The Return of Software (From Retail Box to Cloud)

I remember a time when software was typically available only in large cardboard retail boxes often with large clunky manuals. And if there wasn’t a large clunky manual, some awkward cardboard filler that filled the space the sleeved CD-ROM and thin welcome guide couldn’t fill. And, like most people, I kept these boxes around in a bookcase for seemingly no reason whatsoever. A recent visit to Best Buy gave me a sense of how much software has changed. What I saw was a smaller selection of boxed software titles than I ever remembered seeing and I couldn't have been happier about it.

I’ve been working in some form of software for over a decade and I believe that while consumers understand the importance of software, somehow, it ultimately never seemed as valuable as hardware. Software piracy was commonplace in the 90s and early 2000s and probably still is. To make their product look more “tangible,” software developers had to spend money on packaging - and attractive packaging - to lure customers to actually buy their software. Fast forward to modern day and almost any software title is available via download (many offer an install disc for a small fee) and usually for much less than you'd expect. With Internet speeds getting faster and more affordable, the option to purchase software-for-download is not just available, it’s become the preferred option.

One of my favorite companies is Apple who is responsible for the mighty iTunes store as well as the App Store, a digital store built right into the operating system allowing for purchases of software titles anytime, including no shortage of free apps. With titles ranging from Final Cut Pro, Logic Pro, Aperture and Adobe Photoshop Lightroom to Angry Birds or even Grand Theft Auto, Apple’s App Store is an example of the convenience of purchasing - or even browsing - software titles at your leisure. Even the latest version of Apple’s operating system, OS X Lion, is available primarily as a download (for $29.99!). The rising popularity of netbooks, tablet computers and other computers that don’t even have an optical drive, would indicate that this digital option is quickly becoming the norm.

Our culture is embracing (has embraced?) a fully digital lifestyle with media purchases or subscriptions through services like iTunes, Amazon, Netflix, etc. And why shouldn’t it? When I was a teenager and I heard a song on the radio I liked, I would go to a record store and look for the album on cassette or maybe I’d just pick up the cassingle, which, if you you’re too young to remember what these were, they’re exactly what they sound like. These days, I can Shazam something I hear on the radio, television, etc. and it’ll tell me what it is and I can download the song immediately. Or if I have company over and we want to see the grossly underrated Will Ferrell and Mark Wahlberg classic, The Other Guys, I can simply rent or buy it digitally from any number of online stores (or maybe it’s even streaming on one my subscription services). Gone are the days of CD openers and fancy software packaging, we’re in the midst of a new chapter in the digital revolution and things are far from over.

But let’s get back to software apps. Not only is it more convenient and cheaper to purchase software these days, software has even evolved beyond downloading and installing. Look at a service like Netflix which, outside of a computer (or Netflix-enabled device), an Internet connection and the free Microsoft Silverlight plug-in, you don’t need anything else to stream video. Or look at a service like Hulu which, other than the free Adobe Flash plug-in, streams video effortlessly on your web browser. And then we get to SaaS (software-as-a-service) systems like CRM giant, Salesforce, or productivity apps like Google apps which give you an installed software-like experience through a web browser. Web apps like these are a testament of a great milestone in the digital age.

Not only are we accomplishing more today digitally, the sheer reliance on things like software backups, massive hard disks or even your own personal computer is becoming less and less necessary. We live in a time where all of your professional work can be done in the cloud where you’ll have access to all of the same work from your home. Or any computer for that matter. Instead of mixtapes, you can now create music playlists on a service like Spotify and have the same mixes available to you at home, on your smartphone or even at work. Why email the latest photos of your newborn or puppy to family when you could use a service like Yahoo!’s Flickr or Google’s Picasa and have and give access to your photos anywhere or to anyone? 

For me, I’m glad it's becoming less common to purchase software and media in retail packaging these days. Aside from being “green,” it saves on production costs thus keeping the real product as affordable as possible for us, the end-user. And I’m even more glad that almost everything I personally use is available as a service, which means I have access to my things, be it media, documents or my favorite personal finance web app, mint.com, anywhere I have an Internet connection. And if you ask me, not only is this evolution of software making life easier, it’s also making it a lot more fun.

