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Online Auction, Cyber Risk and Data Workflow Platforms Win ISG Startup Challenges

Audiences at ISG events vote for tech startups that re-home industrial assets, match cyber training to user profiles and automate workflows

STAMFORD, Conn.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–
Innovative technology start-ups offering environmentally friendly equipment solutions and new approaches to cyber training and data workflows won ISG Startup Challenges at recent industry events hosted by Information Services Group (ISG) (Nasdaq: III), a leading global technology research and advisory firm.

CyberconIQ, a cyber risk management platform that customizes cyber awareness education to individual personality and risk styles, was selected the winner of the ISG Startup Challenge at the ISG SICE Summit, June 15 in Washington, D.C. The company bested DigitalEx, an AI-drive provider of cloud cost management solutions, and Datalogz, a data collaboration tool for data science and analytics teams.

“Participants in the ISG Startup Challenge were impressed by the unique approach cyberconIQ takes to incorporating human psychology into cybersecurity,” said Doug Glair, director, ISG Cybersecurity. “This SaaS-based solution identifies employees’ individual risk styles so clients can actively monitor, measure, model and manage people-related cyber risk.”

ISG last year formed a partnership with cyberconIQ to help ISG clients address the human dimensions of cybersecurity.

At the May 22 ISG TechXchange: Smart Manufacturing event in Chicago, audience members selected Aucto, a SaaS-enabled online auction marketplace, as the winner of the ISG Startup Challenge. The Aucto solution allows businesses to buy and sell under-utilized and surplus industrial equipment and machinery. Aucto pitched against Edge2Web, which provides tools and smart factory applications to improve operational performance and scale, and Metafyre, a plug-and-play model that leverages a distributed approach to build and manage multiple applications on a single platform.

“Enterprises struggle to deal with surplus equipment in an economy where they also want to be environmentally friendly,” said John Lytle, director, ISG Industrial Manufacturing and chair of the ISG TechXchange: Smart Manufacturing event. “Aucto presented a transformational strategy to eliminate manual processes and excess waste from supply chains. Their work has transformed the way businesses manage their industrial assets so they can achieve their environmental and green objectives.”

Dataworkz, a conversational data transformation platform that harnesses large language models to analyze customer data and allows users to automate their workflows by describing them in plain English, won the ISG Startup Challenge at the ISG Xperience Summit in San Francisco on May 15, competing against Datalogz and Pypestream, an AI-powered, hyper-personalized, self-service customer service platform.

“Overcoming the challenge of accessing and leveraging intelligent customer data is the key to truly enhancing customer experience,” said Sush Apshankar, practice lead, ISG Data Analytics and AI/ML and co-host of the ISG Xperience Summit. “Our audience was intrigued by the ability of the Dataworkz platform to accelerate time to insights from a fragmented enterprise data ecosystem without creating yet another data silo.”

ISG Startup Challenges feature the entrepreneurs behind innovative solutions who deliver pitches on how their technology will add the most value to business. Event judges question the presenters, and audience members vote for the technology they are more likely to implement within their own organizations.

For more information about the ISG Startup Challenge, visit the ISG Events website.

About ISG

ISG (Information Services Group) (Nasdaq: III) is a leading global technology research and advisory firm. A trusted business partner to more than 900 clients, including more than 75 of the world’s top 100 enterprises, ISG is committed to helping corporations, public sector organizations, and service and technology providers achieve operational excellence and faster growth. The firm specializes in digital transformation services, including automation, cloud and data analytics; sourcing advisory; managed governance and risk services; network carrier services; strategy and operations design; change management; market intelligence and technology research and analysis. Founded in 2006, and based in Stamford, Conn., ISG employs more than 1,600 digital-ready professionals operating in more than 20 countries—a global team known for its innovative thinking, market influence, deep industry and technology expertise, and world-class research and analytical capabilities based on the industry’s most comprehensive marketplace data. For more information, visit www.isg-one.com.

