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Virtual Teams: Small Business Innovation

Virtual Teams: Small Business InnovationAuthor: Eric Everson, Founder – MyMobiSafe.comAs the founder of MyMobiSafe.
Written by MobileTech , Contributor

Virtual Teams: Small Business Innovation Author: Eric Everson, Founder – MyMobiSafe.com

As the founder of MyMobiSafe.com, I’ve found that because of our presence in the industry people rarely assume that we are still a small business. We have been able to position the MyMobiSafe brand with the best in the industry, but what few know, is how we have been able to leverage our success without seeking outside investment. We realized in the very beginning that if we were going to make our mark, we had to exercise our innovation and agility as a startup. Virtual Teams (VT) laid a foundation for our small business that helped us become the brand that we are today.

As many know from our startup story, I actually founded MyMobiSafe while living in the Cayman Islands. While there I met a tourist that told me about a mobile virus that destroyed his handset and that very conversation set about a life altering transition in my life. I did some research as a mobile content developer and realized that there was a gaping hole that needed my attention. What I also found was that during hurricane season on a small island nation like Grand Cayman, some of the most basic elements of technology can be hard to come by. When you’re plagued by power and internet outages, it takes a toll as you are in the R&D process as a small business. When I came back to The States, I began putting together the team that would launch MyMobiSafe.com.

Having survived the worst of the hurricane season, my technology issues were no longer plaguing me in the US. When I was looking for the right team members, I had to look far and wide as mobile security as a new technology had very few resources. What I found was that with the team in place the greatest obstacle we faced was our geographic proximity. In reality we were scattered all over the world. We knew very early that bringing everyone together under one roof was not going to work for our team. We had limited resources as we have funded the entire MyMobiSafe venture out of pocket, but we did have technology on our side. We made the best use of our mobility and software tools that we could to make our VT successful.

We stretch tools like instant messaging, web meetings, VOIP, remote storage, and email to their limits. We do it in such a way that it seems that we are separated by mere cubicle walls. As a business leader the savings has been astounding, while for a team of technology savvy comrades it has provided everyone with flexibility unlike any job we’ve had before. The days of leaving the office and forgetting about it until the next day are on their way out. We live in an environment that requires our connection to the industry all of the time. Conference calls in the middle of the night become second nature, but it is because we have embraced the value of integrating VT into our management strategy.

What can Virtual Teams do to help your small business save money while maximizing the technology you already have in place? As an IT leader, I believe in maximizing the return on technology investment. If your technology is not contributing to the profit margin of your company, it may be time to reevaluate your business model.

I look forward to your comments and feel free to drop me an email: EricEverson@Hotmail.com

Cheers, Eric Everson, Founder – MyMobiSafe.com

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