Tech Tip: Schedule Characteristics EXPLAINED

I'm the kind of person who likes tweaking settings and parameters in new gadgets. Whether it be a new iPad, a new Blu-Ray player or even a new computer program, I love digging into setups and seeing what kind of customization options I have. Do I break my new shiny gadgets? Not as much anymore! I know not everyone is like me and that is just as well.

With this week's tech tip, I'd like to cover Schedule Characteristics, a great customization tool in your system that I think is worth playing around with as it may greatly improve your EMS Manager, FIRE Manager or Zanager experience.

Located halfway down your options in System Settings is Schedule Characteristics:

Schedule Characteristic allows you to customize how you view your schedules. These settings are broken up into two categories: General Schedule Settings and Monthly Calendar View Settings. Let's go over what each one of these settings does:

General Schedule Settings

• Default Work Schedule View - This setting determines which work schedule view will load by default when a user clicks on the work schedule tab. This is a useful setting if you and your company prefer looking at the work schedule in a daily format or a week by week format instead of the traditional monthly calendar view. Your options are:
• Daily Blocks
• Daily Summary 
• Weekly Blocks
• Weekly Shifts
• Pay Period
• Custom Range
• Monthly Calendar
• Monthly Roster
• Week Start Day - This setting determines what the global week start day is for your system. This means that whatever day you select, your weekly views will start on this day. This is a useful setting if you prefer not to view weeks as Sunday to Sunday but rather Monday to Monday or whatever your company views work weeks by.

Monthly Calendar View Settings (these settings apply only to the Monthly Calendar View)

• Monthly Cal Wrap - Just in case the balloon help doesn't explain what this setting does, here's my take on it. If you have shifts that go past midnight and you want to view that shift only on the start day, select "Split shifts at schedule start time." If you want the calendar to split the shift at midnight, showing a shift on the start day and the end day, select "Split shifts at midnight." 
• Monthly Cal Open Shift Split - This setting determines if you'd like the system to display consecutive open shifts together as one open shift. For example, if your system has four consecutive four hour shifts open (8a-12p, 12p-4p, 4p-8p and 8p-12a), if you select "Split open shifts," all four shifts will display discretely (as their own entry) and if you select "Group open shifts" all four shifts will be grouped into one "8a-12a" entry. The advantage of this setting is if you want to view separate shifts or save visual space on your monthly calendar view.
• Calendar Week Start Day - This setting will determine which day your monthly calendar view has on the far left. Traditionally, calendars have Sunday on the left, but with this setting, you can have it be any day of the week. This is a personal preference setting meant to give you the option to view your data the way you want to view it.

And of course, like with any system setting, be sure to click "Save Changes" after you've made any adjustments!

If you have any questions about how to use this system setting, please feel free to contact Customer Support at (888) 749-5550 or at support@aladtec.com.

Customer Service - Are We Focused On The Right Things?

The majority of our new business has always come from word of mouth advertising.  A customer tells a friend, the friend tells a friend, etc, etc....  We are extremely fortunate that this is the case, and we realize this positive word of mouth advertising can just as easily turn negative if we disappoint our customers.  So we try very hard to treat them right.  

We always try to under-promise and over-deliver, and we try to treat customers the way we like to be treated.  I think all businesses TRY to do this.  But it amazes me how many fail.  

For instance...

An old friend and I decided we should get together for a few drinks at a local bar.

I arrived about ten minutes early.  The place was empty except for a bartender washing some glasses and a waitress picking songs on a jukebox.  

Without turning to face me, the waitress yelled something at me as I walked in.  I’m not sure what she said because she yelled it into the jukebox, but I guessed it was something like “SIT ANYWHERE YOU WANT”.  So I sat down at a window booth and opened my notebook to jot down a few thoughts.

The waitress came over and cheerfully asked what I’d like to drink.  I told her I’d take a Windsor-Coke.  She said “Great, it’s happy hour so I can get you two”.  I planned to sip those drinks and I didn't like the thought of the ice melting into my second drink.   So I asked her if I could get the first now and the second later.  She cheerfully said she would check.

She went to the bartender, came back drink-less, and told me “I’m sorry, you have to take both drinks now”.  Since that was the case I told her I’d rather wait to have the drinks after my friend arrived.  In the meantime I’d take a Diet Coke.  

