US, EUROPE MBA PROGRAMS TO INTERNATIONAL TALENT: WE ARE OPEN FOR BUSINESS

Annual survey finds international applications to business schools soared back as domestic demand softened

RESTON, Va., Oct 27 (Bernama-GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Total applications to graduate business schools dipped from the pandemic-level spikes, slipping 3.4 percent year-on-year among a matched sample of programs, according to a survey report released today by the Graduate Management Admission Council (GMAC). This comes after application volumes increased 2.4 percent year-on-year in 2020 amid the start of the pandemic and sustained that level of demand in 2021, when schools reported a 0.4 percent year-on-year increase. As the pandemic’s effects on mobility lessened this admissions cycle, however, international applications saw a remarkable rebound, particularly for those applying to programs in the United States. Most US programs reported international application increases, especially full-time two-year MBA programs (80% of programs) and STEM-designated programs (61%). Similarly in Europe, most MBA programs either saw stability or more applications from abroad this year.

The largest and most widely cited survey of its kind in the industry, the GMAC 2022 Application Trends Survey was conducted between July and September with application figures submitted by 950 programs of 264 business schools in 33 countries worldwide. The survey aims to examine the rapidly shifting landscape of demand for graduate management education (GME) programs. An annual survey in its 24^th year, the 2022 study reflects perhaps the end of the pandemic- disrupted years and offers insight into how the post-pandemic market may take shape.

Notably, most programs in Europe and Asia grew or maintained women’s representation in applicant pools. A majority of responding programs in Europe (58%) and Asia (57%) grew or sustained the number of applications received from women. In addition, more than half of US programs maintained or grew applications from underrepresented populations (URP), particularly master of data analytics (66%) and master in management (65%).

“I’m very pleased to see that women in Europe and Asia and underrepresented groups in the US are increasingly aspiring to pursue the business education that could empower and equip them to achieve their career objectives,” said Joy Jones, CEO of GMAC. “I commend the business school community for the encouraging trend that has grown from their concerted efforts to attract a diverse pool of talent.”

http://mrem.bernama.com/viewsm.php?idm=44562

UNIPHORE JOINS AWS ISV ACCELERATE PROGRAM

Brings powerful conversational AI and automation capabilities for seamless customer experience to Amazon Web Services customers

PALO ALTO, Calif., Oct 27 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- Uniphore, the leader in conversational AI and automation, today announced it has been accepted into the Amazon Web Services (AWS) Independent Software Vendor (ISV) Accelerate Program, a co-sell program for AWS Partners who provide software solutions that run on or integrate with AWS. The program helps partners drive new business and accelerate sales cycles by connecting the participating ISVs with the AWS Sales organization.

Through the AWS ISV Accelerate Program, Uniphore receives focused co-selling support from AWS, access to further sales enablement resources, reduced AWS Marketplace listing fees, and incentives for AWS Sales teams. The program provides participating ISVs with access to millions of active AWS customers globally.

“We are delighted to be accepted into the AWS ISV Accelerate Program,” said Kennedy Pereira, VP, CCaaS Ecosystem, Global Alliances & Partnerships at Uniphore. “This is yet another proof of the value our technology brings to enterprises and our commitment to our customers. It’s also a testament of Uniphore being at the forefront of always delivering the most robust solutions through solid partnerships, like the one with the AWS Sales organization.”

Uniphore, whose conversational AI and automation products are used globally by enterprises in a range of industries, went through AWS’s comprehensive review process, including an extensive technical review of Uniphore’s platform and architecture as well as validation of Uniphore’s benefits for enterprise-level customers. AWS customers who deploy Uniphore can be confident in the platform’s integration with existing workloads and applications, supported by AWS.

About Uniphore

Uniphore is the global leader in Conversational Automation. Every day, billions of conversations take place across industries — customer service, sales, HR, education and more. Whether they are human to human, human to machine or machine to machine, conversations are at the heart of everything we do, and the new currency of the enterprise.

At Uniphore, we believe companies that best understand and take action on those conversations will win. We have built the most comprehensive and powerful platform that combines conversational AI, computer vision, emotion and tonal analysis, workflow automation, and RPA (Robotic Process Automation) with a business-user-friendly UX in a single integrated platform to transform and democratize customer experiences across industries. 

http://mrem.bernama.com/viewsm.php?idm=44557

UNIPHORE ANNOUNCES INDUSTRY'S MOST COMPREHENSIVE PLATFORM TO TRANSFORM CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE AND VIRTUAL SALES ENGAGEMENTS

Stellar CX, better sales engagements are now possible with Uniphore X Platform

PALO ALTO, Calif., Oct 20 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- Uniphore, the leader in conversational AI and automation, today announced the release of its enhanced Uniphore X platform, the industry’s most comprehensive platform that enables brands to accelerate and improve two key areas of their business: Customer Experience and Sales. With the latest enhancements to the platform, the conversations that happen between live or virtual agents as well as those happening between sales and prospects are now more effective and with minimal friction.

