BACK TO WORK

• Remote Work vs Office Life: Lots of Experiments and No Easy Answers
• Tech Labor Shortage Is Only Set to Grow; These Companies Think Apprenticeships Are the Answer

ON THE TECH FRONT

• Apple Readies Several New Macs with Next-Generation M2 Chips
• Semiconductors Expected to be in Tight Supply Throughout 2022
• California's Radical Plan to Ban Gas-Powered Cars by 2035 Just Might Work
• 3G is Shutting Down: Here are the Gadgets that Still Rely on It
• Video Game May Help People with Depressive Disorder

Former Walt Disney Imagineer Brian Collins recently posted on LinkedIn that he had a chance to test drive AfterNow's new presentation technology, Prez. "It's kind of like doing a 3-dimensional PPT presentation in VR, but much more," Brian said. Among the information he shared, he attached several screen shots taken from the live video stream. (Philippe Lewicki, WLA)

California LightWorks has introduced its MegaDrive Vertical Series, a new light series designed for multi-level or single-level indoor growing. It combines all the advantages of MegaDrive's central power supply and eliminates the need for drivers and power drops over the canopy, resulting in reduced fixture and installation costs and better controls.
MEANWHILE, Sunburst Nurseries boosts production using MegaDrive LED technology details how dragon-fruit-grower/distributor Sunburst has succeeded with solutions from California Lightworks. (George Mekhtarian, SGV)

Lisa Perrine, CEO of Cibola Systems, will co-present a "three-day deep dive into design thinking" at InfoComm in Las Vegas on June 4. At the end of this course, you will be able to apply five Design Thinking principles - empathize, define, ideate, prototype, and test - and come away with a fresh perspective on how to approach your next AV project. (Lisa Perrine, Ed.D., WLA)

Eckert & Ziegler (EZ) has executed with Alpha-9 Theranostics, a Canadian biotech company, a clinical supply agreement for EZ's medical radioisotope Lutetium-177, which will be used for the clinical development of Alpha-9's investigational drugs.
AND, EZ and Sirtex Medical have extended their long-term supply agreement for the use of yttrium-90 in Sirtex microspheres for the treatment of liver cancer to the Chinese market. The agreement guarantees EZ a significant share of the growing global demand for Y90-based microspheres. (Frank Yeager, SGV)

Greenlight Information Services in partnership with Aegis Innovators won a Gold Award for the Americas at the recent International Association of Microsoft Channel Partners (IAMCP) P2P Awards, which recognize companies working together to deliver Microsoft technology solutions for client companies. (Jason Makevich, OC)

A recent Tech Times article reported that LookinLA has partnered with ZoomInfo (NASDAQ: ZI). The companies will share qualified leads with each company's respective sales teams, fulfilling customers' needs with best-in-class data and marketing solutions. (Ali Payani, WLA)

myKaarma has announced a major investment partnership with H.I.G. Growth Partners. "myKaarma provides unmatched offerings and value to dealerships," H.I.G. Managing Director Evan Karp said. "Their users are passionate about the communications, video, scheduling, and other solutions that are used in service departments every day. We are excited to partner with myKaarma as they continue along a strong growth trajectory." (Ujj Nath, WLA/OC)

Optimum Info has debuted a retail network development solutions newsletter, PULSE, which will share content of interest to OEMs, including latest industry trends, product updates, success stories, and more. The Q1 2022 issue includes these articles: NOVA - A new Network Planning Solution for OEMs; Electric Vehicles and the Future of Retail; and Vertically Focused IKON CRM Solution vs Standard CRM. (Arvind Verma, OC)

Parasoft has released results of the QA Vector Analytics report, "Virtualization and Quality Engineering: Benchmarking the Benefits." It reveals that top financial service organizations that focused on software quality, including Bank of America and ING, increased by 40% the speed to market of recent software development programs by implementing Parasoft Virtualize, a test data and environment management and simulation tool, as they transition to CI/CD.
MEANWHILE, Parasoft is hosting the second-annual global Embedded Software Testing & Compliance Summit on May 12, 2022.
ALSO, read Parasoft's Software Testing Methodologies Guide: A High-Level Overview. (Elizabeth Kolawa, Ph.D., SGV)

On April 27, PeopleG2 and Chris Dyer will present a webinar, Why Failing Doesn't Suck: How To Rejoice In Your Face-Palm Moments.
PLUS, watch PeopleG2's recent webinar on-demand, Mastering Tough Conversations.
ALSO, PeopleG2 has published California's New DOB Restrictions: Breaking Down What It Means For Background Checks.
MEANWHILE, Chris Dyer is included in LeadersHum's Top 40 Change Management Gurus You Should Follow in 2022.
AND, Chris is interviewed in this video (with transcript) by The Professional Hobo, How to Run a Remote Company. (Chris Dyer, SGV)

