Connectivity - an Evil Necessity??

Have you ever realized how dependent we are on technology and being connected? I have now within the last three (3) weeks had panic attacks because I could not connect.

The first instance was while I was at the VCI-Group conference in New Orleans the middle of this month. During the conference I am most reliant on my Blackberry keeping me informed of what is going on at work and what I need to respond to right away. I generally only connect to my laptop for about an hour in the evening between the end of the conference and the start of the evening’s activities.

Wouldn’t you know that during that time RIM had a major melt down!!! There I was for hours not knowing if I needed to respond to an issue at work or even worse; my cousin who the previous week had been hospitalized for an infection and this was my quick way to communicate with my family throughout the day.

Also, I didn’t realize it at the time that it was a RIM problem – I am thinking that my Blackberry is on the “fritz”; that the Health system email application was working erratically; but, not RIM. When I went to my room that evening and logged on to my email there was a notification from the Health System that RIM was having global problems and that it was not known when they would be back on line. Thankfully, all was fine at the office and my cousin was getting better every day although staying in the hospital longer than expected.

This made me realize that I carry my Blackberry as if it were attached to my hip. It is the first thing I look at each morning and the last thing I look at each evening. I guess I am a “crackberry”; if I miss the football scores I use the web functionality to go to nfl.com for the scores; I have both my work and personal emails on it, my calendar is up to date on it and sounds to let me know of an appointment; and, now that my text feature is “on” it is most often the way my niece and I communicate with each other. Also, it is my watch to let me know what time it is or how long it has taken me to run an errand or two.

How did I handle life before this?

That was my first crisis. This past Monday when I arrived home from work I turned on my personal computer and plugged in my work computer – to my chagrin neither of them was picking up my router and IP address. Although I am in technology I am not a technologist and I can get flustered with my computer.

I do the normal things – let’s try to disconnect and connect to my wireless account. I can’t find it!! Why isn’t it there??!? I go through network and settings – there it is – let’s connect and it does. YEAH!! NO, NO, NO – it disconnects and again cannot find the IP address. Then it finds it connects and then disconnects – this goes on and on and on. Alright, think Toni, think. Let’s go ahead and reset the router – maybe it just lost connectivity, perhaps there was a slight electrical burst – who knows. Okay no luck. Well at this point I just give up – I have done everything I needed to do off my Blackberry.

On Tuesday I worked late and did not get home until after 7PM. I went ahead and turned on my personal laptop to see if maybe miraculously everything set itself properly while I was gone. I am thinking the technology leprechauns were finished playing their tricks on me. No such luck – I now realize I have a problem and I need to do something about it since I am working from home on Wednesday and I cannot continue this way.

I am very fortunate that one (1) mile from my home is a Best Buy and a counter with the Geek Squad. They have worked on things in my home before when I needed them. I stopped by as soon as the store opened at 10AM; I was originally told that I probably could not have anyone fix my issue that day because they were in the Bronx; but, that they would call him. Their response was that they could be at my home between 12 and 4; I said, “I’ll take it”. I needed to be up and running and I was going to be home the rest of the day working anyway.

Wouldn’t you know that the Geek Squad technician called me to ask if it was okay if he got there a little bit before 12 noon – ABSOFRICKINGLUTELY!!!! When he arrived he took one look at my router and stated that it was no longer working – he could tell because the lights were blinking like crazy. He has two (2) types in his car for me to choose – the high end one which I ended up selecting can have five (5) devices on it at once; since I already have three (3) devices on simultaneously it made total sense to purchase that one. Within the next 45 minutes all three (3) of my devices were configured and connected to my new router; as well as, my printer. I was back in working order and less than $200 poorer.

I cannot tell you the elation I felt to know that I would be able to respond to emails, surf the net, etc. from my laptops; most importantly, for me that I could work from home. I know that each of you who works from home can empathize with my pain – understand the anguish and the subsequent elation.

It is a sign of the times – to be connected always from anywhere and at any time. It is a sad reflection of the age that we live in and a harsh reality of it.