She left and quickly returned with a glass of ice and brown liquid.  After the initial sip I suspected this was the worst Diet Coke ever.  For some reason, a few seconds later I followed up with a more cautionary sip just to confirm.  Yep, no doubt, THE WORST DIET COKE EVER.  It was flat without a single bubble of carbonation, it was warm, and gross.  

My friend soon arrived and asked what I was drinking.  I told him anything but the rest of that Diet Coke.  We decided to take advantage of the 2 for 1 deal and get a couple of Jim Beams - one on the rocks and one straight up.  The waitress took our order, left, and again returned drink-less - to tell us the drinks had to be identical.  Both drinks must HAVE ICE or NOT HAVE ICE.  We couldn't’ believe she actually said that.  But she quickly convinced us she was serious by saying “Look, if the drinks are not the same they can’t keep track of who has what”.  

Then I spied a huge sign above the bartender that said “BUCKET OF FIVE BEERS - ONLY $13”.   We agreed that sounded good so we told the waitress to bring us the bucket.  She left and quickly returned bucket-less to cheerfully tell us she’s sorry but the bucket deal was only available during Minnesota Twins games (even though that was not on the sign).  The Twins game had just finished, so they couldn’t give us the bucket of beer.

At that point my friend and I decided we could both have Jim Beam WITH ice.

We talked about how many customer service let-downs the bar had made since I walked in:

1. They greeted me by yelling into a jukebox
2. They refused to bring me half of a 2 for 1 now, and half later
3. The Diet Coke SUCKED
4. They refused to let us have the special on the sign because the Twins game was done
5. They refused to put ice into one drink but not the other 

Maybe they saved some money by serving crappy Diet Coke, and maybe they saved some money by not giving us the bucket of beer after the game - MAYBE - but the rest wouldn’t have cost them a dime to treat us the way we wanted to be treated.  

My friend suggested we tell the owner about the poor customer service we received.  He was convinced that no owner of a business could approve of these stupid rules and this poor service.  

So the next time the waitress came around he asked her if the owner was in.  She said “Yep, he’s the bartender and these are his rules.  Do you want to talk to him”?  We looked at each other, shrugged our shoulders, and said “nah, never-mind”.  

We then decided to have a second Jim Beam, both WITH ice, and decided we’d probably never come back.  

As I finish describing this experience, I can’t help but wonder if the owner THOUGHT he was providing good customer service.  After all, the place was clean, nicely lit, and had good atmosphere.  The waitress was pleasant, she addressed me as soon as I came in, she came to our table quickly, and always had a smile.  The drinks had a generous pour and the prices were very reasonable.  The owner may have THOUGHT they provided great customer service. 

I also can't help but wonder if we ever let down our customers like this here at Aladtec.  I sure hope we don’t. But if we do, please let me know.  I’d love to have the chance to TRY to make it right. 

Dave Feyereisen
Aladtec Inc.
President
Direct Phone:  715.690.2305

Tech Tip: Forget Weeks and Months, Let's Talk 'Pay Periods'

Pay periods may be the unsung hero in your EMS Manager, FIRE Manager or Zanager system. And if you're asking yourself, "What are pay periods?," then all-the-more reason you should continue reading this tech tip.

At the core, an Aladtec online employee scheduling system is a scheduling platform. In the work schedule, you'll see views by day, by week and by month. In reports, you can view data by day, week, month or within any range you'd like. One great feature that is available in every system is pay period, which an administrator can set up in the setup section. This is how it works:

When enabled, you can define whatever your company's pay period is within your system. Your options are:

• Number of weeks period
• Number of days period
• Specific date each month
• Specific 2 dates each month
• Specific day of week each month

For example, if your company pays once a month, covering the previous month from Day 1 at 00:00 to 00:00 of Day 1 of the following month, you would select the Specific date each month option and set a period start time of 00:00. If your company pays the 1st and 3rd Thursdays of every month, you would select the Number of days period, and enter "14" as your period number of days. We're confident one of these options will be able to define your system pay period and if yours isn't covered by one of these options, let us know!

Once you've defined what your pay period is, a number of things will open to you. In most date selectors, you'll now see "Pay Period" as a new option. This is a fantastic option if you want to know what your statistics were for a specific pay period rather than a week or a month. You'll also notice that in addition to being able to select pay period, you have the option to select:

• This Pay Period
• Last Pay Period
• Next Pay Period
• Specific Pay Period 

This gives you quick access to data from your previous pay period, your upcoming pay period or any past or future pay period. 

