Showing posts with label Business. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Business. Show all posts

Today's Business Forecast: Increasing Clouds

Saturday, 16 June 2012 0 comments

They say every cloud has a silver lining - you get some benefit out of every bad thing that happens to you. When you're very happy, you're on cloud nine! If you aren't paying attention in class, your teacher might tell you to get your head out of the clouds. If the authorities think you did it, you would be under a cloud of suspicion. These days, when your workforce is located in three different countries and five different cities connected by the internet, you're practicing cloud-based staffing and utilizing cloud computing.

Wait, what?

That's right. Utilizing a virtual workforce through cloud computing is becoming increasingly popular, because it allows businesses to access talent outside of the local area, it shortens time to market, and it allows for flexibility by giving access to files and data when working remotely and/or outside office hours. If this cloudy terminology is new to you, here is a basic definition to get you up to speed:

According to Wikipedia, "Cloud computing refers to the use and access of multiple server-based computational resources via a digital network (WAN, Internet connection using the World Wide Web, etc.). Cloud users may access the server resources using a computer, netbook, pad computer, smart phone, or other device. In cloud computing, applications are provided and managed by the cloud server and data is also stored remotely in the cloud configuration. Users do not download and install applications on their own device or computer; all processing and storage is maintained by the cloud server. The online services may be offered from a cloud provider or by a private organization."

Cloud computing is what makes a successful virtual workforce, or "staff in the cloud" possible. Flexibility is a huge benefit of cloud computing, as is its ease of use. Cloud computing is often cheaper and less labor intensive because it's online - and therefore the need for massive amounts of server space for storage is removed altogether (you'll probably just see a slight increase in your monthly fee for more data storage). We could continue discussing the benefits of cloud computing; however, the point is it's here to stay, along with cloud staffing. So legally speaking, what does this mean for your business?

When choosing a cloud-based service provider that will allow you to sustain a virtual workforce there are many important points to ponder. You will need to thoroughly review the provider's Service Agreement or Terms of Service in order to find out the following before signing up:

• Where is the actual data stored? (And we mean the geographic location of the company's servers that house all of the data).

• How many servers does the company have?

• What security measures are in place to prevent hackers from accessing the data?

• What notification procedures are used by the company to alert customers of a data breach?

• Who has access to your data?

• Are customers able to back-up the data stored on the cloud on their own servers?

• How do you migrate the data from the cloud if you decide to cancel the service?

If you take these questions into consideration and get solid satisfactory answers, you're ready to hit the cloud!

Joshua M. Marks, Esq.
JM LAW GROUP, LLC
1818 MARKET STREET, SUITE 3740
PHILADELPHIA, PA 19103
215.832.3600

http://www.lawmr.com
josh

Steps Involved In Formation Of Corporations And The Importance Of Business Lawyers

Tuesday, 29 May 2012 0 comments
ByLubna Jahangiri

Corporation is a distinct and legal and separate entity from the persons who have created it. Of all the business organizations, corporation is the most common form, and its owners are not responsible to pay for its liabilities. Corporations can be classified as: profit corporations, non-profit corporations, public corporations, private corporations, professional corporations, publicly-held corporations and closely-held corporation.

In this article we are going to comprehensively outline the formation of corporations and the importance of the role commercial and real estate lawyers play in this formation. It follows a procedure which includes the following steps: First of all, a name is to be decided for your corporation which should not be the same as any other registered corporations. The name should end with a corporation designation like 'corporation', 'limited' or 'incorporated'. However, some of the restricted words cannot be used such as 'federal', 'national' etc. To avoid any complications you need to contact the corporation's office and get a name registered. Since this process can get a little technical most individuals prefer appointing a business lawyer.

The second step is to appoint a board of directors, who make the financial decisions for the corporation and finalise the policies. They also appoint different officers and decide their salaries, make approvals for loans to be taken and other major decisions such as issuing stocks. They are appointed by the owners of the corporations before the beginning of the business.

