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Average growth in information technology (IT) is much higher than that of other industries, and the median wage is reported to be more than double the standard, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics says. If you’re looking for a new or more lucrative career path, it may be smart to consider becoming an IT professional.

While many roles may require a formal degree, roles like support specialists, administrators, and project managers don’t all necessarily demand a degree. Many professionals can earn CompTIA certifications by passing rigorous testing. You can study and prepare for those tests with this 15-course CompTIA training bundle, which is on sale for only $49.97 (reg. $585) for life.

These courses were developed by IDUNOVA, an official CompTIA partner with mor than 20 years spent providing IT education.While these courses can help you prepare for the CompTIA certification exams, it may be helpful to gain relevant experience or a formal degree to land certain positions.

Study CompTIA for a new, exciting career in IT

There’s plenty of variety in the IT industry, meaning there are nearly endless positions to consider if you’re joining this field. Learn to become a debugging expert like Grace Hopper or a cloud-based engineer to join companies like Google or Salesforce.

There are 15 certification prep courses in this bundle, so it might be challenging to figure out where to begin. If you have minimal or no prior IT experience, you might want to start with CompTIA Fundamentals+ and A+, industry standards that also build a foundation for more advanced training.

Other introductory-level courses and certification preparation that might help you land your dream job in IT are Fundamentals+ and Core 1 and Core 2. These could help you get a new job as a desk technician or entry-level cybersecurity position.

From there, you could delve into ethical hacking, a highly in-demand career for many companies. Check out courses like CompTIA Security+ and CompTIA PenTest+ to develop skills to penetrate systems and check their vulnerability.

Ready to work in IT? Grab lifetime access to this 15-course CompTIA training bundle for $49.99 (reg. $585). No coupon is needed to secure this deal.

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More than one million companies worldwide use Microsoft 365, according to Statista. While this is the most well-known suite, that doesn’t mean it’s the best option—or the most cost-effective for your business. Microsoft 365 has a yearly subscription fee and workflow limitations, and organizations typically pay $144 per user annually for access.

If you’d like to keep your business expenses down, you might want to switch to a productivity suite that doesn’t require a recurring fee. Ready to try an alternative? OfficeSuite has Documents, Sheets, Slides, Mail, and PDF, and now, lifetime access is available at the lowest price across the web, only $29.99 (reg. $119.97) for one user.

Similar to your Microsoft apps, but better

Once you equip yourself or your employees with OfficeSuite, you’ll never have to pay a subscription fee again. These apps are available for life, and the platform is committed to ongoing improvements, offering regular updates with fixes and enhanced features for increased productivity.

OfficeSuite is like a hybrid of Microsoft and Google Suite. Each app has a layout and features similar to programs you’re already familiar with:

• Documents: the Word or Google Docs substitute.
• Sheets: like Excel or Google Sheets.
• Slides: like PowerPoint or Google Slides.
• Mail: like Outlook or Gmail. This app also includes a calendar.
• PDF reader and converter that you won’t find with Microsoft or Google Suite.

Each app is fully compatible with Microsoft, Google Suite, iWork, and other major file formats so that you can convert any existing documents into OfficeSuite. Your OfficeSuite lifetime license also includes 50GB of built-in cloud storage. Save files and projects, use auto-save mode to back up your work, and have your progress synced when working across devices.

Productivity apps for up to three devices

OfficeSuite allows each user to work across devices, and this plan allows use on up to three devices, including Android, PC, and iOS. Use this license for yourself, or share it with two other colleagues.

Improve your business’s productivity without subscription fees when you grab a lifetime license for OfficeSuite, now available for $29.99 (reg. $119.97). That’s the best price you’ll find online.

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In today’s digital world, businesses are realizing the limitations of their old data systems. With AI and advanced analytics, businesses are forced to rethink data management. Modern data architectures enable scalability, better accessibility, real-time insights and efficient resource optimization.

Modern data architecture is a no-brainer for new businesses. It is revolutionary in scaling and maintaining adaptability in your organization’s data needs. Integration and accessibility for your data are at an all-time high while providing insights in real-time.

Data is protected in new ways, is more secure, and is more cost-efficient. Modern data architecture revolutionizes automation and creates highly diverse and quality data. Therefore, there are numerous benefits to modernizing your data architecture.

What is modern data architecture?

