Jaw-dropping Company Headquarters

Company benefits are reaching beyond insurance and vacation time and are moving into a revolution of the actual workspace. Everyone has the image of Google and Amazon’s headquarters in their mind; with dog parks, rainforests and nap pods galore, but that isn’t the only innovative space in the business world. From themed rooms to sustainability, these companies have some of the most exciting office spaces around.

Warby Parker

Glasses brand Warby Parker not only has a love for fashionable glasses but for books as well. Their Manhattan headquarters offers employees access to a library, a reading room, and of course, reading glasses. Read about the space and how employees like it here.

Dropbox

Cloud storage solution company Dropbox has worldwide offices, but their San Francisco headquarters, designed by Rapt Studio is an innovative space that allows for collaboration, quiet individual work, and a “neighborhood” set up to cater to the needs of each team. See a photo compilation of the office here.

Casper

New York City-based mattress company Casper was recently renovated and redesigned by FLOAT Studio, to create a workplace that fit in with the brand identity. The office includes sustainable construction, flexible meeting spaces and even nap pods. See the space here.

Sonos

Sonos’ Seattle headquarters bills itself as the “greenest commercial building in the world”, and based off of this GeekWire feature, it may be the most musical as well.  This modern and sleek office space make using the word headquarters the wrong descriptor though, as the company has a slew of conference rooms to meet with other Sonos “headquarters” around the world.

Squarespace

If you’ve built a website using Squarespace you know that the platform is simple but modern, and the company’s New York City offices follow the same formula. Built to be the most functional space for both collaborative and individual work, all without sacrificing design and comfort. See the office here and here.

Epic Systems Corporation

Medical software company Epic is aptly named, and the word epic can be used to describe almost everything about the company, especially when it comes to their headquarters. The Verona, Wisconsin campus is a grand adventure, with themed rooms, individual offices for every employee, a gorgeous view of the surrounding farmland, and an Indiana Jones styled hallway. See the campus here, and check out this video tour for a more in-depth look.

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Turn Your Home Into a SmartHome. Without Breaking the Bank

Turning your home into a smart home is a fun but daunting task. Many of the concerns people have when starting their smart home journey stem from how expensive it is to outfit or retrofit your home for everything from automation to voice control. But starting to venture into the land of Alexa and scheduled lighting doesn’t have to break the bank. Get started building your smart home ecosystem with these ideas for a low-budget, high-tech home.

Smart-Home Hub

The key to getting all of your smart devices to communicate is a smart-home hub. The Amazon Echo Dot ($49.99) and the Wink Connected Home Hub ($69) are great lower budget options.

Smart Plugs

Give the appliances you already own and intelligence boost with smart plugs like these from TP-Link ($29.99). These smart plugs make anything a smart device when connected to the TP-Link app, Google Home, Amazon Echo, or Echo Dot.

Smart Bulbs

Smart Bulbs can be expensive and some, like the Phillips Hue, require a hub separate from the voice control system. However, you can purchase less expensive options that also have great feature sets. GE’s C-Life Smart LED bulbs ($13 each) are controlled via Bluetooth and when paired with the C-Reach bridge ($49.99) can be controlled with WiFi and pair with Amazon Echo or Google Home, and TP-Link’s Smart LED bulbs ($19.99) are controlled via WiFi and can connect to your voice assistant without a bridge.

Smart Thermostat

At just under $250, a Nest thermostat isn’t exactly budget friendly, but if you are looking to really control every aspect of your home, there are other budget-conscious smart thermostats out there. Take for example the Ecobee 3 Lite ($169), which can pair with Apple HomeKit, Amazon Echo, and other smart services.

Smart Light Switch

For hands-free or app-controlled lighting beyond the bulbs, the Belkin WeMo light switch ($50) can respond to voice commands and schedule your lighting.

Smart Garage Door

Don’t panic about whether you left the garage door open ever again when you upgrade your garage door controller. The Chamberlain MyQ Smart Garage Hub ($99) works with many garage door opener brands, and the MyQ app allows you to control your garage door from anywhere.

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The Best Conferences to Attend in 2017: Tech, Marketing and Business

TechCrunch Disrupt NYC May 15th to 18th

Ideal for startups, TechCrunch Disrupt is for innovators, investors, tech fans and everyone in between, unveiling the latest in technology and key industry innovations. The Startup Battlefield puts early stage startups together to compete for the Disrupt Cup, cash prizes and the attention of investors.

World Business Forum May 31st to June 1st

Held in Sydney, Australia, the World Business Forum will host speakers including Arianna Huffington and promotes a “state of permanent beta”. Introducing new technologies and strategies is key to living in this state, and this conference empowers entrepreneurs, business owners and more to learn how to see new opportunities, use new tools and strategies and thrive with these changes.

Next Gen Summit June 2nd to June 4th

Specifically for the younger crowd of entrepreneurs, influencers and more, the Next Gen Summit was built for young minds by young minds in the entrepreneurial world. If you fit the bill for this niche opportunity, this conference in  New York City will be the place to be.

Confab Central June 7th to 9th

Minneapolis will hold the Confab conference for content strategy this June. Workshops, higher ed programming and great networking events for teams or individuals. With a focus on content strategy there are talks centered on UX, marketing, communications and more.

BlogHer June 22nd to June 24th

A conference specifically  for female content creators (bloggers, marketers, social media influencers etc.) this event is being held in Orlando, and  invites the fans, brands and other content creators to meet, collaborate and get inspired through networking with other attendees, workshops, and keynote speakers.