The next step for the formation of a corporation is to file the 'articles of incorporation' with the corporation filing office. These are to be created and signed by the owners of the corporation. A member of the board of directors is appointed as the 'agent' so that public can contact the corporation through this 'agent'.

The formation of a corporation also requires you to create the bylaws, also known as the internal laws for your corporation which deal with daily decisions. For this, usually a lawyer is appointed who drafts them out for you. Another important step is the signing of an agreement, for the transfer of ownership of the corporation, after the owner becomes disabled, dies, retires or decides to leave the corporation.

The final step is obtaining required permits and licenses for your business. The most important being the business license, which is your tax registration certificate. You also need an employer identification number and a permit from the local planning board for your business. All these tasks can be performed efficiently by a business attorney.

If you are thinking about starting a corporation then you should get in touch with Miss Lubna K. Jahangiri, her real estate and commercial law firm is located in the State of California. Her expertise and knowledge in business law can make the procedure of forming a corporation convenient and hassle free for you; the vast knowledge she processes can act as a sole source of guidance throughout the procedure. The second pertinent advantage of consulting Miss Lubna is the reasonable fee she charges. The unmatched quality of her services along with a very affordable fee makes her the perfect choice for formation of your corporation.

Miss Lubna K. Jahangiri is one of the most qualified law consultant and experienced business and corporate lawyer in the State of California.

Article Source:http://EzineArticles.com/?expert

Defamation Liability Can Devastate Your Business - How to Recognize and Avoid It

Thursday, 24 May 2012 0 comments

Have you or your employees defamed anyone lately? Are you sure?

Is the prevention of defamation liability part of your social media policy or protocols? If not it should be. Recently an Oregon blogger found out the hard way with a $2.5 million defamation judgment. Luckily, defamation liability can be easily minimized by knowing what it is (and is not) and by using some easily implemented best practices.

What it is
Defamation liability results when you publicize false, purported facts about someone when these purported facts would subject the person to hatred, ridicule or shame, and you knew or should have known that the purported facts were false. Since social media is, by its nature, public, the "publicizing" prong of defamation is always satisfied as soon as you (or your employees) post your blog, update, tweet, etc.

Just the Facts
Defamation requires that the publicized information be in the form of purported facts. For example, posting that someone has AIDS, has been convicted of a crime, or is a cheat, are all purported facts and would be potentially defamatory if false. On the other hand, stating that someone was not pleasant to deal with is an opinion, as is stating that the writer simply does not like someone. Defamation liability generally cannot arise out of these opinion statements, caution is advised since many statements can straddle the gray area between fact and opinion. For example the statement that someone is "not ethical" or is "greedy" might sound like an opinion, but can easily be twisted around to be factual enough to be the basis of a defamation lawsuit.

Truth
The purported facts must be actually false. Truth, it is said, is the ultimate defense against a defamation lawsuit. If a person really does have AIDS, has been convicted of a crime, or is a cheat, then saying so through social media channels should not be the basis for defamation liability. Of course, there may be other reasons, including privacy liability why saying so may not be wise.

Negligent
Finally, even if the publicized information was in fact false, it must be shown that you either knew or should have known (with reasonable inquiry) that the facts were false. In other words, you must be shown to be malicious (knew it was false and posted anyway) or negligent (did not take the reasonable steps a reasonable person would have taken to verify the facts before posting).

Best practices
1) Have a Social Media Policy or protocol. This is critical, whether you have 500 employees or are a solo practitioner. The importance of having guidelines in place that everyone agrees to follow every time they post on social media for your business cannot be overstated. This is especially the case when defamation liability avoidance is concerned.

2) Be Professional. Regardless of how ugly things get with competitors, customers or anyone else, resist, at all costs, the urge to use your social media networks as a giant megaphone to air your differences. Nothing good ever comes out of this practice and usually you are just inviting trouble. Social Media should be used for purposes that advance your business' mission and goals. Period.

