Government Grants for All

Grants To Women Entrepreneurs For Enhancing Employees? Computer Skills

If you are a women entrepreneur and your business profile is demanding you to get your employees enhance their computer skills but increasing cost is inhibiting you to carry on the same, you can always approach federal, state or local governments for the aid.

Government has special grants to motivate women entrepreneurs who crave for technologically skilled employees to give their business an edge over the others.

In this high technology savvy world of business with cutthroat competition, no employee and no business can survive without being computer savvy. Acquisition of computer skills also instills a new level of confidence in the employees, which ultimately becomes the credible measure of performance, in turn leading to increased efficiency in business by the employees.

No doubt, training of employees may be costly but in case of un-affordability, government grants are best suited to cover up the costs.

Every year government sanctions staggering amount of grants especially for women to assist them in attaining their dreams in various fields. You can receive a grant of even around $ 25000 for training your employees in acquiring computer skills in any business without any restriction and this list is endless.

In fact you can apply for a grant irrespective of the field of your business but you just need to specify valid reasons for the same and at the same time you also should specify any negative consequences your business could face incase your employees are not computer savvy.

Various granting agencies at the federal, state and local level can be approached for grants. You can search online for these various agencies. You can also contact local public and community colleges and universities as they run training programs for which government agencies provide funds.

There is also a Workforce Development or Workforce Preparation office where you can enquire different training programs being offered by them. You just need to provide complete information of your company and the type of training required and college or university will prepare proposal for grant if they deem it necessary.

To start a business only requires a considerable skill and hard work on the part of women because of the sexual orientation and stereotype image that’s still dominating mind set of many of the wizards of the business world.

To shackle still lingering image of women and give them their due space, is the aim of government in opening up several opportunities for them and one of them is in the form of grants.

To look for the grants, the best place is local agency of-course funded by the Federal Government and the procedure for applying is also the same. First filling up the application form and producing your business profile along with your financial needs, and you can have excess to the grant without return of the same.

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Tags: Computer, Employees, Enhancing, Entrepreneurs, Grants, Skills, Women

Medill Journalism School Targets Computer Specialists for Scholarships

Evanston, IL (PRWEB) May 25, 2007

Computer programmers and Web developers have an opportunity to win full scholarships leading to a master’s degree in journalism at Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism, thanks to a grant announced Wednesday (May 23) by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.

The Knight News Challenge Scholarships — available for students enrolling in Medill as early as September 2007 — are made possible by a three-year, $ 639,000 Knight Foundation grant. One of the nation’s premier journalism schools, Medill is among the first winners of the Knight News Challenge, awarded for innovative ideas using digital news or information to build community.

The idea behind the scholarships is to attract a new type of student to Medill’s one-year master’s degree in journalism program, according to Rich Gordon, associate professor and director of Medill’s new media program. Recipients must meet Medill’s normal admissions requirements.

“We believe there are programmers who want to do work that makes a difference to society,” Gordon said. “We want the new scholarships to generate interest among computer specialists who might never before have considered applying their technology skills to journalism.”

Adrian Holovaty exemplifies what someone with both journalism and computer science skills can accomplish. A journalism graduate who taught himself computer programming, he is editor of editorial innovations at Washingtonpost.Newsweek Interactive — a position especially created for him.

“Programming is becoming a bona fide sub-discipline of journalism on the level of photography, infographics and writing, and the Knight grant helps legitimize that,” Holovaty said. “It will have the tangible benefit of producing skilled journalism technologists, people sorely needed by news Web sites.” He expects Medill’s Knight scholars ‘will be in high demand’ in the job market.

Holovaty is well known in media circles for his journalism innovations, including databases at the Washington Post’s online site that allow visitors to search congressional votes, track events of and contributions to 2008 presidential candidates and monitor Bill Clinton’s speaking fees.

He developed http://www.chicagocrime.org/ by combining crime data available online from the Chicago police department with Google’s mapping service. The site — which earned Holovaty a $ 10,000 Batten Award for Innovations in Journalism — makes it easy to browse crimes by type, date, address and zip code.

“Chicagocrime.org is a powerful tool that informs citizens and allows them to advocate for themselves,” said Northwestern University’s Gordon. It is that kind of innovation that Medill hopes the Knight scholarships will generate.

“The skills and insights of technology developers are increasingly important to the analysis, delivery and accessibility of information needed in a democracy,” Gordon said. “At the same time, the journalism skills learned at a school like Medill can produce ideas for applying technology in ways citizens will find relevant and engaging.”

