Glassdoor is famous for providing job seekers and the actively employed with salary and company insights. Their hands-on, in-depth research makes it possible for people to negotiate pay, prep for interviews, and find new jobs.
But this company’s research doesn’t stop there. They take things a step further to uncover current and future economic trends. And very recently, they compiled a list of job trends to watch for in 2017 and the coming years.
Among these trends, technology was a reoccurring element, and as an IT company, you can probably imagine how this makes us feel. And giddy with excitement only grazes the surface.
As you head into the new year, here are a few trends we feel are important to keep in mind. And the fact that they have everything to do with technology has nothing to do with it…
Everyone is hiring people to fill tech roles. And this doesn’t just include actual tech companies. This covers everything from the medical field to the retail industry, as well as small- to medium-sized businesses off all shapes and colors.
Companies are beginning to realize that, to be relevant and modern, you need people who can help keep you relevant and modern. These people will need to know apps, mobile devices, software, gadgets, and data. Understanding how to integrate this level of technology into your day-to-day operations will become a crucial element of business.
Plenty of people have been saying over the last decade or so that technology will result in massive job loss. Companies will design technology that has the ability to automate processes and this will result in the complete removal of the human element. However, this might not be entirely the case.
Glassdoor says “automation will change every job,” but not in the way you think it will. Automation won’t replace jobs on a massive scale; however, it will require people to learn new skills. Creativity, efficiency, processes, and productivity in general will only improve if people grow their skillsets and match these skills with current and future technologies.
Everyone who’s anyone is soaking up the data. Why? Because it’s everywhere. And you literally can’t go anywhere without stepping in a pile of data. But according to Glassdoor, the HR world in particular is a little behind the data curve. But not for long.
In the coming years, we will begin to see recruiters and HR generalists employ data to help them widen the talent pool, place new hires strategically, and create a more positive workplace culture. These small changes will have large impacts on the overall flow of the business realm and lead to something bigger and better than we ever imagined.
As I mentioned earlier, Christmas is fast approaching. And because of this, we’re all gearing up to buy lots and lots of random thangs for all those random people on your shopping list. For many of us, however, we’ll turn to the ever popular Amazon for assistance.
This year, Amazon is heavily pushing its Alexa-enabled smart devices – the Amazon Echo and the Echo Dot. The Echo Dot is simply a miniature version of the Amazon Echo and comes to the public at a reasonable price of $49.99. So, I don’t know about all of you guys, but nearly every person on my Christmas list this year will be getting a Dot… whether they like it or not. And it’s probably safe to assume that a lot of other people out there have the same idea as I do.
Why? Because it makes sense and allows you to avoid the Target parking lot.
So, this being said, I thought it’d be a pretty good idea to provide all you people out there with a list of things those Alex-enabled devices are capable of.
At the end of the day, these particular smart gadgets are all about the music. The sound quality is superb, and you can even provide Alexa with audible commands when the music is at full blast and you’re halfway across the room. And asking Alexa to play music is incredibly simple. Tell her to play a specific artist or a pre-built playlist on your Spotify. Ask her to turn up the volume, switch to the next song, or add a track to your library. You can even play music by genre or ask Alexa to turn the music off in one hour.
With an Echo or Echo Dot, tracking time is almost too easy. Set a timer, turn on an alarm, ask what the time is, or figure out what day it is. And language is definitely not a barrier here, which means you can provide Alexa with commands in a variety of ways. “Alexa, set an alarm for 8 AM.” Or, “Alexa, wake me up at 8 AM”. Or, “Alexa, wake me up in 7 hours.” She understands it all.
The time isn’t the only thing you care about. You want to know the weather, the news, and the results of the game last night. And with Alexa, this is all possible. Ask Alexa if it will rain today, what the weather will be like this weekend, what the latest news is, and how the game turned out last night.
Run out of toilet paper? Alexa can reorder that for you. Looking to catch an Uber? Alexa can call one for you. Thinking about pizza for dinner tonight? Alexa has you covered.
