6  analytics trends that will shape business in 2016

In its recently released Analytics Trends 2016 report, consulting firm Deloitte predicts six major trends will significantly shape business in 2016.

"Business leaders continue to face many varying challenges and opportunities, and staying ahead of these trends will have a lasting impact on how their organizations will operate in the future," says John Lucker, principal, Deloitte Consulting. "By going on the offensive with issues such as cybersecurity, organizations are making a strategic shift in the way they operate. Concurrently, the widening data scientist talent gap could be a business growth barrier. One thing is certain: effectively using analytics is essential in delivering insights that help achieve new levels of innovation and value."

1. Cybersecurity: Offense can be the best defense

Cybersecurity is no stranger to Deloitte's trends lists, It was called out in its report last year. But a shift is occurring in the market, Lucker says, citing an IDC finding that the worldwide financial services industry was projected to spend $27.4 billion on information security alone in the last year. These organizations, he says, are no longer content to take to take the traditional reactive approach to security. Instead, they are beginning to employ predictive approaches to threat intelligence and monitoring. These approaches may include automated scanning of Internet "chatter" by individuals who may intend the organization harm, or analyzing past hacks and breaches to create predictive models for tomorrow's threats.

2. Companies struggle to bridge the data talent gap

Another familiar trend this year is the ever-growing struggle to find and retain analytical talent. Lucker points to the 2015 MIT Sloan Management Review, which found that 40 percent of companies struggle with finding the talent they need.

Colleges and universities are working hard to produce data science talent, but the number of data scientists will remain limited and the competition for top talent will be fierce.

"Companies need to recognize that they need to really develop close relationships with these degree programs," Lucker says. "Creating a true courtship between companies and universities is becoming more and more important."

Additionally, Lucker notes that attracting talent is only part of the equation. Companies that can get top data science talent in the door need to think long and hard about retention.

3. Man/machine partnerships are getting stronger

IDC is projecting that businesses will spend more than $60 billion on cognitive solutions by 2025. While there have been numerous projections that artificial intelligence and cognitive solutions will eliminate large numbers of jobs, Lucker says leading businesses will use humans to add value to smart machines. After all, human talent will be required to build and implement cognitive technologies, and others will serve as a check to ensure the technologies are performing well. Still others will complement computers in roles machines can't perform well, for instance roles involving high levels of creativity or empathy.

4. The Internet of Things -- and people

People are going to reemerge as an important element in the Internet of Things (IoT) in 2016 as well, Lucker says. IoT is rapidly evolving from the realm of interesting gadgets to include tracking people as "things" to form new business models and influence behaviors. Lucker notes this innovation is taking place in both consumer-focused and business-to-business industries and will have significant implications for business models and industry.

The capability to track people and their movements means data on travel patterns and spending patterns and similar things will allow for wholly new business models. Think Uber, for instance.

5. The triumph of the scientists

With data now potentially affecting every area of business, Lucker says scientists are taking on a new stature in the business world. It should be noted that analytics aren't new; businesses have used analytics for decades. But recent advances in technology and data capabilities have given scientists and the sciences a new importance in the business world.

"Business isn't the only field notable for major advances in analytics through the years," the report says. "If anything, there may be a stronger case for the sciences leading the vanguard of analytics. Universities, research labs and other science-focused organizations have been applying and refining analytics approaches to solve some incredibly complex problems through the years, in everything from molecular biology and astrophysics to the social sciences and beyond. In many cases, they don't even use the word "analytics." For them, it's all just science."

6. The rise of the insight-driven organization

For the past several years, Deloitte and others watching this trend have referred to the "data-driven enterprise," which relies on data to drive its decision-making. Over the past year, Lucker says, we've seen organizations move from implementing or improving targeted analytics capabilities in just a few key areas to taking steps to leveraging data across the entire organization. Deloitte calls organizations that take this additional step insight-driven organizations (IDOs).

The IDO goes beyond the selective use of insights to fuel decision-making in individual parts of the business, the report says. It deploys a tightly knitted combination of strategy, people, processes and data — along with technology — to deliver insights at the point of action, every day, in every part of the organization. One example might be marrying up human resources data with production information and marketing data to determine how employees are performing across the sales side of things.

