(This post originally appeared on Forbes)
Here are five things in technology that happened this past week and how they affect your business. Did you miss them?
1 — Apple has boosted the performance of iPad Air by 40% with a new A14 bionic chip.
According to an announcement from Apple this past week, their iPad Air tablets are going to be getting a big boost in performance thanks to an innovative A14 Bionic chip. When compared to the models released last year, these newest tablets operate 40% quicker during simple tasks, while the speed of processing graphics tasks are improved by 30%. Apple’s A-series processors — which the tech giant develops itself — were typically used for iPads and iPhones, not computers. This will be the first year that personal computers will be driven by the chips, which will perform at a higher caliber and allow for greater battery life than tablets or phones. (Source: CNET)
Why this is important for your business:
As you’re considering tech purchases this year, just remember that speed equals productivity. Investing in the iPad Air may not be cheap, but the cost savings by helping your customers and employees get things done quicker because of the device’s enhanced performance may be worth it.
2 — Square adds features that speed up payroll for employers and workers.
Square recently announced that they are looking to make payroll simpler for businesses and their employees through their launch of two features. The first feature — “Instant Payments” — will allow employers to use the funds in their Square Balance to more quickly transfer paychecks into the accounts of their employees. This process will negate the traditional delay, which historically has taken up to 4 days. The second new feature — “On-Demand Pay” — will provide employees with the opportunity to access their money when they need it, even if that means immediately at the close of their shift. (Source: Pymnts)
Why this is important for your business:
Remember when Square was just a mobile card reader? Yeah, those were simpler times. Now the company is stealthily expanding its reach into more accounting functions, like payroll. That’s good news for small businesses that are already using the platform and want an easier way to handle their finances.
3 —Fast-growing startup Synder has integrated with Shopify, Amazon, and eBay to help ecommerce businesses automate bookkeeping and better manage accounts receivable.
Snyder — a startup that developed a smart app for bookkeeping and financial management — has shared that they will be integrating with several e-commerce companies including Ecwid, eBay, Shopify, and Amazon. Snyder — which rolled out in 2017— is designed to assist businesses in streamlining transactions from their payment platforms into Zero or Quickbooks. (Source: PRNewsWire)
Why this is important for your business:
The company says that with the integration, businesses selling online will be able to more efficiently navigate and operate their AR while automating their accounting processes, as well as instantly categorizing and recording their fees or sales into the bookkeeping software.
4 — Slack wants to make life easier for remote teams with its 5 new Workflow Builder templates.
Slack recently rolled out 5 templates for their visual tool — Workflow Builder — that will give Slack users the opportunity to automate day-to-day tasks such as gathering team feedback and streamlining various requests. (Source: The Next Web)
Why this is important for your business:
According to the company the idea behind the new templates are to help work-from-home life feel more effortless. Users will also be able to streamline the way in which they alert teammates without bombarding them with notifications, set up daily reminders for team huddles, as well as make and approve requests in a more effective way. The new templates also include a way for users to send their teammates friendly reminders to take breaks while working from home.
5— Fiverr is expanding their business offering for easier remote work.
Fiverr is a great place to find contract and outside help to accomplish online tasks. This week, the company said that that they will be growing their offerings for businesses in order to help make remote work easier with so many at home during COVID-19. (Source: Pymnts)
Why this is important for your business:
Their new platform was developed in order to help departments and teams work and collaborate with one another more seamlessly and balance overseeing projects involving freelancers. Fivver will allow users to have access to a curated list of freelance workers, budgeting and project management tools, as well as executive assistants.
