GOOD TECH NEWS

• 17 Reasons to Let the Economic Optimism Begin
• Band of AI Startups Launch "Rebel Alliance" for Interoperability
• World's Most Powerful Supercomputer Now Up & Running
• Gaming App Helps Students Learn Cybersecurity Skills

TECHNOLOGY & GOVERNMENT

• White House Names Sector Insider as Federal CIO
• Intel Joins DARPA in Search of Encryption "Holy Grail"

TECH NEWS YOU CAN USE

• "Everything You Need to Know" About the Microsoft Exchange Server Hack
• 7 IT Execs on Remote Work Pet Peeves

AfterNow has published a quick video tutorial on how to stream an AfterNow Prez (virtual reality) presentation over Zoom, and has created a proof of concept of a mini VR class - on the solar system - to demonstrate that no technical knowledge specific to AR or VR is required when creating classes with AfterNow Prez.
In addition, watch videos on how to start an AfterNow Prez presentation on Quest Controllers and using Oculus Quest Hand Tracking. (Philippe Lewicki, WLA)

Lisa Perrine, CEO of Cibola Systems Corporation, was interviewed on a recent episode of The AV Mindful Minute video podcast. Host Jeff Day exclaimed, "I first met Lisa as an award-winning 2020 AVIXA Volunteer of the Year recipient in our virtual awards ceremony last year. I have found she and I align on so many topics, like innovation, design thinking, and mindful approaches. Her volunteerism passion, insight, and thoughtful leadership style make this one episode you can't afford to miss. (Lisa Perrine, Ed.D., WLA)

Coherent, Inc. (NASDAQ: COHR) has entered into a revised merger agreement with Lumentum Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: LITE), subject to customary closing conditions. Under the terms, each share of Coherent common stock will be exchanged for $175 in cash and 1.0109 shares of Lumentum common stock at the completion of the transaction, expected to close in the second half of calendar year 2021. (Randy Heyler, SGV)

Eckert & Ziegler (EZ) has signed an investment agreement with the Administrative Committee of Jiangsu Jintan Economic Development Zone (PR China) for the acquisition and commercial development of 13.300 square meters of industrial-use land. Subject to governmental and regulatory approval in China, it will house various radiopharmaceutical and radioisotope production suites and EZ's administrative headquarter for the greater China area. At a later stage, it will also serve as the operational basis for maintenance crews and EZ's different technical divisions. (Frank Yeager, SGV)

"Urban Confluence Silicon Valley" is an international competition currently taking place in San Jose to choose a team to build an iconic landmark to represent the region's spirit of innovation. From 960+ submissions, three finalists have been selected, and Electrosonic is the technology partner on one of the finalist teams - Welcome to Wonderland. (Bryan Hinckley, SGV)

Jason Ciment, CEO of GetVisible, was recently featured in an episode of the SmallBizCast podcast, hosted by Joel Volk. They discussed Jason's company, as well as SEO, digital marketing, and the "what makes you tick" drivers that charge Jason up every day to deliver value to clients and friends.
Meanwhile, GetVisible has published a review of 10 of its clients, comparing 2020 vs 2019 in terms of how SEO efforts worked. Nine out of the 10 experienced growth of 1-to-3x their organic traffic from the previous year. (Jason Ciment, WLA)

Co-developed with OFUI, GF Piping Systems' new NeoFlow pressure regulating valve allows water utilities to easily implement pressure management technology and benefit from a renewed water network, a solution to avoid non-revenue water. The compact polymer valve is nine times lighter in weight and uses 40% less installation time than a standard metal PRV. Axial flow technology makes NeoFlow more accurate in operation.
Also, GF Piping Systems has added Big 5 restraint fittings to its MULTI/JOINT 3000 Plus family. The proven repair and maintenance solution for water applications can prevent water loss for utilities and is suitable for all pipe materials. (Mike Smith, SGV)