Source : cio.com

What 2015 means for Indian Startup & technology scene in 2016

Last year was a golden year for Indian startups. Venture Capitalists pumped in more than US$8.5 bn into companies and many hyper-funded startups scaled rapidly (or recklessly, depending on who you ask).

This year is when we wean the chaff from the wheat. The much anticipated winter, may be finally upon us. Companies demonstrating sustainability, better user understanding and capitalising on the network effect would manage valuation upticks.

However, companies which have got high valuations but have not been able to deliver due to either market specific or company specific traits will see down-rounds. This is the new normal.

Over the last few months, I’ve been closely tracking many companies, pulling up financial data and also understanding some of the markets where venture capital has made aggressive bets. Here’s what I think 2016 will look like.

Downward spiral of ad-tech

Woes of Indian ad-tech companies intensified through 2015 with the continued onslaught of owned and operated platforms (like Facebook) driving growth and take rates down. The industry flag bearer InMobi not only struggled to raise equity capital but also faced severe growth pressure. The expected valuation of US$2–3 b is down now to sub US$ 1b levels. Komli Media was forced to sell assets part by part at throwaway prices. It has sold its India and flagship SEA assets for around US$15–16m. For a company that raised nearly $100 mn in venture capital, this is nothing short of a fire sale. Adiquity was also sold off to Flipkart for a modest sum of US$12m. This year will continue to be painful for such companies.

Pre-ponderance of wallets

Alibaba’s backing of PayTM gave a big fillip to the payment wallet space. Snapdeal’s acquisition of Freecharge, Ola’s investment in ZipCash and Flipkart’s acquisition of FxMart were the notable transactions in this space. Banks have also gotten into the act promoting their own wallets aggressively. While economics of the wallet business is still suspect, I expect this battleground to heat-up further in 2016 as deep-pocketed players slug it out. Yay, more discounts coming your way!

Proliferation of hyper-local

Over one in two start-ups which emerged in 2015 had a significant hyper-local element to it. Not a single sub-sector (fashion/food/grocery among others) remained insulated from this onslaught of hyper-local mania. A few companies like Swiggy and Grofers seem to have managed to cross the cliff by differentiating themselves from the pack, the rest are going to struggle hard. Even among those well-funded, the key challenge of proving unit economics remains and 2016 could be the last stand on that front.

Urban transportation bandwagon rolls

Uber’s huge investment into India coupled with Ola’s big funding rounds rounds (latest valuation at US$5b) accelerated the Indian urban transportation revolution with the two flagship companies growing 10x through 2015 and now averaging over a million rides daily. Spill-over effects were seen in other modes of transport as well as auto aggregators like Jugnoo and bus aggregators like Shuttl attracted capital and gained some scale. Governmental push towards car-pooling, relaxation of regulations to allow bike-taxis in certain states and continuous innovation by Ola/Uber implies action is set to continue unabated in this space through 2016 as well.

Reality bites

Euphoria in the Indian start-up space made way to a sobering reality as a number of companies like TinyOwl, Foodpanda, LocalOye, Townrush, Spoonjoy, Housing among others were forced to pare workforce or shut down as the funding environment worsened. A number of companies managed to survive due to largesse of existing investors but with curtailed operations. This reality check has come across the start-up ecosystem spectrum and there seems unlikely to be any respite in 2016.

Source : medium.com

Don’t trust the Internet of Things: when smart devices leak data

A group of researchers have revealed that the Internet of Things is probably less secure than you expect.

At a talk during PrivacyCon held by the Federal Trade Commission last week, the researchers revealed that many smart devices leak private information in cleartext — with little to no effort to encrypt that data.

When the researchers reported the bug it was quickly fixed by Nest, however it’s unclear how long the hole was open before it was found.

Transmitting data in cleartext isn’t inherently bad, but it means that any ‘bad actor’ on your home or the ISP’s network could easily steal that information without all that much work.

The group studied other devices, such as a smart photo frame that communicated with the internet entirely unencrypted and a Ubi smart speaker that leaked sensor data, which could be used to track whether you were at home.

