Tech Republic

On June 28 2023, Microsoft and LinkedIn launched the AI Skills Initiative certificate program, a library of free videos for professionals who are beginners in generative AI. The program aims to teach participants how to apply generative AI to their work. As of December 2024, Microsoft expanded its library to form the AI Skills Navigator portal. What are the Career Essentials in Generative AI program by Microsoft and LinkedIn? The Microsoft AI Skills Initiative, developed with LinkedIn, consists of five modules. Every module includes a video, and some are supplemented with quizzes, a workbook file, or both. Completing all five modules gives the learner a Professional Certificate in Generative AI to display on LinkedIn Learning. The content presented in the AI Skills Initiative certification skews toward Microsoft’s Copilot instead of its major rival, Google’s Gemini. The Professional Certificate on Generative AI training will be available in English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, German, Simplified Chinese, and Japanese and will be free through 2025. SEE: Learn how generative AI is transforming cloud security. (TechRepublic) “We have the opportunity to provide foundational information to everyone, everywhere, to help us all stay ahead of the skills gaps and harness its creativity to retrieve helpful information,” said Naria Santa Lucia, general manager of digital inclusion at Microsoft, in an email to TechRepublic. “As we are learning, the technology is learning from us, too, and we have the power to shape how the technology can best support us.” SEE: 2024 was the year of agentic AI. The LinkedIn training course is part of Microsoft’s Skills for Jobs program, which includes a training module for teachers, trainers, and facilitators exploring artificial intelligence. Note that some of the material focuses on Microsoft Azure and Azure OpenAI. More must-read AI coverage Generative AI skills are among companies’ top three training priorities More than 75% of companies plan to adopt AI in the next five years, according to the World Economic Forum. Training employees to use AI and big data is the third-highest company skills-training priority companies plan to focus on over this period, as highlighted in the WEF Future of Jobs 2023 report. That statistic includes generative AI and related technologies, such as machine learning, which fall under the same umbrella. The importance of AI in the workplace is further underscored by Microsoft’s May 2024 Work Trend Index, which found that 75% of knowledge workers use AI at work. However, 53% of people surveyed who use AI at work worry that using it makes them look replaceable. Additionally, some workers (45%) are still concerned they will lose their jobs to AI. On the other hand, a proportionate number of hiring leaders (55%) say they’re concerned about not having enough talent to fill roles in 2025. In last year’s Work Trend Index, 49% of people were concerned about AI making their jobs obsolete.  At the same time, 70% are open to the possibility of delegating some tasks to AI to reduce their workloads. To address these challenges and opportunities, Microsoft proposes upskilling in AI to remediate imbalances. One element of skills training somewhat unique to generative AI is the practice of prompt engineering. “Unlike other enterprise software, generative AI tools require the user to train the tool itself,” said Shravan Goli, chief operating officer at Coursera, in an email to TechRepublic in 2023. “Without good prompts, the tool won’t be able to help employees boost productivity in a meaningful way, and increasing productivity is one of the most promising components of generative AI for workers today.” SEE: Download this customizable prompt engineer hiring kit from TechRepublic Premium. He also noted that generative AI skills training requires ethical oversight, which Coursera considers in its own free training modules. “As with any emerging technology, society is still navigating its broader implications and managing guardrails,” Goli said. “In order to leverage this incredibly powerful tool while still ensuring responsible use by employees, I believe organizations need to carefully outline ethical guidelines.” Note: This story was originally published in 2023 and updated for 2024. source

Payments trends in 2024 and beyond are largely impacted by technology and the state of the economy. We’re seeing a decline in discretionary spending, and an increase in the number of ways consumers like to make payments. Plus, AI and biometrics are also impacting payment security and fraud prevention. Below, I’ll walk you through a few digital payment trends​ to watch as you prepare your business for the future of payment processing. 1. Diversified payment methods One of the more well-known global payment trends​ is payment method diversity. There are so many ways to make payments these days. I can choose cash, card, mobile app, QR code, tap to pay, buy now and pay later (BNPL), or even cryptocurrency. According to a survey by Square, preferences are pretty widespread across the board. While 58% of consumers still use cash, 57% prefer mobile wallets, and 53% use QR code payments. Another 44% use traditional credit and debit cards, 44% use touchless card payments, and 43% use BNPL. BNPL is particularly notable, as it’s now being adopted in more industry verticals than before. Groceries, for example, may be available for purchase via BNPL. In fact, BNPL grocery purchases increased by 40% between 2023 and 2024, according to Deloitte. This is a direct response to the current economic and political climate, which is causing a decrease in discretionary spending. The list of payment options will only continue to grow as the economy moves further away from cash and check and towards innovative payment methods like NFC or biometric payments. This also means considering options like subscriptions, cryptocurrency, saved payments, bill splitting, peer-to-peer (P2P), and gift cards. Here’s another interesting stat from Deloitte: 70% of consumers say their store choice is highly influenced by whether or not the store offers their preferred payment method. It is therefore important for businesses to keep up. Related: Best crypto payment gateways Cash vs cashless Today’s consumers like convenience and options. I remember when it was just a cash or credit world—now, consumers can choose to pay for their purchases in many ways. However, according to data from Square, about 58% of shoppers still prefer cash. In fact, some trends are even indicating a move back to cash and away from digitization. So, there’s really no clear winner in a cash vs. cashless debate. The real answer for businesses is to create ways to allow customers to pay with or without cash. Related: What is a cashless society? From speculation to near-reality Mobile payments and digital wallets Mobile payments and digital wallets—like Apple Pay and Google Pay—are another payment trend that has been around