(re) blog: dialogue with Redemtech

If People Only Knew

In the field of air and water pollution control equipment, over the years I’ve assisted many companies in lowering emission rates and/or achieving compliance with air quality standards. As a consultant, I’ve had the opportunity to work with a variety of players in the metals processing industry, everything from lead, copper and aluminum smelters to facilities that deal with the remediation of lead and acid in batteries. Most of my experiences stem from the Southern California area, which has the country’s most stringent environmental regulations.

How IT Asset Management Is Like Making Coffee

At Redemtech, we're in the business of business process outsourcing, or BPO in support of the lifecycle management activities necessary to effectively manage technology assets. Demonstrating how our service offerings improve the bottom line while insuring security and environmental responsibility is what I spend much of my time discussing with clients and prospects.

Winning the Earth Day Shell Game

Earth Day has always been a holiday like New Years for boomer environmentalists like me—a festive opportunity for resolutions to improve our lives. So we make an annual effort to recycle more and drive less, and maybe it helps a little. But recently the market has discovered that green sells, so Earth Day is suddenly big in a bad way. Thanks to the numerous electronics recycling events planned for this week, Earth Day may be the single most harmful day of the year for the environment and human health.

After 31 Years of Recycling, Earth Day is a Lifestyle

As Earth Day 2008 grew near, someone happened to ask me my thoughts about the annual holiday. I had to admit that since I’ve been working in the e-waste recycling industry for 31 years, it’s hard to get too excited about Earth Day any longer. For me and many others, every day is Earth Day.

Proactive Beats Reactive Any Day

As I talk to prospective clients about responsible IT lifecycle management practices, there inevitably comes a moment when I can almost read the person’s mind. Sure, one more layer of regulations for me to worry about. One more layer of burdensome requirements that will drive my costs even higher.

Business Should Be Thankful for Technology

Every day, I remind myself of all the things that I am thankful for. Today, as always, I was thankful to wake to see another day. Next, I was thankful for the fact that my commute to work only required walking a few steps into the other room – and the dress code includes feetie pajamas.

Looking to Boost Data Security? Check the Lost & Found Pile

In the IT industry, we tend to get so wrapped up in high-tech, high-concept notions about data and network security. We go through periods of rapture about the latest software fixes that are guaranteed to finally lock down our networks and prevent incursions from malicious intruders.

Reuse is the New Latest Thing

In a recent blog on ZDnet, Heather Clancy asks why more effort isn't going into refurbishing technology equipment.  I have a twofold answer: 1) equipment manufacturers continue to make every clever argument they can to entice us to buy new boxes--no surprise, and 2) lots of IT people don't trust the cold hard numbers that quantify the financial benefits of a longer lifecycle.

Data Security News Has Everything!

Last Friday’s Redemtech Data Security News Edition had everything a data security researcher could want by way of variety, and everything a savvy business person should fear. Seldom have so many diverse elements of data security news come together in such a short span of time. Unfortunately, most of the news was less than positive.

Mark Twain’s White Elephant Trumpets Obvious Message of Data Security Research Results

While analyzing the results and statements provided in two recently published research reports on aspects of data security breaches, I was reminded of a lesser-known but poignant Mark Twain tale about a purloined pachyderm.