The biggest question still surrounding the Internet of Things is how secure these devices really are — though the researchers said that the Nest was one of the “more secure” devices.

Many of the creators of smart gadgets are small startups that don’t have the resources or knowledge to build out sophisticated security, leaving you wide open to attack.

There is some hope in the unified platforms that both Google and Apple provide for the Internet of Things, which would help standardize security and communication.

The problem is that right now we’re in an all-out brawl for who will own the definitive IoT platform. Until then, expect a bumpy ride.

Source : thenextweb.com

Are You Looking For Top MBA Colleges?

In this era of practical application, apart from providing in-depth training in theoretic concepts, MBA colleges in India have developed into education bodies that lay focus on guiding their students to become smart corporate citizens with the ability to form strategies, envisage large goals and communicate effectively.

The curriculum adopted by most of the top management colleges has been designed with an aim to instill confidence in students that is gained from pragmatic approach in key concepts related to Finance, Operations, Marketing, Information Technology and other vital skills that are crucial for running an organization.

Most MBA colleges, while taking admissions, give preference to candidates who possess a strong sense of moral philosophy. These institutions train the students using an organized scientific process to enable them to abide by ethical business practices.

The best way to figure out the most suitable school for you is by determining the latest trends in remuneration that is being offered by companies to graduates who are fresh out of MBA colleges.

There are many MBA Colleges in India that offer a wide range of executive MBA programs for working professionals in addition to regular masters in management courses. Those who are interested in pursuing higher education and professional specialization can opt for online MBA and distance education MBA as well.

Let’s take a look at some of the leading MBA Colleges in India. Xavier Labour Research Institute (XLRI), Jamshedpur Founded in the year 1949, this is one of the top MBA colleges in India. It offers various management programs like executive MBA courses such as Fellow Program in Management, Executive Fellow Program in Management (EFPM), Defense Personnel Management Development Program and so forth. Candidates who wish to enroll need to pass the XAT test.

The Faculty of Management Studies, Delhi University This college, founded in the year 1954, is one of the first colleges to embark on management training. It is a division of Delhi University that is situated in North Campus of the university. The university is widely recognized for its proficient faculty and staff members. There are full-time courses, part-time MBA courses and doctoral programs available. The selection of the candidates is determined by their CAT and GMAT scores, personal interview and group discussion. Besides, it also facilitates employment to students.

Indian Institute of Management (IIMs) It goes without saying that IIM is one of the most sought after management institution in India. There are many students who yearn to be a part of this institute that is located in different parts of India such as Kolkata, Indore, Ahmedabad, Bangalore and Lucknow. The first and foremost prerequisite to qualify for an admission is to pass a Common Aptitude Test followed by personal interview and group discussion. IIMs are also considered amongst the leading top MBA colleges in the world as they maintain strong relationships with other top business schools like MIT, Harvard School of Business and their faculty.

Indian School of Business (ISB), Hyderabad Launched in the year 2001, this university has garnered worldwide reputation in only a short span of ten years. It is one of the stellar business schools that offer best MBA programs. It offers programs like executive courses, post-doctoral research fellowship courses etc. Besides, this esteemed institute is also affiliated with leading MBA colleges around the world like London School of Business, Kellogg School of Management and Wharton School.

ISB&M is known for its international reputation, faculty, infrastructure, academic excellence, fee structure and above all, the performance of the alumni in the industry. It is these factors that are encouraging more and more students to join us. At ISBM, we learn in a friendly environment and execute in a corporate scenario.

Source : isbm.ac.in

4 Reasons Why Java is Still #1

It’s the start of 2016, which means that we’ve now finished the “20 Years of Java” celebrations. Actually, although the announcement about Java (and the HotJava browser, which did not enjoy quite the same success) was made publicly on May 23rd, 1995, the first official release of the JDK was on January 23rd, 1996. You could justifiably claim that Java is only now turning twenty. There have been numerous retrospectives on Java, but I thought what would be interesting to look at is the success of Java in its twentieth year.