Complete with conversational AI, emotion AI, knowledge AI, computer vision and robotic process automation (RPA), the power of the X platform lies in its robust architecture and the strong value proposition it offers customers. From designing frictionless customer journeys to enabling virtual sales scenarios, customers can expect the X platform to help them significantly improve their customers’ experiences and for sales teams, better engage with existing customers and new prospects.

New capabilities embedded into the Uniphore X Platform support both the Uniphore U product line and the Uniphore Q for Sales product line.

Drive Better Conversations across Key Business Functions

The Uniphore U product portfolio leverages all the elements to deliver state-of-the-art CX, including conversational AI, emotion AI, robotic process automation (RPA) and now knowledge AI, following the acquisition of Colabo earlier this year. Uniphore’s Q for Sales product line, announced in March this year, helps sales teams better read the room on video meetings to measure customers’ engagement & sentiment and detect the non-verbal “cues” that directly impact sales performance. Building on Q’s ability to automatically identify ‘key moments,’ Q for Sales also surfaces the promises and commitments that are made by both reps and prospects during a video meeting. Q for Sales is currently available for qualified revenue teams to trial at zero cost.

“With our customers top of mind, our focus from the beginning has been to build a powerful platform that delivers the latest and most beneficial innovations in conversational, video and knowledge AI, and automation all in one place,” said Umesh Sachdev, CEO and co-founder of Uniphore. “Today’s release, announcing our enhanced X platform, the full integration of knowledge AI in our platform, as well as advancements in both our U and Q for Sales family of products, marks a new era of digital transformation for customer service and revenue teams.”

The latest innovations for the Uniphore U product portfolio include:

· Intelligent Knowledge Bot - Uniphore U-Self Serve is an industry-leading conversational AI solution which has advanced knowledge AI capabilities. Customers now have access to the Knowledge Bot that will provide updated information to customers in real time. Additionally, the Knowledge Bot can turn static FAQs into an interactive experience. This helps ensure the most relevant content and next best action are delivered to intelligent virtual assistants (IVAs) and live agents, for significantly better and more efficient customer interactions.

· Knowledge AI for Agents - Uniphore U-Assist, the most advanced and comprehensive solution for in-call agent guidance, and after-call summarization, now further leverages Knowledge AI to deliver the most relevant and accurate content to agents in the quickest manner possible. 

http://mrem.bernama.com/viewsm.php?idm=44508

BERKSHIRE HATHAWAY SPECIALTY INSURANCE NAMES MARY BRUCE-KAHN CHIEF EXECUTIVE IN SINGAPORE

HONG KONG & SINGAPORE, Oct 17 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance (BHSI) today announced that it has appointed Mary Bruce-Kahn to the role of Chief Executive, Singapore.

“Since we received our license at the end of 2014, the team and the portfolio in Singapore have been growing steadily,” said Marc Breuil, President, BHSI Asia Middle East. “With a firmly anchored local presence both in Singapore and in Asia, BHSI continues to expand its relationship and its product capabilities. As such, we are delighted to see Mary step up to the CE role where she will add to our collective strength and lead our further expansion.”

Mary joined BHSI in January as Regional Head of Operations & IT based in Singapore. She has over 20 years of experience in operational leadership in the insurance industry and previously held senior local and regional positions in Thailand, Singapore and Australia. She will retain her current position in addition to the new role.
 

Mary will continue to be based in Singapore and can be reached at mary.bruce-kahn@bhspecialty.com.

Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance Company (incorporated in Nebraska, USA) provides commercial property, casualty, healthcare professional liability, executive and professional lines, transactional liability, surety, marine, travel, programs, accident and health, medical stop loss, homeowners, and multinational insurance. The actual and final terms of coverage for all product lines may vary. In the Asia Middle East region, it underwrites on the paper of Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance Company, which holds financial strength ratings of A++ from AM Best and AA+ from Standard & Poor’s. Based in Boston, Berkshire Hathaway Specialty Insurance has offices in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Indianapolis, Irvine, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco, San Ramon, Seattle, Stevens Point, Adelaide, Auckland, Brisbane, Brussels, Cologne, Dubai, Dublin, Frankfurt, Hong Kong, Kuala Lumpur, London, Lyon, Macau, Madrid, Manchester, Melbourne, Munich, Paris, Perth, Singapore, Switzerland, Sydney, Toronto, and Zurich. 

http://mrem.bernama.com/viewsm.php?idm=44472

Canva crosses 100 million mark in monthly active users

 

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 14 (Bernama) -- Global visual communications platform, Canva, has announced that its number of users has surged to more than 100 million people in 190 countries per month, following the recent launch of Canva’s Visual Worksuite.