Summit November 3rd to November 6th

This invite only event in Los Angeles connects leaders in nearly every space, from technology to arts and culture, hosting thoughtful, well-rounded and meaningful discussion about the world we are living in. Keynote speakers at Summit 2017 include Kobe Bryant, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, CNN’s Van Jones, Jane Fonda, Olympic Gold Medalist Kerri Walsh Jennings and more. This impressive lineup of great minds will replace the Summit-at-Sea conference cruise.

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Steve Renner’s “Professional Performance 360 Special Edition: Success” Now on Amazon’s Bestseller List

Thought leader, author and entrepreneur Steve Renner recently hit two Amazon.com best-seller lists with the new book, “Professional Performance 360 Special Edition: Success”

Steve Renner, along with a select group of entrepreneurs from around the world, including Richard Branson, Ken Nunn and Betsi Bixby co-write the book titled, Professional Performance 360 Special Edition: Success, published by CelebrityPress® and released on September 19, 2015.

Professional Performance 360 Special Edition: Success reached best-seller status in two Amazon.com categories on the day of release – reaching #11 in the category “Direct Marketing,” and #62 in “Sales and Selling.” Steve’s chapter is titled “High Performance 360—My Quest for Success.”

CelebrityPress® describes the book:

“You can succeed best and quickest by helping others to succeed.”-Napoleon Hill

The Professional Performance 360 Special Edition: Success authors and entrepreneurs in this book may be considered the offspring of those ambitious goals: Success and Achievement. In this compilation, they share their experiences (both successful as well as those to avoid) to help others better understand the prerequisites of success.

This careful selection of experts highlights the qualities that are required to achieve goals-regardless of their nature. The reader may note that it is no different mindset to set aspirations for lofty goals or down-to-earth ones. In fact, some experts need to work their way up to higher goals while others have a mindset to go for broke-and both make it work!

Among the main drivers in high achievers are: knowledge, goal setting, planning, perseverance, passion, and action. While finance is not to be ignored, entrepreneurs and ‘doers’ do not allow this element to destroy their dreams, and merely factor it into their plans. Success becomes a habit and a precious quality to share with all who wish to achieve.

“Always bear in mind that your own resolution to succeed is more important than any other.” – Abraham Lincoln

Professional Performance 360 Special Edition: Success is available to purchase now on Amazon.

A portion of the royalties from sales of Professional Performance 360: Special Edition: Success will be awarded to Entrepreneur’s International Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to creating unique launch campaigns to raise money and awareness for charitable causes.

About Steve Renner:

Steve Renner is an Internet marketing pioneer. He started his first Internet service company back in 1998, providing Internet services for individuals and small business. In 2001, Steve pioneered online payment services with Cash Cards and V-Cash, and became a leader in the industry.

In 2011, Steve started the Acesse search engine, which is now ranked as a top web destination in the world.

He has gone on to build a successful Internet services company, which employs over 100 people, and provides services to small business customers around the world.

Steve is well liked and respected in the industry, and speaks to thousands around the world at live events. His first book, Transform; a collaboration with well known Sales Trainer and Motivational Speaker Brian Tracy, is an Amazon #1 Best Seller.

Steve is also a member of the National Academy Of Best Selling Authors, and will be recognized for his contributions to Professional Performance 360: Special Edition: Success.

Steve also writes music and is an accomplished blues guitarist. He enjoys spending time with his family, his children and especially his grandchildren.

For the original version visit PRWeb.

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Amazon Drones: The Future of Delivery

For the past five years Amazon has been diligently researching and developing it’s ambitious Prime Air plan. The plan, a 30-minute delivery service using drone technology may sound far fetched, but the reality may be a lot closer than you think. One stumbling block for the plan is a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) stipulation that requires drones to be in the line of sight of the operator at all times. For this reason, Amazon is putting pressure on the FAA for a nationwide drone-based air traffic control system, which would allow autonomous drones using built-in technology and GPS to safely fly a pre-programmed route.

“The hardest challenge in making this happen is going to be demonstrating this to the standards of the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) that this is a safe thing to do,” Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos explained to Charlie Rose in a 60-minute interview about the future of Prime Air.

A video, released back in 2013 (now with over 16 million views) revealed exactly how the delivery method would work. The process begins at the fulfillment center where a small yellow box automatically attaches to a Prime Air octocopter. It then flies off to the specified location. It has yet to be determined whether the drone will fly using GPS technology or guided by a controller.

Enter the CAA. Earlier this year Amazon partnered with the U.K. Civil Aviation Authority to explore beyond-the-line-of-sight operations in rural and suburban areas.

“The UK is a leader in enabling drone innovation — we’ve been investing in Prime Air research and development here for quite some time,” said Paul Misener, Amazon’s Vice President of Global Innovation Policy and Communications, in today’s announcement. “This announcement strengthens our partnership with the UK and brings Amazon closer to our goal of using drones to safely deliver parcels in 30 minutes to customers in the UK and elsewhere around the world.” It has also been disclosed that Amazon is testing its drones in the Netherlands and Canada.

Currently, Amazon is testing drones that weigh less than 55 pounds, are battery-powered, are capable of operating beyond the line of sight of 10 miles, can fly under 400 feet and travel at speeds over 50 mph. These devices are programmed to work with sensors and avoidance technology. As of yet, the drones are able to efficiently transport devices up to 4.5 pounds in 30-minutes or less.

Permission to test the delivery service in the U.K. has provided Amazon with a major step forward in what was currently deemed a grand publicity stunt. “We are committed to realise our mission for Prime Air,” said Daniel Buchmueller, the co-founder of Amazon’s drone program. The company continues to work with regulators and policymakers from all over the world in order to make Prime Air a reality to customers in the near future.

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