It’s difficult to accurately measure the popularity of programming languages, but one of the generally accepted surveys is the TIOBE index. This tracks language references through a variety of search engines as well as Google Blogs, Wikipedia and even YouTube. (In writing this entry I learnt something new, which is that TIOBE is actually an acronym for “The Importance Of Being Ernest,” the play by Oscar Wilde. Not sure what that has to do with programming languages, but there you go.).

Looking back at the results over the last fifteen years Java has consistently been either number one or two. Java has jostled for position with C, which was consistently the most popular before Java was launched (how things change: back in 1986 Lisp was number two and Ada was number three). TIOBE have also just announced that Java is their “Programming Language of the Year” for 2015. A great achievement, especially as it was also given the award ten years ago.

As another measure of popularity, Oracle frequently likes to quote the statistic that there are nine million Java developers in the world. If you want a chuckle check out this JAXenter article, which gives some details of how they got to this number. Regardless of the details I think we can all agree there are literally millions of Java developers around the world.

The question to ask is why does Java continue to be so popular? I think there are a number of reasons for this; let’s just highlight four:

1. Practicality

James Gosling has described Java as a “blue collar” programming language. It was designed to allow developers to get their job done with the minimum of fuss, whilst still enabling developers to pick up someone else’s (or even their own) code at a later date and understand what it’s supposed to do. Sure, you can write unreadable code in Java, just as you can in any language, but with good coding conventions it is more readable than many other languages.

2. Backwards compatibility

Sun and subsequently Oracle have made huge efforts to ensure that code written for one version of Java will continue to run unchanged on newer versions. Although this hasn’t always been the case (assertions in Java SE 1.4, enumerations in Java SE 5) and it has sometimes led to implementations that could have been better without compatibility (generics) it is a very compelling feature for developers. There’s nothing worse than taking code that works and having to change it to make it work on a newer version of the platform. That’s just wasted time.

3. Scalability/Performance/Reliability

With over twenty years and thousands of man-years of development, Java is a rock-solid platform that performs on a level that can match or even exceed that of native code (thanks to some of the optimisations made by the JVM using dynamic rather than static code analysis). When it comes to scalability, just look at some of the large enterprises using Java: Twitter (who moved off Ruby-on-Rails to the JVM because RoR wouldn’t scale), Spotify, Facebook, Salesforce, eBay and, of course, Oracle. Hadoop, Cassandra and Spark, the basis of most big data projects, are either written in Java or Scala and run on the JVM. If you want scalability and performance, Java and the JVM is an obvious choice.

4. Freshness

To me this is the big one. Looking at the TIOBE graph there is a significant upswing in Java popularity since October 2014, which is shortly after the launch of JDK 8. JDK 8 was a big change for developers using Java because of the introduction of Lambda expressions and the streams API. Suddenly Java developers could do things in a more functional way without having to learn a whole new language like Scala. These features also make it potentially much simpler to take advantage of multi-core/multi-processor machines without having to write lots of complex and potentially error prone multi-threaded code. With project Jigsaw scheduled for delivery in JDK 9 we’ll see modularity make big enterprise applications much easier to build, deploy and maintain. There are already plans for new language features, like value types, in JDK 10.

Source : azul.com

HOW WILL DATA SCIENCE CHANGE IN 2016?

2015 was a good year for data science. A cursory glance at any tech jobs board reveals the sheer breadth of companies looking for data science expertise. Technical terms such as machine learning are slowly entering the public consciousness. Many people still don’t realise how much data science touches their everyday lives, from Amazon recommendations to the algorithms powering their Uber app. With adoption of data science up across most business verticals, it’s natural to wonder how the sector will develop in 2016. My gut feeling is that it will be the year data science proves its worth on a spectacular scale.

Many of the systems in financial institutions are underpinned by data science. Indeed, the financial industry is one of the pioneers of data science techniques. Nevertheless, the adoption of data science has been far from uniform across all banking services. In 2016 I expect this picture to change. Better use of data and personalisation of services will move from the financial markets to retail banking. It will have a profound impact on marketing, customer service and product development.

