InfoAge

NZICA logoRecently I was asked to speak at the NZ Institute of Chartered Accountants about working smarter. Being what InfoAge is all about (“helping you work smarter”) how could I resist.

I was asked my what has lead to my own success in business so here some key tools:

  • Good smartphone – to enable access to information, contacts, notes, make appointments on the go, respond to client emails.
  • Cloud services – hosted email, secure file sharing to access documents and share with clients.
  • VoIP – office number rings in office and on mobile, can transfer calls to other staff, available anywhere in the world like when I am volunteering in Laos, office calls ring on my mobile (all at no extra cost).
  • A good database or CRM – I have to have client information at my fingertips. Not just contact details but a list of future opportunities, and a history of past work / system details / modifications. My CRM saves an immense amount of time and makes the business very efficient. Time is money.

When asked to discuss my favourite apps they would have to be:

  • A VoIP app so I take my office phone with me on my mobile (3CX or CSIPSimple)
  • A great keyboard app like Swiftkey, so much better than the default keyboard for quicker typing and predicting the next words I commonly use.
  • Keepass, a free app for storing password securely. Every site and system has a unique password, over 3,000 of them. This app means I always have access to what I need and i can carry it securely.
  • WhatsApp and Viber – for free messaging and calling internationally.
  • Soonr – for access to cloud files and sharing files securely with clients.
  • Google Maps – invaluable for navigation at home and abroad.
  • Trello or Onenote for task management and note taking – sync with your tablet/desktop/phone – all notes available everywhere. You can also collaborate with others.
  • As a personal favourite, Samsung link or Flickr to sync data (mainly photos) from my phone to another place as a backup. Even for someone like me who is super careful with data management and security, my phone once had a glitch on holiday and I lost my data on the SDCard. luckily I had a backup running so I didn’t lose my precious snaps.