The Axis Technical Group Blog

For many in the United States (and many other countries as well), this is the best time of year – The start of the Major League Baseball Season. The game of baseball has entrenched itself in American culture and is often used as a metaphor in lessons of both business and life. But in other parts of the world, a similar, yet very different game gets the crowds whipped into a frenzy.

Super Ball

Pace of life in India is picking up and it is 40 times of what it was 10 years ago.  Curious? Let me explain. As cricket is “The Sport” of India, the pace of things can very well be benchmarked against it.   The game of Cricket used to be a 5 day affair and many of the matches would end in a draw with no winner or loser.

But gone are those days.  The latest fascination of the “junta” (read people) is the 20-20 cricket and the game is played in just 3 hours.  So the earlier 5 days x 24 hours divided by 3 hours gives the figure of 40.  Easy isn’t it?

And now the 20-20 cricket is here to stay with the Indian Premier League growing stronger with each passing day. India now has its very own variant of the National Football League and thus the Super Bowl.    Along with everything else (read cheerleaders, fireworks, movie stars and all the glitter), the money involved is incredible as well. It looks like the IPL is already ahead of the long established English premier league in terms of the team worth.

The rights for the Pune IPL cricket team were sold recently at a whopping $ 370 million! That is a lot of money for a country of per capita yearly earnings of $2200. This speaks volumes about the changing face of the game and of the people following it. There are speculations that the change will help in gaining popularity in areas where cricket is barely known and the most coveted will be the US. Well Cricket is a distant cousin of Baseball and people should not mind watching it.

The interesting point here is the convergence of cultures. With every passing day, it is becoming easier for the people in India to relate to the people around the world and the IPL is just another example. That in turn means better understanding, better communication and of course better effectiveness in working together.

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Enjoy another post in our series on India….

You cannot run away from it anymore. “Just for calculation sake” statements are just not acceptable now. Contrary to the popular usage, 20 US dollars is not equal to 1000 Indian rupees. Gone are the good old days when multiplying by 50 worked. The math is just not simple anymore. The rupee hits a 19-month high against dollar today. I get just 44 rupees and 95 paisa for 1 Good Dollar.

http://in.news.yahoo.com/48/20100327/1238/tbs-rupee-hits-18-month-high-as-euro-wei.html

With more turbulence expected in the next few months, the lows and the highs are going to be a key concern for IT exporters with most of the revenue coming from the US.  By now the ups and downs have become a part of the game and most of the corporations are well versed with it. The real concern is with the individuals who spend and probably earn money in different currencies and thus have a higher “Risk Exposure”. How does it change the personal money equation?  The humble Purchasing Power Parity equations does not seem to work and considering the Big Mac index (http://www.economist.com/markets/bigmac/) things get even more convoluted. The Big Mac index interestingly measures the purchasing power with the fair value benchmark of price of a Big Mac.  In the multi currency world one is not sure where will the next Big Mac (Or Maharaja Mac in India) purchase (if ever) be!

Leaving all the mix aside, this sure means happy time to go shopping from India (if not shop for burgers online!).

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Many people attribute rising costs in any industry, and especially healthcare, to technology. But in reality, technology in healthcare seems to be driving healthcare costs UP. Is that really the case?

In nearly every sector of the economy, technology drives costs down – just as your digital camera gets cheaper and better every year, so technology drives down the cost of manufacturing, the cost of retailing, the cost of research. But for some reason, in healthcare, technology has the opposite effect; it doesn’t cut costs, it raises them. In fact, medical technologies – from CT scans to stents to biologics – are a significant factor in the 10% annual growth rate of healthcare spending, a rate that’s nearly triple the pace of inflation. (Overall, the US is now estimated to spend a stunning $2.7 trillion on healthcare in 2010.)

When you look closer however, some healthcare companies (including insurance companies) are using technology to improve care and service, while driving costs down.

In the world of insurance and care providers, some folks already understand this, and are way ahead of Washington policy makers in tapping cheap technologies to improve healthcare. In Hawaii, Kaiser Permanente has started a pilot project that churn through its database of patient data to predict which patients might need which tests – and then sends individuals email alerts suggesting they come in for a test or checkup. It’s the same sort of technology that Netflix uses to recommend movies. And the Cleveland Clinic has teamed up with Microsoft to bring self-monitoring tools to patients managing chronic diseases, successfully engaging them in better health behaviors without expensive visits to the hospital.

Axis Technical Group is working closely with its clients in the healthcare sectors designing, developing and implementing solutions that ultimately will push costs down, while more importantly, providing better, quicker and more interaction with primary and secondary care givers. From patient and doctor portals, to systems that predict the kinds of tests and precautionary measures individuals need, healthcare technology is leading the way to true reform in the industry.

Click here to read the entire article about technology and costs in healthcare.

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Recently, a bill was introduced to the US Senate that proposes a new type of visa for immigrants who create start up companies and as such, create jobs. (Click to read more about the bill). While a similar bill had previously been introduced in the House of Representatives as part of an immigration reform bill, this new bill, brought to the Senate by Democrat John Kerry and Republican Richard Lugar has already stirred a contentious debate.