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230725520534/en/

Press:

Will Thoretz, ISG

+1 203-517-3119

[email protected]

Julianna Sheridan, Matter Communications for ISG

+1 978-518-4520

[email protected]

KEYWORDS: United States North America Connecticut

INDUSTRY KEYWORDS: Software Networks Internet Consulting Data Management Professional Services Technology Security

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UnitedHealthcare Donates $1 Million To Six Nonprofit Organizations in Washington

Funding is part of UnitedHealthcare’s $11.1 million in Empowering Health grants focused on expanding access to care and addressing social determinants of health for people in underserved communities

SEATTLE–(BUSINESS WIRE)–
UnitedHealthcare, a UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH) company, is awarding $1 million in Empowering Health grants to six community-based organizations in Washington to expand access to care and address social determinants of health for uninsured individuals and underserved communities.

In total, UnitedHealthcare is donating more than $11.1 million in grants through its Empowering Health program across 12 states. The grants will assist people experiencing challenges such as food access and nutrition, social isolation, and behavioral health issues, and support local health education efforts.

Grant recipients in Washington include:

• Food Lifeline, western Washington – $300,000 to expand the availability of nutritious and culturally relevant foods through food access specialists in key neighborhoods, and build capacity of food partner agencies in diverse communities.
• Consejo Counseling and Referral Service, Pierce County – $200,000 to add culturally relevant wellness programming supporting all aspects of mental and physical well-being for youth, adults and families.
• Chinese Information and Service Center, Renton – $180,000 to expand culturally relevant programming for immigrants, older adults, parents and families through support groups, community events and virtual offerings to reduce social isolation and promote community building.
• Volunteers of America Eastern Washington – $150,000 to support behavioral health programming and case management for individuals experiencing homelessness or living in transitional housing or permanent supportive housing.
• Step By Step, King, Snohomish and Pierce counties – $100,000 to expand perinatal mental health and maternity support services and improve maternal health outcomes through home visitation.
• National Alliance on Mental Illness Spokane – $70,000 to support the Ending the Silence program by increasing outreach to diverse communities, including youth organizations, schools and more, to increase conversations about youth mental health and ways to access support.

“UnitedHealthcare is honored to support the important work these local organizations are doing to provide greater access to services for underserved communities in Washington,” said Keith Payet, CEO, UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Washington. “Social and economic factors continue to have a significant impact on achieving and maintaining good health. These grants enable us to work closely with our community partners and to be there for what matters in addressing social determinants of health for their residents.”

According to the American Journal of Preventive Medicine, approximately 80% of what influences a person’s health relates to nonmedical issues, such as food, housing, transportation and the financial means to pay for basic daily needs.

Identifying and addressing social determinants of health needs is a core aspect of how UnitedHealthcare serves its members. Last year, UnitedHealthcare screened 4.9 million members, made 2.4 million referrals to community resources, and ultimately closed the loop and confirmed that 84% of members had at least one of their social needs met.

Since launching its Empowering Health commitment in 2018, UnitedHealthcare has now invested more than $62 million in Empowering Health grants, reaching nearly 11 million people through partnerships with community-based organizations in 30 states and the District of Columbia.

UnitedHealth Group, including UnitedHealthcare and Optum, and its affiliated companies, is dedicated to advancing health equity and building healthier communities by supporting programs to improve access to care and address key determinants of health. In Washington, this includes more than $9.8 million in contributions over the last three years representing its businesses, foundations and employees, including a $3.3 million grant in 2021 to the North Olympic Healthcare Network to improve behavioral health care on the Olympic Peninsula.

Additionally, UnitedHealth Group has invested more than $800 million in affordable housing communities since 2011, partnered with food banks and meal-delivery services, and in 2019 joined with the American Medical Association to standardize how social determinants of health data is collected and used to create more holistic care plans. In June 2022, the United Health Foundation, the philanthropic foundation of UnitedHealth Group, made a $100 million commitment over 10 years to advance health equity, furthering its efforts to eliminate health disparities. This was the largest single philanthropic commitment ever made by the United Health Foundation.