Modern data architecture is how data is structured and stored in organizations. It involves all major data processes: collection, storage, access, usage, management and protection. Past versions of data architecture were primarily focused on getting through the day-to-day work. Today, data architecture is modernized and more about deriving insights and getting more out of our data. Modern data architecture is cloud-based and focused on analytics.

Modern data architecture is flexible but ensures that the data is still manageable. Organizations can seamlessly scale their data volumes following their growth and progress. Automation of high-quality data is at the forefront of modern data architecture, with security and flexibility embedded throughout.

This leads to the top seven reasons for adopting modern data architecture.

1. Scalability and flexibility

Modern data architecture is designed for new and revolutionary business needs. It encompasses cloud computing, AI and big data and thus needs to be able to store, process and analyze data at large scales. This scalability means that larger amounts of data need to be handled in the same way that smaller amounts are handled currently.

With a large influx of data, horizontal and vertical scaling are necessary. Horizontal scaling allows data to be spread across multiple additional servers, while vertical scaling involves upgrading the existing servers. Data partitioning can help organize this data, while sharding can help distribute the data across numerous servers. With such large scaling, data replication can help maintain data integrity in the event of failure.

Related: 3 Reasons Why You Need Data To Scale Your Company

2. Enhanced data integration and accessibility

At this point, data needs to be integrated across multiple platforms and sources. Big data do not drive decision-making, meaning data integration is changing. Some of the major methods include extract, transform, load (ETL), extract, load, transform (ELT), change data capture (CDC), application programming interface (API), federated data mesh and event-driven architecture.

These are used for extracting data from several different sources, and transforming it and then loading it into a database or loading it and then transforming it. CDC is for real-time data changes, while APIs are for data communication between an endpoint and source. Federated data meshes create customized data products, while event-driven architecture notices events within data for real-time response. These all give greater accuracy to the data and, beyond that, greater accessibility.

Related: Why Vertical Integration Allows Leaders to Actually Control Their Data

3. Real-time analytics and insights

Data is not only centered around daily use now, it needs to be analyzed and tracked in real-time. Insights can be drawn more perceptively on real-time data. This gives businesses the ability to make better-informed decisions and allows them to operate on higher efficiencies.

This is revolutionary as modern data architecture can ingest data from tens of thousands of sources simultaneously. It can validate, clean up, normalize, transform and enrich this data to provide driven, guided and insightful responses. This is remarkable and gives businesses a serious edge in the modern age.

4. Improved data governance and security

Just as the need for data has evolved exponentially, so has the governance and security behind it. Everyone is involved in this process. Decentralized control is imperative for widespread data spreading while fostering accountability across all stakeholders.

Data lineage helps to keep track of all processes and procedures in a timely look-through. This shared responsibility and sharing of the data itself also help foster accountability since everyone is important and involved. The zero trust model helps protect private and public applications and extends past traffic verification, where traditional network architecture stops.

Related: Your Data Is Useless If You Don’t Have a Management Strategy

5. Cost efficiency and resource optimization

Since all data in modern data architecture is primarily stored in the cloud, there are large capabilities for cost savings and operational efficiency. It does not even need to be entirely cloud-based for it to classify as modern, it can be multi-cloud or hybrid as well.

Choosing data solutions will allow you to obtain new data in a much less painful and quicker, cost-effective way. In modern data architectures, you typically only pay for what you use as well as all your data processing is significantly streamlined, offloading a lot of computational costs. Decoupled resources are particularly useful for helping scalability and allows for several queries at once on data.

6. Automation

With high data usage requirements, automation is important. It can help reduce errors and draw insights and feedback from all users and sources to maintain oversight over the entire data structure. This creates a more trustable model and can also allow for automated updates, which will help to release security patches efficiently.

Orchestration and metadata can make automation possible and faster, and artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML) can be used for data discovery, processing and enrichment, consumption, auto-scaling and validation.

7. Diverse and quality data

Current times require structured and unstructured data, which allows for transformative use. This is pivotal because it yields higher-quality and more usable data. The users of data are also more diverse, which calls for diversification of the data. Everyone is analyzing, collaborating and innovating. Modern data architecture optimizes tools for data cleaning, enrichment and governance to yield high-quality data. To achieve diverse data, it utilizes collection, storage, analysis and utilization techniques.

If you’re like me, you may often question where our civility has gone. We encounter rude behavior on our streets and highways. TV talk shows draw audiences by promising high-stakes conflict. Consumers think nothing of berating a retail worker who is just doing their job.