3) Report Facts through Links. If part of your social media strategy involves reporting on news or facts related to your business, consider using links to established, trustworthy media outlets, instead of being a reporter yourself. The federal court in the Portland blogger case made it very clear that bloggers don't have the same protections that traditional news media enjoys. By linking (and commenting on the news without adding or implying any additional facts if you need to) you let the pros take on the risk of defamation while still being able to get the facts out as needed.

4) Research if you Need to Report. If you simply must break a story yourself or put a different factual spin on an existing story, you simply must make sure that you have researched your facts and have a reasonable basis to believe they are true. Make sure to also keep good records of your research.

5) Make sure You are Insured. Finally, if worst comes to worst, make sure you are insured. While most of us are not going to have sufficient insurance to cover the $2.5 million verdict in the Portland blogger case, at least make sure that the commercial general liability coverage covers defamation liability. When I say "make sure" I mean to not only ask your insurance agent, but to find it in your policy!

ERIC HSU is a Legal Success Strategist, accomplished speaker, and owner of Clear Focus Law.

The mission of Clear Focus Law is to show entrepreneurs, small biz and social marketing professionals how to use the law as a tool for empowering innovation and achieving success, both by building strong legal foundations to support the innovation and by establishing an effective and legally successful social media and web 2.0 presence to grow their business.

In addition to advising clients, Eric also speaks on social media legal topics, writes legal guides and blogs, and provides on-going training solutions.

Article Source:http://EzineArticles.com/?expert

Today's Business Forecast: Increasing Clouds

Thursday, 26 April 2012 0 comments

They say every cloud has a silver lining - you get some benefit out of every bad thing that happens to you. When you're very happy, you're on cloud nine! If you aren't paying attention in class, your teacher might tell you to get your head out of the clouds. If the authorities think you did it, you would be under a cloud of suspicion. These days, when your workforce is located in three different countries and five different cities connected by the internet, you're practicing cloud-based staffing and utilizing cloud computing.

Wait, what?

That's right. Utilizing a virtual workforce through cloud computing is becoming increasingly popular, because it allows businesses to access talent outside of the local area, it shortens time to market, and it allows for flexibility by giving access to files and data when working remotely and/or outside office hours. If this cloudy terminology is new to you, here is a basic definition to get you up to speed:

According to Wikipedia, "Cloud computing refers to the use and access of multiple server-based computational resources via a digital network (WAN, Internet connection using the World Wide Web, etc.). Cloud users may access the server resources using a computer, netbook, pad computer, smart phone, or other device. In cloud computing, applications are provided and managed by the cloud server and data is also stored remotely in the cloud configuration. Users do not download and install applications on their own device or computer; all processing and storage is maintained by the cloud server. The online services may be offered from a cloud provider or by a private organization."

Cloud computing is what makes a successful virtual workforce, or "staff in the cloud" possible. Flexibility is a huge benefit of cloud computing, as is its ease of use. Cloud computing is often cheaper and less labor intensive because it's online - and therefore the need for massive amounts of server space for storage is removed altogether (you'll probably just see a slight increase in your monthly fee for more data storage). We could continue discussing the benefits of cloud computing; however, the point is it's here to stay, along with cloud staffing. So legally speaking, what does this mean for your business?

When choosing a cloud-based service provider that will allow you to sustain a virtual workforce there are many important points to ponder. You will need to thoroughly review the provider's Service Agreement or Terms of Service in order to find out the following before signing up:

• Where is the actual data stored? (And we mean the geographic location of the company's servers that house all of the data).

• How many servers does the company have?

• What security measures are in place to prevent hackers from accessing the data?

• What notification procedures are used by the company to alert customers of a data breach?

• Who has access to your data?

• Are customers able to back-up the data stored on the cloud on their own servers?

• How do you migrate the data from the cloud if you decide to cancel the service?

If you take these questions into consideration and get solid satisfactory answers, you're ready to hit the cloud!