In LookinLA Strengthens its Client Base, Expands Services and Team in 2020 Amid COVID-19, LookinLA reports it achieved over 300% growth and retained 100% of their client base in 2020, with a multi-industry client roster in manufacturing, consumer services and goods, medical, skincare, and software. Plans for 2021 include the expansion of services and executions for B2C and B2B companies, and the introduction of the Elotive framework, which offers strategy and planning for B2B companies that are looking to transform their marketing and align their sales and marketing activities to a wider range of clients.
In addition, LookinLA is now a Forrester client with access to its research and insights in order to gain deeper insights on clients' needs and market research. (Ali Payani, SGV)

Parasoft's DevSecOps solution for building security into critical DoD programs was selected for use by the DoD's Joint Federated Assurance Center, a federation of DoD organizations promoting and enabling software assurance technologies and expertise to defense acquisition programs and their supporting activities.
Meanwhile, Overcoming Software Quality Challenges With Automated Testing: Travel & Hospitality Customer Success Stories describes how Parasoft partnered with Alaska Airlines, Caesars Entertainment, and Sabre, to optimize their software delivery processes and reach quality goals with service virtualization and test automation. (Elizabeth Kolawa, Ph.D., SGV)

On March 17, Chris Dyer, CEO of PeopleG2, will co-host a webinar - How Leaders Can Harness Their Right and Left-brain Superpowers, at 11 a.m. Pacific.
And, on March 23, Chris will lead a presentation on "Leading a Hybrid Team: Mixing Remote and the Office," at the REAL HR: SHRM-Atlanta's Virtual Symposium.
Meanwhile, watch a recording of PeopleG2's recent webinar, Becoming Unstoppable.
Also, listen to the recent episode of Be More Podcast: 10 Years of Remote Working with Chris Dyer. (Chris Dyer, SGV)

A recent issue of AI Magazine includes a full-page feature on WorkDone and its CEO Joe Rogers, in an article entitled The Future of Work. An excerpt: "WorkDone completes the transition from the industrial revolution to the digital revolution by bringing to life the promise of AI in the workplace. Joe Rogers tells us more about this ground-breaking technology and how it can help businesses large and small." (Joe Rogers, WLA)

In "LALA" - A short lesson in marketing, Dave Berkus explains how you can become the best marketer you can be; in summary: Listen!, Adapt!, Learn!, Adapt (again)!
And, in Do you really want to be the first to market?, Dave asks, "Do you have the resources to evangelize the market, educate your potential customers, AND sell your product?" The answer is invariably "no," he continues, because the cost of evangelizing a new product is completely unknown. (Dave Berkus, SGV & WLA)

In What is Quality, and How Can You Infuse It Into Everything You Do?, Intellect discusses the hallmarks of successful quality programs, including developing a clear understanding of customer expectations; creating structured, consistent and repeatable processes; investing in the right technologies, and more.
And, in Steps to Creating a Culture of Quality in the Workplace, Intellect says that this requires the slow, steady application of intentional effort, which includes defining your "why;" aligning the leadership team; defining first steps, implementing; talking about successes and failures; then rinse and repeat. (Romeo Elias, WLA)

In Mobile Service Software Brings Vehicle Service to Customers, myKaarma explains that its mobile service software enables dealerships to bring the expertise of their factory-trained technicians to the customer's preferred location. Technicians can become a mobile repair "shop" to inspect, repair, and maintain customer vehicles at the customer's home, office, or any location. This also opens up the dealership's service bays for more lucrative repair opportunities. (Ujj Nath, WLA)

In Why Using a B2C Platform for Your B2B E-Commerce is a Bad Idea, Pegasus One shares that when beginning a new digital commerce initiative, one usually starts their search with leading B2C vendors who seem well-proven in delivering digital commerce experiences. But this is not always the best way forward; download the guide to learn why.
And, How Global Leaders are Building Modern Intranet Solutions dives into five examples of effective solutions from different industry leaders from around the world.
Read other recent posts from Pegasus One, including What can AI do for your business? and Best practices for Power BI performance & security: Part 1; Part 2; Part 3. (Tushar Puri, OC)