for a while but continues to impact businesses everywhere, especially as this technology evolves. Per Deloitte, 57% of consumers prefer to pay with mobile wallet apps. Digital wallets actually made up 37% of transaction value for e-commerce payments and 15% of POS payments in North America in 2023. Contactless pay can also fall under the category of mobile payments. Mobile payments involve the use of NFC technology so a customer can hold up their phone or smartwatch to the reader rather than having to insert a chip or swipe a card. The contactless payment market is also expected to see major growth—at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 113% through 2029, according to Juniper Research. Related: Top mobile payment methods Crypto payments Cryptocurrency payments skyrocketed in popularity when they were first introduced. The trend did lose some steam partly due to regulatory challenges, currency volatility, susceptibility to fraud, and low confidence in the currency’s viability over the long term, perhaps thanks to the FTX scandal and collapse. With this doubt, the crypto payments market is only forecasted to grow at a CAGR of 17% through 2029. However, since Donald Trump’s re-election, crypto and bitcoin have seen a resurgence of popularity in the United States. 2. Biometrics features Biometric payments are experiencing a surge in growth, with forecasts to grow at a CAGR of 113.6% from 2024 through 2028, per Juniper Research. Some forecasts even say it will be the norm within the next decade. These payments incorporate biometric technology—usually in the form of fingerprint or facial recognition—to improve both data privacy and transaction convenience. Security is a top concern for businesses, both themselves and their customers. This is especially important when it comes to payments—there’s lots of sensitive information going around, so businesses are always looking for ways to tighten things up from a security perspective. Biometric payments are another layer of security that can help accomplish this. Not only does biometric authentication help boost security, but it also makes login and connection more efficient. I can’t tell you how many passwords I have to remember—if I can use my fingerprint or my face to authenticate something instead, that’s one less password I have to keep track of. And remember, shoppers love efficiency and convenience. 3. AI to facilitate and fight fraud Fraud is always a threat to businesses and consumers. According to Avidchange’s B2B Payment Security report, more than three-quarters of businesses have experienced payment fraud in the past year alone. Speaking of security, AI is another payment trend to watch. And this can work in businesses’ favor or, in a worst-case scenario, fraudsters’ favor. Globalpayments reports that as many as 43% of businesses have plans to employ AI technology to help with fraud detection. While AI is an amazing tool to detect fraudulent transactions and add a layer of security, it also makes the work of a hacker much more accessible. Rather than manually decoding payment information, hackers can tap into AI technology to make it easier to accomplish their tasks. In fact, Deloitte actually predicts that AI could enable losses to fraud of up to $40 billion by 2027. So, it’s important to use payment technology that integrates the latest and most advanced security features. 4. Instant payments While consumers love the convenience of being able to pay with anything other than cash, this has also added to delays

Relay Provider is a fintech platform, not a bank. It provides FDIC insurance and deposit services through a partnership with Thread Bank.  Business Checking is an online banking solution designed to streamline financial management for small businesses. With no monthly fees and robust tools for account organization, budgeting, and integrations, Relay has built a reputation among modern business owners looking for an efficient way to manage finances without a traditional bank. Relay’s fast facts Our rating: 4.7 out of 5 Starting price: Free (no monthly fees or minimum balance requirements) Key features: No fees for basic services. Free access to multiple business accounts. Customizable budgets and sub-accounts. Integrations with QuickBooks, Xero, and more. Image: Relay Relay aims to simplify business banking by focusing on digital tools and integrations with accounting platforms. Unlike traditional banks, Relay operates entirely online, providing features that support remote financial management, a major benefit for small businesses and freelancers. Business owners can set up multiple checking accounts for budgeting and have complete control over spending with built-in expense categorization and detailed financial tracking. Relay reviews: What users are saying 4.75/5 Users often highlight Relay’s transparency in pricing, ease of setup, and the convenience of creating separate accounts for budgeting. Freelancers, startups, and small businesses with limited cash deposits find it particularly suitable since Relay eliminates common fees associated with traditional banks. TrustPilot: 4.7/5 stars. G2: 4.6/5 stars. Nerdwallet: 4.5/5 stars. While most users appreciate Relay’s digital-first approach, a few drawbacks have been noted, such as the absence of cash deposit options and limited physical branches, however, for online-based businesses or those that don’t rely heavily on cash, Relay is highly recommended. Relay’s pricing structure 4.9/5 Relay’s standout pricing model is fee-free. It provides a completely free business checking account without hidden costs, monthly maintenance fees, or minimum balance requirements. This makes Relay appealing for startups, freelancers, and small businesses looking to maximize savings and minimize banking expenses. No monthly fees: Completely free account setup and maintenance. Unlimited ACH transfers: No fees for transfers between accounts. Access to digital tools: Users can open up to 20 checking accounts for free. Built-in financial tracking: Categorize transactions and manage expenses easily. Relay also provides access to banking features such as ACH transfers, multiple sub-accounts, and tools for budgeting, allowing business owners to manage cash flow without additional costs. For businesses seeking faster ACH and outgoing wires, the ability to auto import bills from QuickBooks Online or Xero, and multi-step approval rules for bill payment, Relay offers an upgraded account — Relay Pro — starting at $30/month. Relay’s key features 4.9/5 Relay stands out for its user-centric approach and flexible features tailored to business owners looking to streamline their banking. Here’s a deeper look at what Relay offers: 1. Budgeting and sub-accounts Relay allows users to set up multiple checking accounts under a single business entity, providing flexibility in budgeting and managing different expense categories. With up to 20 free sub-accounts, business owners can organize funds for specific purposes, such as payroll, taxes, and operational expenses, all in one place. 