Joshua M. Marks, Esq.
JM LAW GROUP, LLC
1818 MARKET STREET, SUITE 3740
PHILADELPHIA, PA 19103
215.832.3600

http://www.lawmr.com
josh

Steps Involved In Formation Of Corporations And The Importance Of Business Lawyers

Friday, 20 April 2012 0 comments
ByLubna Jahangiri

Corporation is a distinct and legal and separate entity from the persons who have created it. Of all the business organizations, corporation is the most common form, and its owners are not responsible to pay for its liabilities. Corporations can be classified as: profit corporations, non-profit corporations, public corporations, private corporations, professional corporations, publicly-held corporations and closely-held corporation.

In this article we are going to comprehensively outline the formation of corporations and the importance of the role commercial and real estate lawyers play in this formation. It follows a procedure which includes the following steps: First of all, a name is to be decided for your corporation which should not be the same as any other registered corporations. The name should end with a corporation designation like 'corporation', 'limited' or 'incorporated'. However, some of the restricted words cannot be used such as 'federal', 'national' etc. To avoid any complications you need to contact the corporation's office and get a name registered. Since this process can get a little technical most individuals prefer appointing a business lawyer.

The second step is to appoint a board of directors, who make the financial decisions for the corporation and finalise the policies. They also appoint different officers and decide their salaries, make approvals for loans to be taken and other major decisions such as issuing stocks. They are appointed by the owners of the corporations before the beginning of the business.

The next step for the formation of a corporation is to file the 'articles of incorporation' with the corporation filing office. These are to be created and signed by the owners of the corporation. A member of the board of directors is appointed as the 'agent' so that public can contact the corporation through this 'agent'.

The formation of a corporation also requires you to create the bylaws, also known as the internal laws for your corporation which deal with daily decisions. For this, usually a lawyer is appointed who drafts them out for you. Another important step is the signing of an agreement, for the transfer of ownership of the corporation, after the owner becomes disabled, dies, retires or decides to leave the corporation.

The final step is obtaining required permits and licenses for your business. The most important being the business license, which is your tax registration certificate. You also need an employer identification number and a permit from the local planning board for your business. All these tasks can be performed efficiently by a business attorney.

If you are thinking about starting a corporation then you should get in touch with Miss Lubna K. Jahangiri, her real estate and commercial law firm is located in the State of California. Her expertise and knowledge in business law can make the procedure of forming a corporation convenient and hassle free for you; the vast knowledge she processes can act as a sole source of guidance throughout the procedure. The second pertinent advantage of consulting Miss Lubna is the reasonable fee she charges. The unmatched quality of her services along with a very affordable fee makes her the perfect choice for formation of your corporation.

Miss Lubna K. Jahangiri is one of the most qualified law consultant and experienced business and corporate lawyer in the State of California.

Article Source:http://EzineArticles.com/?expert

Defamation Liability Can Devastate Your Business - How to Recognize and Avoid It

Thursday, 19 April 2012 0 comments

Have you or your employees defamed anyone lately? Are you sure?

Is the prevention of defamation liability part of your social media policy or protocols? If not it should be. Recently an Oregon blogger found out the hard way with a $2.5 million defamation judgment. Luckily, defamation liability can be easily minimized by knowing what it is (and is not) and by using some easily implemented best practices.

What it is
Defamation liability results when you publicize false, purported facts about someone when these purported facts would subject the person to hatred, ridicule or shame, and you knew or should have known that the purported facts were false. Since social media is, by its nature, public, the "publicizing" prong of defamation is always satisfied as soon as you (or your employees) post your blog, update, tweet, etc.

Just the Facts
Defamation requires that the publicized information be in the form of purported facts. For example, posting that someone has AIDS, has been convicted of a crime, or is a cheat, are all purported facts and would be potentially defamatory if false. On the other hand, stating that someone was not pleasant to deal with is an opinion, as is stating that the writer simply does not like someone. Defamation liability generally cannot arise out of these opinion statements, caution is advised since many statements can straddle the gray area between fact and opinion. For example the statement that someone is "not ethical" or is "greedy" might sound like an opinion, but can easily be twisted around to be factual enough to be the basis of a defamation lawsuit.