Another place you'll see pay period become an option is in the Schedule Editor. When viewing scheduled time for your employees, you can now view weekday (WD), weekend (WE), holiday (H) and total hours scheduled within the current pay period. Without setting up your system's pay period, you would only be able to see scheduled time by empirical week, month or selected year to date. Being able to view scheduled time within your current pay period gives you a better idea of not only how scheduled time is being distributed, it gives you better control over scheduled overtime. This view lets you know who is on the verge of going into overtime and who could certainly use an extra shift.

If you have any questions about setting up or using the pay period setting in your system's setup, please do not hesitate to contact our customer support at (888) 749-5550 or at support@aladtec.com. And if you do have a pay period that isn't covered by one of our options, PLEASE let us know!

At Aladtec We Are “A-Whole-Lotta-SaaS”!

While my last blog was about Cloud Computing, this one goes a step further and explains SaaS, which is within the definition of Cloud Computing...under the cloud umbrella if you will.  At Aladtec, we are all about the SaaS!  Which is an acronym for Software-as-a-Service, in some circles it is also referred to as On Demand Software.  SaaS is only accessible from “the cloud”, delivered via the Internet versus the type of software you download onto a computer or computers. I guess “they” could have called it Internet Software, but then the service part would have been left out which is a vital part of the description. Plus...SaaS rolls off the tongue so much better.

As I mentioned, the service part is key to the SaaS definition, because the SaaS provider supplies service based online software.  The software is offered to customers online for a monthly or yearly fee but is managed by the SaaS developer/owner.  It allows anyone the customer chooses in their agency or company to access the software from any internet enabled device.   None of the associated costs of traditional computer software are incurred,  for example: no capital investment to outfit multiple computers with the software and any necessary hardware; no calls to the IT department (the SaaS provider supplies the tech support); and no need to buy updates or new versions (they are included in your subscription fee).  

You are likely using, or at least familiar with, a number of SaaS products in the public safety industry, such as: HealthEMS from Sansio which is used for field data collection, management, and reporting; CentreLearn offering web-based continuing education programs for EMS agencies and fire departments; and Ambutrak an inventory and asset control and fleet management cloud-based software...and of course our very own EMS Manager and FIRE Manager from Aladtec.

Accessibility is the most convenient and often the most touted feature of SaaS. It’s usable anytime from anywhere you can get online.  It’s great for companies with flex time options, on-call crews, volunteer employees, remote offices, satellite employees and work from home situations.  Most SaaS providers offer apps (applications) for mobile devices and smartphones, providing additional accessibility and convenience.  One user of EMS Manager said he even checked in all the time from his smart phone while on vacation just to see what was happening while he was gone!

Also, SaaS products are typically offered as a subscription so there isn’t that large upfront investment I mentioned earlier and the customer can drop the SaaS anytime they want.  I like the way that sounds, “Drop the SaaS!”  However, that’s the last thing the provider wants to hear!  And, they likely won’t hear it since SaaS providers often save their customers both time and money.

 
“We save at least $50,000 a year by using SaaS products versus traditional computer software or custom solutions,” according to Dave Feyereisen, Co-Founder and President of Aladtec.  “The SaaS solutions we use help our people operate more efficiently, leaving more time to support our customers and engineer better products .”

Better products for customers like West Feliciana Parish Hospital EMS. Lynn Clement, an EMT-P there says, "The subscription option was definitely a deciding factor in deciding to try this system. It would have been a much harder sell to administration if it had required a large upfront cost. Taking into account the hours saved with EMS Manager it is nearly free to us."

At Aladtec, we use Salesforce to track our customers, leads, and prospects; FogBugz to track our development process; Browsera automates our browser compatibility testing; and we use Google Analytics to analyze our public web site traffic and online marketing.  We’re also planning to move our desktop accounting software to SaaS at some point in the future as well.  

That’s the basic lowdown on Software-as-a-Service and how it relates to Aladtec. It’s a warm, sunny spring day in Wisconsin and I’m driving my convertible for the first time this year...yup, I’m feeling a little sassy and it felt like a good day to blog about SaaS!