About UnitedHealthcare

UnitedHealthcare is dedicated to helping people live healthier lives and making the health system work better for everyone by simplifying the health care experience, meeting consumer health and wellness needs, and sustaining trusted relationships with care providers. In the United States, UnitedHealthcare offers the full spectrum of health benefit programs for individuals, employers, and Medicare and Medicaid beneficiaries, and contracts directly with more than 1.6 million physicians and care professionals, and 8,000 hospitals and other care facilities nationwide. The company also provides health benefits and delivers care to people through owned and operated health care facilities in South America. UnitedHealthcare is one of the businesses of UnitedHealth Group (NYSE: UNH), a diversified health care company. For more information, visit UnitedHealthcare at www.uhc.com or follow @UHC on Twitter.

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Tony Marusic

UnitedHealthcare

312-348-3825

[email protected]

KEYWORDS: United States North America Washington

INDUSTRY KEYWORDS: Insurance Professional Services Health Insurance Philanthropy Other Health Managed Care Health General Health Other Philanthropy

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Posted on July 25, 2023 1:01 pm

Class Action Lawsuit Filed on Behalf of Sea Limited (SE) Investors – Nationally Ranked Investors’ Rights Firm Holzer & Holzer, LLC Encourages Investors With Significant Losses to Contact the Firm

ATLANTA, July 25, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Holzer & Holzer, LLC informs investors that a class action lawsuit has been filed against Sea Limited (“Sea” or the “Company”) (NYSE: SE). The lawsuit alleges Sea made materially false and/or misleading statements and/or failed to disclose material adverse facts about the Company’s business, operations, and prospects, including: (i) Sea overstated its ability to manage the growth of its user base and loan book while enhancing its profitability; (ii) Sea’s expansion to a broader user base and growing loan book rendered the Company significantly more vulnerable to higher credit losses; (iii) as a result, the Company was likely to book a significant increase in loan loss reserves; and (iv) the foregoing was likely to have a significant negative impact on Sea’s earnings.

If you bought shares of Sea between April 23, 2022 and May 15, 2023, and you suffered a significant loss on that investment, you are encouraged to discuss your legal rights by contacting Corey Holzer, Esq. [email protected] or Joshua Karr, Esq. at [email protected], by toll-free telephone at (888) 508-6832 or you may visit the firm’s website https://holzerlaw.com/case/sea-limited/ to learn more.

The deadline to ask the court to be appointed lead plaintiff in the case is September 19, 2023.

Holzer & Holzer, LLC, an ISS top rated securities litigation law firm for 2021 and 2022, dedicates its practice to vigorous representation of shareholders and investors in litigation nationwide, including shareholder class action and derivative litigation. Since its founding in 2000, Holzer & Holzer attorneys have played critical roles in recovering hundreds of millions of dollars for shareholders victimized by fraud and other corporate misconduct. More information about the firm is available through its website, www.holzerlaw.com, and upon request from the firm. Holzer & Holzer, LLC has paid for the dissemination of this promotional communication, and Corey Holzer is the attorney responsible for its content.  

CONTACT:
Corey Holzer, Esq.
(888) 508-6832 (toll-free)
[email protected]

Posted on July 25, 2023 12:59 pm

BlackRock: Workers Want More Resilient 401(k) Plans, Expert Advice from Employers

BlackRock: Workers Want More Resilient 401(k) Plans, Expert Advice from Employers

• Workplace savers who feel off-track to retire have more than doubled since 2021, reaching a survey record.
• As volatility increases, 90% of workers demand retirement income
• Most Gen Z respondents (71%) want help managing their 401(k), and seek advice from employers more than any other generation
• Baby Boomers are most likely to delay retirement (36%)

NEW YORK–(BUSINESS WIRE)–
Only about half of Americans (56%) report they feel “on track” for retirement, according to the eighth annualBlackRock Read on Retirement™ report.The results show an11% drop in confidence compared to 2022, with the top key stressors cited as market volatility (93%), inflation (86%) and worries about outliving savings (71%).

