As Published In January/February 2013

UPFRONT: Mash Up

Mash Up

News • Views • Trends • Tools

2013 Resolution Apps

“When leaders embrace beliefs without understanding and managing the potential side effects, the beliefs become sacred cows and get in the way.” — Jake Breeden, author of Tipping Sacred Cows (Jossey-Bass, 2013)

Get Fit
Endomondo Sports Tracker lets you track running, cycling, and other distance-based activities and get support from a 12-million-member community. Free or US$4.99 for PRO version with additional features (Android, BlackBerry, Java, iPhone, Symbian, Windows Mobile).
endomondo.com

Learn Something New
Get pocket access to the Wolfram|Alpha “knowledge engine,” which features broad and deep information ranging from math and physics to music, books, and languages. US$3.99 (Android, iPhone/iPad).
products.wolframalpha.com/mobile

Reduce Stress
Stress Check by Azumio uses your smartphone’s camera and light features to measure your heart rate and thereby quantifies your stress level. The app also helps you identify stressors and tracks your stress level over time. Free (Android, iPhone).
azumio.com/apps/stress-check

Get Out of Debt

Mighty Mic

Have you used your iPad or iPhone to record audio? Were you satisfied with the results? If you’re looking for professional-quality recording from your iOS device, Mikey Digital, a plug-and-play stereo microphone from Blue Microphones, directly connects to your iPad or iPhone and is instantly recognized by audio and video applications. Automatic gain settings enable Mikey Digital to intelligently adjust to fluctuating volume levels, while manual gain settings allow users to set low sensitivity for extremely loud sources and high sensitivity for quieter sources. The mic’s LED clipping indicator flashes whenever volume levels are producing distortion, providing immediate feedback so users can make adjustments. Mikey Digital also rotates 230 degrees for optimal positioning or alignment with front- or rear-facing cameras. It includes a multisource input jack that allows for direct connection of guitars and other sound sources.
US$99.99. bluemic.com

Cover Your Apps

In the months of June, July, and August 2012, nearly 25,600 malicious smartphone apps were available for download—a 216 percent increase from the previous three-month period. China-based app marketplaces are the most risky, and games are the most likely category of apps to carry threats.
Source: TrustGo

Bad Mobile Sites Harm Brands

If your business Website isn’t optimized for mobile use, it hurts your company’s brand, according to a survey of 1,088 adult smartphone users in the US.

Key findings

48% of respondents feel frustrated and annoyed when they get to a site that’s not mobile-friendly
36% of respondents feel like they’ve wasted their time by visiting those sites
52% of respondents say a bad mobile experience made them less likely to engage with a company
48% of respondents say if a site didn’t work well on their smartphones, it made them feel like the company didn’t care about their business
Source: Google

Insights on Innovation

The world’s most innovative companies not only permit failure but welcome it to craft better ideas. However, nearly half of the respondents to a global survey said that their companies have no systems in place to learn from failure. What’s more, many companies do not capitalize on IT to foster innovation. Responses to the question, “What is the role of your IT department in cultivating business innovation? (select up to two)” were

51% Supplying technologies that foster the innovative process
37% Enabling business units to adapt processes rapidly
28% Implementing and maintaining new business ideas within business processes
19% Educating business leaders on new technology trends
13% The IT department is not involved in our business innovation
11% Identifying pockets of innovation in the enterprise
Source: Cultivating Business-Led Innovation Economist Intelligence Unit report sponsored by Oracle