2. Accounting integrations Relay integrates smoothly with popular accounting software like QuickBooks, Xero, and Gusto, allowing users to sync transaction data automatically. This integration helps with real-time financial tracking, seamless bookkeeping, and more accurate tax reporting. 3. Expense management tools Relay’s account features offer built-in tools for tracking expenses and managing team spending. Users can issue individual debit cards with customizable spending limits, enabling better control over business expenditures. 4. No monthly fees or minimum balance requirements One of Relay’s main selling points is its truly fee-free structure. Businesses can avoid monthly maintenance fees, minimum balance requirements, and charges for basic services, making it an ideal choice for small companies looking to save on banking costs. 5. Secure online banking platform Relay operates exclusively online but is FDIC-insured through its banking partners. It utilizes robust security measures, including two-factor authentication and advanced encryption, ensuring business funds are protected. Would our expert use Relay? 5.00/5 Relay suits small business owners, startups, and freelancers who value digital banking and do not require cash deposits or in-person branch services. Its no-fee structure and integrations with leading accounting tools make it a practical choice for those looking to manage finances efficiently without incurring high fees. Our expert’s opinion: Relay’s free, versatile features are great for small businesses or entrepreneurs who want a modern, tech-savvy banking solution. However, for businesses that rely on cash deposits or physical branch interactions, a more traditional bank may be more suitable. Relay’s pros No fees: Truly free banking with no monthly or hidden charges. Multiple checking accounts: Up to 20 sub-accounts for budgeting flexibility. Seamless integrations: Syncs with QuickBooks, Xero, and Gusto for streamlined finances. Expense tracking tools: Manage team spending with individual debit cards. Relay’s cons No cash deposits: Relay does not support cash deposits. No physical branches: Relay operates entirely online. Limited support options: Mostly online support, with no phone service. No lending options: Relay does not offer business loans. Alternatives to Relay If Relay Business Checking doesn’t fit all your needs, here are some alternatives to consider with similar online bank offerings: Bluevine Business Checking Chase Complete Business Checking Novo Business Checking Starting price Free $15/month (waivable) Free Key features 1.5% APY on balances up to $250,000 Free ACH transfers Business line of credit available Nationwide branch network Same-day deposits Mobile payment tools Integrated tax tools Fee-free overdrafts up to $200 Real-time expense tracking Key distinctions Offers interest on deposits Extensive in-person support Fee-free overdrafts Learn more Visit Bluevine Bluevine is a financial technology company, not a bank.Bluevine deposits are FDIC-insured through Coastal Community Bank, Member FDIC. Visit Chase Visit Novo Novo is a fintech company; not a bank. Deposit account services provided by Middlesex Federal Savings, F.A., Member FDIC. Methodology To create this review, we analyzed Relay’s banking features and compared them to similar platforms while we evaluated user reviews from various sources. We considered the unique needs of freelancers and small business owners

In the fast-paced world of innovation, every breakthrough carries the risk of missteps, miscalculations, or under-delivering promises. The biggest tech story of 2024 — the CrowdStrike outage that affected businesses and consumers nationwide — was also one of the year’s most notable failures. But the CrowdStrike story is more than just a tale of failure — it’s also a testament to resilience and recovery. TechRepublic has compiled the most significant tech flops of the year, exploring how they were addressed — or left unresolved. SEE: These are the hottest cybersecurity news stories of 2024. CrowdStrike bug strands travelers amid mass blue screens of death On the morning of Friday, July 19, the CrowdStrike cloud security platform released a content configuration update for Windows. A bug in the Content Validator used in the update caused a cascade of errors that spread across CrowdStrike’s customers. That customer group included about 8.5 million Windows devices in businesses, airports, and emergency services departments. CrowdStrike fixed the problem on their end 78 minutes after the update. However, affected machines needed to be rebooted manually, which created ample work for their team over the weekend. Major data breaches hit communications networks and personal data Two major data breaches reminded cybersecurity professionals to stay on their toes. In August, the U.K.’s National Public Data — a consumer background check service — suffered a breach that exposed Social Security numbers among 2.7 billion data records. The exploitation sparked conversations about legal protections for personal data. In September, the Wall Street Journal reported a group of threat actors associated with China had gained access to U.S. broadband networks, specifically through Cisco routers. Both American and international cybersecurity agencies have issued warnings about the threat group known as Salt Typhoon. More must-read AI coverage Google AI Overviews faced a ‘rocky’ launch Google introduced its AI-powered answers in search this year, with mixed success. In May, the AI’s responses went viral as Google seemingly recommended “eating at least one small rock per day” and confidently repeated a political conspiracy theory. The comment about rocks was taken from a satirical site, and the conspiracy theory came from Reddit. In response, Google restricted user-generated content in AI Overviews and worked on detecting “nonsensical queries.” The situation highlighted the limits of how generative AI pulls information from the internet. Privacy concerns cloud Microsoft’s Recall 2024 was the year of the AI PC, with many different tech companies racing to identify which AI features would gain the most traction. Microsoft bet on the appeal of using AI to control PCs or search files using natural language. Its Recall feature promised to intuitively answer questions like “Where’d I put the confirmation email for the restaurant for Saturday?” However, this convenience came at a cost:  Recall captured screenshots of active windows every few seconds, saving them as a timeline, raising concerns about privacy and data usage. Microsoft delayed Recall’s public appearance. As of Dec. 6, Recall is available in preview to Windows Insiders. Wearable AI rises — and falls Two novel AI products experimented with form factor this year. The Humane pin was designed as an AI assistant clipped to clothing, while the makers of the Rabbit R1 pitched it as a replacement for a smartphone. The pin received generally