While certain people can find rude and uncivil behavior entertaining, uncivil behavior is never entertaining in the workplace. Whether co-workers are being deliberately rude or just plain mean, the behavior destroys productivity. Left unchecked by managers, it also drives turnover.

Because each individual may view uncivil behavior differently, it’s important to define the boundaries before we can attempt to correct incivility in an organizational setting.

Related: 7 Ways to Create a Friendly Environment at Work

Defining uncivil behavior

Employees from many backgrounds and cultures populate today’s workplaces, and managers may struggle to set guidelines for what constitutes proper behavior. In the simplest terms, if an employee feels slighted or undervalued because of the way a co-worker or manager interacts with them, you have a problem.

Managers who look at their phone during one-on-one meetings are being rude and are silently telling their employees they don’t matter. Employees who chastise co-workers who think differently than them are engaging in uncivil and potentially threatening behavior.

The negative impact of uncivil behavior

I learned firsthand how uncivil behavior can bring productivity to a standstill. I was away at a conference with a new employee where we were engaging with potential prospects and important contacts in the industry.

Suddenly, my phone began to blow up with activity on our corporate Slack channel for senior leadership. After several minutes, with no letup in activity on the messaging platform, I realized there was an emergency — one that was far different from what I could have imagined.

Two of our senior leaders, whose offices were no more than 20 feet apart, were arguing via text messages. As the argument grew more heated and showed no signs of being resolved, I had to excuse myself from the conference and my new employee, who was also witnessing everything in real time on Slack.

What I needed most at that moment was for my two leaders to come to an agreement and return to productive work. I instructed them to walk down the hallway, get together in person and resolve the conflict. They did. And I learned a lesson.

Having emotionally elevated conversations by email or text is a bad idea. People almost always find it easier to say things in those formats that they wouldn’t say to someone in person. Often, uncivil remarks emerge when the recipient misunderstands, usually due to the lack of vocal tone or facial expression. It is always better to have face-to-face conversations when you can’t agree on something.

Our rule is this: If you need to write more than a paragraph, have the conversation person-to-person.

Related: 6 Tips for Helping Employees Work Through Conflicts

Setting and communicating your boundaries

After that incident, I established a code of civility at my business. My leaders are expected to set the example for civil behavior. The major tenants of the code include:

• Everyone deserves dignity and respect regardless of their role in the company, age, appearance, what they did last night or their political allegiances. When you engage in conversation with a co-worker, especially one you’ve disagreed with in the past, be intentional about maintaining civility in your remarks. Your job title is not a license to be condescending; it’s a responsibility not to be.

• Always assume positive intent. When you encounter a dispute, or you believe an employee may have done something wrong, proceed slowly. Allow them to explain, whether it’s a co-worker or a member of your team. Instead of reacting emotionally and making a tense situation worse, listen closely. You may learn that you’ve read the situation incorrectly.

• Don’t get furious, get curious. If you feel tense or anxious, your body is signaling you to ask more questions. When you are trying to diffuse an argument, your goal should be to clearly understand the problem through their eyes before you leap to offering a solution.

• Speak to the person who is causing, or who can solve, the problem. When one team member has an issue with a co-worker, we encourage them to have the courage to speak directly to that person. “Sideways conversations” lead to gossip and misinformation. And we are also mindful not to make mountains out of molehills.

• You can’t always control what happens, but you can always control how you react to it in every situation. You may not always be able to make the situation better, but you can always avoid making it worse. Loud or abusive language toward another employee cannot be tolerated.

I expect all my employees to follow our code of civility and to always be trustworthy in all they say and do. This is mission-critical for management.

Leaders set the standard for workplace culture

As a CEO, I make it a point to emphasize civility in my workplace, which means I should be modeling the behavior I want to see. It can be challenging to self-monitor. When I suspect (or realize) I’ve failed, I own it and seek feedback.

It’s not easy to hear candid feedback, especially from people who aren’t privy to all the information you are. So, I’ve had to learn, rather than responding to their comments immediately, to first thank them for having the courage and candor to offer it.

Employees will not see you as a weak leader if you project a kind and self-aware persona. They’ll respect you for admitting to your shortcomings as they watch you work to improve yourself. The right managerial mindset can make a huge difference.

Related: Here Are 4 Ways to Develop a Culture of Respect and Trust

Maintaining civility in the workplace requires leaders to set examples through their words and actions. More importantly, managers should hire individuals who will be a good fit with a civil workplace.

