The Rostie Group Helps Raise $2535 for Haiti

On February 3rd, Go Transit and The Rostie Group teamed-up to host a buffet fundraiser for Haiti Disaster Relief. Both the buffet and raffle were a huge success - raising $2535 for The Canadian Red Cross

Go Transit took care of organizing all the delicious food and wonderful raffle prizes, while The Rostie Group donated the use of The Rainy Lake room, its showpiece meeting room located at 20 Bay Street in the heart of Downtown Toronto.

A big thanks goes out to everyone who attended this great event and helped raise money for a very worthwhile cause.

Apple's iPad - Will it Help Small Businesses?

With Apple’s brand new iPad scheduled to be released in the imminent future, the general public and media are fawning over this innovative new product. And why wouldn’t they? Apple has a long history of making cutting-edge products with tons of success. Who doesn’t love their iPod? The iPad seems like a really cool device with a flashy multi-touch screen and vibrant colours, making it a whole new way to experience email, the web, photos and videos.

As much as it will likely have huge consumer success, how will small businesses react to the iPad? Some small business owners are already concerned over the iPad being a huge pain when employees and clients start requesting to use it. The two biggest reasons for concern are Support Issues and Security Headaches.

Support Issues

Most companies’ IT departments are already stretched thin keeping up with the technology they already have – such as PCs, Macs, Blackberries, and iPhones – if they even have an internal IT department. Many small businesses do not, leaving non-tech savvy people to learn as they go or pay for expensive external support. Often, there just aren’t the resources to support new technology. So when an employee or client starts using their new iPad for work and have connection or printing issues, the small business owner is forced to step up and help so they remain productive. Which in turn means incurring more IT costs, either from their IT department or from an outsourced IT support network. And since this is such a new product, the turnaround time will likely be much longer (and thus more expensive) as the team learns how to support the iPad.

Security Headaches

New iPad users are bound to be so swept-away with the media ability of their new toys that they will likely forget about the new security issues that will come along with it. With a new way to access data on their networks, it opens up new channels for security breaches. When things start to go terribly wrong – disappearing databases, stolen information – there will be downtime while the problem gets sorted out. Downtime equals lost productivity which equals more incurred costs.

Now, this is not to say these problems will not be handled. They will. Apple is probably working around the clock to get support members trained and security up to snuff. The iPad will be a consumer hit, and justly so. But for a business owner, it all comes down to Return on Investment. And as it stands, it doesn’t look like the iPad will be on the profitable side of the fence.

If you want to read more about this subject, please read the complete Business Week article here.

From Fear to Fierce: Nailing your Next Presentation

On Monday, February 22nd join us at The Rostie Group's 20 Bay Street business centre for a free Lunch n' Learn. You can either bring your own brown bag lunch, or purchase one on-site for only $5.00. Lunch includes: Sandwich, Drink, and a Snack.

This week's topic will be...

From Fear to Fierce: How to Nail your Next Presentation

By Liz Radzick (Manifest Consulting)

Are you...

- A good presenter but still get nervous before speaking?
- Curious about how to stop saying ‘um’ when you present?
- Preparing for a big presentation and want to know how to appear confident?

Then join Liz Radzick, Founder of Manifest Consulting for an interactive, practical and fun session designed to help you take your presentations up a notch.

Learn the techniques to create and deliver A+ presentations including:

- The 3 common physical traps that undermine your credibility
- How to use your right brain to EASILY memorize your presentation
- What to do and not to do with your hands
- What you personally need to do to look powerful and confident during your presentations

Liz Radzick Biography:

As the founder of Manifest Consulting, Liz Radzick is an expert in coaching high-achieving executives, managers, entrepreneurs and salespeople to influence and persuade their audiences.For over 15 years she has delivered innovative, engaging workshops and communication skills coaching to thousands of individuals in Canada, the U.S. and Italy.

Registration and Location Details:

This seminar will be taking place in The Pacific Room (20 Bay Street, 11th floor)from 12:00-1:00pm. To ensure seating, please arrive at least 10 minutes in
advance. To RSVP please contact dnoble@rostiegroup.com, and mention whether you will be bringing your own lunch, or wish to purchase one at the seminar. If you will be purchasing a lunch, please also note your sandwich preference, options are Turkey, Tuna, Assorted, Ham, or Veggie.

Chili Cook-Off Winners!

A big thanks to everyone who came out the Chili-Cook Offs at both our Airport and Downtown locations. It was great to see so many familar faces participating in the competition and enjoying the assortment of delectable chilis brought in by our generous tenants. Below is a complete list of winners from both locations.

AIRPORT

Best Chili (TIE): John (Paragon Consulting) & Alan (Rostie Tech Rescue)

RAFFLE PRIZES

One Month of Reserved Underground Parking: Mary (The Advantage Group)
$50.00 Sky Lounge Gift Certificate: Madan (Chauhan Financial Services)
Sigg Water Bottle: Nita (PEO Canada)

DOWNTOWN

Best Chili:

1st Place: John (Paragon Consulting)
2nd Place: Alan (Rostie Tech Rescue)

RAFFLE PRIZES

Sigg Bottles: Craig (Exinda), Brian (Veritaaq) and Mark (Net IQ)
Tequila: Marcello (Tonbridge)
6-Pack of Corona: Mike (Veritaaq)
Pierre Cardin Pen Set: Andrew (Exinda)
Weston Harbour Castle Gift Certificate: Koushik (Exinda)

Next year Al and John will be competing against each other in their own seperate category, which means a brand new Rostie Chili-Bowl champion will be crowned at our 2011 event!