Profi has been recognized in Capterra Shortlist and Software Advice Frontrunner for Training Software, as a top-rated software with an overall rating of 4.8/5.
AND, read This Subscription-based Wellness Consultancy Cut Admin Waste, Tripled Subscriptions and 60Xed Activations With Profi Network to learn about Ikigai Consulting's success story. (Alina Trigubenko, WLA)

Mike Smith has joined Bromic Heating, where he heads North America sales operations. The company designs, engineers, and manufactures gas, electric, and portable outdoor heating products. Most recently, Mike was President and Managing Director of Georg Fischer Signet LLC. (Mike Smith, SGV)

On the evenings of May 4 (click here) and June 2 (click here), John Tanner, Ph.D., of Tanner Research, will present his free Nutrition Science Virtual Workshop, via Zoom, where he will relay to participants the scientific information they need to avoid heart disease and other leading killers with a proper diet. The group will discuss strategies for change and John will field questions, plus give a free book to participants. (John Tanner, Ph.D., SGV)

Vincit has received the 2022 Clutch award as a leading usability testing company. Clutch is an established platform committed to helping businesses of all sizes identify and connect with the service providers they need to achieve their goals. The Clutch Leader Awards recognize companies' commitment to building their expertise, providing stellar customer service, and producing high-quality results for clients. (Rachel Valentine, OC)

Xsolla has announced the acquisition of Slemma, an advanced data analytics and visualization reporting platform. The web-based tools allow users to create simple, easy-to-use and dynamic data reports with customizable dashboards. Xsolla will integrate Slemma's product suite into the Publisher Account to provide clients with next-level data visualizations, even connecting to third party tools and services.
ALSO, Xsolla has launched their new esports solution, enabling video game developers, publishers, and esports event producers to create engaging fan experiences with safe and secure payment processing, globally.
AND, Xsolla introduced its Influencer Payouts solution that allows developers to easily manage safe and secure payouts to influencers who promote their games.
MEANWHILE, Xsolla won "Best Service Provider" at The Pocket Gamer Mobile Games Awards. (Shurick Agapitov, WLA)

In What is Enterprise Patch Management?, Alvaka Networks shares that the National Institute of Standards and Technology just released "Report 800-40r4: Guide to Enterprise Patch Management Planning: Preventive Maintenance for Technology" and highlights some salient points, followed by some commentary.
AND, in LAPSUS$: The New Extortion Group Causing a Scene, Alvaka discusses a new threat actor group behind an infamous wave of attacks impacting companies like Microsoft, Nvidia, Okta, Globant, and others. LAPSUS$, tracked as DEV-0537 by Microsoft, is relatively less sophisticated than other hacking and extortion groups when it comes to tactics and procedures. However, what they lack in sophistication, they make up for in persistence. (Oli Thordarson, SGV)

In The Importance of Sharing, Harrison Barnes, CEO of BCG Attorney Search, declares that the most successful people share the common characteristic of sharing, or concentrating on the value that they give back to others, over their own growth and profit.
AND, in See Things the Way They Are, Harrison says that ranking people, assets, opportunities, etc., is one of the most powerful practices that you can implement. Ranking naturally motivates people to improve. (Harrison Barnes, JD, WLA)

In Steve Jobs' "aha moment!", Dave shares that there's a process to innovation that can be summed up with four words: "Whoa. Wow! Hmmm. Yes!" "Credit Dr. Mark Goulston with this. He states, that's exactly how Steve Jobs described his 'aha moment,'" Dave continues, as he shares what led to Jobs' conception of Macintosh. "There are many examples of great advances in technology or industry from such aha moments," Dave adds. "But it is as much a skill to be developed as an accident of fate. Discipline yourself to notice things that not only interest you but draw deeply into your emotional self as you see them for the first time. And when you do spot such an anomaly, 'whoa.' Slow down to absorb what you've seen and how you are reacting to it. Your 'wow!' moment follows if you can identify why you stopped to look, and connect that with your reason for excitement. 'Hmmm.' This could be important and lead to something big for us. 'Yes!' I know what we can do to change the world with this."
MEANWHILE, Dave announced that, after over a decade of requests, his books, Berkonomics and Extending the Runway, are now available as audio books, through Audible, Amazon and iTunes in the U.S. and the UK. (Dave Berkus, SGV & WLA)