At my company, an employee who fits well with our culture and our customers is highly valued. But a team member who contributes to civility in our workplace is invaluable.

Project management is a tough gig. A notable study from the Project Management Institute (PMI) consistently highlights that over 70% of projects globally either fail to meet their original goals or deadlines or go over budget. If you want to stay out of that group, Microsoft Project 2021 can help.

Managing a project requires clear visibility, accurate resource allocation, and efficient scheduling. With Microsoft Project 2021 Professional, you’ll have a complete set of tools to help you tackle projects of all sizes, ensuring that you stay on track from start to finish. And for just $19.97, this lifetime license is a cost-effective solution for businesses and entrepreneurs looking to streamline their project management.

It’s designed to help project managers and business owners work more efficiently. With features like automated scheduling, resource allocation, and built-in reports, you can reduce the time spent on manual tasks and focus on making informed decisions and driving your projects forward.

One of the key benefits of Microsoft Project 2021 is its ability to improve project visibility. By offering clear task tracking, resource management, and collaboration tools, you can easily monitor progress and keep your team aligned. This not only enhances communication but also ensures that everyone is on the same page, allowing you to deliver projects on time and within budget.

As your business grows, so do your projects. Microsoft Project 2021 supports that growth with its ability to handle increasingly complex projects, whether you’re managing a small team or overseeing multiple departments. The software’s flexibility and scalability make it an ideal solution for businesses that are expanding and need to keep up with higher project demands.

For just $19.97, you get lifetime access to one of the most powerful project management tools available—no recurring fees, just one upfront investment. By automating key tasks like scheduling and reporting, Microsoft Project 2021 helps you save valuable time.

Pick up a lifetime license to Microsoft Project 2021 Pro for just $19.97 (reg. $249) through September 29.

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According to a recent article on work statistics, the structured hybrid model is the fastest-growing work approach, boasting a 12% increase from 2023. There’s a high chance that you’re one of thousands of employees working hybrid. While you may appreciate the flexibility and better work-life balance, you may struggle with staying organized between working at home or from the office.

Something that may help your productivity and organization is a seamless cloud storage solution that allows you to keep all of your files in one place and access them from anywhere. Manage your files more easily when you get 1TB of Koofr cloud storage for $119.97 (reg. $159.99) when you use code KOOFR40 at checkout.

Hybrid work management on one platform

Unlike other cloud storage platforms like Google Drive that charge monthly fees, Koofr gives you lifetime access after a one-time payment—say goodbye to recurring cloud storage payments for good.

There are no size limitations on the types of files, their size, or which devices you can access them from. Upload Microsoft Office files or PDFs from your computer and reference them later from your phone, from anywhere.

Koofr keeps your files organized with features like advanced renaming options and a duplicate file finder and remover. Plus, if you already have some cloud storage through other platforms like Dropbox, Google Drive, or OneDrive and you don’t want to juggle multiple apps, you can access them all within Koofr.

Professionals who are privacy-minded will appreciate Koofr’s dedication to complete privacy. Unlike other cloud storage platforms, this one never tracks your activities, and all your files are encrypted at rest and when they’re in transfer for extra peace of mind.

Plenty of storage for any professional

If you’re wondering if 1TB of storage will be enough for you, here are some estimates of what you could store: 250,000 12MP photos, 500 hours of HD video, or 6.5 million document pages.

Whether you want to keep your projects in the cloud for safekeeping or be able to seamlessly work across your personal or office devices, Koofr may be the storage solution for you.

Enhance your hybrid work efforts with this cloud storage solution that makes cross-device work more effortless. Through September 29 at 11:59 p.m. Pacific, you can get lifetime access to 1TB of Koofr cloud storage for $119.97 when you enter code KOOFR40 at checkout.

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AI is already being used in game development — but it could soon go even further when it comes to the roleplaying games that millions of people play, says Hasbro’s CEO.

At a Thursday Goldman Sachs event, Hasbro CEO Chris Cocks said that the company is using AI internally to help develop games in “mostly machine-learning-based AI or proprietary AI as opposed to a ChatGPT approach.” Hasbro will use AI in the future as a knowledge and development assistant, giving the technology a seat at the game table.

Development is just one part of the broader AI puzzle, though. Cocks says he’s more excited about how the technology could impact the day-to-day gameplay of Hasbro’s customers.