On the other hand being able to work from home let’s you be flexible with family obligations and to not miss out on certain things. Tomorrow is Halloween; and, although I have no children to take “trick or treating” I always work from home on this day. I live in a community where vans will drive in with 5 to 7 children and they can easily hit 60 houses for candy. I enjoy seeing all the children in their costumes and the little ones trying to climb the stairs to say “trick or treat” and to get their piece of candy.

So being connected gives me the opportunity to enjoy the simple pleasures of life, like Halloween. Happy Halloween to each of you.

Say Good-bye to Summer

Well I guess we can say that summer is definitely gone and that autumn has decided to settle in.

The leaves have turned color and as I drive home on the Taconic the mountains are ablaze with the red, yellow and orange of the leaves. There is a chill in the air when I leave the house at 5:45 in the morning and when I take out the garbage in the evening as the sun starts to set.

What I dislike the most is driving in the morning in the dark and arriving at work with just a glimmer of the sun – that should change in two (2) weeks when we move our clocks backward for one (1) hour. I won’t mind that the sun will set earlier as I am usually home no later than 4PM even if I am doing errands on my way home.

It is time to prepare for the winter. I need to disconnect the garden hoses from the outside faucets, turn off the water and cover the faucets with these down gloves I purchased in a catalog to help them from freezing. The potted plants are all but dead and need to be thrown out. And the cushions on the patio furniture need to be put away, the patio furniture covered and the umbrella removed from the table. I don’t think I have much more to do for the outside of the house since we have a landscaping company that takes care of the leaves, etc. But, I do need to remember to place my ice scraper and portable shovel in the trunk of my car.

Next thing is to go through my draws and pulling out my long sleeve shirts and sweaters – time to put those t-shirts away. It will also time for me to do some soul-searching as to what stays and what needs to be given away. Do you find that to be a dilemma for you? It is for me; and, although I may not have worn something for years my thoughts are that it is in perfectly good condition and maybe I will wear it next year. I need that little voice in my head saying, “Get a reality grip – you haven’t done it so far what makes you think next year will be different??”

The same will happen with the closet. I have already moved my winter suits into my master closet, tried things on and decided what is donated and what is going to the tailor to have him take in the waist of my business pants. I don’t understand why I have no issues addressing my suits; but, am conflicted when it comes to my tops and my shoes?!?

Like I said I will agonize about my shoes. I have a lot of them – and as I change them for the season I have a hard time getting rid of a pair that I may not have worn in a couple of years. Well a gal never knows when she may need them. Anyone who knows me is aware that shoes are a great passion of mine – maybe it is because I have small feet; although, I think the real reason is no matter what I weigh I can always buy shoes that fit and look good on me. I really do have to think about the black microfiber boots with the 3 inch heel – do I have the heels cut down so I can walk in these all day or do I give them away?? Do you want to vote on this?

Lastly, I will go through my linen closet which houses my cosmetics, shower gels and lotions. Like most of you my skin gets very dry in the winter time and I am constantly looking for a shower gel and lotion that will keep it hydrated throughout the day and night. I can get so itchy from the dryness that I have been known to leave welts on my body after scratching. I know that we should exfoliate – but, have you seen some of those scrubs and how greasy they are? You could fall in your shower or tub from their greasiness – I certainly don’t want that hazard. Also, I want a cream that soaks in and does not stain my clothes as I don’t have the luxury; and, neither do most of you to let it soak in for a few minutes. I want to lather up and dress. So I will continue looking at various creams to find “the one”.

I use this opportunity to once more organize myself. The Christmas shopping with the exception of a few things is complete. But the closet that has all the items is a mish-mash of Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, Valentine and birthday gifts. That closet needs to get organized with all gifts per holiday/occasion and gifts associated with individuals. With Halloween coming in the next week I want to be able to quickly put my hands on Ryan’s book and Callum’s DVD. Their Halloween chocolate pop that I picked up from Godiva on Wednesday is in my kitchen cabinet away from the warmth and the sun.

Next will be those items they will get for Thanksgiving. Every Thanksgiving I present the boys and Siobhan with an Advent calendar that they can put up and count down the days until Christmas. They will also receive a book on Thanksgiving with a card from me.

And now with the presents in piles per recipient it will be much easier for me to get to them to wrap.