The platform gained over 15 million additional monthly active users as teams, schools and workplaces embrace the ability to communicate visually on any device, from anywhere in the world.

“We are incredibly proud to mark this milestone moment on our mission to empower the whole world to design.

“Our continued growth demonstrates the huge demand for a collaborative, simple and all-in-one platform that empowers all kinds of teams in all kinds of workplaces to unlock their creativity and achieve their goals without complexity,” said Canva co-founder and chief executive officer, Melanie Perkins in a statement.

Canva’s sustained growth is a testament to the company becoming the visual communication platform of choice globally.

The ease of use, collaborative nature and breadth of Canva’s product suite has seen increased adoption across the globe, with workplace usage soaring across a wide variety of professions and industries.

This demand is evidenced by the more than 10,000 current jobs on LinkedIn listing Canva as a desired skill by companies, including American Express, Amazon, TikTok, LEGO and Google.

As the demand for visual communication in the workplace rises, Canva continues to be dedicated to building a full suite of visual communication products that power the modern workforce for the future of work across every industry.

-- BERNAMA

NATRON ENERGY UNVEILS BLUE RACK BATTERY CABINET FOR MISSION CRITICAL APPLICATIONS

KUALA LUMPUR, Oct 13 (Bernama) -- Natron Energy Inc has announced the launch of the Blue Rack battery cabinet, the world’s first sodium-ion battery cabinet designed for mission-critical applications such as data centres, peak power-shaving and other industrial power environments.

In a statement today, it said powered by Natron’s new Blue Pack battery, the battery cabinet is available in 250 kilowatt (kW) and 500kW configurations.

“This is the longest-lasting, highest-power and above all, safest battery available for these applications,” chief business officer Robert Rogan said.

He said the sodium-ion technology in the Blue Rack outperformed lithium-ion and lead acid in every critical metric, especially safety.

Natron Energy said the Blue Pack and Blue Rack battery cabinet was designed with features including a wide operating temperature range, twice as powerful as lithium-ion batteries and full recharge in 15 minutes or less.

It said Natron’s sodium-ion batteries are the safest industrial battery technology available and are non-flammable, even when penetrated by a nail or exposed to flame. 

“They suffer no damage or performance loss from short circuits or up to 35 per cent overvoltage overcharge,” it said.

Natron Energy manufactures sodium-ion battery products based on a unique Prussian blue electrode chemistry for a wide variety of industrial power applications.

-- BERNAMA

JUMIO WINS DOUBLE GOLD IN THE 10TH ANNUAL 2022 CEO WORLD AWARDS®

 

Jumio Wins Double Gold in the 10th Annual 2022 CEO World Awards® (Graphic: Business Wire)

Recognition further substantiates Jumio’s eminence in the cybersecurity and digital identity space

PALO ALTO, Calif., Oct 5 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- Jumio, the leading provider of orchestrated end-to-end identity proofing, eKYC and AML solutions, today announced that it was named a gold winner for “Company of the Year: Cyber Security Products” and “Company of the Year: Technology (All)” in the 10th annual 2022 CEO World Awards. This annual awards program recognizes individuals and teams who set industry benchmarks for excellence.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221004005175/en/

Jumio was honored for its KYX Platform, a unified identity verification, eKYC and AML platform that enables leading organizations to accurately establish, maintain and reassert customer trust from account opening to ongoing monitoring. The Jumio KYX Platform combines the power of AI, biometrics, machine learning, liveness detection and automation to help organizations fight fraud and financial crime, onboard good customers faster and meet regulatory compliance mandates.

“Establishing trust online has never been more critical and challenging for enterprises as face-to-face verification is no longer feasible. Organizations have been heavily relying on Jumio’s KYX Platform to remotely verify users and defend their operations from fraudulent transactions,” said Jumio CEO Robert Prigge. “This recognition further validates our mission to make the internet a safer place by providing a secure, comprehensive solution that helps enterprises confirm user identity, prevent fraud and safely onboard customers.”

http://mrem.bernama.com/viewsm.php?idm=44374

ELASTIC NAMES BARRIE SHEERS VICE PRESIDENT OF ASIA-PACIFIC AND JAPAN

Ex-Microsoft and EMC Executive Joins Elastic to Accelerate Business and Cloud Growth, and Expand Customer Relationships

SINGAPORE, Oct 6 (Bernama-BUSINESS WIRE) -- Elastic (NYSE: ESTC), the company behind Elasticsearch, today announced the appointment of Barrie Sheers as vice president, Asia-Pacific and Japan (APJ). Based in Singapore, Sheers will report directly to Elastic’s Chief Sales Officer, Michael Cremen.