Truth
The purported facts must be actually false. Truth, it is said, is the ultimate defense against a defamation lawsuit. If a person really does have AIDS, has been convicted of a crime, or is a cheat, then saying so through social media channels should not be the basis for defamation liability. Of course, there may be other reasons, including privacy liability why saying so may not be wise.

Negligent
Finally, even if the publicized information was in fact false, it must be shown that you either knew or should have known (with reasonable inquiry) that the facts were false. In other words, you must be shown to be malicious (knew it was false and posted anyway) or negligent (did not take the reasonable steps a reasonable person would have taken to verify the facts before posting).

Best practices
1) Have a Social Media Policy or protocol. This is critical, whether you have 500 employees or are a solo practitioner. The importance of having guidelines in place that everyone agrees to follow every time they post on social media for your business cannot be overstated. This is especially the case when defamation liability avoidance is concerned.

2) Be Professional. Regardless of how ugly things get with competitors, customers or anyone else, resist, at all costs, the urge to use your social media networks as a giant megaphone to air your differences. Nothing good ever comes out of this practice and usually you are just inviting trouble. Social Media should be used for purposes that advance your business' mission and goals. Period.

3) Report Facts through Links. If part of your social media strategy involves reporting on news or facts related to your business, consider using links to established, trustworthy media outlets, instead of being a reporter yourself. The federal court in the Portland blogger case made it very clear that bloggers don't have the same protections that traditional news media enjoys. By linking (and commenting on the news without adding or implying any additional facts if you need to) you let the pros take on the risk of defamation while still being able to get the facts out as needed.

4) Research if you Need to Report. If you simply must break a story yourself or put a different factual spin on an existing story, you simply must make sure that you have researched your facts and have a reasonable basis to believe they are true. Make sure to also keep good records of your research.

5) Make sure You are Insured. Finally, if worst comes to worst, make sure you are insured. While most of us are not going to have sufficient insurance to cover the $2.5 million verdict in the Portland blogger case, at least make sure that the commercial general liability coverage covers defamation liability. When I say "make sure" I mean to not only ask your insurance agent, but to find it in your policy!

ERIC HSU is a Legal Success Strategist, accomplished speaker, and owner of Clear Focus Law.

The mission of Clear Focus Law is to show entrepreneurs, small biz and social marketing professionals how to use the law as a tool for empowering innovation and achieving success, both by building strong legal foundations to support the innovation and by establishing an effective and legally successful social media and web 2.0 presence to grow their business.

In addition to advising clients, Eric also speaks on social media legal topics, writes legal guides and blogs, and provides on-going training solutions.

Article Source:http://EzineArticles.com/?expert

Defamation Liability Can Devastate Your Business - How to Recognize and Avoid It

Monday, 16 January 2012 0 comments
ByE Hsu

Have you or your employees defamed anyone lately? Are you sure?

Is the prevention of defamation liability part of your social media policy or protocols? If not it should be. Recently an Oregon blogger found out the hard way with a $2.5 million defamation judgment. Luckily, defamation liability can be easily minimized by knowing what it is (and is not) and by using some easily implemented best practices.

What it is
Defamation liability results when you publicize false, purported facts about someone when these purported facts would subject the person to hatred, ridicule or shame, and you knew or should have known that the purported facts were false. Since social media is, by its nature, public, the "publicizing" prong of defamation is always satisfied as soon as you (or your employees) post your blog, update, tweet, etc.

Just the Facts
Defamation requires that the publicized information be in the form of purported facts. For example, posting that someone has AIDS, has been convicted of a crime, or is a cheat, are all purported facts and would be potentially defamatory if false. On the other hand, stating that someone was not pleasant to deal with is an opinion, as is stating that the writer simply does not like someone. Defamation liability generally cannot arise out of these opinion statements, caution is advised since many statements can straddle the gray area between fact and opinion. For example the statement that someone is "not ethical" or is "greedy" might sound like an opinion, but can easily be twisted around to be factual enough to be the basis of a defamation lawsuit.