Aladtec Helps Thousands of Employees Stick Their Heads in the Cloud Everyday (With Their Boss's Approval)

The founders of Aladtec, Dave Feyereisen and Leo Langlois, tapped into the cloud computing industry when they discovered a niche market which benefits considerably from accessing data immediately from anywhere with an internet connection.  That niche market is the public safety sector.  

With that said, I need to take a step back to point out “cloud computing” is a rather nebulous term, however it basically means accessing software programs directly over the Internet by logging into the software provider’s website.  It’s likely you are personally using cloud computing now and perhaps didn’t even realize it.  For instance, I use Gmail and it is a form of cloud computing.  Google Docs is also is also considered cloud computing.  I use Google Docs to create documents and share them with others instantaneously.  I can even allow them to edit or make comments if I choose and I can see the changes in real time.  Gmail and Google Docs are available 24/7/365 from anywhere I have web access...my data is “in the cloud”.   This very blog is a perfect example because I’m writing it from home on my laptop, yet I shared it with a coworker who is in Maryland, and he can see me writing this blog in real time and neither of us are actually in the office today.  How cool is that?

Now back to Aladtec...In 2002, the founders were approached by the Ellsworth Area Ambulance Service in Wisconsin to help improve their employee scheduling system by creating an online version for them.  That system became EMS Manager and launched Aladtec, Inc.  Soon other public sector agencies were asking for EMS Manager to help them improve their efficiency too.  At the time, the term “cloud computing” wasn’t a common phrase like it is now.  These agencies simply knew EMS Manager was better than their old system.  Most were posting a paper schedule or writing it on a whiteboard and the only way anyone could see it was to show up at the agency.   Making changes was cumbersome and keeping it current without any confusion was nearly impossible.  Once they implemented EMS Manager they could distribute the schedule and keep it up to date immediately - it was always current and visible to the staff from literally anywhere they had internet access.  They were accessing it in the cloud.  Over time, other important features and capabilities were added and EMS Manager evolved into a hearty web-based scheduling and workforce management system.  

Later, Aladtec developed FIRE Manager for fire departments and most recently they added Zanager to their product line.  Zanager is the same type of online web-based software but it was designed for private sector users.  

In a cloud based system the cost is considered an operational expense instead of a large capital expenditure.  Often, as with Aladtec, web-based services are offered as a monthly or yearly subscription...versus a one time large investment which smaller businesses and public agencies often simply can’t afford.  Aladtec’s affordable yearly subscription fee is easily recouped within a month or two.

“A little over a year into using EMS Manager we’ve already received an estimated overtime savings of $40,000, a 70% reduction in unscheduled overtime,” explains Andrew Blackwood, EMS Sergeant, Queen Anne’s County DES EMS, Centerville, Maryland.  “I also went from spending 15 hours a week to only two on creating the employee schedule.”  

Many cloud based software services, including Aladtec’s, also have smartphone and mobile device apps (applications). “One FIRE Manager feature that took us by surprise is the mobile web app. For our employees with smartphones, they now have access to the schedule, the member list, upcoming events, their own upcoming shifts, and pending trade & time-off requests anywhere they have 3G coverage. It is very convenient to have access to all that information on-the-go and once you have it and use it, you really get a lot out of it,” states Captain James Limerick, Liberty Township Fire Department, Liberty Township, Ohio.

Whether it’s a large agency like the San Diego County Fire Authority and the Regional Paramedical Services of Alabama...or small agencies, such as the Ellsworth Area Ambulance Service (WI), Tuxedo Volunteer Ambulance Corp (NY), and Muskwachees Ambulance Authority, Hobbema (Alberta, Canada)...public sector agencies often face budget cuts they can’t control yet their city or county may continue to grow in population and therefore service needs.  Prices for cloud computing services run the gamut.  Similar products can be priced thousands of dollars apart, so it pays to shop around.  Today, nearly 50,000 people from all across North America access Aladtec’s cloud based online scheduling and workforce management products whenever and wherever they choose.