This press release features multimedia. View the full release here: 
https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20221005005521/en/

 

Sheers will lead Elastic’s business strategy and operations in APJ and will be responsible for overall business growth, particularly strategic growth initiatives and long-term strategies to drive cloud hypergrowth, opportunities in new market segments, and increase customer lifetime value.

Sheers brings over 20 years of executive-level experience leading high-performing, customer-centric teams at some of the world’s largest cloud and enterprise technology companies. He joins Elastic from Microsoft, where he served as chief partner officer, APJ, responsible for building the partner ecosystem across Asia to improve sales performance.

Prior to this role, Sheers was Microsoft’s managing director for New Zealand. Sheers also held senior positions leading the APJ region at Dell Software Group, Quest Software, Sybase and EMC.

Supporting Quotes:

• “I'm thrilled to welcome Barrie to Elastic. He joins us at a significant time as we continue building market momentum and accelerate our cloud business,” said Michael Cremen, chief of global sales, Elastic. “Barrie’s deep expertise in the cloud market, coupled with his extensive experience in creating and executing go-to-market strategies in the APJ region, will position Elastic for accelerated growth and scale while helping our customers solve the problems that truly matter.”

• "It is an exciting time to join Elastic and leverage my cloud experience to strengthen existing and new customer relationships and accelerate the company’s ongoing momentum to its next phase of growth,” said Barrie Sheers, vice president, APJ, Elastic. “I look forward to empowering more organizations to accelerate the results that matter with the power of the Elastic Search Platform and our solutions for enterprise search, observability, and security.”

About Elastic:

Elastic (NYSE: ESTC) is a leading platform for search-powered solutions. We help organizations, their employees, and their customers accelerate the results that matter. With solutions in Enterprise Search, Observability, and Security, we enhance customer and employee search experiences, keep mission-critical applications running smoothly, and protect against cyber threats. Delivered wherever data lives, in one cloud, across multiple clouds, or on-premise, Elastic enables its customers to achieve new levels of success at scale and on a single platform. Learn more at elastic.co.

Forward-Looking Statements

Certain statements herein are forward-looking statements that are subject to risks and uncertainties, which include but are not limited to, statements regarding the appointment of Mr. Sheers as our Vice President, Asia-Pacific and Japan and his involvement in our growth and scaling strategies. Actual outcomes and results may differ materially from those contemplated by these forward-looking statements as a result of uncertainties, risks, and changes in circumstances, including but not limited to risks and uncertainties related to the future conduct and growth of Elastic’s business and the markets in which Elastic operates. Additional risks and uncertainties that could cause actual outcomes and results to differ materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking statements are included under the caption "Risk Factors" and elsewhere in our most recent filings with the SEC, including our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended April 30, 2022 and other subsequent reports filed with the SEC. SEC filings are available on the Investor Relations section of Elastic's website at ir.elastic.co and the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. Elastic assumes no obligation to, and does not currently intend to, update any such forward-looking statements after the date of this release, except as required by law.

Elastic and associated marks are trademarks or registered trademarks of Elastic N.V. and its subsidiaries. All other company and product names may be trademarks of their respective owners. 

http://mrem.bernama.com/viewsm.php?idm=44380

MADISON NEWBOND HOTEL LENDING PLATFORM ORIGINATES $20 MILLION LOAN FOR THE BALFOUR HOTEL IN MIAMI BEACH

NEW YORK, Oct 3 (Bernama-GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Madison Newbond, the institutional lending platform of Madison Realty Capital and Newbond Holdings that provides first mortgages, mezzanine loans and preferred equity to hotel owners and developers nationwide, today announced that it has provided a $20 million loan to FullG Capital’s equity sponsorship group for the acquisition of the Balfour Hotel Miami Beach (the “Balfour”), an independent boutique hotel located at 350 Ocean Drive in Miami Beach, Florida.

Located within Miami’s famed South Beach Art Deco District and situated less than one block from the beach, the Balfour contains 82 guestrooms across two towers, as well as an upscale restaurant and bar, an outdoor plunge pool, complimentary beach services, and approximately 1,300 square feet of rooftop terrace space. The hotel is managed by Driftwood Hospitality Management under a third-party hotel management agreement.

Josh Zegen, Managing Principal and Co-Founder of Madison Realty Capital, said, “Miami is no longer just a top destination for domestic and international leisure travel, but has rapidly become a growing hub for corporations and financial firms seeking to relocate their headquarters. We are pleased to provide a flexible financing solution to facilitate the acquisition of a superbly well-located hotel in one of the most liquid and dynamic hospitality markets in the country.”

Drew Coles, President of FullG Capital said, “Madison Realty Capital is a highly experienced lender in the Miami hospitality market with a reputation for certainty of execution. We are thrilled to leverage Madison Newbond’s attractive financing capabilities to complete the acquisition of the Balfour.”

http://mrem.bernama.com/viewsm.php?idm=44337