Tuesday, December 31, 2013

MundoFox: Bringing Spanish Contents into US Soil

MundoFox is an American broadcast TV network that uses the Spanish language in its broadcasts. MundoFox is a joint venture of Fox International Channels and RCN Televisión SA of Colombia. Following the approval by both companies of the terms of the joint venture, MundoFox was launched in August 2012. MundoFox is based in Los Angeles, California.

It was Fox International Channels who first used the brand mundoFOX in 2006. It was used as the website for Canal FOX, the company’s brand of cable channel for Latin America. Fox International launched video on demand for the programs that Canal FOX airs in Portuguese or Spanish.

MundoFox as a TV network in the US was launched in January 2012. In his speech, Fox International Channels CEO Hernán López said MundoFox will cater to the growing demand for high quality Spanish-content for advertisers and viewers in the US. Among the 309 million US residents in 2010, 16% or 50 million of them were Hispanics or Latinos. In 2011, 4.5% or 3.6 billion of the company’s 80 billion in advertising revenues were from the Hispanic or Latino markets. According to López, Fox network was in the same dynamics when it was launched against existing English language content networks in 1986, and the company looks to replicate Fox’s earlier years as it launched MundoFox against established Spanish language content networks.

One of MundoFox’s signature formats was the Teleseries, which looked similar to telenovelas but have fewer episodes. Teleseries focus on action-oriented stories taken from diverse locations. Teleseries also have increased production values.

Most of MundoFox’s first original series were produced in Colombia. Because the network’s slogan is Americano Como Tú, or "American Like You," MundoFox will produce more US-based series on its second year, although it will also increase its Mexican flavor.

On top of entertainment contents, MundoFox has its own news division, the Noticias MundoFox. It will
cater to the Latino markets in the US and the diverse sensitivities of the different demographics of the market.

Friday, December 27, 2013

Jiayuan: Its Founder’s Story is Its Greatest Success Story

Jiayuan.com International Ltd. is China’s largest online dating platform. China has a growing single population, especially in the urban areas. Jiayuan is committed to provide effective, trusted and client-focused dating platform that will result in dating and marriage.

Jiayuan was fouded by Rose Gong, who was only 27 years old at that time. She was busy taking up her Masters degree in Journalism so she did not have the time to socialize. She signed u for a number of online dating sites but was disappointed with poor user experience. The sites were difficult to navigate, had poor designs, and contained fake user profiles.

Gong created her own online dating site. She used the stories of thousands of students and young professionals around China who had similar needs as her motivation. Her site should be dedicated to help these singles find their romantic partners within a trusted online environment. Gong featured her best friend as the first user. Then she invited her classmates, friends, and family to sign up for her site. Within a few months, Gong found her husband through Jiayuan.com. They got married in 2004.

Today, Jiayuan is serving more than 73 million registered members. Tens of thousands of new members are signing up to the platform every day. Aside from online matching, Jiayuan also hosts offline events. Most of its offline services are towards the affluent members of the society who are looking for serious relationships through their busy schedules.

Tuesday, December 24, 2013

InsideTrack: A Different Kind of College and University Coaching

College and university students in the US can find valuable coaching services from InsideTrack. The company’s online platform has been attributed to the increase in student enrolment, persistence and graduation. InsideTrack’s coaching program was first tested in Stanford University.

Since InsideTrack was founded in 2001, the company has helped over 350,000 students in over 50 colleges and universities across the US. This feat earned InsideTrack the right to be named as one of US’s 500 fastest growing companies in 2007.

At the time of InsideTrack’s launching, student coaching was less controversial. However, the entrance of InsideTrack put pressure on colleges and universities to step up in getting their students to finish and graduate. This makes InsideTrack’s contribution difficult to criticize. Ultimately, school administrators have realized that InsideTrack does a better job than their in-house advising can do.

Golden Gate University vice president for academic affairs Barbara Karlind said there is no other student coaching company that can match the expertise of InsideTrack. Being a private university that focuses on adult education, Golden Gate has contracted with InsideTrack since 2010 to help returning students and new students during enrolment time.

Golden Gate conducted a follow-up program called “secret shopping” to find out how InsideTrack fared against its in-house advisers. Karlin said Golden Gate officials were impressed with InsideTrack’s professional and personal approach with students. After initial inquiries with the school, Golden Gate recorded increased enrolment.

After the success of the initial contract, Golden Gate decided to replace all its in-house advisers with InsideTrack coaches. However, in-house advisers that showed potential and skills would undergo development trainings, possibly with InsideTrack personnel.

Since InsideTrack coaches do not stay on campus, InsideTrack’s platform employs one-on-one coaching through the phone. Through the years, InsideTrack has evolved to include pre-enrolment coaching in its primary service offerings. InsideTrack grew because its coaches act like parents who know the best way to keep the students on track.

InsideTrack was founded by Alan Tripp. The company is based in San Francisco.

Friday, December 20, 2013

BlueLinx Holdings: A Fortune 100 Company

BlueLinx Holdings is among the Fortune 500 companies. It is the largest wholesaler of building products in the United States. Based in Atlanta, Georgia, it is an independent distributor that has expanded to offer over 10,000 products and 70,000 SKUs.