In In-game purchases: the indie dev's best revenue friend, Xsolla reports that game developers have several ways to monetize their games beyond the initial purchase event. And for indie games, leveraging in-game purchases is one of the best strategies.
Click here to read other recent blogs from Xsolla, including "5 Fraud Trends You Need to Know About;" "Game Release & Myth Busters: Everything you need to know about maximizing pre-sales before your game launches on Steam;" and "Build the In-Game Store Everyone Wants to Shop At." (Shurick Agapitov, WLA)

ChannelPro Network recently featured Alvaka Networks and its CEO Oli Thordarson in a cover story - Building a Rapid Response Brand - in which Oli details how his MSP company focuses on rapid response, recovery, and prevention, with a staffed 24/7/365 network operations center, serving always-on businesses in healthcare, finance, manufacturing, biotech, and technology. (Oli Thordarson, ABL-Health OC)

A recent Forbes article - Two Lifesaving Features Could Be Coming To Smartwatches - spotlights the Biospectal OptiBP, which uses a smartphone's built-in optical camera lens to record and measure a user's blood flow at the fingertip in half the time it takes with a traditional cuff (about 20 seconds). The Biospectal OptiBP for Android app is in public beta and available now in the US, UK, France, Germany, Spain and Switzerland. An iOS app is planned for release later this year. (Eliott Jones, ABL-Health SV)

Cigna's health services subsidiary Evernorth will acquire telehealth provider MDLive, in a deal that is expected to close sometime in Q2. With MDLive, Evernorth believes it can build a connected care delivery model that is more convenient, could more quickly identify patients' needs, more easily facilitate specialist or behavioral health referrals, and broadly reduce costs. (Chris De Rosa, ABL-Health OC)

Competitive Health, Inc. (CHI) has partnered with Great Speech Inc. to add tele-speech therapy to CHI's ever-expanding telehealth offerings. CHI can now provide nationwide access to this care to people of all ages via state-licensed and ASHA-certified speech therapists. CHI offers this benefit to employer groups and associations through its digital healthcare marketplace. Additionally, CHI delivers a consumer savings version of Great Speech's platform through the WellCard Savings membership program. (Kim Darling, ABL-Health OC)

GeBBS Healthcare Solutions has been named for the sixth year in a row to the IAOP Global 100 Outsourcing List, an annual listing of the world's best outsourcing service providers, judged in four categories: Delivery Excellence, Top Innovation, Customer References, and Corporate Social Responsibility.
AND, GeBBS has been recognized as a "Top Performer" for Revenue Cycle - Extended Business Office in the 2021 Best in KLAS Report. In addition to being "Top Performer," GeBBS also received top grades across loyalty, operations, services, relationship, and value. (Gabe Stein, ABL-Health LA)

MedCity News highlighted LigoLab and its direct-to-consumer portal, TestDirectly, in a recent article - How text messaging is transforming the life sciences industry - which includes: "According to Suren Avunjian, CEO of LigoLab, text messaging is an important part of how communication is handled within the TestDirectly platform. After self-registering for a test, the patient receives text messages that confirm the order and the appointment, as well as text appointment reminders. When ready, the patient is notified to check the test results via another automated text message." (Suren Avunjian, ABL-Health LA)

In Why Laboratories Should Outsource Their Medical Billing Coding, Savi Group notes that problems with proper coding, payment structures, and billing errors can make it harder for laboratories to stay financially healthy. As such, they can reap many benefits of outsourcing their billing operations, and free up valuable internal resources. (Sumit Mahendru, ABL-Health OC)

VivaLNK has announced availability of a wearable ECG monitoring solution designed to wirelessly capture ECG and heart rate during a six-minute walk test (6MWT), a common exercise routine used for patients with pulmonary hypertension, congestive heart failure, pre-lung transplant evaluation, interstitial lung disease, or COPD.
And, VivaLNK CEO Jiang Li, Ph.D. wrote a recent article in TrialSite News - The Evolving Role of Digital Tools & RPM in Clinical Trials. (Jiang Li, Ph.D., ABL-Health SV)