That was my weekend – one of getting ready for the holidays and old man winter. To know that my home, my car and my body is prepared for the upcoming weather and that I have all the holidays taken care of.

Having accomplished this I can think of George Costanza’s father on Seinfeld saying, “Serenity Now”.

Was It the Week or Am I Getting Older!?!

What a week? I am one who always enjoys going to new places and trying new things; but, I think I am getting old or maybe just more mature?!?

Last week I was in New Orleans for the annual Visual Communications Industry Group (VCI-Group) conference. I have always known New Orleans to be called “The Big Easy”, the bayou and many other terms; but, it is now known as “NOLA” for New Orleans, Louisiana. I almost felt I was in New York with our SOHO and NOHO areas of the city.

We decided to go out to Bourbon Street our first night and experience it – can I say this: I only need to experience it once!!! It was early Saturday evening and there were two (2) college football games going on in town. Do I need to say much more?? Bourbon Street was full of young adults showing off their school colors, drinking in the street; and, not showing any pain at least for the moment.

This I think is the only town in the entire United States that allows you to take an exposed drink and drink it as you walk the streets. We wanted to go to Pat O’Brien’s for their famous hurricanes. We each ordered one – they were large at least 12 inches in height. They were potent and sweet; I could only take three (3) sips as I could feel the liquor quickly making me lightheaded for lack of food. We then moved on to the Palace Café where I enjoyed a great spinach salad and a shrimp etoufee. You should know that no matter what you eat there is always a little bit of spice so everything has a “kick” to it.

Sunday was a day to get everything in order and I have to admit that I never stepped out of the hotel – that is what happens at these type of events or when you go traveling on business; most of the time the only thing you see of the city you are in is the way to and from the airport. We hosted the Volunteer dinner to thank those individuals who would be performing various duties the next few days.

Monday was our first official conference day and there were education courses and the getting together of the Special Interest Groups (SIGs). We also opened the Exhibit Hall with the tradition of New Orleans and Mardi Gras with mask wearing and jazz playing – I also had outstanding jambalaya. Although the Exhibit Hall closed at 7PM a couple of us went up to the President’s suite to work on the Opening Speech to ensure that it encapsulated what our organization is about and what the conference was focusing on the next few days, “It’s the Experience”. I finally went off to bed that evening at 10PM.

Tuesday we began with a BANG!! Opening remarks, keynote presentations, the Exhibit Hall and concurrent speeches. What a wonderful day – we could hear the buzz of people as we moved from session to session or as we entered the Exhibit Hall. Everyone was talking about the conference, the words coined most often were: mobility, iPad2 and security. We all had the same requests and requirements whether we were in enterprise, healthcare or education – each of us had the same challenges and wanted to know how to mitigate them. What a great opportunity to network with others and see how they were solving the issues. The evening ended with a Special Event at the Mayfield Jazz Playhouse located at the Royal Sonesta Hotel. I ate so many bourbon meatballs and shrimp which I topped off with a small bananas foster that I was not interested in dinner.

We had a full day on Wednesday – this was the first time that on the last day the conference went until 5PM. Again the buzz was good; and, although the sessions were of great content some were not as well attended as we would have liked. Those individuals that stayed for the whole day realized how much more they were able to learn and share with their conferencing/collaboration peers. And, of course, some of them also were recipients of the gift card giveaways.

As a Board we went to NOLA for dinner – it is Emeril’s latest restaurant in New Orleans. All of the food was good and we were all in good spirits. At the end of the evening there was a contingency hitting the casino and then a few of us who choose to end our experience by having a chicory coffee and beignet at the legendary Café DuMonde. It brought back memories of when I first went to New Orleans with my aunt, Irma. We enjoyed a chicory coffee and a beignet every day. There I was at Jackson Square more than 15 years ago buying my nephew, Gerard a t-shirt from the Hard Rock Café, while my Aunt Irma bought her granddaughter a book on a bayou alligator. I saw the Cathedral, the market where I bought a pin that I recently received compliments on when I wore with a suit to work and taking a paddleboat ride.