Students awarded Knight News Challenge Scholarships will complete the same academic program as other journalism master’s degree students — first learning reporting and storytelling skills in multiple media and then covering a news beat and creating multimedia stories in Medill’s Chicago newsroom.

As part of the program, they also will apply their technology skills to journalism in an “innovation project” course. In these media management, new media publishing and magazine publishing classes, teams of students work together to create new products or solve a problem facing a media company.

“The Knight scholarships will strengthen Medill as we reshape its curriculum for the digital age,” said John Lavine, dean of Northwestern’s school of journalism. “Finding creative ways to marry journalism and technology will be essential to the future of journalism and media companies.”

Information about Medill and its graduate degree program in journalism is available at http://www.medill.northwestern.edu/admissions/programmers.html.

For more about Knight News Challenge, which will award additional grants in 2007, visit www.newschallenge.org.

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Tags: Computer, Journalism, Medill, Scholarships, School, Specialists, targets

Small Business Computer Consulting: the Sweet Spot

If you’ve previously delivered your service B2C (Business to Consumer) and now want to switch to B2B (Business to Business), you may think that you’re ready to run out there and just get some small business clients. It’s not that simple. In this article, you’ll learn how to define the “small” in small business computer consulting.

If you focus too much on home-based businesses and micro small businesses, you’ll have a tough time selling a lot of services. While “micro” small businesses (under 5-10 employees) are technically small businesses, micro small businesses may not be a good fit for your small business computer consulting company. Why not?

The Five Reasons to Avoid Targeting Micro and Home Businesses:

1. Lots of consumer grade PC’s
2. Pirated software
3. Reluctance for paying for services. A lot of micro small businesses want to look for volunteers to help them with their computer problems like someone’s niece, brother or friend. You can’t compete against free! You’ll also have a tough time competing against moonlighters; these people are on someone else’s payroll during the day and don’t have to fund their own certifications and benefits. They can undercut your price tremendously.
4. IT isn’t that important to their company, so they don’t need a great response time.
5. Too small to afford a “real” dedicated server and “real” network.

These five reasons are why most computer consulting firms doing really well with services are looking at prospect companies that have at least eight or ten PCs. At that point, it becomes really difficult for these companies to continue running a peer-to-peer setup, or wait for the sometimes glacier-like response time of volunteers and moonlighters.

When a small business is “big” enough

Usually small businesses with more than 8-10 PC’s start to get serious about putting in a real client server network, putting in a real tight back up solution, putting in a real UPS, and a real firewall. In order to do these things correctly, small business decision makers typically understand that the systems need to be designed by a more sophisticated IT services or network integrator firm.

In other words, as a small business goes through growth spurts, the stakes go up. And these businesses generally recognize the need to use IT more strategically. Also, typically the small businesses have made the decision that IT is actually important to the company, and that they can’t afford a lot of downtime. So they need someone to coordinate everything computer-related. These small businesses want someone to take ownership of the whole problem, and that’s where your small business computer consulting comes in.

The Bottom Line about Small Business Computer Consulting

In this article, you’ve learned which size business you should target for small business computer consulting. To learn more about small business computer consulting, click here now to get access to a free one-hour audio training program on 5 Easy Ways to Grow Your Computer Consulting Business.

About the Author:

Joshua Feinberg has helped thousands of computer consultants get more steady, high-paying clients. Learn how you can too. Sign-up now for Joshua’s free Computer Consultants Secrets audio training at http://www.ComputerConsultantsSecrets.com/blog/

Tags: Business, Computer, Consulting, Small, Spot, Sweet

Small Business Computer Consulting: Appropriately Setting Your Rates

In small business computer consulting, $100 an hour can be a reasonable and livable rate. Why can setting your rates at $100 an hour make all the difference in the world?

Take the $100 an hour and multiply it by 1,500 hours a year. This is reflecting a 75% utilization rate; or 75% of a typical forty hour work week as billable time. Now you’re at $150,000 a year gross.

Salary and Affordability

As a small business computer consulting firm, you will want to take a third of the gross and plow it into sales and marketing. Therefore you can afford a $40,000 base salary for your sales account executive. So, of that one third of your gross small business computer consulting income, $40,000 can go to the base salary and $10,000 can go to related marketing expenses.

Additionally, one third will take care of taxes, insurance and overhead items for the most part, and you have a third of it or $50,000 left to pay a technical staff salary.

