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Project management is both a skill and a profession. IT is the art and science of selecting correct and effective tools for the project at hand, whether it may be a software project, construction project management, or sending a man to the moon. As a profession, it is interesting, challenging, and the prospects are bright.

The Project Management Institute is the main source concerning standards and techniques in the IT field. IT is also the main certifying body for professionals in project management, and is the clearinghouse for training programs and information in the field.

PMI publishes the ‘bible’ of project management, which is known as PMBOK, and it is the number one most important reference for all project management professionals, and you are likely to find it in the hands of any manager or executive of any company also. This project management ‘bible’ is regularly updated with the latest in methodology, ethics, standards, and technologies of project management.

IT professionals concentrating in project management, should have real world experience with the processes/problems and software/hardware issues peculiar to IT. Besides PMBOK, specialized training may also be required. Software design projects entail many specific differences, but the basics will apply to any enterprise, whether building a shopping mall or opening a new fast food chain.

In its simplest terms, project management defines a project’s goals, scope, and time by identifying the components of each process and assessing risk at each step. Project managers need to make out a budget and a schedule, ensure availability of personnel and resources, write up contracts with external suppliers, manage risks, know the relevant laws and regulations, and take care of any other details required for a project’s successful completion. During the project, the manager must issue periodic progress reports and correct any problems that arise. A final evaluation is made at the project’s end.

Luckily, today’s project management software has made the entire process of beginning and executing projects much easier, even incorporating specialized programs for certain industries. One upside to a certified and qualified project manager is the assistance a company receives in buying and using the optimum management software for specific needs. Project management is a profitable career choice for someone selecting their life’s direction or for those itching for a change. There is a far greater need for project managers than there is a supply of them.

The business skill and profession of project management has never been more important or more interesting to owner and career seekers as well. Project management is the science of getting things done efficiently and correctly and applies to areas such as IT project management, construction project management, sales project management and nearly any other venture you can name. The Project Management Institute is the main source concerning standards and techniques in the IT field. IT is also the main certifying body for professionals in project management, and is the clearinghouse for training programs and information in the field.

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Filed under: Management

Employee incentive programs are rewards programs in effect inside workplaces that are designed to inspire employees to exert more effort and to provide the assurance that exemplary performance in the workplace always is noticed and rewarded. The need to be motivated using positive reinforcement is one of the many reasons why incentive programs benefiting employees are created.

An incentive program gives employees something to look forward to after a week or a month worth of stress and hard work. However, the reward is only given to the best, and sometimes there can only be one winner. The most common criteria used to base employees during the competition period include their number of absences or tardiness, total volume of sales or if they consistently reach their quota, professionalism, office cleanliness and courtesy.

Employee incentive programs may come in different types and forms, depending on the amount of resources the company can provide for this specific internal business strategy. Other companies reward their consistently good and over-achieving employees with incentives like cash bonuses, gifts, paid trips, meal stubs or simple gifts like coffee mugs, shirts, pens and other items.

The programs are planned by the company’s Human Resources department, with the help of some key operations and management personnel. They consider different schemes and modes to determine what strategy would best suit the company. In some cases, management allows their employees to submit suggestions on how the incentive program should be handled. This fosters a friendly atmosphere between the top brass and employees, to make the office a less stressful place to work in.

Money is one of the common forms of employee incentives, although non-monetary rewards and incentives given to an employee or to a group or team are also appreciated. These can be in the form of group activities such as dinners or even group billiards, poker or bowling night or activities that are sometimes an all-expense paid event courtesy of the company management.

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Filed under: Business

Flixya 2.0 is a relaunch of a very popular social networking, online video sharing, blogging, photo hosting and blogging community. This version is bigger and better. Flixya’s motto is simply “share everything”, right down to the revenue which they give back 100% of to you. (You do need to sign up for your own account for the revenue sharing).

Flixya billing itself as the only social-networking website that pays you back 100% of the advertising revenue generated on their site from the ads placed around the content that you add. You can creat your own blogs, upload your photos, and create blogs about your life.

Does Flixya Cost Me Anything To Use?

Nothing, it’s free.

What Is This Revenue Share Thing?

With Flixya, the users receive 100% of the ad revenue generated from the ad impressions that are shown on the pages with their content (photos, videos, blogs etc.). Google’s Adsense(tm) powers the ad program at Flixya and does require you to sign up- to be able to collect the ad revenue, during registration. You can also do this on the ad settings page which is visible when you are logged into the site.

How Do I Get Paid?

Simple, You are paid whenever someone visiting your pages clicks on one of Google’s Adsense(tm) advertisements.

Sharing Videos, What Does That Mean?

Flixya allows you to upload or share your videos from Google Video, YouTube, Daily Motion, and other popular online video sharing sites. They’ve recently released Flixya Video Publisher 2.0a for FireFox. This add-on is a great tool for transferring your videos from YouTube, Metacafe, Revver, Livevideo, Bolt, Veoh, Google Video, Daily Motion and Break. Using this tool can become highly addictive. Popular videos can also be voted up or down and appear on the homepage based on this voting.

Share Your Photos For Free?

Flixya also allows you to share your photos with your family or friends and even offers unlimited free image hosting for posting your photos on Ebay and Craigslist.