On one side of the carpet, anti-immigration supporters are loudly protesting such a bill saying it is taking away opportunities for Americans, while many supporters of the Bill feel that if such immigrants start businesses that create American jobs and help the economy, then they should be welcome with open arms.

The Visa issue as a whole has been and continues to be a very important topic for the IT Industry in particular, as it is a key component (or at least a key topic of discussion) for every company’s IT strategy.

What side of the debate are you on? Axis Technical wants to hear from you, so please post your comments below and help be a part of a valuable discussion on the subject.

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As the State of California continues to face choking financial pressure with a huge budget deficit, new ideas are constantly being floated around Sacramento. The latest however would not only affect California’s blue-collar resources, but would hit home hard in the service industry, from Lawyers to CPA’s to IT Professionals.

According to this article in the Ventura County Star, politicians in the Capital are,

“advocating tax withholding on payments to independent contractors (1099) as a way to boost state revenues by $1.7 billion.”

What do you think about about Sacramento’s proposal and will it really help close the state’s budget crisis? Share your thoughts here, or by email.

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If you are looking for a new job, or have in the last few years, then you surely have been to countless job sites. A couple of the biggest, Monster.com and Yahoo! Hot Jobs are now one in the same, according to this article from TechCrunch.com.

Yahoo has been trying to unload HotJobs for a while, and it finally came to a deal with Monster, which will take the site off of Yahoo’s hands for $225 million in cash. As part of the deal, Monster will continue to power Yahoo’s job listings for three years.

What does this mean for job seekers? The answer to that question will likely take some time to be fully realized. As an IT consulting firm, Axis Technical Group regularly provides advice to job seekers, including not to put all of their job-seeking-eggs in one basket. Other than Dice.com, the other job boards have become overrun by various staffing firms, headhunters and the like acting on behalf of companies seeking employees, with the same position often posted by several different firms with a variety of language. This does a disservice to not only the end-employer, but to the job seeker as well. Furthermore, the mentality of the job boards leads to a cattle-round-up mentality, with hundreds of resumes being submitted for each job, and with most of those from people who are unqualified for a particular position.

This commentary is not to say all job sites are bad or worthless. Quite the contrary… some sites like Indeed.com and TheLadders are making strong inroads in this space which will help job seekers. But this is a reminder to all job seekers to diversify your search. Use the job boards, but don’t rely on them. Instead, use your network, whether it be LinkedIn, FaceBook, Twitter or others to have your friends, family and colleagues get the word out that someone great, you, are seeking a job.

What have your experiences with the various job boards resulted in? Axis would love to hear your feedback. Post a comment below, or Email us here to tell your story.

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In today’s world of “the party is over” expenses at companies, everyone is looking for a way to save a few dollars here and there. For many, including several of us at Axis Technical Group, traveling is a key component of our Business Development and Account Management strategies – and traveling is not cheap any way you slice it.

But according to this article in the Wall Street Journal, the airlines have set up some ways for travels to save. And all you have to do is sign up!

According to the article, the websites travelers should sign up for include:

Airfarewatchdog.com – emails alerrts when airlines release promo codes
FareCompare.com – posts promo codes on their blog

Twitter.com – follow your favorite airlines as they often send out deals and promos to their Twitter followers.

Scott McCartney’s entire travel blog can be found by clicking here.

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Passing along this article from the OC Register about signs of economic turnaround in Orange County.

Four Orange County executives representing banking, fast food, high tech and housing said today that they had retrenched during the recession but have positioned themselves for a turnaround which they expect this year. Click here to read full article.

But what do you think? Leave a comment below or email us here.

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The United States remains in the grip of a challenging economy. Depending on who you talk to however, some people believe recovery is upon us, while others disagree. What can’t be argued are the record unemployment numbers that our nation faces. As of December 2009, the unemployment rate in the US is 9.7%, a number that has remained relatively flat in the last couple of months. However in California, that number is 12.2% as of November 2009 with LA County also at 12.2%, while Orange County remains more in line with the US average at 9.4%. (Click Here to View all US Unemployment Data).

Not all the news is bad. In fact, the Information Technology industry seems to have bolted out of the New Year starting gate fast and feverish. Non-technical management opportunities from mid-level to C-level remain very weak, but those professionals with strong technical skills remain in high demand.

Axis Technical Group alone has more open requirements than we have seen in a year, and are looking for hard-working, passionate and reliable individuals to join our team at key clients. Some of the positions we are currently trying to fill include (click on job title for details):

• Senior C#/WinForms Developer
• Senior BizTalk Developer
• Senior .Net Web Developer (C#, ASP.net)
• Project Manager
• and more….

If you are seeking a new opportunity, or know someone who is, please visit Axis Technical Group and submit your resume for consideration.

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We came across this article on the MSNBC blog, The Red Tape Chronicles, and wanted to pass it along.

With all the press about the latest social networking site or neat little internet trick, security is as big an issue as ever. The 12 issues written about here are things we each run across every day. In particular, Issue 8 about Cell Phones, and Issue 11 about URL Shorteners are excellent reminders of new threats.

Axis wants to hear from you! What other threats should computer users be aware of in 2010 and beyond? Post your comments below or email us.

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