A recording of Electrosonic's recent webinar, Sustainable Solutions for a Greener Future: Designing a Better Tomorrow, is now available, co-led by Bryan Hinckley.
ALSO, in What Do Technology-Rich Immersive Experiences Look Like in 2022?, Electrosonic discusses the roles of beamforming, haptic speakers, interactive technology and displays, trigger tech (LIDAR), and projection mapping, as well as some trends that will likely impact what's next, including XR and the Metaverse; 5G; AI, machine learning and immersion; and personalization of experiences. (Bryan Hinckley, SGV)

In Technology Decisions Can Support Investor Loyalty, Envision Financial Systems reports that with a record-breaking $86.1 billion in inflows last year, alternative investment sponsors have been heavily committed to fundraising lately. As such, Envision evaluates the three main drivers behind this recent growth: strong returns; demand for income-producing investments; and a pressing need for diversification. (Satnam Gambhir, OC)

GetVisible's Always Thinking Blog offers a variety of posts to help us better understand specific aspects of SEO. Recent posts include Is SEO Still Relevant in 2022? and Five Principles of Website Design.
Other business hacks also provided by CEO Jason Ciment include:
>> Wild new AI technology that is coming soon. Visit https://openai.com/dall-e-2/ and see how this software creates images from a few words of text. You just type in a scenario, and it creates an image.
>> Find Facebook ads of your competitors.
>> Find content topics for SEO articles and for website construction purposes: https://answersocrates.com. Type in a topic and it comes up with a list of questions people search in Google. (Jason Ciment, WLA)

Visit ProProfs' blog page to read about a variety of topics. Recent posts include:
>> 15 Best Training Management and Tracking Software.
>> 25+ Best Lead Generation Tools to Explore in 2022.
>> Importance of Employee Satisfaction Survey: Top 9 Reasons Decoded. (Sameer Bhatia, WLA)

The Daily Beast recently published an article written by Marshall Toplansky and Joel Kotkin, The Metaverse Isn't Real Yet but It's Already Really Lucrative, about which Marshall says: "The metaverse has the potential to be the next major economic engine. ... It is going to take 20 years before we see the metaverse move from its current cartoonish persona to becoming an immersive, hyper-real platform. But the forces are already in place to make it happen." (Marshall Toplansky, OC)

In this video, Amy Waldrup, Senior Director of Patient Services at Children's Hospital New Orleans, explains how Elemeno is different from Learning Management Systems.
MEANWHILE, Elemeno congratulates its partner Children's Hospital New Orleans / LCMC Health on achieving Magnet recognition. (Arup Roy-Burman, MD, Bay Area)

LigoLab was recently honored with the 2022 Competitive Strategy Leadership Award by Frost & Sullivan, after analyzing the North American Laboratory Information Systems Industry. The firm credited LigoLab for improving the efficiency of its diagnostic lab partners and transforming them into thriving businesses.
MEANWHILE, recent articles from LigoLab include: Differences Between Laboratory Information Management Systems and Laboratory Information Systems; as well as Telehealth and Direct-to-Consumer Testing Give Patients a Prominent Seat at the Healthcare Table. (Suren Avunjian, LA)

Gadget Flow released its list of "most innovative gadgets we've seen in 2022 so far" and MedWand is at the top of the list. Gadget Flow describes the MedWand as a handheld medical gadget that allows doctors to more effectively examine patients no matter where they are, providing real-time monitoring of core temperature, heart rate, blood pressure, blood oxygen, electrocardiogram, and more. It can also capture critical high-definition images and can host FDA-approved Anomaly Indication Algorithms to help detect life-threatening conditions. Plus, MedWand comes in multiple kits depending on whether you need it as an individual, a health care provider, or a workplace. (Bob Rose, OC)

PRODEO is looking for promising companies in the field of brain health. Its methodology leverages streetwise experience informed by the most contemporary deep analytics and proven frameworks. The goal is to deliver actionable, data-driven guidance in the following areas: best-fit market segments and targets, potential strategic and channel partners, recent acquisitions, investor trends and global competition. More Information.
ALSO, CEO Mark Heinemeyer co-authored an article in the Psychiatric Times - Brain Capital: An Emerging Investment Opportunity. (Mark Heinemeyer, OC)

In Telehealth Continues Popularity Among Physicians, Savi Group finds that telehealth demand amongst physicians remains strong. Throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, and moving forward, there will be room to improve upon current telehealth usage and look into the impact this model has had on quality, cost, and scalability amongst medical practices.
AND, in How to Find and Retain Great Healthcare Workers, Savi Group discusses creating a healthy environment that reduces the likelihood of burnout for staff members. Also, ensure your operations are running efficiently and integrating the latest technological innovations within the industry. (Sumit Mahendru, OC)