Personal Profile

Flixya allows you to create your own personal profile where you can link to and share your personal interests, friends, videos, photos and blog posts.

Do They Host Blogs?

Yep, you are allowed to create your own blog. A blog is short for “weblog” and it’s a type of personal chronological or online diary of your personal thoughts. Usually these are added to daily by you and they reflect your personality. They let you make your own blogs where you can add content and promote yourself or something else and you get to keep 100% of the money that comes from the ads surrounding your blogs.

Social Bookmarking, Too?

As you can see, Flixya has it pretty well covered, much more than I can write about here.

There is much more to do at Flixya than I can cover here.

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Filed under: Internet Business

Further Your Education With A Distance Learning Degree

There comes a point in some people’s lives where they feel a need to supplement their education, either to further their current career or to move into a completely new field all together. But the rigors of daily life can sometimes leave little time for luxuries such as a re-discovery of higher education. Many people opt for a distance learning degree, which allows them to get their education in a virtual classroom setting on the Internet. But there are a large number of people that do not look at a distance learning degree as a true college education and they avoid getting involved in the distance learning all together. Back in the early days of at home higher education, correspondence courses were suspect at best and they gathered a well deserved bad reputation. But the distance learning degree you can get today is a far cry from that old correspondence course and that has a lot to do with the institutions involved. Now instead of just getting a distance learning degree you can get a distance learning college degree which would stand up in almost any setting be it professional or personal. A distance learning degree has come a long way and those looking to further their education may want to look into the new players in this industry.

As with most private companies many universities have found it not only convenient but a necessity to have a strong Internet presence for their school. They can get many of the administrative functions done on the Internet that used to take days and weeks to do in person. But many colleges have gone that extra step and have begun to include the option of getting a distance learning degree from their university. Now instead of shady correspondence schools asking you to take their suspect courses you have trusted universities offering you a distance learning degree and many people are seeing the difference.

It Is Almost As Good As Being There

The Internet allows real time access to class work and in class tests that the old correspondence courses did not offer. Now trusted universities can offer distance learning degree class work in a setting that is almost as respectable as being in the actual classroom. No longer can students take days and weeks to do tests, now they must do them in real time or face the possibility of failing. It is much more like a real classroom setting.

With the Internet comes an increased ability to access information and services. You should check in on what the universities are offering today and see if you may want to supplement your education.

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Filed under: Careers

When the first generation of women entered the workforce in earnest in the 1970s, they succeeded in the only way they could – by imitating men. Authoritarian leadership and tight control was the hallmark of that day’s businessman, and women were not exactly welcomed into the ranks of management. Well ladies, that was yesterday, and today is today!

Forget what your mama or your boss told you, because following the rules can be bad for your career. Today’s CEO/entrepreneur can no longer tap his/her company’s full potential using a “command-and-control” style. The 21st century business woman needs to be able to build a vision based on the awareness of economic transformation, then help her partners and staff fulfill that vision. She must draw on a wide range of skills to get to the top and stay there. Following are 7 Key Characteristics that are essential:

1. Sell the Vision: A leader with a fresh, independent plan for her company’s growth and future has a distinct advantage in luring and keeping great talent and investors. Vision is not some lofty ideal, but an obtainable concept that is easy to understand and will make the company grow to another level.

2. Reinvent the Rules: While women have traditionally been socialized to please others, the 21st century leader knows that good girls rarely post great returns. The strong managers/owners today not only anticipate change, they create entirely new organizations that respond to shifts and search for innovation.

3. Achieve With A Laser Focus: Go where others fear to tread! Being aggressive and ambitious has long been considered male traits, but they are key qualities for new leaders. Today’s business woman has the ability to home in on opportunities that others may simply not see, and then excel in that uncharted territory.

4. Use High-Touch in a High-Tech Era: When a number of leaders are conducting business by e-mail, voice mail, passwords, and PINs, the female entrepreneur succeeds because she guides with a strong, personal, bed-side manner. Today’s business woman is just as technologically savvy as her peers, but her skill with staff and customers is “high-touch” which gives her a critical edge and separation from the “pack”.

5. Challenge or Opportunity? – Women are great at turning a challenge into an opportunity instead of using the “slash-and-burn” approach. They are able to make bold strokes, but they also win the cooperation of others in the organization in making any transformation a success.

6. A Customer Preference Obsession: In this information age which makes it easier to shop around for the best “whatever”, businesses must work harder to give people what they want before their competitors do. There is no substitute for spending time with clients to become expert at their businesses and learn their demands. Female leaders are almost intuitively adept in doing just that, and without the client even suspecting.

7. Courage Under Fire: Show me any career woman or female entrepreneur today that isn’t able to “stand-the-heat” in any tough-call situation. Their decision-making skills are rooted in a high level of confidence, because they’ve had to weather and surpass any and all “corporate” storms they’ve encountered over time.

It takes a certain mind-set and bravado for anyone to start their own business and succeed, but it’s even more difficult for a female entrepreneur. Let’s face it, ladies! We’ve always had to be twice-as-smart and twice-as-confident as any male counterpart in the corporate world. After all, if we can bear and raise the future generation, how can running a successful business scare us?

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Filed under: Ecommerce