Surpassing $100 an Hour

You may be considering exceeding a rate of $100 an hour for your small business computer consulting firm. At that point, you can hit what we call the not-so-imaginary-hourly-billing-rate ceiling.

Needless to say, if your small business computer consulting clients are paying $110 to $125 an hour, it gets even easier to be able to afford really bright, motivated, highly qualified sales and technical staff.

Higher Rates Equal Bigger Businesses

However, if you want to charge above $100 an hour in your small business computer consulting firm, you’ll almost always need to move above and beyond sweet spot small business clients into really large small businesses, medium size businesses and enterprise-sized accounts that require a different business model and technical skill set.

Once you do that, you’re going to be operating under a completely different type of business model. And you will need even more polished and seasoned salespeople to be able to handle those accounts.

Copyright MMI-MMVI, Computer Consultants Secrets. All Worldwide Rights Reserved.

About the Author:

Joshua Feinberg helps computer consultants get more steady, high-paying clients. Learn how you can too. Sign-up now for Joshua’s free Computer Consultants Secrets audio training at http://www.ComputerConsultantsSecrets.com

Tags: Appropriately, Business, Computer, Consulting, Rates, Setting, Small

Computer Servers for Dummies

A server is a computer with special features. It is built with these special features because it is used to manage networks and the computers connected to the network. In organizations, schools or colleges, many computers are used for different purposes. Often, the need for communication between these computers arises. This is where the computer server comes in. All these computers are connected to each other through a computer server, and it is the server that facilitates the communication between these computers, and people can work in sync with each other even though they are physically far apart. But this is just the general idea about a computer server, and you will find the detailed answer to the question – ‘What is a computer server?’ in the following paragraphs of this article on computer servers for dummies. Read on.

What is a Computer Server?

Let’s get a little technical, shall we? The appropriate computer server definition would be – A computer or software program that caters to a certain client computer need. A file server stores files of the client computer. If it is a print server, multiple client computers can use a single or multiple printers through it. Thus, a server serves a specific purpose. Amongst its various uses, an important one is managing a network of computers which are called the clients of the server computer. Now let’s see the different types of servers in the next paragraph.

Types of Computer Servers

Computer servers are classified depending upon various factors such as their purpose, the service they are providing, where they are being installed, etc. The following list of types of different servers will give you some more information about servers.

File Server
As its name suggests, it stores the files of all the client computers. It may be used as a back up storage or for general purpose use. It usually has supportive hardware like external hard disks and other forms of external storage devices. It runs special software meant for servers like the Windows Server 2003.

Web Server
A web server is similar to a normal server that works with a number of client computers. The difference is that here the network is the entire world wide web and the server takes requests from many of them at a time through HTTP. These servers have a monstrous configuration like thousands of GBs of RAM and huge storage space.

Database Server
A database server is an important component of a client server model. It is not a computer but it’s a program which has two parts one is the server part installed on the server and a client part installed on the client computer. The program performs all the database related tasks like database management, analysis etc.

Video Server
This server stores multimedia files so that the client computers in the network can access them simultaneously or otherwise. It is used in many fields such as entertainment, education etc. This server deals only with the tasks related to video files. Live news is broadcasted through such servers.

Home Computer Server
Simply put, a home computer server is a home computer used as a web server. A web server hosts hundreds of web sites but the home server will host only a single website or sometimes a couple of them depending upon its configuration.

This is only an introduction to the types of servers, and there are many more types and subtypes like proxy server, time server, access server, fax server, etc. There are further subtypes of these servers depending upon their exact use. And this article on computer servers for dummies is meant to deal with only the basic concept of servers.

Computer servers form a vast topic and it is not possible to compress it into a single article. So this article – computer servers for dummies, was meant only to acquaint you with the basics of a computer server.

Tags: Computer, Dummies, Servers

Higher Education in the Computer Age

College students are technologically savvy these days. They use home computers to research and write, make purchases and to communicate with friends and family, coworkers, fellow students, and college professors.

America’s universities are jumping on the technology bandwagon, too. Many universities now offer online admission applications and Web access to course materials. But “they aren’t necessarily on the cutting edge,” said Lisa Wheeler, vice president of advising and academic support at Capella University.

Capella, an accredited online university, delivers education to working adults in an interactive online format that makes it possible for busy professionals to pursue their bachelor’s, master’s or doctoral degrees, without the logistical hassles students typically experience with traditional higher education.

“In addition to a quality education, we offer all the services a student needs from start to finish online. From the application process all the way through signing up to attend commencement. You won’t find that kind of experience anywhere else,” said Wheeler.