With some people returning to work in the office and others continuing to log in from home, managers will need to create a hybrid workplace that successfully blends in-person collaboration and remote working to keep everyone happy and productive. Three executives at the recent DTX Tech Predictions Mini Summit explained how their companies are using a range of tools and techniques to build the workplace of the future. (https://www.zdnet.com/article/remote-work-vs-office-life-lots-of-experiments-and-no-easy-answers/)

White collar industries are just starting to embrace the apprenticeship - and some businesses say it's the future of entry-level employment. Apprenticeships have long been associated with trade industries, like manufacturing and construction. Now they're growing in popularity in the tech field, where recruiters are struggling to fill open roles. Apprenticeships have a different structure than internships, and they can reach a different audience, too. For an apprentice's term - typically a year - they receive paid on-the-job training, usually working with a mentor who helps them through the ins and outs of their position. At the end of their term, they're brought on into a full-time, entry-level position. (https://www.inc.com/rebecca-deczynski/apprenticeships-multiverse-apprenti-onesignal-tech-labor-shortage.html)

Apple Inc. has started widespread internal testing of several new Mac models with next-generation M2 chips, according to developer logs, part of its push to make more powerful computers using homegrown processors. The company is testing at least nine new Macs with four different M2-based chips with third-party apps in its App Store, according to the logs, which were corroborated by people familiar with the matter. The move is a key step in the development process, suggesting that the new machines may be nearing release in the coming months. The M2 chip is Apple's latest attempt to push the boundaries of computer processing. (https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-04-14/apple-readies-several-new-macs-with-next-generation-m2-chips)

Increasing use of chips in everything from automobiles to appliances means more businesses across industries are competing for limited supply. Suppliers are working furiously to ramp up production, announcing plans for new factories and billions of dollars' worth of capital expenditures. Intel announced Friday it will invest at least $20 billion in two chip factories in Ohio, with production set to come online in 2025. TSMC, a supplier of Apple, is moving forward with factories in Arizona and Taiwan. In 2022, the company plans to help grow its supply by spending between $40 billion and $44 billion in capital expenditures. Most of the budget will go toward "advanced process technologies, including 2-nanometer, 3-nanometer, 5-nanometer and 7-nanometer" semiconductors, according to CFO Wendell Huang.

But with many suppliers' planned capacity projects not expected to be operational until 2023 at the earliest, chip supply will likely remain limited throughout this year, according to a Deloitte industry outlook. Still, supply constraints may not be as dire as they were over the past two years, which Deloitte said resulted in revenue misses of more than $500 billion worldwide for suppliers and customers. Capital investments made before the pandemic are set to become operational this year, and the report expects capacity for 200-mm and 300-mm wafers to rise by more than 10% in 2022. Major investments in long-term capacity also show that chip suppliers don't think demand will go away any time soon. (https://www.ciodive.com/news/semiconductor-tight-supply-shortage-2022/617563/)

California regulators have introduced a new proposal that would ban new gas-powered cars by 2035, a move that would be a global first. If it becomes reality - and if history is any guide when it comes to California and cars - the rest of the U.S. might just be dragged along, too. The state's Clean Air Resources Board recently unveiled its plan to phase out gas-powered vehicles, and it's expected to vote on the proposal in August, after a 45-day public comment period and a June 9 public hearing. The rule would require the state to up its zero-emission car sales in the coming years, culminating in the full ban. It comes in response to Gov. Gavin Newsom's executive order to end the sale of gas-powered cars by 2035, which he issued last September. (https://www.protocol.com/bulletins/california-clean-cars-2035)

3G is shutting down and some of your most essential tech may soon become unusable. Here is everything you need to know about the "3G sunset", how it will affect the technology that you use, and what you can do to stay afloat in the ever-changing landscape. (https://www.zdnet.com/home-and-office/networking/3g-is-shutting-down-here-are-the-gadgets-that-still-rely-on-it-do-you-have-one/)

Researchers at Duke and Stanford Universities found that adults with major depressive disorder could see sustained attention benefits from playing a therapeutic video game called AKL-T03, which involves concentration, memory and decision-making. The study in the American Journal of Psychiatry said that easily accessible tools of this kind could play "a meaningful role in the treatment of MDD patients." (https://www.healthleadersmedia.com/innovation/new-study-finds-value-video-games-treating-depression)

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