Atom Bank has already announced its intention to use data models to predict its customers’ needs. It’s worth noting that Atom Bank’s model of prioritising mobile services over bricks and mortar branches is, in the long-term, likely to be adopted by most major banks in the UK. However, such a move will require large scale investment in IT infrastructure, something that is notoriously difficult to get right in financial corporations with bespoke legacy infrastructure.

Data science will inform the best marketing initiatives next year. Targeting has got much more accurate, thanks to a better understanding that collecting the right data goes way beyond an email address and a first name. The personalisation that information from social media platforms enable has opened the door to a huge swathe of new marketing opportunities.

By marrying information from traditional sources and social media, with other dynamic data sets such as weather, economic news, major events, and in-store activity (for retail), ultra-targeted and personalised marketing becomes a reality. The issue of joining the world of in-store marketing and online marketing could finally be solved, much like the difficulties around multi-platform marketing have been largely surmounted.

Underpinning the explosion in mobile advertising and ever more impressive personalisation is the surge in the number of marketers intelligently using data. Indeed, it is this growth in ‘data-savviness’ by marketers that will inform many of the major changes we are likely to see in 2016.

Use of data science within the insurance sector will also continue to take off. The most exciting area of development is the use of wearable technology to better monitor and assess health and wellbeing. Not only will this help to give health insurance companies more useful information, it will also have a growing impact within the HR and recruitment function of some pioneering businesses.

Don’t expect it to be plain sailing for data science in 2016, though: there are a number of head winds. First, a new Safe Harbour agreement seems a long way off. In October, the US Senate passed The Cybersecurity Information Sharing Act. This act should make it easier for US companies to share data with American security agencies. Given that around seven different US security agencies employing thousands of people could access and share this information, the result is to significantly erode online privacy standards in American.

These decisions taken together, along with the Microsoft judgement (more on that later), have created an environment where the US and EU are going in completely different directions on data protection and, by extension, data security standards.

The consequence of this fragmentation is likely to be serious disruption in the free movement of data across the world. For businesses, this means increased restrictions on how they manage and use data, resulting in higher costs both in relation to infrastructure and compliance.

Second, the Microsoft case should reach a conclusion in January. If the Federal Court in the US rules against Microsoft and allows the US Government to access data held in a data centre in the Republic of Ireland, we should expect serious repercussions. Cloud computing businesses will be the most severely affected and a dangerous precedent that other governments could follow could be set. Whatever happens, the case will probably be appealed, so expect this issue to rumble on for the rest of the year (and beyond).

However, these issues are unlikely to derail the strong development of data science over the next twelve months. More businesses are going to undertake innovative applications of data science, strengthening the profession by providing valuable experience and thought-provoking case studies. This will create a virtuous circle, prompting more people to become data scientists, increasing the talent pool and spurring more innovation.

Source : dataconomy.com

Why Start-up?

This article is for those who have thought about having their own business, discussed with friends and relatives, (sometimes with investors too) yet somehow find it difficult to cross-over. The intent of this article is to come up with facts that may serve as logical reasoning to combat the small self-doubts which stand in the way of an upcoming entrepreneur!

So you have gone through years of education, got yourself a job, put in a few years with your boss, made money and feel settled. What next? Choices are broadly only two for anyone who wants to be occupied: Either to continue climbing the corporate hierarchy or to START-UP! Each choice has its own pros and cons. The question here is which activity is worthwhile!   

Choosing to be employed with someone else is relatively less laborious since it means clearing a few rounds of interview and being likable on the job. Moreover, you enjoy the liberty of quitting the job when you want which is not the case when it comes to your own business. At hindsight, being employed feels comfortable. But, is it actually so? If it were, you wouldn’t have complained or even thought about an alternative career option.

The higher ideals to starting up with one’s own venture are the satisfaction of doing one’s own thing or the feeling of being your own boss and the associated pride of creating employment for others and in-turn impacting the society. In addition to all these, there are plenty of small advantages that come with entrepreneurship. A few are listed here-

Job search ends here

Long waits for promotions and increased income are no more. One can earn as much as one wants to at whatever age with no age bar to retirement

“Qualifications” and “experience” are what you learn on the way

Exponential growth is possible. Fixed salary slabs are no more a constraint

Relatively less man hours per day as business progresses and stabilizes; contradictory to ever increasing work load and man hours per day with increasing responsibilities at the work-place/employment and enslavement

Limitless diversifying and de-routing options

These are a few things which you already might have recognized. Yet, there is something stopping you from going the entrepreneurial way! What is it??