negative reviews and a fraction of the expected sales. Rabbit R1 followed a similar path. These devices are clever because generative AI could open new possibilities for form factors. Both Humane and Rabbit devices are still on sale. But the wide adoption of those form factors — including smart glasses — has been an uphill road even for the tech giants. Ultimately, wearable, AI-first devices were a dead end in 2024. Intel has had a difficult year Intel Core 13th and 14th Gen desktop processors saw widespread instability and crashes for years. Intel discovered a faulty microcode algorithm that caused problems this summer. They eventually delivered a patch. Intel stock and market share have fallen as rivals NVIDIA and AMD take advantage of the generative AI boom. Intel may recover if CPU sales improve next year, but for now, they missed the boat on the AI hardware boom despite a portfolio of reliable products. Tesla autonomous products are on shaky ground Tesla’s ambitious self-driving mode has faced several setbacks since mass recalls last year, including the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration investigating the automaker about four specific accidents. Another investigation linked the self-driving mode to dozens of deaths. Tesla’s Q4 vehicle safety report claimed Autopilot had fewer accidents per million miles than the average U.S. vehicle. Meanwhile, further reports revealed that many humanoid Tesla robots were operated by humans. Tesla doubled down, releasing a video of an Optimus robot operating “by myself” in a factory. Sales of the electric cars fell in 2024 as other automakers matured in the “green” market, although Tesla remains a strong contender. source

The next step for OpenAI’s reasoning models is o3, a model previewed on Dec. 20. o3 and its smaller cousin, o3-mini, outperformed o1 in coding, math, science, and ‘conceptual reasoning’ tests designed to assess human-like intelligence and research applications.  ‘Reasoning’ includes a safety feature called deliberative alignment, in which the model uses a “chain of thought” to prevent users from jailbreaking or tricking it into bypassing safety measures. Meanwhile, Google’s Gemini 2.0 Flash Thinking Experimental model treads similar ground to OpenAI o1’s reasoning capabilities. More must-read AI coverage ‘12 Days of OpenAI’ brings new tools and new generative AI functionality The o3 announcement came at the close of OpenAI’s “12 Days of OpenAI” campaign, a holiday season series of product updates. These announcements, from Dec. 5 to Dec 20 (excluding weekends), showcased new features for OpenAI’s generative AI tools, with some available now and others still in testing. Day 1: The $200 ChatGPT Pro and o1 updates On Dec. 5, OpenAI introduced a new subscription tier for ChatGPT: the Pro plan. For $200 per month, the Pro subscription brings OpenAI o1, o1-mini, GPT-4o, and Advanced Voice to ChatGPT. It also allows access to o1 pro mode, a more compute-intensive version designed for difficult problems professional engineers and researchers face. On the same day, OpenAI announced an updated, more detailed system card for the hotly-anticipated o1 model. Day 2: The Reinforcement Fine-Tuning Research Program With the Reinforcement Fine-Tuning Research Program, OpenAI introduced a new tool for developers and machine learning engineers to create customized models for specific tasks. It is expected to launch publicly in alpha testing in early 2025. Day 3: Sora video generator OpenAI’s photorealistic video generator, announced early last year, is now available for ChatGPT Pro users. While AI video creation is easier than ever, models like Sora still struggle with complex, fast-moving subjects and can often be identified by a too-perfect glossiness. Sora videos will be watermarked according to C2PA standards to identify them as AI-generated. SEE: Learn the basics of generative AI with some of the many free courses available from Microsoft and LinkedIn, updated for 2024. Day 4: Canvas Canvas, a coding interface introduced in beta in October, became generally available in December. The current version of Canvas understands and writes Python and integrates with custom GPTs, allowing developers to connect to their apps. It also allows users to view prompts and outputs side-by-side for easier reference. Day 5: Apple on-device AI with ChatGPT Apple Intelligence received its expected ChatGPT update during the 12 days of OpenAI. The on-device Apple Intelligence can now access ChatGPT servers for more complex queries that the onboard chip cannot handle. Day 6: Advanced Voice with Video Advanced Voice mode, available to ChatGPT subscribers, can now converse about images on your computer screen or through your camera. The mode brings more natural speech and flexible responses to the audio version of the chatbot. Day 7: Projects As of Dec. 13, ChatGPT Plus, Pro, and Team users can organize their chats into Projects, or separate instances. Projects let users assign specific instructions that apply only within Project, and relevant resources can be stored with it. This feature will be available to Enterprise and Edu users in January. Day 8: ChatGPT search upgrades ChatGPT search received several tweaks after the December release, including a new maps interface, speedier response times on mobile, and more functionality for Advanced Voice to bring search up to speed with the rest of the paid-tier voice offerings. Search is now available to users at the free tier, as long as they log in with an email address. Day 9: New features, options, and upgrades for developers Day nine was all about developers, with a variety of announcements: Developers can now access OpenAI o1 in the API. Various upgrades for the API were released, including a simpler WebRTC integration, a 60% price reduction for GPT-4o audio, and support for GPT-4o mini at one-tenth of previous audio rates. Preference fine-tuning allows for improved customization. Go and Java SDKs are now out in beta. Day 10: 1-800-CHATGPT Taking a cue from Google’s classic Voice Search, OpenAI has opened a phone and WhatsApp line for its generative AI. Users can ask natural-language questions, and the chatbot will respond for free. OpenAI considers this feature experimental, noting that its availability and limitations may change. Day 11: More options for apps Day 11 brought a long list of connections from ChatGPT to more coding apps and tools, including VS Code forks, Jetbrains IDEs, additional Terminal apps, and more. (Initially, it supported iTerm 2, Terminal, TextEdit, VS Code, and Xcode.)  Three new app integrations arrived, connecting ChatGPT to Apple Notes, Notion, and Quip. Advanced Voice Mode can now work with various other desktop apps of the user’s choosing. OpenAI notes that ChatGPT won’t interact with desktop apps without the user’s permission. Plus, Pro, Team, Enterprise, and Edu users can use the new app integrations. Day 12: o3 and o3-mini OpenAI saved the biggest news for last: o1 is no longer the company’s foremost model. Instead, o3 – now in early access for safety and security researchers – improves coding, math, and science performance. The company also pioneered a new technique called deliberative alignment, used to keep o3 on-mission. Safety researchers can apply to test o3 here. source