Sooooo… these devices are pretty darn awesome. Why? Well, because not only can they track all that stuff we’ve already hit on, but with the help of Alexa, they can also control all those smart gadgets in your home. From Philips Hue and Wink to SmartThings and Belkin WeMo, Alexa can work with them all. Turn on your lights, adjust the temperature of your home, or lock your front door. All it takes is a simple command.
Not in the mood for music? Well, that’s entirely okay. Alexa can read you a story. You can ask her to pause, reread a section, or stop reading after an hour has gone by. You finally have someone willing to read you a bedtime story again.
We all have those people on our Christmas lists. Those people who aren’t normal. Those people who never like anything you get them because they’re just too darn weird or way too eccentric. But at the same time, you can’t not get these people a gift. At the end of the day, you still sort of like these people. They’re your friends, your family members, your loved ones… a gift is simply a requirement.
So I’m here to help you step up your game. It is possible to find these people a great gadget that’s just as eccentric as they are. You just have to do a little research. But before you go and do that, take a look below. You might find the gift you’ve been searching for.
This one isn’t cheap. In fact, you should really, really love the lady you get this for. But if you’ve gotten your wife, girlfriend, or mother every appliance, necklace, and gift card out there, then this Dyson designed hairy dryer might be the way to go. Coming in at $399.99 (gulp), the Dyson Supersonic hair dryer is engineered much like their vacuums are – expertly and intelligently. This bad boy will never damage your hair, never leave your hand in pain, and dry your hair quicker than the Sahara can in the middle of the summer.
Just as people love that new car smell, people love that New Mac smell. Is it weird? Most definitely. Are we going to question it any further? Not a chance. If there’s someone in your life who loves their Mac a little more than they should, then this candle should find its way into a gift bag somewhere. But then again, this candle isn’t a great idea for Mac lovers alone. Any tech, nerd, or geek out there would get a kick out of it.
There are Mac lovers and then there are animal lovers. Both equally as weird. And both equally hard to shop for. But this gadget might change things for you. Say hello to the Petcube Camera. And yes… it does exactly what you think it does. Set it up, and you’ll have the ability to watch, talk to, and play with your furry little creature. Watch a livestream of your pet directly from your phone and use a built-in laser toy to play with your animal. Will the animal be completely and utterly confused? Probably. But will the pet lover in your life be absolutely filled with joy? Yes. Yes, they will be.
Is there a smart version of everything out there? Of course, there is… like the Wilson X, a smart football that will make the perfect gift for any son, husband, or brother out there. This football connects to your phone to deliver play-by-play statistics, like how far you throw, what your spin rate is, and how efficient your spiral is. And how exactly does it do all that? With a teeny, tiny, undetectable chip.
It seems like riding bikes is the cool thing to do now. All hipsters everywhere are turning towards super slim bikes with no brakes. While I don’t get it, they seem to love it. This being said, you should turn your attention towards Smarthalo. This smart gadget attaches to the top of your bike and connects to your smartphone. Tell the app where you need to go and the gadget will provide you with turn-by-turn, color-coded directions on how to get there and will even supply you with thorough biking stats after the ride. Know how long it took you to get there, how far you traveled, how many calories burned, and what your average speed was. Any hipster anywhere would love it.
Home security is a huge concern for basically anyone with a pulse. No one wants to face an intruder and most anyone will do whatever it takes to avoid that frightening possibility. But thankfully, technology is making it a little easier to both manage and build up your home security.
Smart locks, doorbells, cameras, and alarm systems give you the ability to see things in a more controlled setting. Know who’s at the door before you get up and figure out why your dog is barking without walking outside. Technology makes securing your home simpler, safer, and more user-friendly. And now, Sunflower Labs has decided to take this a step further.
Although you can only reserve their product at this point, there are more than a few reasons you should consider bolstering your home security with the Sunflower Home Awareness System.