I call it the “Comfort Cushion”. After being habituated to a hurried early morning breakfast, reaching on time at the office, punching your card, a subtle greeting to colleagues and the coffee machine gossip; we come to accept targets n reports as the way our lives were meant to be and have grown comfortable on this cushion which gives a regular paycheck. Walking the tougher path with only your beliefs and motives as companions feels uncomfortable subconsciously! And this subconscious discomfort gives rise to a whole bag of reasons as to why one shouldn’t venture out for eg; I don’t have enough financial back-up, I will start-up once my children are settled, What if my start-up fails?... are just a few common ones.

Breaking off from this mindset and pushing oneself into doing what one feels right and believes in needs strong reasoning and a dash of practicality helps the cause.

For this purpose, one must look at trends and what direction one may float towards in keeping up with the current trend. Following the trend in recruitment policy of companies in the last couple of years, we see, there is a shift towards lower costs and improved productivity. In the human resource context, this means more and more talent will be hired at lower wages over the coming years. Hence, as days pass compensation packages will tend to shrink rather than ballooning for the average employee.  To ascertain the facts, I urge the reader to take a hard look at the industry he/she is working in and think on these lines.

As a rough example of what I am trying to say, let us compare financials of employed earnings vis-à-vis enterprise earnings. Again, the reader will have to fine-tune this exercise according to their present situation.

An average employee may reach an earning potential of Rs. 50000/- a month in a course of 5 years, whereas, an average business gives a potential of earning that amount in just about 3 years (considering a nominally well-placed job and equally interesting business). The amount of wealth amassed over a period of 20 yrs running one’s own business is a direct multiple of that saved from salaries. I am saving the discussions about the various outcomes and factors that may make or break an employment or business for another time since there is equal possibility of success or failure in both these type of engagements. My point is, such practical calculations help to strengthen the perspective and from there emerges the “will” to move out of one’s “Comfort Cushion”. Looks like it really does make sense to Start-up!

Source : techgignews.com

Want to learn coding in 2016? Here are 5 ways to do it

Although one should generally exercise care in predicting the future, we’re going to go out on a limb and guess that developers will continue being in high demand in 2016. So, whether you’re already part of the Chicago startup community and looking for new opportunities, or hoping to get into the startup game, learning how to code remains one of the biggest door openers out there.

According to Matt Baker, software engineer and lead instructor at Dev Bootcamp Chicago, the most important thing to keep in mind when just getting started is not to get too fixated on language trends and flashy new techniques, but rather to focus on the basics.

“Being aware of the tools available is important,” said Baker. “But trying to learn the latest-and-greatest language or framework often distracts people from fostering more critical software engineering skills, like the ability to problem-solve independently, learn new technologies relevant to the task at hand, and communicate effectively with one's team."

In the past few years, countless free online resources have been made available to aspiring programmers. And, for those who like structure, guidance, and follow up, bootcamps provide a more rounded option to break into the field. Regardless of which option you choose, the most important thing to know is that programming is a skill best learned by doing. So dust off your keyboard and get to building.

If you want to test the waters

Codecademy offers interactive game-like tutorials in a number of different programming languages including Python, Ruby, HTML, and CSS. If you’re curious about whether programming is for you, this is one of the lowest-barrier options out there. Grab a Red Bull, put on some headphones, and see how it feels. If you like it, there’s nothing to stop you from moving on to the next step. For first time programmers, the Python and web design tutorials are good starting points.

If you want to learn more about how computers work

Stanford University computer science professor Nick Parlante’s online Computer Science 101 class is one of the best resources out there if you’re looking to get a better understanding of how computers work. Alongside an introduction to hardware and computer science jargon, Parlante will introduce you to programming in Java. This course is available through Coursera as a self-study, so you can move along at your own pace.