Truth
The purported facts must be actually false. Truth, it is said, is the ultimate defense against a defamation lawsuit. If a person really does have AIDS, has been convicted of a crime, or is a cheat, then saying so through social media channels should not be the basis for defamation liability. Of course, there may be other reasons, including privacy liability why saying so may not be wise.

Negligent
Finally, even if the publicized information was in fact false, it must be shown that you either knew or should have known (with reasonable inquiry) that the facts were false. In other words, you must be shown to be malicious (knew it was false and posted anyway) or negligent (did not take the reasonable steps a reasonable person would have taken to verify the facts before posting).

Best practices
1) Have a Social Media Policy or protocol. This is critical, whether you have 500 employees or are a solo practitioner. The importance of having guidelines in place that everyone agrees to follow every time they post on social media for your business cannot be overstated. This is especially the case when defamation liability avoidance is concerned.

2) Be Professional. Regardless of how ugly things get with competitors, customers or anyone else, resist, at all costs, the urge to use your social media networks as a giant megaphone to air your differences. Nothing good ever comes out of this practice and usually you are just inviting trouble. Social Media should be used for purposes that advance your business' mission and goals. Period.

3) Report Facts through Links. If part of your social media strategy involves reporting on news or facts related to your business, consider using links to established, trustworthy media outlets, instead of being a reporter yourself. The federal court in the Portland blogger case made it very clear that bloggers don't have the same protections that traditional news media enjoys. By linking (and commenting on the news without adding or implying any additional facts if you need to) you let the pros take on the risk of defamation while still being able to get the facts out as needed.

4) Research if you Need to Report. If you simply must break a story yourself or put a different factual spin on an existing story, you simply must make sure that you have researched your facts and have a reasonable basis to believe they are true. Make sure to also keep good records of your research.

5) Make sure You are Insured. Finally, if worst comes to worst, make sure you are insured. While most of us are not going to have sufficient insurance to cover the $2.5 million verdict in the Portland blogger case, at least make sure that the commercial general liability coverage covers defamation liability. When I say "make sure" I mean to not only ask your insurance agent, but to find it in your policy!

ERIC HSU is a Legal Success Strategist, accomplished speaker, and owner of Clear Focus Law.

The mission of Clear Focus Law is to show entrepreneurs, small biz and social marketing professionals how to use the law as a tool for empowering innovation and achieving success, both by building strong legal foundations to support the innovation and by establishing an effective and legally successful social media and web 2.0 presence to grow their business.

In addition to advising clients, Eric also speaks on social media legal topics, writes legal guides and blogs, and provides on-going training solutions.

Article Source:http://EzineArticles.com/?expert

Steps Involved In Formation Of Corporations And The Importance Of Business Lawyers

Monday, 12 December 2011 0 comments
ByLubna Jahangiri

Corporation is a distinct and legal and separate entity from the persons who have created it. Of all the business organizations, corporation is the most common form, and its owners are not responsible to pay for its liabilities. Corporations can be classified as: profit corporations, non-profit corporations, public corporations, private corporations, professional corporations, publicly-held corporations and closely-held corporation.

In this article we are going to comprehensively outline the formation of corporations and the importance of the role commercial and real estate lawyers play in this formation. It follows a procedure which includes the following steps: First of all, a name is to be decided for your corporation which should not be the same as any other registered corporations. The name should end with a corporation designation like 'corporation', 'limited' or 'incorporated'. However, some of the restricted words cannot be used such as 'federal', 'national' etc. To avoid any complications you need to contact the corporation's office and get a name registered. Since this process can get a little technical most individuals prefer appointing a business lawyer.

The second step is to appoint a board of directors, who make the financial decisions for the corporation and finalise the policies. They also appoint different officers and decide their salaries, make approvals for loans to be taken and other major decisions such as issuing stocks. They are appointed by the owners of the corporations before the beginning of the business.

