FT Connected Business

HR is increasing its use of data to ensure the business has the right staff, doing the right work, at the right time.

This week we examine the complex relationship between IT and the environment. We speak to Simon Wheeldon, chief executive of CloudApps, a British company that has developed a web-based application to allow employees to monitor the environmental impact of their actions. Rich Lechner, vice-president for energy and environment at IBM, looks at the case for using technology to make businesses greener. And John Pflueger, principal environmental strategist at Dell, explains how more efficient hardware is shifting the balance of IT's own carbon footprint from the power needed to run the equipment to the energy used to make it. Presented and produced by Stephen Pritchard

Sales and marketing specialists have never had better access to data, whether it is from loyalty programmes, databases or even social media. In this week's podcast, we speak to James Kaplan, of management consultants McKinsey, about how companies are finding "unfiltered customer sentiment" online, and how they can translate that into better decision making. We also look at a survey that suggests that retailers are cutting back their investments in IT, and look at how one company claims it can save businesses time, and money, by processing their invoices for them. Produced by Stephen Pritchard

02 03 11 In this week's podcast: Mobile World Congress might be over for another year, but there is no let up for the mobile industry. In the week that Apple is set to launch its next iPad, we hear how businesses are replacing both laptops and smartphones with tablets, and how enterprises can manage the costs of mobile working. We also hear how researchers are designing new ways for people in developing countries to access the Internet, even if they cannot read or write, and we look at a study that suggests that information security is increasingly important for companies' boards, even as other areas of IT spending is under pressure. Produced by Stephen Pritchard

This month sees the mobile phone industry come together for its annual congress in Barcelona, and the Connected Business podcast also focuses on mobility. We hear from Tasty Baking, a US company using mobile tools to make its field sales more efficient, and speak to industry analysts Yankee Group, about a technology that lets consumers download information, or pay for goods and services, with a wave of their phones. And we examine the worrying issue of mobile security. With thousands of smart phones lost or stolen each day, just how safe are business data? Produced by Stephen Pritchard

In this week’s podcast: how can businesses improve their supply chains, manage costs, and reduce their impact on the environment? Stephen Pritchard talks to Stephen Stokes, managing vice president at industry analysts Gartner, about the green agenda, and to Matt Harris, head of the supply chain at manufacturer JAE, about using IT to bring down the cost of logistics. Presented by Stephen Pritchard

Often companies spend too much time, effort and money pursuing the perfect IT systems. But for many tasks a system that is good enough, is good enough. Connected Business contributor Stephen Pritchard talks to Gary Clare of Bain and Company, about 'good enough' IT.

How has IT and mobility changed over the past decade? Who still needs to get connected? And how important are industry standards?

Do digital connections help the developing world out of poverty? Our experts discuss this controversial issue

Our experts argue over the impact of mobility on business, flexible working and work-life balance, and the issues it raises for HR and IT security departments

Three experts discuss what it means to be connected, the barriers to universal access to fast broadband, and the public sector's role in its delivery