Whether you’re a professional event planner, putting together an important conference for work, or just throwing a big party, event planning templates can help you stay organized. From tracking costs to vendor contact information and guest RSVPs, the right system can ensure everything goes according to plan while saving your sanity along the way. monday.com: An event planning dashboard for managing multiple events, projects, and employees Planning an event is a lot like managing a project, especially if you’re juggling multiple events alongside other projects and a team at the same time. Since monday.com is one of the best project management solutions on the market today, it’s perfect for managing all three within the same platform. It comes with everything you need (and then some) to stay organized, plus there’s a free plan for up to two users if you want to try it before upgrading to a paid plan. More on monday.com: monday.com Review | monday.com vs Wrike | monday.com vs. Pipedrive. Use monday.com to plan multiple events and projects in one place. Image: monday.com Aside from being able to handle just about any type of project or item you need to keep track of, my favorite part of this event planning template is the built-in budget tracking features. It allows you to set a budget for an entire quarter or year and allocate that money across all of your events. Alternatively, you can set a unique budget for each event, and track spending by category. Regardless of how you approach this, you can keep an eye on your numbers and ensure you stay within your budget constraints. I also like that monday.com helps you streamline the RSVP process. You can easily send out an RSVP form to automatically track attendees without having to deal with manual inputs that are time-consuming and prone to human error. Each RSVP will show up in your system with all the details the user provided. ClickUp: Event planning templates for collaborative teams ClickUp’s project management system is built for collaboration out of the box, including team chat, document building, nested comment threads, and more. This makes it a great option for teams planning events together. ClickUp also makes it easy to track progress and understand everyone’s responsibilities. You can get started with ClickUp for free and work with an unlimited number of users at no cost. However, most teams will get the most out of it by upgrading to a paid plan. More on ClickUp: ClickUp Review | ClickUp vs Asana | ClickUp vs Notion. Template 1: Best for delegating responsibilities and tracking priorities This first ClickUp event planning template works well for small-to-mid-sized events. I think it safely supports events with up to 250 participants, and it works equally well for smaller events with 50 to 100-person guest lists. Your entire team can use this to align event resources, visualize what needs to happen, and ensure everything gets done on time and under budget. Collaborate with your entire team on small to midsize events using this free template from ClickUp. Image: Clickup.com The default template comes with six views, including lists, calendars, and more. My favorite part is that you can set priority levels once and use color coded flags to visually understand priority in any view at a glance. On top of that, there’s a separate prioritization board that groups everything by priority. You can easily drag and drop tasks to different sections to ensure your team’s always working on what’s most important. ClickUp’s built in commenting and mentions feature lets you alert the assignee of priority changes so everyone’s always in the loop. Users can look at all of their assigned work, sort it by priority, and work down their list. This alone can help you avoid repetitive meetings since everything’s easily visible. I also like that project or event managers can look at each person’s workload and rebalance everything as needed by dragging tasks to someone else. Template 2: Best for large corporate events and conferences If you need to plan and host larger events, like conferences or corporate offsites, you’ll need something with a bit more power. This second ClickUp template offers just that — it’s more advanced than the first and takes a bit more time to set up, but it’s worth it for complex vents that have a lot of moving parts. It works particularly well if you have sponsors, exhibitors, guests, and a lot of different elements you need to stay on top of. Manage sponsors, exhibitors, registrants, expenses, and vendor lists at scale with this free template from ClickUp. Image: Clickup.com The best part is that it comes with a pre-built expense intake form, allowing your team to track their expenses towards your budget. Each expense can be categorized, so it works just as well for reimbursements too. You could even set up a separate form for sponsors, guests, or vendors if you need to gather additional information from them. The sponsor area lets you group them by tier (if you’d like). For example, you could have different statuses based on donation amounts. You can also keep track of payments and donations, their attendance at your event, and even various activities to fulfill sponsor promises. For RSVPs, there’s a robust registration tracker set up for managing different types of tickets. You can simplify if you don’t need all that, but it’s nice to have it already built out. Another standout feature of this template is that it can help you gather feedback after the event is over. Wrike: An event planning template for ongoing internal events Wrike is a highly structured project management tool that accommodates teams of all sizes. Unlike other project management platforms that restrict the number of users on  the free tier, Wrike’s free plan lets you onboard as many users as you’d like. It also has a range of built in views that can help manage recurring events plus all the work required to make them happen. More on