Although officially formed in 2004, BlueLinx Holdings can trace its history back to 1954. In that year, the distribution division of Georgia-Pacific Corporation began operations starting with 13 warehouses used for storage and distribution of Georgia-Pacific Plywood. Over the next four decades, the division quickly grew to have more than 130 warehouses nationwide. In 1994, the division consolidated its warehouses and established two sales and operations centers in Atlanta, GA and Denver, CO.

In May 2004, the distribution division of Georgia-Pacific was purchased by Cerberus Capital Management together with a team of senior leaders from the division. This acquisition paved the way for BlueLinx Corporation. A year later, the company was made public through the New York Stock Exchange.

Tuesday, December 17, 2013

Ranbaxy Laboratories: Global Research Company

Ranbaxy Laboratories is a research-based pharmaceutical company with customers in more than 150 countries around the world. For more than 50 years now, the company has been providing high-quality, affordable medicines that both patients and healthcare professionals trust. A part of the Daiichi Sankyo Group, a leading global innovator in the pharmaceutical industry, Ranbaxy operates in 43 countries and has 21 manufacturing facilities in eight of those. A robust presence in both emerging and developed markets allows the company to cover all top 25 pharmaceutical markets available.

A vertically integrated company, Ranbaxy not only develops and manufacturers but also markets various generic and branded generic, value-added, and OTC products, as well as intermediates, active pharmaceutical ingredients, and anti-retrovirals. With a portfolio encompassing more than 500 molecules for use in tables, capsules, inhalers, injectables, creams, ointments, and liquids, Ranbaxy makes its presence felt across treatments and therapies, including pain management, anti-infectives, and nutritionals.

Ranbaxy was founded by Ranbir and Gurbax Singh in 1937. Back then, it was as a distributor for Shionogi, a Japanese company. Ranbaxy got its name from its founder's names, Ranbir and Gurbax. Their cousin Bhai Mohan Singh bought the company from the two in 1952 and when Bhai Mohan's son Parvinder joined, Ranbaxy enjoyed improved growth.

It was in June 2008 when Daiichi Sankyo acquired a stake in the company, valued at $2.4 billion. Come November of the same year, Daiichi Sankyo was able to complete the takeover of Ranbaxy, sealed with a $4.6 billion deal which gave the former a 63.92% stake in the latter. Ranbaxy follows a business philosophy that delivers optimum value to stakeholders and constantly inspires employees to excel and set global standards. With a workforce of over 14,600 individuals, bringing together more than 50 nationalities, the company finds strength to not only improve the quality of healthcare but make it accessible as well to people all over the world.

Friday, December 13, 2013

Populous: Creating Sports Facilities in Style

Populous is an architectural company that specializes in designing sports facilities. Populous plays a major role in designing stadia and arena. Among the most prominent designs of Populous were New York’s Yankee Stadium, London’s Wembley Stadium, Sydney’s Stadium Australia, San Francisco’s AT&T Park, Minneapolis’ Target Field, and Chicago’s United Center.

Before January 2009, Populous was a part of the HOK Group and was operating as HOK Sport Venue Event.  After the management buyout, Populous started to operate independently. Thereafter Populous was known as one of the world’s largest architectural companies.

Populous treats each project as challenge. It discovers new opportunities to amplify the locality’s character by listening, observing and collaborating with its customers. Populous was fortunate to have a team that has international perspective. This team can bring together different ideas that come from other cultures, activities, events, landscapes and building types

For more than 30 years with over 1,000 projects, Populous has grasped an understanding of the industry. However, Populous continues to harness its knowledge to create that design that leaves a great impact on people’s lives.

Tuesday, December 10, 2013

Authenware: Revolutionizing Cloud Security

At a time when the cloud is the most reliable repository of data, it is great to know that a cybersecurity software company like Authenware Corporation exists to provide its clients with peace of mind. Authenware’r proprietary innovation is a tokenless authentication system that provides strong security by combining environmental and behavioral characteristics and keystroke dynamics to minimize web fraud, identity theft and other online system vulnerabilities.

Authenware’s innovative solution uses a pattern of user-created personal security that automatically recognizes all authorized users thereby keeping hackers out. Millions of Authenware users are kept protected every day in a wide array of industries such as healthcare, telecommunications, financial services, online retailers and government agencies.

In August 2012, Authenware launched its revolutionary MyAuthenWareTM, a solution that was geared toward consumers and enterprise. This end-user solution is cloud-based and biometrically secured authentication portal. It allows the user to remember only one set of login credentials to a number of websites. The user can also use the portal to store files ad notes.

MyAuthenWareTM uses a unique way of identifying and authenticating authorized users. The solution measures the rhythm and cadence of the user’s typing pattern and integrates them with user-specific environment and behavioral characteristics. MyAuthenWareTM delivers the highest level of convenience to its users. Logging in to a number of different sites using its authentication portal using a single username and password is backed by high security behavioral biometrics.