All in all, this was a productive week for the conference, for the job and to bring back memories of when I was first in New Orleans. New Orleans has made a comeback and I urge everyone to go to this city at least once. It has a rich culture of French, Spanish and Creole – the food is to die for and there is much culture in the town. On the other hand it is still a scary town and we urged everyone to use the buddy system and to drink responsibly.

What I am most excited about is that the question asked by all attendees was, “where is the conference next year”; and, not “are you having a conference”. We have made our mark in the industry and we will continue to capitalize on that.

Pursue those things that you believe in and you will be successful.

What is Volunteering?

This week I want to focus on volunteerism – and do you volunteer? I think there are many forms of volunteering and each one should be applauded and the people who are part of it.

As you can see this has gone out to you a couple of days early – no; I am not changing the date of when I send this to you; but, instead I will be in New Orleans at the annual Visual Communications Industry Group (VCI-G) conference when this would normally post.

This is my volunteer group and it may not be the traditional volunteer program that you are used to; but, it is within my industry and as a Board Member we are all volunteers who have a respect and interest in where our industry is going and how it helps our customers/clients be more productive at their jobs.

Most volunteer positions are very different. I look at my niece who fosters greyhound dogs for the local greyhound rescue chapter until they are adopted. She is on her third foster and has three (3) greyhounds herself. It is a time consuming and tough job for many of these dogs have been raced and need love and attention. They also may have issues, like her dog Belle who has neurological issues or Cooper who is having problems in unmentionable areas – but, she loves them and to support the organization she does the walks and the “meet & greets” for the adoption process.

My cousin, Gerry for a long time was Santa Claus with Metro-North’s “Toys for Tots” campaign and would spend an entire weekend going from hospital to hospital giving out toys to young children. He would always come home with the best stories. Last weekend he did the three (3) mile walk for Alzheimer’s despite having two (2) knee surgeries and one just done this past April. We were all proud of him.

I haven’t been that generous in a long time – I have done things like Junior Achievement teaching – where every week for a few months I would teach for an hour at a New York Public school. Talk about heart breaking – most of these children did not have money for crayons or lived with their grandmother or another relative because one or both of their parents were in jail. I also used to participate in the Junior Achievement bowl-a-thon to raise money for that organization.

Today I end up writing a check to those organizations/charities I am most connected to due to a relative or a friend who may have had or has the disease. Would it be great if I could do a walk and raise the money, yes, it would – do I have the time – I don’t; but, I do have the means to give.

Soon Barnes & Noble will start doing a program where you can buy books for a local school (this is their holiday program), I totally believe in this program and through November and December each time I go to Barnes & Noble I will buy a book for each age category. I am a firm believer in reading and enabling a child to expand their knowledge through books.

On to my non-traditional volunteer position, I very much enjoy introducing people and educating them on what I do, what the technology is capable of and how to maximize it within their organizations. As a volunteer for VCI-G there is much networking with my peers and with manufacturers and providers who support or develop the technology. I also have an opportunity to write about what we do through marketing materials, flyers, etc. Since there is an annual conference much goes on to coordinate this program from selecting a venue, deciding on the conference event, the meals (that is the fun part); but, then there is also the educational sessions, the keynote speeches and the exhibit hall. There is a need to be fair to every vendor, to ensure that all topics that are highlighted are of an interest to the attendees and there is the requirement to fill the conference with End Users so that it is a financial investment to our sponsors and exhibitors.

That is where all the work is focused prior to the meeting – I liken this event to the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. Are you aware that on the Friday after the Parade that Macy’s begins planning next year’s parade? That is the way we are in VCI-G. We sit and review what succeeded and what did not, what needed more time, what should be eliminated and most importantly was the conference a success for our Members?

We immediately look to secure our good/great speakers for next year. We look at what were the hot topics which might have come up during panel discussions and see how that can be incorporated into education sessions for the following year. And the hardest part is getting the Membership to understand the value of this conference and the membership to our organization.

Most of us are very fortunate with our lives, jobs, homes and families – we are bright, educated individuals. We should be sharing whether it is time, money or knowledge. So, however you give of your time and money is up to you; but GIVE.

There is that old favorite adage: You Reap What You Sow – let’s SOW.

Love What You Do

The past couple of weeks have been a time of reflection as you will see. This past Tuesday I completed three (3) months in my new position at North Shore LIJ. I now have 50 hours of vacation time accumulated although I haven’t thought of when I will take it off or where I will go.