Scheduling employees, maintaining records and managing public sector volunteers and part time employees may not seem like a big deal to some people, but each and every scheduler and administrator will tell you it can take a tremendous amount of time, resources…and therefore money.  Cloud based software products improve productivity and save time...and therefore money.  "EMS Manager reduced the amount of time it takes to do our schedule by 50% to 75% and I no longer worry about double staffing. The program also allows us to track the certifications for our staff members. It’s a big asset to our department,” states Michael Storck, Deputy Chief, Hammonton Rescue Squad, Hammonton, New Jersey.

So if you are using an Aladtec product or checking your gmail account...you’ve got your head in the clouds my friend...just like me...and isn’t it great?

Tech Tip: Get More Out of the Usage & Stats Report

I've always felt that "reports" have a bad reputation. Starting young with "report cards" and then high school with, "reporting to the principal" (what, just me?) and then as you get older, "TPS reports." I'm here to say that "reports" are also a good thing! For instance, built into every EMS Manager, FIRE Manager and Zanager system are a virtually unlimited amount of reporting. One I'd like to talk about today is the Usage/Stat report.

Usage/Stats Reports, found under Reports, provide graphical representations of usage and statistical data such as:

• Member Logins Per Month - breaks down how many times members log into the system each month
• Time Off Type Information - shows approved request of each time off type
• Member Time Off Hours - compares the monthly total approved time off hours to paid time off hours
• Time Off Request Status History - shows the status of finalized time off requests for each month
• Trade Request Status History - shows the status of finalized trade requests for each month
• Signup Request Status History - shows the status of finalized signup requests for each month
• Messages By Type - shows the number of external messages (email & sms) send each month, ordered by message type
• Total External Messages - shows the total number of external messages (email & sms) sent each month from the system

Like many of the other reports and views in your system, the Usage/Stat report allows for filtering and saving filter sets. With this flexibility, you can create usage and stat reports filtered by any group or item you've set up in your member database. You can filter your usage/stat report by:

• Member Qualifications like schedule or position eligibility
• General Information items like title, employee type, etc.
• Certifications
• Any other items you've created in your system's member database

These reports give you a good gauge on how your system is being used. As I said in our last tech tip...If you're already subscribed to an Aladtec system for your place of business, you know that you'll get the most out of it when most or all of your employees use it regularly. Get a good sense of how your members are using your EMS Manager, FIRE Manager or Zanager system with these reports and encourage your members to get even more out of their online scheduling system.

Press Release: Braidwood Fire Department Replaces Antiquated Scheduling Process with FIRE Manager

Embracing new technology to perform old tasks is easier than you think and the 54 firefighters at the Braidwood Fire Department are among the the many who can tell you themselves. With staff as young as 18 and as experienced as 60, it was assumed that rolling out a system like FIRE Manager and training everyone would be a lengthy process. But that wasn't the case at all.

"Not all of them are comfortable with computers," recalls Kristin Wexell, Administrative Assistant at the Braidwood Fire Department, "but they were all able to be trained on FIRE Manager and easily transitioned to the new scheduling program. Prior to this, they filled out an availability sheet each month and some of the guys were scared of using a computer scheduling program - but I never had to train a person on the program more than once,” adds Wexell. “Every firefighter at our department is able to use this program and it was easy to implement.”

Our thanks to Kristin and everyone at the Braidwood Fire Department for choosing FIRE Manager!

To read the entire press release, click here.

Press Release: Ohio’s Broadview Heights Fire Department Saves 100 Man-Hours a Year with FIRE Manager

Assistant Fire Chief Joe Fleming and the other 36 members of the Broadview Heights Fire Department (BHFD) in Ohio are enjoying the time savings from managing their employee schedule with FIRE Manager. Only five months into using the online employee scheduling system, BHFD knows they can rely on cloud computing with FIRE Manager to manage their workforce. 

Says Fleming, "The time saved is only part of it. FIRE Manager gives us so many more benefits. It gives us accuracy and security...prevents duplicate schedules. It's always up to date, allows more accurate accounting of payroll and eliminates unforeseen gaps in manpower which lead to higher overtime costs."

As public safety agencies are asked to decrease time spent on employee scheduling while maintaining if not improving productivity, departments like BHFD are turning to software-as-a-service (SaaS) like FIRE Manager to maximize efficiency while reducing overtime costs and man-hours.

Broadview Heights Fire Department is one of 60 unique businesses and agencies in the state of Ohio who schedule and manage their staff with an Aladtec system.

To read the entire press release, click here.