Globe launches online leadership quiz

Are you an Abraham Lincoln, a Napoleon Bonaparte, a Cleopatra or a Jose Rizal to your employees? Globe Business recently launched the online test, “Globe Business Leader Quiz” to help entrepreneurs identify what kind of leader they are—and give suggestions on how to harness their unique qualities to run their business even better. By logging on to http://business.globe.com.ph/leader and answering the seven-item quiz, business owners can identify their leadership style. The online test will give an assessment if the respondent is authoritarian, intolerant of incompetence, or an intimidating or inspirational leader. “There are no right or wrong answers to the Globe Business Leader Quiz. The results merely show what particular qualities a business leader has. There are, of course, pros and cons to these qualities when running a business,” shares Manny Aligada, head of Corporate and SME Segments, Globe Business. “The quiz results then suggest how the business leader should tone down certain qualities and nurture others in order to maximize his leadership abilities. Best of all,” Aligada adds, “it’s a fun and entertaining way to learn.” Globe Business offers a range of customized products and services that may be mixed and matched to suit a specific leadership style. “Globe Business products and services are flexible and comprehensive enough to allow customization—they may be tailored to be the right fit not only to the needs, requirements and budget of a particular business, but also to fit the preferred leadership style of the entrepreneur,” informs Aligada. An example, Aligada says, would be an entrepreneur who functions best when mobile and conducting business away from the office, but might feel cranky when boxed inside office premises. He or she may best benefit from running the office through a mobile phone, online video conferencing, chat or e-mail. “Or it could be an entrepreneur who might have tons of charisma that leaves employees spellbound,” he says, “but he or she might not be used to communicating ideas and instructions. So maybe that entrepreneur can start practicing communication skills by using an unlimited voice call subscription or chat.” Before viewing the results of the quiz, a entertaining video is shown to illustrate in a fun way the various types of leaders and how Globe Business can work for them. Helping achieve work-life balance Globe Business offers services that help simplify business operations, manage communication costs, and serve clients efficiently. If entrepreneurs are able to run their business smoothly, then they would enjoy more things in life and be the leader they have always wanted to be. The online quiz likewise features business solutions that Globe Business offers. Business Plus allows entrepreneurs to save up to 50 percent on texts and 30 percent on calls. Companies could also control their communication expenditure with AutoloadMAX Corporate Edition, which helps manage employees’ prepaid cellphone accounts. Sending e-mails and performing daily Internet requirements could be fuss-free as well with Globe Business’ reliable DSL (Digital Subscriber Line) Internet. Globe Business Leader Quiz also gives respondents the chance to win Blackberry Bold 9900 or a prepaid phone kit. All they have to do is register and follow the promo mechanics. Globe Business is the corporate arm of Globe Telecom, the leading mobile telecommunications company in the Philippines. Globe Business provides wireless and wireline solutions for a diverse set of industries, businesses and commercial enterprises. It assures SMEs of affordable, reliable and dependable services for all communication needs, both wireless and wireline solutions, to generate the highest possible profit at the lowest possible cost. Visit http://business.globe.com.ph/leader to take the Globe Business Leader Quiz and determine your leadership style.