But what I want to be able to reflect on is the experience I have had over the past three (3) months. It starts with adjusting my internal alarm clock a little bit. After many months of waking up between 6:30 and 7AM; I now wake up at 4:45 and am out the door by 5:45. I have to admit that I usually stay in bed until 4:50 something about stealing those extra five (5) minutes.

The commute or drive to work is no longer an ordeal – I know that I can make it into the office before 7AM even with my usual stop at the Starbuck’s for my venti skim latte. Those of you who have worked for me or know my routine; yes, I still multi-task in the morning by reading my three (3) newspapers, looking at my emails and having my breakfast of a piece of cheese and my latte. That has not changed and I very much enjoy the routine. What I am getting used to is being the first one in the office and having to walk down a long hallway in the dark to get to my office and then turn on the lights for the entire area.

I have gotten into a routine with my office eating. If I know I will be able to leave my office between 2 and 2:30; then I generally have a piece of fruit and a cup of hot chocolate around 11:30 and eat my dinner when I get home between 3:30 and 4. If it is a day when meetings will run a little late and I may not leave until 4PM or later then I will have a sandwich or a salad with a lemonade drink from the truck that delivers food to our building. This has worked out well for me and as you saw last week I am maintaining my weight; although, like most folks I wouldn’t mind dropping a few more pounds.

I am able to work two (2) to three (3) days a week from home letting me sleep a little bit longer – until 6AM and to hit the gym for a workout. It also lets me get some errands done (like the laundry) while I am on calls or drafting proposals or messages.

But this wasn’t to give you a rundown of my day; but, instead to discuss what I have submitted to my Management over the last couple of months and the outcome of it.

I was hired to run the Enterprise Video Infrastructure for North Shore LIJ. In that capacity I would be responsible for managing the current infrastructure and technology, making recommendations and making this a seamless service to the Health System as currently anyone from a Janitor to a Chief Resident was responsible for the video equipment at their respective hospital.

After a few weeks of understanding how meetings were reserved (via an email with a request form) and hearing that people had been waiting for over four (4) weeks to get their meeting scheduled I knew there had to be a better way and a need for human interaction.

The solution would be to implement a “Managed Service” process which would take all our reservations, launch our calls, and provide Help Desk and onsite support for complex or Executive meetings. The task was to now get Management to buy into this program and financially fund it. That was problem #1.

On to the next was that there was no web conferencing standard within the health system and there was a major need for doctors and the administration to collaborate and communicate with each other. In that respect we are piloting a web conferencing application which we look to roll out to 1000 doctors. To ensure that we can get the best price, support, training and materials I wrote an RFP (Request for Proposal) which is now with our Procurement department for sending to three (3) vendors. I expect that by the end of October we will have selected a vendor and will start the implementation process.

Lastly, in reviewing our bridging infrastructure to put all of our endpoints in conference calls we realized we had a single point of failure in this environment. There was only one (1) of every piece of hardware meaning should any one (1) piece go down we could not have a meeting. Through a couple of weeks of design and meetings we were able to put together a design for a redundant, resilient and scalable bridging backbone – now I had to sell it to Management.

So why am I so happy??? Management saw the need for all of the proposals and after a few weeks of meetings and “gentle” reminders I have received approval and funding for all of my projects. NOW the fun begins as we start the project management of these initiatives.

I guess my real focus was that I don’t think that it has taken that long to present and obtain approval and funding for three (3) major programs. More importantly, I know that each of these programs will provide all Health System employees with the tools that will make them more productive and bring a better balance to their lives. No longer will they need to drive from one hospital to another for a meeting or consultation; but, will be able to do it from their offices.

The best part of my job is seeing the transformation of how people work. How people are realizing that these tools will bring information to them and will hopefully make the patient experience a good one – as that is our ultimate goal.

In the end I am passionate about my industry and what I do – that is what work should be – not just a job; but, as my CEO said we have an obligation and a responsibility.

We spend anywhere from 8 to 14 hours a day working and we do it for 45 years of our lives.

With that in mind; love what you do and do what you love.