New York Times reporter, Neil Irwin, who has tracked decades of gloomy trends, sees things lining up for roaring growth. "A rapid start to the post-pandemic economy could create a virtuous cycle in which consumers spend; companies hire and invest to fulfill that demand; and workers wind up having more money in their pockets to consume even more. Americans have saved an extra $1.8 trillion during the pandemic, reflecting government help and lower spending. That is money that people can spend in the months ahead, or it could give them a comfort level that they have adequate savings and can spend more of their earnings." He details 17 reasons to be Very Optimistic in the Post-Pandemic Era.
Meanwhile, the Silicon Valley Business Journal reports that, based on their activity in the first two months of the year, venture capitalists are on pace to invest $460 billion in startups by the end of December, according to data from PitchBook. (https://www.bizjournals.com/sanjose/news/2021/03/10/venture-capitalists-2021-pitchbook.html)

More than 20 AI startups have banded together to create the AI Infrastructure Alliance in order to build a software and hardware stack for machine learning and adopt common standards. An alliance spokesperson said partner organizations have raised about $200 million in funding from investors. (https://venturebeat.com/2021/02/24/band-of-ai-startups-launch-rebel-alliance-for-interoperability/)

After seven years in the works, the world's fastest supercomputer has officially been completed in Japan and is now available for researchers to start using, for projects ranging from fighting climate change to discovering new drugs. The delivery of Fugaku's total 432 racks was completed in May 2020; since then, trials of the system have been on-going. The computer is now fully open for shared use. (https://www.zdnet.com/article/the-worlds-most-powerful-supercomputer-is-now-up-and-running/)

Skillsgapp, a gaming development company, is working with the San Bernardino County Superintendent of Schools to provide students with interactive apps focused on cybersecurity, a skill used in multiple industries, including health science, medical technology, manufacturing, product design, entertainment, construction, and more. The app simulates real-world cybersecurity events within a fictitious villain hacking narrative. (https://www.pe.com/2021/03/07/how-a-gaming-app-is-helping-san-bernardino-students-learn-tech-skills/)

The Biden Administration has selected Clare Martorana, CIO at the U.S. Office of Personnel Management, as the next federal CIO. She joined OPM in 2019 from the U.S. Digital Service, an organization responsible for bolstering the federal government's digital technology efforts. Prior to civil service, she was the president of the consumer division at Everyday Health Inc. and was SVP and editor-at-large for WebMD. A recent report from the inspector general lauded Martorana's "compelling vision for IT modernization" at OPM where the CIO "combined a persuasive vision with a detailed plan to successfully see it through." (https://www.ciodive.com/news/Clare-Martorana-federal-CIO-opm/596419/)

Intel has signed an agreement with Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to take part in its Data Protection in Virtual Environments (DPRIVE) program, which is aiming to develop an accelerator for fully homomorphic encryption (FHE) - which "remains the holy grail in the quest to keep data secure while in use." FHE is an approach to data security that delivers mathematical proof of encryption by using cryptographic means, which DARPA has touted could potentially provide a new level of certainty around how data is stored and manipulated. (https://www.zdnet.com/article/intel-joins-darpa-in-search-of-encryption-holy-grail/)

Four zero-day vulnerabilities in Microsoft Exchange Server are being actively exploited by a state-sponsored threat group from China and appear to have been adopted by other cyberattackers in widespread attacks. While in no way believed to be connected to the SolarWinds supply chain attack that has impacted an estimated 18,000 organizations worldwide - so far - there is concern that lags in patching vulnerable servers could have a similar impact, or worse, on businesses. ZDNet shares "everything you need to know" about the security issues, updating their guide as the story develops.

CIO Dive asked IT executives to share their biggest remote work peeves one year into the pandemic: Click here to read what they had to say.
And, in The pandemic forced a massive remote-work experiment. Now comes the hard part, CNN Business looks back on the pandemic's impact on the global workforce and how things may have forever changed.

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