denotes premium content | Feb 7 2012 
Enterprise Information archive
Volume 1 Issue 4
No matter what income bracket they find themselves in, a majority of the millions of people who use London’s transport system on a daily basis probably won’t be pleased at the recent announcement made by Mayor Ken Livingstone that bus and tube fares will increase beginning in January 2005.
If you’re able to ignore the criticism leveled at Livingstone and the fact the increase will eventually help pay for a £3bn investment in the city’s beleaguered public transport system, you’re left with the stark reality that you will be paying more to do your job, especially if it demands you be in an office.
Yet if your employer is of a progressive mind and has instituted a mobile-working programme, you probably didn’t bat an eye at the news of the fare hike because you’re already working from outside the office. In most cases, this means you are doing what’s required from the comfort of your own home or while on the road. No rushing to the office to check e-mails, collect documents or conduct meetings; no more working hours that aren’t, for whatever reason, suitable; a better balance between work and life that could lead to more fruitful productivity – not to mention the money and sanity you could save by avoiding the bus and tube.
With that notion in mind, this month’s issue of ei magazine looks at three different aspects of remote and mobile working. Drawing on his experiences at Richards Butler law firm, Lee Hanley describes the mobile-working options businesses have at their disposal.
Ever mindful of the risks that surround the trend, Conrad Simpson looks at how businesses can secure information their mobile workers are using. Last, in a more focused look at a segment of the mobile-working trend, Calum Macleod explains the benefits of virtual private networks.
And as usual, you can follow the latest developments, trends and products in our news pages, find out how your peers tackled some of their information-management difficulties, and discover what industry leaders have to say on everything from outsourcing to the UK’s Freedom of Information Act.
As always, if you have any suggestions on future story ideas or ways to improve the magazine further, feel free to contact me at hwilson@ark-group.com.
Features
Last Word: freeing the shackles
Organisations are beginning to change the way they work by making use of secure remote access technologies. Calum Macleod, European director of Netilla Networks, explains the role that virtual private networks are playing within the industry.
Trendtracker: putting freedom of information on the record
Peter Benfell, information manager at the UK Debt Management office, highlights how all levels of government can create a best-practice standard for information management and adhere to the guidelines in the looming Freedom of Information Act by following existing guidelines.
Picture-perfect content
When it realised using a time-consuming and difficult method for publishing content to its intranet and website was pointless, the Tate group of art galleries decided to implement a system that would make the process more streamlined. Simon Grant, head of information systems at Tate, tell’s ei magazine how the new system transformed the group’s ability to use content quickly and efficiently.
Managing mobile risk
As more employees remotely connect to corporate information, unwanted guests are becoming more of a threat. In this second ei examination of mobile working, Conrad Simpson of information-security consultants Celare, explains how to stop them.
Keep on moving
Working practices are changing and, as firms become more international, the demand for facilitating remote working, combined with an increasing employee demand for flexibility, means that firms are working hard to keep up with the times. In the first of three ei articles examining the mobile working phenomenon, Lee Hanley, IT director at Richards Butler, assesses the challenges of mobile working and suggests some practical ways for keeping firms in the fast lane.
Iron-clad outsourcing
It’s an option that hasn’t diminished in popularity, but how do you prepare to outsource a service? As Angela Cha, partner specialising in IT and outsourcing law at the London offices of international law firm Masons, explains, getting a clearly delineated agreement in writing helps prepare for every eventuality.
Straight to the source
Five years after creating a knowledge-management programme, insurance services colossus Aon found it wasn’t living up to the Gaelic translation of its name – ‘oneness’. Although they had dozens of content repositories to choose from, it was becoming difficult for employees to find the information they needed. Annie Wang, information architect at Aon, explains how creating a central-information repository helped solve the problem.
Transforming Trinity
After struggling with an ancient administration database that was buckling under the pressure of huge amounts of information, Trinity College London decided to implement a more sophisticated intranet system that would provide easier access to information. Vicky Annis, director of finance at the college, explains how Trinity Online has eased the burden for staff.
Regulars