Related: ‘Embrace the Change.’ How the CEO of a 101-Year-Old Toy Company Adapts to an Ever-Evolving Industry

“If you look at a typical D&D player… I play with probably 30 or 40 people regularly,” Cocks said. “There’s not a single person who doesn’t use AI somehow for either campaign development or character development or story ideas. That’s a clear signal that we need to be embracing it.”

Cocks gave examples of AI helping D&D players with storytelling and introductions and said that those use cases could apply to other brands within the company. Hasbro’s portfolio includes Transformers, Star Wars, and Marvel. Over 50 million people around the world play Dungeons & Dragons.

In an interview with Entrepreneur in July, Cocks said that one of the most exciting projects he was working on was a refresh of Dungeons & Dragons fifth edition. He also spoke more broadly about how Hasbro balances tradition with innovation as a company in business for over 100 years.

Related: She Turned Her Airy Side Hustle Into a $255 Million Business and ‘Captured Lightning in a Bottle’ — Here’s How

“While history doesn’t repeat, it definitely rhymes — so major technology innovations and major changes in entertainment are something Hasbro has faced many, many times,” he said at the time. “Probably the biggest lesson I’ve learned from it is to embrace the change and not fight it. When we embrace [change], we win, and we come out on top.”

Cocks also emphasized the importance of safe, responsible AI development at the event on Thursday, and stated that he wanted to pay creators for their work and make sure to label AI-generated content.

Related: Using AI to Promote Your Business? New TikTok Labels Will Let Everyone Know

United Airlines has announced its plans to offer travelers free in-flight WiFi. The service will be powered by Elon Musk’s Starlink satellite internet technology and is expected to commence next year.

United is aiming to install Starlink WiFi across more than 1,000 aircraft.

Related: Carnival Cruises Officially Installs Elon Musk’s Starlink Internet on 100% of its Ships

“Everything you can do on the ground, you’ll soon be able to do onboard a United plane at 35,000 feet, just about anywhere in the world,” United CEO Scott Kirby announced Friday.

For United MileagePlus members, WiFi is currently $8, and $10 for non-members, per the Washington Post.

“We’re excited to team up with United Airlines to transform the inflight experience,” said Gwynne Shotwell, president and chief operating officer at SpaceX, in a press release. “With Starlink onboard your United flight, you’ll have access to the world’s most advanced high-speed internet from gate to gate, and all the miles in between.”

Delta Air Lines offers complimentary in-flight WiFi on domestic legs for SkyMiles members and smaller carriers, such as Hawaiian Airlines and JetBlue, also offer free WiFi.

Around one in five people on planes in the U.S. are connecting to in-flight WiFi, according to the Airline Passenger Experience Association.

Businesses in the United States waste $8 billion on managing paper each year, with an average price tag of $20 to file a document, according to Corp! Magazine. This might be especially costly to smaller businesses and emerging entrepreneurs, but it’s easier than you might think to cut down on such expenses—and promote greener business operations.

Relying on paperless software like PDFs can cut costs for your company, but while these are the most universally shared and used document types, they’re tricky to edit, protect, or combine without the proper tools. Outfit your business with PDF Extra Ultimate, an all-in-one PDF management solution that’s available for $99.99 (reg. $239).

How this PDF management platform is better

You may think the cost of PDF Extra Ultimate is a little steep for your growing business, but let us put it into perspective.

You could opt for Adobe Acrobat—only to pay a recurring monthly fee—but what you’d pay for in a year ($14.99 monthly) costs more than you’d pay for this option. That’s at least $180 a year going toward PDF management tools. With PDF Extra Ultimate, you can get the same tools for life for under $100.

PDF tools in one neat platform

The next time you notice you or a colleague made a typo on a PDF that’s about to be sent to a client or partner, this platform can help you correct your mistake. Along with helping you correct spelling or spacing errors, PDF Extra Ultimate empowers users to adjust text styles and fonts and add local or web images to their documents.

Create PDFs out of any file, whether it’s an Excel spreadsheet or Word file. Use the drag-and-drop feature to combine, rotate, move, duplicate, or delete files. You’ll also be able to divide your PDF into individual pages for easier reading or extract specific pages that are most relevant to your business.

If you’re delivering a PDF to a client to review and sign, you can use this tool to make your document fillable via digital signatures through typing, handwriting, or a signature image. For extra security, you can encrypt your PDF with digital certificates, secure it with passwords, or place timestamps to authenticate when an action was made.

Make your PDF work experience more seamless with PDF Extra Ultimate, now $99.99 for life. That’s the best price online.

StackSocial prices subject to change.