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Showing posts from January, 2024

The Role of Change Management as it relates to communicating changes to the Manufacturing Shop Floor users

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Change management is the discipline of transitioning from the current state to a future state. It consists of three major activities: deciding to change, making the change, and confirming that the change has been correctly accomplished. Change management is a crucial aspect of manufacturing, especially when introducing new processes or making changes to the ERP system.  Change management is essential for several reasons: Minimizing Disruption: Change management methodologies help manufacturing managers minimize disruption during the implementation of new technologies, processes, or organizational structures. Proper planning, communication, and stakeholder engagement are key elements in ensuring a smooth transition. Maximizing Employee Buy-In: Involving employees in the change process and addressing their concerns helps create a sense of ownership and commitment. When employees understand the reasons for change and how it benefits them, they are more likely to embrace it. Optimizin...

How to Create a Strong Password in 2024

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As we celebrate "Change Your Password Day" on February 1,2024 it is important to remember that  cyberattacks are becoming more sophisticated and prevalent and as result of this we need to adopt and follow best practices for password security to help us keep secure and protect our accounts. Bitwarden, a password manager, recommends the following tips for creating strong passwords: - Use a password manager to generate and store complex passwords. - Use a unique password for each account. - Use a passphrase instead of a password. - Avoid using personal information such as your name, birthdate, or address. - Make sure password is at least 10 characters long  Randomness is the third pillar of password security. A password should not be predictable, and should not follow a pattern. It should be a random string of characters, numbers, and symbols. This makes it difficult for hackers to guess your password.  Here are some statistics on weak passwords: - In 2022, over  24 bil...

Why Employee Suggestions are Critical for Manufacturing Companies

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Employee suggestions are critical for manufacturing companies as they can help identify cost-saving and continuous improvement ideas. By empowering employees to share their ideas, companies can tap into a wealth of knowledge and experience that might otherwise go untapped.   Here are some examples of how employee suggestions have helped companies with cost-saving ideas and creating new products or process improvements: 1.  Amazon Web Services (AWS) , was created based on an employee suggestion. An engineer at Amazon suggested that the company should offer its internal computing infrastructure as a service to external customers. This idea eventually led to the creation of AWS, which has become one of Amazon's most profitable businesses . 2. Toyota's "Kaizen" philosophy, which emphasizes continuous improvement, is based on employee suggestions. The company encourages employees to identify areas for improvement and make suggestions for how to improve processes. This ap...

January 21-27,2024 is Data Privacy Week - Take Control of Your Data

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  Data Privacy Week 2024 is  a global campaign to raise awareness and empower individuals and businesses to respect privacy, safeguard data and enable trust.  Personal data is collected everyday by various devices and organizations, and can be used to make inferences or assumptions about individuals. Some companies sell the data for profit without the users' consent or knowledge. 79% of Americans are concerned about how data collectors use their data, and 59% have experienced a major data breach in their lives. Do you know how much data you create online?   Every time you use a website, an app, a device, or a service, you leave behind some information about yourself. This information can show what you like, what you buy, what you do, and even how you feel. You may not be able to stop others from collecting your data, but you can still protect your privacy. You can choose who you share your data with and how much you share. Your data is important and you have a right ...

Privacy vs Convenience: Striking a Balance in the Digital Age

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Privacy and security are two important aspects of online data protection, but they are not the same thing. Privacy refers to the control that you have over your personal information and how that information is used. Security, on the other hand, refers to how well your personal information is protected from malicious threats. Data privacy is a hot topic in today’s digital world. Every time you go online, you leave behind a trail of data that can reveal a lot about you and your preferences. This data can be collected, analyzed, and shared by various websites, apps, devices, services, and companies, sometimes without your consent or knowledge. Why should you care about data privacy?  Because your data is valuable and you deserve to have a say in how it is used and who has access to it. Data privacy is not only about protecting your personal information from hackers and identity thieves, but also about preserving your autonomy, dignity, and freedom of expression. According to some alar...

The Benefits of MDM for Manufacturing Companies: How to Improve Security and Reduce Risk

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 Asset management is a crucial aspect of any organization even when it comes to ERP SaaS systems. Effective asset management can help organizations minimize risks associated with running unpatched hardware and software, Mobile Device Management (MDM) is a crucial tool for managing smart devices like phones, tablets, handheld scanners, and more in the manufacturing plant. MDM provides a centralized management system that allows companies to track all corporate devices from a single dashboard, making it easier to manage and secure a wide variety of mobile devices that are used for multiple purposes. The benefits of using MDM in the manufacturing industry are numerous. Here are some of the key benefits: Improved security compliance:  MDM software provides visibility into company devices through a single dashboard so they can all be managed in one place and help get an accurate count of the type of assets being used in the organization. Simple remote management: MDM software allow...

Improper offboarding can expose your organization to data breaches, compliance violations, and reputational damages

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  As we start a new year, it is important to audit the offboarding process to ensure that all employees who have left the company have had their access to company data and systems revoked. A bottleneck in the offboarding process can lead to serious security issues, such as data breaches and unauthorized access to sensitive information. One of the biggest risks of departing employees is data theft. Employees may either deliberately or accidentally take corporate information with them. To avoid these risks, it is important to have a process in place to ensure that all accounts are terminated when an employee leaves the company. Auditing reports and the use of identity providers (idP) like Azure and Okta can help offboard users and reduce security risks. Auditing reports can provide a comprehensive view of all user accounts and access rights, which can help identify any accounts that have not been properly offboarded.  Auditing reports can help identify any accounts that have not...