Putting your goals in writing drastically increases your chances of achieving them. Goal setting templates make it easy to not only write them down, but also break them into actionable tasks and track progress towards reaching them. Whether it’s a personal goal, professional goal, team goal, or a combination of all three, these templates will help you get off to an organized start. monday.com: A quarterly objective goal setting template monday.com is a project management platform that’s suitable for teams of all sizes. It’s perfect for goal setting because the collaborative elements help keep everyone on the same page and working towards common outcomes. You can try it for free with up to two users, but most businesses will have to upgrade to a paid plan to get the most out of it. It can also work well for solo users — if that’s you, you’ll likely be able to use it for free for a while. However, its range of collaboration and team-based features may feel overwhelming. More on monday.com: monday.com review | monday.com vs Wrike | monday.com vs. Pipedrive. Get your team aligned to your quarterly goals with this free template for monday.com. Image: Monday.com This goal-setting template is great for executives, managers, and team leaders. It’s set up for quarterly goal planning, so you can define key objectives at a high level and align them with longer-term business goals. After identifying your goals, you can break them into smaller tasks and assign them to your team with due dates, priority levels, and real-time progress tracking. The software’s flexible nature makes it easy to organize tasks however you’d like, set up automated notifications, and group items however it makes sense. monday.com also has advanced features that help you track time, create automations to boost productivity, and even track your budget as it pertains to your team’s goals. Most of these features are on higher tiers though. While this template is built for quarterly goal planning and tracking, you can adapt it to longer or shorter time frames if you’d like. ClickUp: Goal setting templates for short and long-term planning ClickUp is a feature-rich project management solution that’s powerful enough to run an entire business. The free plan is great for personal use, but the platform can also accommodate collaborative goals on a team or company-wide level. ClickUp offers goal-setting templates for daily goals and quick wins, as well as big-picture goals for annual planning. You can use either, or potentially both of these templates depending on what you need. More on ClickUp: ClickUp Review | ClickUp vs Asana | ClickUp vs Notion. Template 1: A simple template for daily goals and habits This template works like a digital checklist you can reference on a daily basis. It’s perfect for things like daily meditations, drinking water, reading goals, daily journaling, and other quick wins or habits you’re working towards. You can also add other short-term goals that may take longer than a day if you’d like. ClickUp makes it easy to track and manage daily or short-term goals. Image: Clickup.com While this template was intended for personal use, it can be used just as well in a professional setting for developing soft skills, celebrating small wins, or encouraging steady growth. Out of the box, it lets you categorize your goals, making it easy to organize by different areas of your life. For example, you may have categories for fitness, family, friends, mental health, money, personal, and professional. These categories make it possible to filter, sort, and group your goals however you’d like. You can view all of them or focus on a specific area. You can also give each goal a due date, status, and comment to leave notes for yourself. Template 2: For tracking and managing long-term goals If you’re looking to plan and manage goals longer term, this template is built for just that. Instead of quick daily wins, it’s set up to track high-level goals you want to achieve throughout the year. Like the last template, this one is also built for personal use but can be adapted for use in a business setting as well. Track progress towards high-level goals with this free ClickUp template.  Image: Clickup.com The best part about this template is that it makes it easy to break up a single long-term goal into three or more attainable tasks that help you move in the right direction. Rather than staring at something that feels intangible and too far off to matter, you can focus on taking actions that’ll directly help you get closer over time. You’ll be able to prioritize goals, identify milestones, set due dates, and assign work to others if you’re using it as a team. If new goals or opportunities present themselves along the way, you can easily add them to your list at any time. It comes with a personal profile document where you can fill in your name, age, address, and other information. It’s a bit odd to have and you can delete it if you feel like it’s getting in your way. Alternatively, you can tweak the document for vision planning or other more relevant activities if you’d like. Wrike: A business goal setting template that focuses on OKRs Wrike is a rigid yet powerful solution for businesses. It’s easy to set up and use but has a wide range of automation, collaboration, and team-based features that make it flexible enough as you scale. It’s perfect for defining company goals and using OKRs (objectives and key results) to track progress and define success. Unlike other project management tools that only offer free versions for individuals or a couple of people, Wrike’s free plan supports an unlimited number of users. It’s limited on features but lets you onboard your entire team at no cost. More on Wrike: Wrike Review | Wrike vs Asana | Wrike vs Smartsheet. Wrike makes it easy to manage and track company goals. Image: Wrike.com This template is versatile enough for department

A Letter of Authorization (LOA) is a document that you must send to your telecom provider when you want to switch to a new business phone service but keep your old phone number. It lets both your new and old phone company know that you’re the one who is actually requesting the change. Whether you’re switching over your landline or VoIP phone service, you’ll need an LOA to complete the process. Porting a number can take time — up to a couple of weeks in some instances — so be sure you wait to hear from your new provider before canceling your old service. That is the big thing to remember from my post. Do not cancel your existing phone service until your new service is set up. Cancelling your old phone service directly after submitting your LOA could lead to a gap in time where you do not have any service. The LOA merely starts the process — you should stay on your existing service during that time. That said, completing an LOA is very easy if you have a single number, or a handful of numbers with a single provider. If you have a virtual call center with hundreds of numbers across multiple accounts, you will have more work to do to ensure the process goes smoothly. If you have multiple service providers, you are going to need multiple LOAs. Let’s go through everything in detail. 