If you want to learn by making games

Rice University’s Introduction to Interactive Programming in Python teaches programming fundamentals through building simple games including Pong, Blackjack and Asteroids. The next session is starting on January 9, and students are expected to spend between 7 and 10 hours a week over 5 weeks to keep up. Certificates are available, and the course is part of a 26 week long certified specialization offered by Rice.

If you want to become a full-stack developer

Dev Bootcamp offers immersive 19-week programming bootcamps for people who want to get into the developer game as full-stack web developers. In addition to a number of languages for user interfaces and backend management, Dev Bootcamp has a substantial teamwork component that helps aspiring developers get both the technical and the interpersonal skills they need to be successful in the field.

    Although one should generally exercise care in predicting the future, we’re going to go out on a limb and guess that developers will continue being in high demand in 2016. So, whether you’re already part of the Chicago startup community and looking for new opportunities, or hoping to get into the startup game, learning how to code remains one of the biggest door openers out there.

According to Matt Baker, software engineer and lead instructor at Dev Bootcamp Chicago, the most important thing to keep in mind when just getting started is not to get too fixated on language trends and flashy new techniques, but rather to focus on the basics.

“Being aware of the tools available is important,” said Baker. “But trying to learn the latest-and-greatest language or framework often distracts people from fostering more critical software engineering skills, like the ability to problem-solve independently, learn new technologies relevant to the task at hand, and communicate effectively with one's team."

In the past few years, countless free online resources have been made available to aspiring programmers. And, for those who like structure, guidance, and follow up, bootcamps provide a more rounded option to break into the field. Regardless of which option you choose, the most important thing to know is that programming is a skill best learned by doing. So dust off your keyboard and get to building.

If you want to test the waters

Codecademy offers interactive game-like tutorials in a number of different programming languages including Python, Ruby, HTML, and CSS. If you’re curious about whether programming is for you, this is one of the lowest-barrier options out there. Grab a Red Bull, put on some headphones, and see how it feels. If you like it, there’s nothing to stop you from moving on to the next step. For first time programmers, the Python and web design tutorials are good starting points.

If you want to learn more about how computers work

Stanford University computer science professor Nick Parlante’s online Computer Science 101 class is one of the best resources out there if you’re looking to get a better understanding of how computers work. Alongside an introduction to hardware and computer science jargon, Parlante will introduce you to programming in Java. This course is available through Coursera as a self-study, so you can move along at your own pace.

If you want to learn by making games

Rice University’s Introduction to Interactive Programming in Python teaches programming fundamentals through building simple games including Pong, Blackjack and Asteroids. The next session is starting on January 9, and students are expected to spend between 7 and 10 hours a week over 5 weeks to keep up. Certificates are available, and the course is part of a 26 week long certified specialization offered by Rice.

If you want to become a full-stack developer

Dev Bootcamp offers immersive 19-week programming bootcamps for people who want to get into the developer game as full-stack web developers. In addition to a number of languages for user interfaces and backend management, Dev Bootcamp has a substantial teamwork component that helps aspiring developers get both the technical and the interpersonal skills they need to be successful in the field.

If you want to build iOS apps

The Mobile Makers Academy takes you from having zero programming experience to building iOS apps in eight weeks. Built on an apprenticeship model, this bootcamp thrusts you right into the action with your first programming project assigned on day two. At the beginning of your sixth week, you’ll pitch and vote on app ideas that you and your fellow bootcampers will spend the next three weeks developing. During the bootcamp’s final days, you’ll submit your app to the App Store and show your completed project to members of the Chicago tech community.

Source : builtinchicago.org

30 Websites That Will Make You Unbelievably Smarter

Most of us spend some amount of time--sometimes a lot!--online. Instead of chasing after provocative headlines and weird old tricks, why not spend time on sites that will make you smarter in life, shrewder in business, and wiser in leadership?

Here are 30 of the best sites for professional and personal development. Learn as an individual or connect your team.

1. TED Talks 

TED's tagline is "ideas worth spreading." TED Talks is a video collection in the form of short, powerful speeches on every subject imaginable (18 minutes or less).