Guerin Moorman, 35, of Spokane, Wash., says he was initially drawn to Capella for its convenience. He is the IT coordinator for Spokane’s branch of the Federal Transportation Security Administration, a job that isn’t always 9 to 5. Moorman represents Capella’s largest demographic type: he is balancing work with family and education. Moorman is married and has two teenage daughters and a three-year-old son.

“I like the online experience because it offers a lot of flexibility. I can order my books online, check my financial status online and use e-mail if I need to get in touch with my advisors or professors,” said Moorman. Survey results from Capella’s 6,500-member student body show that students value service quality almost as much as they value educational quality.

“At brick-and-mortar institutions, students have to spend a lot of time going from place to place to get their business done. At Capella, it’s one-stop shopping. Through the unique Internet portal that we call i-Guide, students will find the admissions office, financial aid office, writing center, book store, library and more all in one place,” said Wheeler. “These are the logistical barriers that traditional schools haven’t entirely addressed, while we’ve had ten years to aggregate and refine our services online.”

“There’s no way I’d be able to finally pursue my bachelor’s if I had to do it the conventional way,” said Moorman. “There just wouldn’t be time.”

Vickie Cook, 46, of Greenville, Ill., says that in addition to convenience, she likes the fact that support is close at hand. “When I had a problem getting Adobe Acrobat to install, I turned to Capella’s online technical support folks. Within two e-mails, they were able to solve a compatibility problem with a work-around so I could open the documents I needed to look at to complete an assignment,” said Cook.

Cook completed her master’s in education at Capella four years ago. It wasn’t long before she landed a job as dean at Kaskasia College, a community college in Centralia, Ill. She is now pursuing a doctorate in education at Capella, a degree she expects to complete by 2004.

Kate Whitteker, 44, of Amma, W.Va., also turned to Capella to advance her career. She is pursuing a master’s degree in human services with a specialization in the management of non-profit agencies.

“Believe me when I say I do not have time to sit in a classroom,” said Whitteker. In addition to her job as executive director of a nonprofit agency that offers aid for families in need, she also has five young children at home. “I do everything with Capella online. It’s easy to access what you want. While this is high tech it’s not complicated tech,” said Whitteker.

For more information about Capella University log on to www.capellauniversity.edu/ara.

Editor’s Notes:

Founded in 1993, Capella University offers degree programs and certificates in business, technology, education, human services and psychology. Capella University is affiliated with the for-profit Capella Education Company, headquartered in Minneapolis. For more information, visit Capella University at www.capellauniversity.com or call (888) CAPELLA.

Tags: Computer, Education, Higher

Wednesday, January 12th, 2011 Grants No Comments

Small Business Computer Consulting: Finding the Right Prospects

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If you are starting a small business computer consulting firm, you should know that the small business accounts that have 10 to 50 PC’s are going to have at least one branch office.

Prospects of this size are used to using professional technology providers and this isn’t the first time they’ve had to hire a small business computer consulting firm. Organizations like this have a willingness to pay for support.

Does Your Prospect Have In-House IT?

However, if they have in-house IT, you should learn what they need you for. Is it for a very deep specialty or for an extremely unusual case where they want to outsource everything?

Researching Prospective Clients

To find prospects for your small business computer consulting firm you should Google towns in your area, ZIP and postal codes, area code and telephone prefixes. Additionally, these prospects will usually belong to a local or regional chamber of commerce or similar organization.

To meet some of these people and market your small business computer consulting firm, you can join the organizations or attend as a guest.

Know Where to Find Your Prospects

Your prospects will likely have presence at business to business events, so you can also attend these events to market your small business computer consulting firm.

Since your target clients will often be covered in the business section of your local publications, you’ll want to subscribe to these or read them at the library.

The Bottom Line about Small Business Computer Consulting

If you want to narrow down your focus to the best small businesses in the area, consider networking at local events and reading up on these businesses in your local publications. You want to pay attention to the criteria above and ensure you can identify your prospects right off the bat.

Copyright MMI-MMVI, PC Support Tips .com. All Worldwide Rights Reserved.

About the Author:

Joshua Feinberg helps independent PC Support professionals get more steady, high-paying PC support clients. Learn how you can get more monthly recurring PC Support revenue with Joshua’s free training recording now at http://www.PCSupportTips.com

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Tags: Business, Computer, Consulting, Finding, Prospects, Right, Small

Friday, October 29th, 2010 Federal Small Business Loans Grants Government No Comments