Part of the Sunflower Lab security system consists of motion-activated smart lights. These lights look like your run-of-the-mill garden lights, but they’re completely solar and turn on when they detect motion. You can even apply designer light themes to change the mood of your environment. So say you’re having a backyard party, you can lower the brightness and opt for warmer lighting.
When your lights do detect motion, you’ll receive a notification on your phone. This notification will let you know where the motion was detected and ask if you’d like to check it out.
If you want to check out a notification, then you can through a live video feed. However, this close-up shot won’t come from the lights themselves; it’ll come from a connected flying camera. Tap the option to check out the motion, and your camera will fly to the area in question. You can see who’s there or what’s going on with nothing but your phone. No need to guess where it came from or to take a late-night stroll in a dark backyard. The Sunflower system has you covered.
The Sunflower Home Awareness System is incredibly simple to install. Stick the lights into the ground, download the app, and then, at this point, it’s just a matter of connecting your camera and lights to the app. It’s as simple as that.
There’s this vast selection of smartphones out there. It’s so incredibly vast that it can be somewhat overwhelming to purchase a new smartphone. I mean, how do you narrow down all those choices? It takes like a whole two and a half fingers to count all the available smartphones out there… so how can you possibly decide?
iPhone or Galaxy? Galaxy or iPhone? Maybe a Nexu… There’s just Too. Many. Choices.
And just when we thought the choice of which phone to buy couldn’t get any more impossible to make, Google decides to just throw another phone in the mix. Thanks, Google. How. Sweet. Of. You.
But, really, all sarcasm aside… thank you, Google. The Pixel is truly a work of technological art.
Google’s whole thing? You’re going to get a new phone. But not just any new phone. A new, new phone. Like no version number new. According to CNET, this new, new phone was built by HTC but designed, engineered, and branded by Google. It’s marketed by Google, sold by Google, and then supported by Google employees – which means you get 24/7 technical support by phone or chat.
The Pixel has everything you need out of a phone – including a headphone jack (which Google thought you’d appreciate). But that’s not all they’ve included. The Pixel comes fully integrated with Google Assistant. Long press the home button or say, “Okay, Google,” and an AI-infused Google bot will take over. Ask questions and get answers in a chat-like setting and conversation-like flow.
This phone might feel and look an awful lot like an iPhone, but it has more than a few features to differentiate itself from the ever-so-popular Apple brand. It’s offered exclusively through Verizon and comes in three colors – Quite Black, Very Silver, and Really Blue.
The Pixel even offers the highest rated smartphone camera ever. Literally. It received a DxOMark Mobile score of 89, which trumps every smartphone camera that came before it.
“The Pixel’s strong scores under a wide range of conditions make it an excellent choice for almost any kind of photography. As with any small-sensor device, results are excellent in conditions with good and uniform lighting. But in addition, images captured indoors and in low light are very good and provide a level of detail unexpected from a smartphone camera.”
A fingerprint sensor rests on the back of the phone, which provides you with quick and easy access to your notifications – without sacrificing security and privacy to do so. In just 15 minutes, the Pixel can charge for up to 7 hours of battery life and will last up to two hours longer than any iPhone or Nexus ever could.
With unlimited storage for photos and videos, you won’t have to worry about anymore “storage is full” notifications. And with Google Duo built into the phone, you have the ability to video chat with fellow Googlers seamlessly. Like FaceTime. But for Google.
Long press some of the apps, and you’ll receive the option to quick-select different activities. For example, long press the camera, and you can choose to take a selfie or a video. Long press Google Drive, and you can select to scan, upload, or search for a photo.
The Pixel boasts a 5” display with options for 32GB or 128GB of storage, and the Pixel XL boasts a 5.5” display with similar storage options. The Pixel starts at $649, while Pixel XL starts at $769. The phone isn’t exactly cheap, but rest assured, the phone is well worth every penny.