Gartner Group, the world leader in IT research and advisory, cited Authenware’s technology in its “Magic Quadrant for User Authentication” report in February 2012 as “simple to implement, scalable and robust.” It provides good user experience. Gartner’s ow circle of clients have a positive view of Authenware and its technology.

Recent developments at Authenware showed that the company is working on enterprise security that would tackle cybercrime. The new offering is convenient and easy to use but is viewed as the solution that would close the gap between enterprise security and consumer security.

Friday, December 6, 2013

Seegrid: Simple Robotics

Seegrid is the world’s leading producer of robotic industrial trucks and vision-guided flexible automated guided vehicles (AGVs). These robotic industrial trucks and AGVs are commonly used in material handling businesses where material movement is revolutionized. Seegrid also supplies tow tractors, pallet trucks and walkie stackers which help optimize workflow processes, increase productivity and lessen costs.

In the era of technological advancements, the use of robotics in manufacturing increases the return of investment by significantly reducing product and equipment damage through improved facility safety. Seegrid’s technology turns industrial vehicles to unmanned and automated machines that operated without the use of tape, wire, magnet or laser.

Seegrid’s innovation proves that existing industrial trucks like forklifts and pallet movers can be equipped with Seegrid’s proprietary sensors and hardware to create a robotic heavy lifter that can maneuver around a warehouse in a smart way

Seegrid was cited in Fast Company magazine’s World’s Most Innovative Company in 2013. It is also listed among the Top 10 World’s Most Innovative Robotics Company in 2013.

Thursday, December 5, 2013

The Center For Counseling and Health Resources - The Business of Hope

It takes a highly innovative institution to bring together the words “hope” and “business”, concepts not usually associated with each other in the typical realm of business activity. But The Center For Counseling and Health Resources, a wholistic treatment facility located in Edmonds, Washington, has been doing just that for nearly 30 years. Founded in 1984 by mental and emotional health expert Dr. Gregory Jantz, The Center might in fact be said to be in the business of hope: cultivating hope, enhancing hope, and restoring hope to individuals who have lost sight of it due to the struggles and challenges of their daily lives.

To achieve this mission, Dr. Jantz has assembled a superior team of medical and health care professionals at The Center and has developed a wide range of treatment programs, all dedicated to helping men, women, and adolescents take back their lives from issues such as depression, addiction, and eating disorders. Working from a whole-person treatment philosophy, The Center seeks to restore an overall balance to health by ministering to an individual’s full range of needs: emotional, medical, psychological, spiritual, physical, fitness, and nutritional. Patients consult with highly-trained, caring staff to develop customized treatment or therapy programs tailored to their particular situations. This highly effective approach, for which The Center For Counseling and Health Resources has become world-renowned, helps to prevent the recurrence of particular issues by identifying and addressing the root causes behind them, and thus allows patients to develop ongoing positive lifestyle patterns and maintain a sense of hope as they embark on healthier futures.

Dr. Gregory Jantz’s vision of hope which led to the founding of The Center came about during his time working as a licensed mental health counselor and certified eating disorder specialist, when he realized that a sense of unity and coordination in care was missing from the available treatment options of the time, and was leading to a feeling of despair rather than one of hope amongst his patients. Since establishing the Center, Dr. Jantz has also worked to spread his message of hope to individuals in need through a number of bestselling books, speaking engagements, and radio and television appearances.

Tuesday, December 3, 2013

Moment Factory: Creating Defining Moments

Moment Factory is a media and entertainment studio established to conceptualize and create specialized multimedia materials by integrating video, sound, lights, architecture and special effects to produce a remarkable multimedia experience. Founded in the fall of 2001, Moment Factory has facilitated over 300 shows, events and installations worldwide for its most satisfied clients like Disney, Microsoft, Cirque du Soleil, Celine Dion, Madonna, Nine Inch Nails, and Montreal’s Quartier des Spectacles.

Through the years, Moment Factory has earned the reputation as the leading choice for the development, design and production of interactive and groundbreaking media installations. Its team of over 100 talented and highly skilled staff is building mockups and testing prototypes to ensure that the execution of the projects is according to the company’s vision.

Moment Factory has been successful in instilling the culture of surpassing expectation within the organization. Its people continue to hone their crafts to remain personable and culturally literate media specialists who technically execute their installations.

At Moment Factory, projects are implemented through three levels of multimedia environment. At each level, Moment Factory wants spectator experience to reach a higher level of reality.

1.       The ambient environment supports performance and events.

2.       The immersive environment immerses the audience in a good combination of image, lights and sounds.

3.       The interactive environment invites spectators to make direct engage with space via diverse interactive components.

The trio of Moment Factory founders Jason Rodi, Dominic Audet and Sakchin Bassette continue to develop notoriety in the creation of new visual environments permanent installations and mixed media entertainment. The company is influenced by new innovations and technologies and inspired by the launching of “Moments,” the company’s online art gallery for its audience, Moment Factory is on the track to raise the bar even higher and explore new ideas in content creation, technology application and entertainment.