2. Brain Pickings

Brain Pickings has interesting posts drawn from art, science, design, history, and philosophy.

3. 99U

99U's actionable insights on productivity, organization, and leadership help creative people push ideas forward.

4. Lynda

Lynda has thousands of video tutorials covering technical, creative, and business skills, all taught by industry experts.

5. University of the People 

University of the People is a nonprofit, tuition-free online university based in California and committed to educational access and inclusion.

6. Learnist  

Learnist is a collaborative knowledge-sharing site where users create and curate "learning boards" composed of text, images, video, and audio.

7. Alison 

Alison offers free online courses with certification and diploma options.

8. Mental Floss 

Mental Floss tests your knowledge through quizzes, brainteasers, and games.

9. Brain Pump 

Brain Pump lets you learn something new and feeds your curiosity, through a vast library of entertaining videos on topics ranging from chemistry to physics to history.

10. Peer 2 Peer University

Peer 2 Peer University is an open education project in which learners gather in lightly organized circles that meet at public libraries and other accessible sites.

11. Platzi

Platzi offers live-streamed courses--many free--on topics including web and app development, online marketing, interface design, and server administration. 

12. edX 

EdX, a collaborative project of Harvard University and MIT, provides free online courses and classes from the world's best universities and other institutions.

13. OpenSesame

OpenSesame is a marketplace for business-oriented online training.

14. Udacity

At Udacity, find free online courses, self-paced with code reviews, when you want to make a career change or get a new job. 

15. Coursmos

Coursmos is a micro-course platform with short video lessons on topics ranging from business to lifestyle.

16. Highbrow

Highbrow lets you choose one course and receive new knowledge every morning. Super-brief lessons are delivered to your inbox. Learn, grow, repeat ... in all subjects: art, health, history, literature, logic, nature, philosophy, productivity.

17. Coursera

Coursera is a platform where anyone can take free online classes from 120-plus top universities--including Stanford, Yale, and Princeton--and educational organizations. 

18.  University Webinars 

On University Webinars and Videos for Blended Learning, top college faculty, staff, and experts in their field share knowledge from their courses and programs, targeted for higher education professionals.

19.DataCamp

DataCamp is the most engaging way to learn R and data science. Learn in the comfort of your own browser via tutorials and coding challenges. A monthly or annual fee provides access to all courses.

20. CreativeLive 

At CreativeLive, take free live online classes taught by the world's most inspiring instructors. Choose from video workshops in photography, video, design, business, audio, music, crafting, and software training.

21. Investopedia 

Investopedia is a premiere resource for investing and personal finance education, market analysis, and trading simulators. Access free educational content and tools. 

22. Gibbon

Gibbon is a peer-to-peer learning network that connects users who want to teach one another and learn about anything. An enterprise knowledge portal for employee development and learning, individually accessible courses are also available.

23. BBC Languages

BBC Languages provides free online language learning--via courses, audio, video, and games--that includes the alphabet, phrases, vocabulary, pronunciation, grammar, activities, and tests. Free interactive tutorials come in 40 languages.

24. Future Learn

Future Learn has free courses in subjects including law, psychology, and teaching, offered in partnership with top universities and specialist organizations in the U.K. and around the world. 

25. MIT OpenCourseWare

MIT OpenCourseWare is a web-based publication, open and accessible, of virtually all MIT course content.

26. Project Gutenberg

Project Gutenberg is a digital library of more than 50,000 free e-books to read online or download. Included are book listings, a search engine, a newsletter, articles, and information on how users can help create more free e-books.

27. Quora

Quora: the best answer to any question. On Quora, ask a question on any topic or subject and receive an answer from an expert.

28. Udemy

Udemy is an online education marketplace with limitless variety: more than 30,000 courses, developed by subject-matter experts.

29. Skillshare 

Skillshare is a learning community for creators. Anyone can take an online class, watch video lessons, create projects, and even teach a class.

30. Inc.com

Inc.com is all about advice, news, tools, and services to help small businesses grow. Everything you read on Inc.com will make you a smarter leader and entrepreneur--especially articles like this one.

Source : Inc.com