Additionally, while workers are still contributing to retirement plans at similar rates from 2022, nearly 30% are planning to delay retirement, driven mostly by market volatility concerns, and 62% report that inflation and volatility-related hardships have set them back with saving for retirement – compared with 42% from 2022.

Anne Ackerley, Head of Retirement at BlackRock, said: “While the drop in confidence we’re seeing hasn’t translated to a decrease in saving rate yet, this moment matters. There’s an opportunity to shore up retirement confidence and help workers navigate an uncertain environment ahead. American workers – particularly, Gen Z, are asking for help to plan for their future. It’s our responsibility as an industry to provide them the solutions and tools they need to build more resilient retirement plans.”

Key Findings:

Retirement income could provide greater certainty, peace of mind

According to the findings, the top three things workplace savers want to know are: what their nest egg will be, how much they can spend each year in retirement, and how long their savings will last. Currently, only 21% of workers are very confident they will have enough money to last through retirement. Yet, 71% said they would save more now if their plan had an option to provide guaranteed income in retirement – and nearly 90% of workplace savers say having access to guaranteed income would positively impact their well-being.

Additionally, 98% of employers feel responsible for helping their savers generate income, but most don’t feel highly confident that their plan can. In fact, while 61% of employers in 2020 were highly confident that their plan enabled savers to know how much of their balance can be spent each year in retirement, today only 37% of employers are.

Adapting to a new market regime

From plan design to investments, employers have many levers to pull to help savers navigate this environment. This year’s report points to a growing interest in active management as a key part of the solution. 41% of workplace savers surveyed weren’t initially familiar with active investing strategies, but 79% would be interested in using an actively managed fund after learning more. Plan sponsors are equally bullish. Most (72%) believe that active managers can consistently outperform the market.

Leveraging the power of automation

Convenience and access to professional management are driving interest in aged-based strategies like target date funds, which are now the most common default investment option for 401(k) plans. However, while they still only account for about a third of 401(k) plan assets, this year’s survey finds that saver demand for target date funds is high. 71% of savers say that it would be helpful for their employer to automatically reallocate their assets to more appropriate investments for someone their age, up from 65% in 2019. Additionally, 82% of workplace savers not aware of target dates would be interested in using one within their retirement plan. Of those already invested, the most common reason cited was access to professional management (35%).

A need for guidance and education

Greater uncertainty is resulting in savers turning to trusted sources and advisors to help manage their retirement investments. Gen Z is most likely to rely on an employer for help with how much to save and in what way. 71% said they don’t understand enough about the investments in their plan to be confident in managing it themselves, compared to roughly half in other generations. They are also the most likely cohort to seek out a financial advisor through their employer.

Advisors are the most trusted source of advice on retirement spending, and 45% of workplace savers use a financial advisor for retirement planning, the report shows, with almost 30% of those that feel on track for retirement saying that access to an advisor is a reason why. Close to half report finding these advisors through their employer.

About The BlackRock Read on Retirement

The BlackRock Read on Retirement™ report provides insights from a research study of over 450 large defined contribution plan sponsors, 1,300 workplace retirement plan savers, 1,300 independent savers and 300 retired workplace savers in the United States. The survey is executed by Escalent, an independent research company. Plan sponsors were interviewed using an online survey conducted between March 21 and April 6, 2023, while all other respondents were reached between April 24 and May 24, 2023.

About BlackRock

BlackRock’s purpose is to help more and more people experience financial well-being. As a fiduciary to investors and a leading provider of financial technology, we help millions of people build savings that serve them throughout their lives by making investing easier and more affordable. For additional information on BlackRock, please visit www.blackrock.com/corporate | Twitter: @blackrock | LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/blackrock

View source version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20230724548114/en/

Thomasin Bentley

[email protected]

646-231-1769

Kristen Rivera

[email protected]

646-231-8352

Catherine Sperl

[email protected]

646-951-1599

KEYWORDS: New York United States North America

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