alerts are set up to notify us of any unauthorised access to our Client’s data, giving us a full audit trail and the ability to respond and take timely, corrective action. In particular, alerts are set up to monitor exposure or modification of data, controls & configurations; file transfer activities; and privileged filesystem, account or login access.

With the ability to go directly to the source, we are able to pinpoint where a possible risk originated, where it travelled to, what part of the system was impacted, the nature of the impact, establish what the next move might be, then work diligently to mitigate the impact and implement correct measures to prevent a repeat of similar events in the future.

ABOUT AFFECTLI

AFFECTLI is a trusted and an incredibly powerful, versatile, intelligent Business Operating System toolbox that allows you to own your data, and orchestrate everything within an organisation.

This Digital Transformation solution is suitable for ANY organisation looking to improve risk management, increase innovation, and make meaningful data-driven decisions.

It has been successfully proven at scale geographically; as well as within a number of complex industries and challenging operational environments.

AFFECTLI has a unique combination of fully integrated features that enables businesses to orchestrate & harness the power of their data that generates efficiencies which result in a rapid Return On Investment.

* ISO CERTIFICATIONS: ISO 9001:2015;  EN ISO/IEC 27001_2013 and ISO/IEC 20000-1:2011

The post Announcing SOC 2®, Type 2 Examination & Report Obtained appeared first on Affectli.

An illustration of an Affectli Digital Twin of a remotely located Cellular Tower Site.

To illustrate the effectiveness of Digital Twin technology within the Affectli platform, Mi-C3 has a client who is a Cellular Tower owner that has sites situated in remote, outlying areas.

They were running their entire site management system manually through a variety of apps, and using computerised aids such as excel spreadsheets to log data and report information. These documents were then sent via email to all parties concerned alongside instructions to review, analyse and action respective tasks.

Their systems resulted in inaccurate reporting, overloaded servers and difficulty managing, tracking and monitoring people, processes and equipment in their remote locations, and as a result, sought out an effective Digital Transformation strategy to ensure that tower communications sites were fully functional in order to meet their Mean Time to Repair and Service Delivery that is benchmarked and managed against a stringent SLA. The end result was zero no-fuel days and a reduced MTTR from 4 hours to 2 hours.

By bringing all the signal devices together, we were able to create a Digital Twin within the Affectli platform that provided the client with critical information relating to their operation in real-time. This presented the client with extensive capabilities, including (and not limited to) the ability to:

• Remotely view their operation in real-time;
• Access critical information with the ease of clicking a button;
• Accurately track, trace, monitor and maintain assets;
• Manage access to the site;
• Monitor abnormalities & breaches, including the ability to view CCTV camera feeds remotely, and using the Situational Awareness feature to identify the nearest (relevant) personnel, they have the ability to immediately dispatch them to monitor/investigate/action an identified problem.

An illustration of an Affectli Digital Twin that is drillable into granular detail.

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