Fast Internet service spotty in rural areas

When she moved to Stoughton, less than 30 minutes from the state Capitol, Marsha Borling says she never imagined it would be difficult to get a usable Internet connection. Fast, reliable access was as common as telephone service where she previously lived in the Chicago suburbs, according to Borling, a health care consultant who works from home. "This is like being in the Bermuda Triangle," she said about not having cable or wired broadband service in her neighborhood along the Yahara River. Borling and her neighbors use wireless devices for Internet access. But she says the wireless signal is unreliable and much slower than cable or wired service. "My husband and I have a cabin in northern Wisconsin that's literally in the middle of nowhere, and it has a much faster connection," Borling said. Increasingly, more people want fast Internet service so they can work from home or enjoy Web entertainment such as video streaming. Yet Wisconsin ranks 45th among states where residents have access to download speeds of at least 3 megabits, according to the University of Wisconsin Extension. Another report ranks the state much higher and says efforts to fill broadband coverage gaps have greatly advanced this year. Still, there are gaps - especially in rural areas. In general, broadband is a high-speed Internet connection capable of handling large amounts of data through fiber-optic cable and other means. Many rural residents still have dial-up service, a slow-speed connection through telephone wires that's unsuitable for many Web applications. Stimulus moving slowly Few, if, any of the broadband projects funded by federal stimulus money will be completed this year. TDS Telecom Corp., of Madison, received $33 million in stimulus funds to extend broadband service in rural communities. Thirteen of the company's projects will bring broadband to about 8,000 more people by the end of 2012, according to the company. "It's unfortunate that it has taken as long as it has, but the good news is help is on the way," said TDS spokesman Drew Petersen. Telecom providers that accepted stimulus money have until the end of 2013 to complete their broadband projects or risk losing the federal loans and grants. TDS says it spent much of 2011 overcoming engineering hurdles that included making sure its projects won't harm environmentally sensitive areas or historical landmarks. "I would say 2011 was the year of administrative review, and 2012 will be the year of construction and deployment of broadband," Petersen said. "I think it was a bigger undertaking than (the government) first contemplated," he added. Johnson Creek, Monroe, Lancaster, Medford, Sherwood and Burlington are some communities where TDS is expanding its broadband service. Installation expensive But not Stoughton, where Borling says about 40 homes in her neighborhood are within a half-mile of broadband access from Charter Communications and AT&T - yet those companies won't extend the service. "We have contacted every possible provider," Borling said. Charter serves more than 500 communities in the state, including Stoughton, but says it's sometimes too expensive to bring broadband to certain neighborhoods. The company says it might have overlooked Borling's neighborhood when it laid out broadband service in Stoughton. But it also might have skipped the area because the cost of installing fiber-optic cable under the Yahara River was too high. Normally it costs about $30,000 per mile to extend service, according to Charter. It could cost more than $1 million to install cable under a river, said Tim Vowell, Charter's vice president of government relations. AT&T doesn't offer U-verse broadband service in Borland's neighborhood, although it has U-verse coverage in other parts of the city and offers wireless broadband. U-verse is delivered into homes over the same copper wires that carry AT&T's telephone service. Sometimes it's available on one side of the street but not the other, said AT&T spokesman Jim Greer. Other communities, not on a river, have been frustrated in their efforts to get broadband. There are large coverage gaps in rural areas where broadband providers say it's not profitable to extend service, according to the UW Extension. An economic tool UW Extension is using stimulus money to bring broadband to libraries and other community facilities in northern counties. But even where broadband is available, residents often get mediocre speeds, said Andy Larsen, a UW Extension community and economic development manager. For example, Chattanooga, Tenn., is building a broadband system with speeds up to 1 gigabit per second, much faster than speeds of 3 megabits or less often found in Wisconsin. The higher speeds are especially important to businesses that stream large amounts of data. Thus, broadband becomes an economic development tool. Three Lakes, in Oneida County, has ramped up its broadband service without using stimulus money. Officials in the town of 2,254 courted five broadband providers, helping them round up customers through a technology trade fair. At the fair, several hundred people lined up for service - much to the surprise of broadband providers who didn't have high expectations, said Town Chairman Don Sidlowski. Three Lakes now has high-speed Internet available to nearly 90% of its residents, including about 8,000 people who are only in the area for summer vacations. Three years ago, only 31% of the residents had access to one or two Internet providers, according to town officials. People have moved to Three Lakes because now they can work from home or set up a business, according to Sidlowski, who runs a marketing business from his home. "We decided the best strategy to boost our economy was to use broadband to turn home offices into global operations," he said. The town's population includes many business executives with summer homes, or who come to Three Lakes in the winter for snowmobiling and skiing. That helped recruit broadband customers, Sidlowski said, since wealthy people want to be connected to the Web no matter where they are. "We also went after broadband providers who understood the North Woods mentality," he said. "They understood that folks in this area want seasonal subscriptions." Three Lakes was one of 14 communities nationwide chosen by Verizon Wireless for a broadband project that greatly increased access speeds. The town also offered broadband providers access to public property for wireless towers, and a loan fund was established to encourage infrastructure. It took a combination of technologies to boost the service in Three Lakes. That's going to be the case in many communities, and sparsely populated rural areas, where it's too expensive to install miles of fiber-optic cable for a limited number of customers. "We just did all of this with good old-fashioned business savvy and elbow grease," Sidlowski said.

Spotty connection raises questions about Wireless@SG

A STOMP reader has questioned why he has been having trouble connecting to Wireless@SG, a free wireless broadband programme developed by the Infocomm Development Authority in Singapore. The service allows users broadband access, both indoors and outdoors, with speeds of up to 1 Mbps at public areas. However, the reader, Joepele, wrote in to the citizen journalism website to say that he could not access the Internet in many parts of Singapore, with the most recent location being Changi Airport's Terminal 3. He said: "Have they stopped providing the free wireless service? "Why not shut the routers down then?" Other users have also cited intermittent connection problems and slow log-in times when attempting to use the service. According to the Infocomm Development Authority (IDA), a user just needs a WiFi-enabled device, such as a laptop computer or a smartphone, a web browser, and a registered Wireless@SG account. The programme is run by three local wireless operators - iCELL Network, M1 and SingTel. Its website also states that the service will be provided free until Mar 31, 2013.