The next step for the formation of a corporation is to file the 'articles of incorporation' with the corporation filing office. These are to be created and signed by the owners of the corporation. A member of the board of directors is appointed as the 'agent' so that public can contact the corporation through this 'agent'.

The formation of a corporation also requires you to create the bylaws, also known as the internal laws for your corporation which deal with daily decisions. For this, usually a lawyer is appointed who drafts them out for you. Another important step is the signing of an agreement, for the transfer of ownership of the corporation, after the owner becomes disabled, dies, retires or decides to leave the corporation.

The final step is obtaining required permits and licenses for your business. The most important being the business license, which is your tax registration certificate. You also need an employer identification number and a permit from the local planning board for your business. All these tasks can be performed efficiently by a business attorney.

If you are thinking about starting a corporation then you should get in touch with Miss Lubna K. Jahangiri, her real estate and commercial law firm is located in the State of California. Her expertise and knowledge in business law can make the procedure of forming a corporation convenient and hassle free for you; the vast knowledge she processes can act as a sole source of guidance throughout the procedure. The second pertinent advantage of consulting Miss Lubna is the reasonable fee she charges. The unmatched quality of her services along with a very affordable fee makes her the perfect choice for formation of your corporation.

Miss Lubna K. Jahangiri is one of the most qualified law consultant and experienced business and corporate lawyer in the State of California.

Article Source:http://EzineArticles.com/?expert

Today's Business Forecast: Increasing Clouds

Thursday, 11 August 2011 0 comments

They say every cloud has a silver lining - you get some benefit out of every bad thing that happens to you. When you're very happy, you're on cloud nine! If you aren't paying attention in class, your teacher might tell you to get your head out of the clouds. If the authorities think you did it, you would be under a cloud of suspicion. These days, when your workforce is located in three different countries and five different cities connected by the internet, you're practicing cloud-based staffing and utilizing cloud computing.

Wait, what?

That's right. Utilizing a virtual workforce through cloud computing is becoming increasingly popular, because it allows businesses to access talent outside of the local area, it shortens time to market, and it allows for flexibility by giving access to files and data when working remotely and/or outside office hours. If this cloudy terminology is new to you, here is a basic definition to get you up to speed:

According to Wikipedia, "Cloud computing refers to the use and access of multiple server-based computational resources via a digital network (WAN, Internet connection using the World Wide Web, etc.). Cloud users may access the server resources using a computer, netbook, pad computer, smart phone, or other device. In cloud computing, applications are provided and managed by the cloud server and data is also stored remotely in the cloud configuration. Users do not download and install applications on their own device or computer; all processing and storage is maintained by the cloud server. The online services may be offered from a cloud provider or by a private organization."

Cloud computing is what makes a successful virtual workforce, or "staff in the cloud" possible. Flexibility is a huge benefit of cloud computing, as is its ease of use. Cloud computing is often cheaper and less labor intensive because it's online - and therefore the need for massive amounts of server space for storage is removed altogether (you'll probably just see a slight increase in your monthly fee for more data storage). We could continue discussing the benefits of cloud computing; however, the point is it's here to stay, along with cloud staffing. So legally speaking, what does this mean for your business?

When choosing a cloud-based service provider that will allow you to sustain a virtual workforce there are many important points to ponder. You will need to thoroughly review the provider's Service Agreement or Terms of Service in order to find out the following before signing up:

• Where is the actual data stored? (And we mean the geographic location of the company's servers that house all of the data).

• How many servers does the company have?

• What security measures are in place to prevent hackers from accessing the data?

• What notification procedures are used by the company to alert customers of a data breach?

• Who has access to your data?

• Are customers able to back-up the data stored on the cloud on their own servers?

• How do you migrate the data from the cloud if you decide to cancel the service?

If you take these questions into consideration and get solid satisfactory answers, you're ready to hit the cloud!

Joshua M. Marks, Esq.
JM LAW GROUP, LLC
1818 MARKET STREET, SUITE 3740
PHILADELPHIA, PA 19103
215.832.3600

http://www.lawmr.com
josh