1 RingCentral RingEx Employees per Company Size Micro (0-49), Small (50-249), Medium (250-999), Large (1,000-4,999), Enterprise (5,000+) Medium (250-999 Employees), Large (1,000-4,999 Employees), Enterprise (5,000+ Employees) Medium, Large, Enterprise Features Hosted PBX, Managed PBX, Remote User Ability, and more 2 Talkroute Employees per Company Size Micro (0-49), Small (50-249), Medium (250-999), Large (1,000-4,999), Enterprise (5,000+) Any Company Size Any Company Size Features Call Management/Monitoring, Call Routing, Mobile Capabilities, and more What is an LOA in telecom? LOAs are letters containing detailed information about your identity as well as your current phone service and the phone service you want to port your number to. Sometimes also referred to as a Letter of Agency, your LOA also contains a short note telling your old and new telecom companies that you want to switch services. They’re used by telecom companies to confirm that a user wants to port their number. In your LOA, you’ll give the new phone company all the information it needs to confirm your identity and make the necessary changes to your service. Some telecom companies provide their users with a template for an LOA, but if not, you’ll have to create one yourself. After you sign the LOA and send it back to your new phone service provider, the company will review it and confirm your identity. It will then send a Local Service Request (LSR) to your current phone service provider, which is a formal way of asking the old provider to start the porting process. The LSR also goes to the Competitive Local Exchange Carrier (CLEC) that your new phone service provider is a part of. This is the company that owns the phone numbers. Once the CLEC receives the necessary documentation, it will send the LOA and LSR to the CLEC for your old phone service provider. They’ll then issue a Firm Commitment Order (FOC), which tells your new phone service provider the date that the number will be ported. Your old provider is supposed to process your request in a timely manner, but it can sometimes get bogged down with their CLEC. Since the CLEC doesn’t want to lose a paying customer, it may try to find reasons to reject the FSR. For instance, if your LOA has your current address on it, but your phone plan is still registered at your old address, your old phone company’s CLEC may kick the LSR back to the new company’s CLEC, and you’ll have to edit your address and try again. Believe it or not, I am greatly simplifying this process — there is a lot more to know about telecommunications, how rate centers work, and dozens of other acronyms — but for the purposes of understanding what an LOA is, this quick summary is sufficient. Why do I need an LOA to port phone numbers? Security — there needs to be some sort of check on the ability of someone to port a phone number from one service to another. I am sure you don’t want your number ported to a new service you don’t control. An LOA is a methodical way to make sure that the person who is requesting the port is actually the current owner of that number. This is what stops someone from porting a bank’s number to their own service and scamming its customers. That’s an extreme example, sure, but there are many more examples of criminals using VoIP to defraud businesses and individuals. It’s incredibly common. I’m talking about millions of dollars in damages every year, if not billions. It may be annoying, but an LOA is meant to protect you so that not just anyone can make changes to your phone service. An LOA is a small hoop to jump through. Most of the time, the new phone service is going to make it as easy as possible for you to complete this step in a timely fashion. What info does an LOA require? Usually, an LOA contains the following information: Your name. Your billing address. Your current phone number. The name of your new service provider. Your new VoIP phone numbers. The name of your old service provider. Your account number with the old service provider. Your account PIN, if you have one. A copy of your current phone bill or invoice. Copies of your ID. If you are just porting one number, you only need one LOA. You can use the same LOA to port multiple numbers, so long as they are from the carrier or service provider. You will need a separate LOA for each provider. It’s

While we’re not completely cashless yet—I still pay for my morning coffee and tip my barista in cash—it’s certainly trending that way. That’s why, as a business, it’s important to think about credit card payment processing and not only how you handle it but how much it costs. So whether you’re shopping around for a new provider or reassessing your current tech stack to see where you can cut costs, it’s essential to take a look at fees for credit card processing, and how much it costs your business to accept payments. Key takeaways: Credit card processing fees typically range from 2% to 4%. Processing fees include set charges from card networks, card issuing banks, and credit card processor markups. Credit card processor markups vary and are where you can shop around for lower rates. Processing companies have all different kinds of fee structures, which adds complexity and makes it difficult to know what is the cheapest. Most businesses benefit most from flat-rate, interchange, or subscription models. What are credit card processing fees? Credit card processing fees are the costs the businesses and/or customers incur in a credit or debit card transaction. Businesses typically pay more in fees than consumers, and in some locations, charging consumers a processing fee is illegal. New Jersey, for example, only recently legalized businesses’ ability to pass along the processing fee to customers. Altogether, credit card processing fees refer to what businesses pay processors for their payment processing service. The majority of these fees come from the individual transaction fees, which consist of: Interchange fees. The customer’s issuing financial institution charges businesses an interchange fee. This is usually the biggest fee associated with credit card processing. The fee varies depending on the card used and the type of transaction. They can be flat rate or interchange plus, basically a smaller flat rate plus a percentage. Assessment fees. The customer card’s network—Visa, MasterCard, American Express, for example—also charges a fee. Each network has its own fees, mostly percentage-based. American Express is known for having high fees compared to many other networks. Payment processing fees. The payment processor, or merchant services provider, also charges a fee. This is the technology that enables the card transaction to be processed. Fee structures for payment processing have a lot more variety—they can be subscription-based, percentages, or flat fees, for instance. However, some processors also charge fixed monthly or other fees. What are credit card processing rates? Credit card processing rates refer to the percentage processors charge per transaction. The higher the rates, the more you pay in fees. What are the different credit card processing payment structures? Credit card processing payment structures generally take the following forms: Tiered Flat rate Interchange plus Subscription Let’s take a closer look at each one. What Pros Cons Tiered Tiered pricing is a percentage of the transaction plus a flat fee. Each tier of a transaction has its own associated fee: Qualified (lowest): debit cards; credit cards without rewards Mid-qualified (mid-range): cards with basic rewards; manually keyed-in transactions