Category Archives: Office / Computer / New Media

By Jill Nagy
As business owners prepare to re-open in a changed world, many are turning to office designers for guidance in meeting new requirements for minimizing the spread of COVID-19.
Dorothy Rogers-Bullis and her business drb Business Interiors in Saratoga Springs offers her own office as an example. Several employees are still working remotely. She encourages others to work in the office at alternate times. When clients arrive, they are asked to sign in and out, wear face masks and have their temperatures taken.
“People want to get back to work,” she said. “Some people work really well at home” but, in general, “not a lot of good work gets done at home.”
There are too many distractions. In addition, people working at home miss the connections, collaboration and creativity of a shared workplace.
Lisa Boyle of the Boyle Group in Ballston Spa advises clients on how to reorganize their work space.
For example, in an open office plan with everybody at eye level, desk and tables have to be moved apart, she said. Often, barriers are needed. The result is a reduced capacity.

by mark shaw
As anyone with small children at home will tell you, this working at home thing is not all it is cracked up to be. Parents are now employees, educators, day care and much more.
This means more than ever we are relying on technology to get our work done. With everyone leaving the office and its technology security blanket, we are opening doors to cyber-attacks.
I know what you are thinking, another article about cyber security and how everything we are doing now is terrible. That is not really the case at all. The facts so far have proven that there has been no major spike in cyber crime, but that does not mean we should not consider some simple and easy ways to work at home safely.
There are several small steps you can do to protect yourself and your company’s data. If you are an employer, you can use this time to refresh what might be an outdated training program.
Consider a cyber-security training program. Even a technology firm like ours still does education for all our staff. OrbitalFire Cyber Security does a great job training, educating, and testing our staff to ensure we all know the basics in the ever-changing battlefield against the bad guys. First thing is always training. All the technology in the world cannot fix human error.

NBT Bank has expanded its services to include full branch lobby access with the implementation of protocols to protect the safety of its employees and customers.
The bank had its lobbies closed for business due to the COVID-19 pandemic, utilizing ATMs, the internet and drive-through windows for services.
Appointments are no longer required for customers to visit a branch lobby.
“NBT has spent weeks developing a careful approach that both expands branch access and ensures that our employees, customers and communities remain safe,” said NBT Bank President of Retail Community Banking Joseph R. Stagliano. “Thoughtful consideration has included a market-by-market analysis of conditions, close coordination with local government and health officials and strict adherence to state and federal guidelines.”

Seasoned financial experts, Pamela D. Wickes, CPA, CFE, CFF, ABV, and Scott DeMarco, MBA, CBA, CVA, CDFA, CPVA, have joined forces with an affiliate partnership.
Their businesses, Wickes Forensic Accounting & Consulting LLC and Equitable Value LLC, are now together at a new location in Clifton Park, in addition to operating in New York City.
“During the last four years, there have been times when clients have retained Pam and I separately to work on different aspects of the client’s case,” DeMarco said. “In those situations, Pam does the financial investigation to address various allegations/concerns and then I perform the valuation work.
“Due to the synergies of our practices, it was a smart move to bring our teams together. Doing so makes it easier for our clients to hire us [under one agreement, instead of two] and simpler for us all to communicate and share case information.”
Wickes and DeMarco are financial experts that, for the most part, focus on different niche practice areas. DeMarco is concentrated in business valuations for litigated matters. Equitable Value also provides value-related services for acquisitions, transition planning and more.

By Christine Graf
StoredTech (Stored Technology Solutions) recently expanded its headquarters at 543 Queensbury Ave. in Queensbury. The company leases the space and expanded into an area vacated by a previous tenant.
According to president Mark Shaw, the expansion was precipitated by the company’s exponential growth.

By Rose Miller
While in Pennsylvania on business, my husband and I stayed at a “pet friendly” hotel. Second day in, my husband commented that he feels his life has gone to the dogs because we found ourselves eating and sleeping with dogs.
Instead of waking to a crying baby, we awoke to a whining and barking dog needing to be let out. There is a pervasive trend in American society to place the same importance on pets as they do for a human family member. In fact, we hear people instantly complain when young children are in the room, yet there seems to be a greater tolerance for animals.
There is a growing demand for pet-friendly policies in today’s workplace. Companies are dealing with mandated leaves for family caregivers and “pet parents” desire the same type of leaves for their pet responsibilities. A study conducted by the American Pet Products Associations found that 17 percent of employers had pet-friendly policies.

By Dorothy Rogers-Bullis
Your business’s physical space says a lot about you, speaking volumes about your company culture and priorities. If you strive to attract and retain top talent within your organization, you must ensure your workplace is designed to meet those employees’ needs—offering an attractive, ergonomic, efficient space that is tailored to each person’s job function and personal work style.
If you are interested in updating your workspace, but you don’t know where to begin, here are a few of the top new trends we are seeing in the office design industry.
Standing to work
With more research coming out about the health issues associated with prolonged sitting—from neck and back problems to higher rates of obesity—the sit-to-stand desk is a top trend in the workplace. These adjustable-height work surfaces offer the flexibility to perform work in either a sitting or standing position, improving ergonomics.