The latest reports from Yahoo indicate that it plans to spin off its core business and leave little else behind, while allowing Yahoo shareholders to keep their stake in Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba. Yahoo’s most recent move underscores the profound changes the internet environment has underwent and how Yahoo failed to adjust to change. Why does this all matter? Entrepreneurs can learn a valuable lesson from Yahoo’s inability to reinvent itself in the smartphone age.

For many people in the mid-1990s, Yahoo was the hub of the internet. After all, who didn’t have a Yahoo email address that we’re now too embarrassed to disclose the name of? (I’m sure a support group exists for all of us out there!)  Fast forward twenty years later and the internet environment is almost unrecognizable when compared to Yahoo’s heyday. Since then, it has been overshadowed by internet companies (Google, Facebook, Amazon, etc.) better able to keep pace with the times.

Taking a Reactive vs. Proactive Approach to Change. Yahoo wasn’t turning a blind eye to the obvious changes the internet was experiencing. Google and Amazon rose to prominence during the same dot-com boom as Yahoo, yet they now look radically different. Whereas Yahoo focused on its core business and tried to reactively adapt it to the change, other internet companies forged ahead into uncharted territory: Google took a proactive approach and expanded past search, building successful smartphone software, email and word processing services, and the very popular browser, Google Chrome. Amazon, not satisfied with being the largest e-retailer in the world, became a streaming video/music provider and a provider of global internet infrastructure that other businesses pay to utilize.

The lesson being that failure to innovate and keep up with the changing times can humble even the largest of companies. While Yahoo concentrated on its core business, these other companies were pioneering new services and products. Google, Amazon, and Facebook have all taken a proactive approach to the rapid pace of online change, in part because they have been helping drive that change themselves by constantly innovating.

Talley & Company understands the challenges facing entrepreneurs with generating and protecting income. Whether you’re looking to improve your profitability, build your brand through a business transaction, or wish to guarantee a legacy for your family, Talley & Company is the consulting and financial services firm dedicated to strategic business solutions that deliver meaningful results.

The FBI and Justice Department are investigating whether or not officials associated with the St. Louis Cardinals gained unauthorized access to networks belonging to the Houston Astros, a rival baseball team. If the accusations hold true it would represent the first known case of corporate espionage through network hacking between professional sports teams, according to The New York Times. And it all happened because of poor password practices.

The cardinal rule of passwords: They should be unique, secret, and changed often. It appears Mr. Luhnow ignored these principles and simply reused the network passwords he used at the Cardinals for his new program at the Astros.

The Cardinals’ front office might have used Luhnow’s old Cardinals network password to access the Astros’ network after Luhnow’s departure. Through this access, the Cardinals could have obtained valuable inside information about the players the Astros are looking to recruit, potential offers and opened doors to poach desirable recruits with counteroffers — potentially changing the course of the season.

Most people associate cyber espionage or data breaches as a complex endeavor involving malware, Trojans, phishing attacks and teams of hackers that target “big business” and the government. That misconception is the result of the media’s focus on high-profile data breaches involving large corporations and government organizations, but the truth is that it is a larger problem that affects all organizations, both large and small.

Many small and mid-sized organizations have a limited understanding of the complex digital environments they’re dealing with and the repercussions of not properly protecting themselves against online threats: Cybercrime costs businesses $445,000,000,000 each year, with most of the damage done in the aftermath of an attack. Potential fines, loss of revenue, and hiring people to fix security issues can have a serious impact on a company’s bottom line, especially given the fact it takes an average of 32 days to resolve a single cyber-crime incident.

It’s critical that organizations recognize the importance of both the technical and human elements in establishing security solutions, procedures and policies, regardless of industry or size. To find out more about how Talley & Company has helped its clients with technology solutions that secure, protect, and enhance their businesses, give us a call today.

November 14, 2014

5 Tech Time-Savers to Consider Using in Your Business

Where has the time gone, seriously? The holiday season is right around the corner (unless you’ve stepped foot into a department store, then it has been here since early September). No matter how hard you try to fight against it, attending holiday parties, performing your annual reviews, and drinking eggnog will keep your schedule filled to the brim. So what tech solutions are you leveraging to help you be more productive with the time you do have this holiday season? When time is money, tech solutions can bring in a lot more of both. See how these five options might enhance the day-to-day operations of your business.

Virtual Meeting Tools – Nothing beats a face-to-face meeting when it comes to cementing a business partnership or getting a deal done. But with the use of virtual communication tools like Skype and GoToMeeting, business leaders can spend finite resources on in-person meetings in ways that provide the greatest return. For example, web conferences can be used to present preliminary proposals and, based on initial feedback, be modified for a later in-person presentation to clients in refined form.

Bookkeeping Applications – With so many viable and cost-effective accounting applications for small businesses, no one should be manually tracking income and expenses across multiple tables, spreadsheets and systems. Software and cloud-based options allow business decision-makers to create and track professional invoices, see payments and outstanding balances at a glance, enter bills and print checks, and reconcile for tax purposes.

Online Timesheet and Payroll Services – Online time-tracking solutions make it easy for employees to submit timesheets (and managers to approve them) from anywhere and everywhere. To choose the right system for your business, think about the ways different employees would use it and where their data will need to go, from payroll to billing to reporting. If you have an existing accounting program like QuickBooks in place, a payroll solution that syncs data and issues paychecks to employees can be a great option.

Social Media Tools – It’s a full-time job creating a strategy for a business’s social media presence, selecting the channels that best suit outlined goals, and then implementing a plan of action. Programs like Buffer and HootSuite help connect accounts so businesses can plan, schedule and post to multiple outlets at one time. Leaders can set up a schedule for sharing content based on the best time for it to be released. Plus, you get the chance to see comparative analytics that can improve future planning.

Customer Service Support – With tech applications like Desk.com and Zendesk, a business can be small but still have a big customer service presence. Help desk solutions can increase the number of positive interactions customers have with you company, improve their opinions of your brand, and raise their intent to purchase from your business. Support staff can field inquiries from email, phone calls, live chat or social media using one main system, giving customers the chance to choose their preferred form of interaction.

If bookkeeping, timesheet or payroll technologies are on your list of productivity tools to investigate, Talley & Company can provide you with important points to consider when choosing the right tool for your business. Contact us and we’ll be glad to assist.