Non-qualified (highest): cards with generous rewards; corporate cards; international payments Could be helpful for brick-and-mortar businesses that take a lot of in-person card-present payments. Common among payment processors. Costly, especially compared to other payment processing fee structures. Unpredictable and inconsistent payment processing fees. Flat rate Businesses pay a single flat fee for each transaction, regardless of how much the payment is for or which payment method or type of card is used. Predictable transaction fees. Can save money if you have a high average order value (AOV). Can be costly if you have a low AOV and lots of transactions. Interchange plus Businesses pay a flat fee plus a percentage of the transaction amount. It essentially covers the interchange and assessment fees, plus the payment processor’s fee. Tends to be the most cost-effective. Offers transparency. Not available to all businesses—especially smaller businesses with low transaction volume. Subscription Businesses pay a monthly subscription fee to a payment processor in exchange for its services. This may or may not include an additional discounted percentage or flat fee per transaction, depending on the provider and plan. Arguably the most predictable way to pay for credit card payments. Typically, comes with limitations on the number of transactions you process in a month. Some processors charge an additional fee for each transaction, which is discounted. How much do credit card processing companies usually charge? The average credit card processing fee is difficult to pin down because card networks make it a bit complicated—I’d venture to say they do this intentionally. Generally speaking, the standard credit card processing interchange fee is somewhere between 1% and 3%, though it can fall outside of that range depending on the transaction. Here’s how the interchange fee is charged from the major card networks: Network Interchange fee Visa 0.05% + 21¢ to 1.9% + 25¢ MasterCard 0.19% + 53¢ to 3.15% + 10¢ American Express 1.1% to 3.5% Discover 1.35% + 5¢ to 2.5% Processors then take those interchange fees, add on the assessment fees, and then their own markup. Ultimately, total processing fees typically range from 2% to 4%. And if you’re curious about what payment processors charge, here’s a look at some of the fees from the top providers: Payment processor Fees Chase 2.6% + 10¢ tap, dip or swipe 3.5% + 10¢ manually keyed in or payment links 2.9% + 25¢ ecommerce plus monthly fee starting at $9.95 Dharma $20/month 0.20% + 11¢ Visa, Mastercard, and Discover 0.30% + 11¢ American Express 0.10% + 11¢ high-volume discount (>$100k/month) $25/chargeback $49 closure fee Helcim 1.83% + 8¢ Visa, Mastercard, and Discover 2.61% + 8¢ American Express 1.00% + 8¢ debit 2.27% + 25¢ Visa, Mastercard, and Discover online 3.01% + 25¢ American Express online 10¢ tap to pay iPhone $0 ACH $15/chargeback (free if successful) $5/ACH reject $30/month Smart Terminal $99 Card Reader PayPal 3.49% + 49¢ PayPal Checkout 2.29% + 9¢ QR code payments 2.99% + 49¢ invoice payments 2.59% + 49¢

How many times have you tried to configure a static IP address for a machine on your network, only to realize you had no idea what addresses were already taken? If you happen to work with a desktop machine, you could always install a network protocol analyzer to find out what addresses were in use. But what if you’re on a GUI-less server? You certainly won’t rely on a graphical-based tool for scanning IP addresses. Fortunately, some very simple-to-use command line tools can handle this task. I’m going to show you how to scan your Local Area Network (LAN) for IP addresses in use with two different tools (one of which will be installed on your server by default). I’ll demonstrate on Ubuntu Server. SEE: Top Commands Linux Admins Need to Know (TechRepublic Premium) The arp command The first tool we’ll use for the task is the built-in arp command. Most IT admins are familiar with arp, as it is used on almost every platform. If you’ve never used arp (which stands for Address Resolution Protocol), the command is used to manipulate (or display) the kernel’s IPv4 network neighbor cache. If you issue arp with no mode specifier or options, it will print out the current content of the ARP table. That’s not what we’re going to do. Instead, we’ll issue the command like so: arp -a The -a option uses an alternate BSD-style output and prints all known IP addresses found on your LAN. The output of the command will display IP addresses as well as the associated ethernet device. The arp -a command in action. Image: Jack Wallen You now have a listing of each IP address in use on your LAN. The only caveat, is that (unless you know the MAC address of every device on your network), you won’t have a clue as to which machine the IP addresses are assigned. Even without knowing what machine is associated with what address, you at least know what addresses are being used. NB. The arp command only works for IPv4. If you have IPv6, you’ll need to use the command ndp (which stands for Neighbor Discovery Protocol): ndp -a It’s easy to tell if you’re using IPv4 or IPv6 addresses. The former use periods, the latter use colons. IBM offers an explainer on the subject if you want more details. SEE: How to Add an SSH Fingerprint to Your known_hosts File in Linux (TechRepublic) Open source: Must-read coverage Nmap Next, we use a command that offers more options. Said command is nmap (which stands for Network Mapper). You won’t find nmap installed on your Linux machine by default, so we must add it to the system. Open a terminal window (or log into your GUI-less server) and issue the command: sudo apt-get install nmap -y Once the installation is completed, you are ready to scan your LAN with nmap. To find out what addresses are in use, issue the command: nmap -sP 192.168.1.0/24 Note: You will need to alter the IP address scheme to match yours. The output of the command, will show you each address found on your LAN. nmap will display each address found on your LAN. Image: Jack Wallen Let’s make nmap more useful. Because it offers a bit more flexibility, we can also discover what operating system is associated with an IP address. To do this, we’ll use the options -sT (TCP connect scan) and -O (operating system discovery). The command for this is: sudo nmap -sT -O 192.168.1.0/24 Depending on the size of your network, this command can take some time. And if your network is large, consider sending the output of the command to a file like this: sudo nmap -sT -O 192.168.1.0/24 > nmap_output You can then view the file with a text editor to find out what operating system is attached to an IP address. nmap will display each address found on your LAN. Image: Jack Wallen With the help of these two simple commands, you can locate IP addresses on your network that are in use. Now, when you’re assigning a static IP address, you won’t accidentally assign one already in use. We all know what kind of headaches that can cause. source