Business of Tech
Alignment, staffing and culture are often more critical than software and apps
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September 28, 2007
Wal-Mart Leaves Customers Hanging on the Phone
I am not the world's most tech-savvy user, as our IT guys here at IT Business Edge can attest. My shopping skills, both off- and online, are pretty well-honed, however. And I generally embrace self-s... More >
September 27, 2007
Social Networks: The Few vs. the Many
In the future, will everyone have their own social network? While this sounds far-fetched, the trend arrow currently appears to be pointing toward a profileration of social networks rather than a few... More >
September 26, 2007
Network World Survey: Job Satisfaction Not Rising as Fast as Salaries
While a recent salary survey by Network World seems to offer some good news for IT pros -- raises outpacing the rate of inflation and handsome bonuses -- it may not be enough. Survey respondents ap... More >
Oracle's Ellison Knocks (not Softly) the SaaS Model
We aren't quite sure what to make of comments made by Oracle CEO Larry Ellison during its recent earnings call. The company made moves earlier this year to woo resellers to sell its products... More >
September 25, 2007
Self-Service Shouldn't Make Customers Feel Cheap
Earlier this year, we blogged about retailers' efforts to boost their online sales by blurring the line between customers' virtual and bricks-and-mortar experiences. Even sites like eBay, which hav... More >
September 24, 2007
Can 'Geek Chic' Help Reverse IT Staffing Shortage?
Many folks in the technology industry have the same low opinion of CNN commentator Lou Dobbs as Dobbs has of offshoring. In a MercuryNews.com article, Phil Bond, president and CEO of the I... More >
Generational Technology Gap Not All That Wide, Microsoft Survey Finds
A survey of Canadian SMBs, conducted by Ipsos Reid for Microsoft, like a similar survey conducted in the United States, found that younger folks are generally quicker to adopt technology than older... More >
September 21, 2007
Indian Workers Find Prosperity Can Bring Some Pain
India's outsourcing industry has improved the financial status of its workers -- so much so that research firm Technology Forecasters predicts a steep rise in spending on consumer goods like TVs an... More >
Give BI Users What They Want -- Within Reason
The predicted strong growth in spending on business intelligence is at least partly attributable to companies' desire to take BI out of the hands of specialists and get tools to workers down the fo... More >
September 20, 2007
Fan Dance Continues with SAP's New SaaS Offering
We hesitate to call the buildup to SAP's new software-as-a-service product a big tease -- even though that's what it started to seem like to us, and probably some other folks as well. The hy... More >
Offshoring Key Part of Strategy for InformationWeek 500 Execs
Based on interviews with tech executives at the top 11 companies in this year's edition of the annual InformationWeek 500 , there is little doubt of the tremendous impact that offshore outsourcing i... More >
Customer Focus Is Key Takeaway from This Year's InformationWeek 500
We like the annual InformationWeek 500 , for its sheer breadth and depth of coverage and because it rarely fails to offer interesting ideas from leading-edge tech adopters that can work for many com... More >
September 19, 2007
Don't 'Dumb Down' Workers' Tasks Too Much, Warn Researchers
In order to drive efficiency, many companies utilize automation and other features to simplify tasks for their workers. Yet this may be the wrong approach , warns an assistant professor of managemen... More >
September 18, 2007
SMBs Should Play up Strengths to Win Employees
We blogged recently about how SMBs are being hit especially hard by a shortage of prospective employees with sought-after skills . That blog left us a bit disheartened, so we were pleased to ... More >
Facebook Fuels Developer Interest with Funds
We've blogged before about Facebook's platform aspirations , a goal seemingly advanced by its purchase of Parakey, a Web-based operating system created by two co-founders of Firefox. Facebook... More >
September 17, 2007
Indian Outsourcers Moving into Mexico
In the post-NAFTA world, Mexico has pitched itself to American companies and business associations as a logical outsourcing alternative to more distant locations like India and China, stressing its... More >
HP Cuts Through Blade Clutter with Single-Box Approach for SMBs
Blade servers have been widely perceived as an enterprise play, with their appeal to big companies trying to maximize expensive data center real estate. But now HP is introducing an all-in-on... More >
September 14, 2007
Pictures Worth More than Words for IT/Business Communication
Our own Ken Hardin recently blogged about using software-driven visual aids like Visio to illustrate business processes. He employs an ancient copy of Macromedia FreeHand to create "low-rent descri... More >
Google Apps: Every Entrepreneur's Dream?
Like a lot of other folks, we think it remains to be seen whether a new partnership with Capgemini will awaken more interest in Google Apps among large enterprises. There are plenty of doubters, in... More >
This Office Is Too Uptight, This One Too Lonely, Co-working Is Just Right
Companies have long used what I call the "Goldilocks principle" to move product. Say, for instance, I want a snack -- something a little worse (less healthy) than a piece of fruit or a rice cake, but... More >
September 13, 2007
EDS Shrinking U.S. Workforce
For some time now, India has been a compelling locale for companies seeking to capitalize on its low labor costs -- and that includes the Big Six outsourcing firms. We've blogged before about ... More >
Staff Shortages Especially Hard on SMBs
In today's tight labor market, finding skilled employees must be especially tough for big companies since they have lots of positions to fill, right? Several experts interviewed in a Seattle ... More >
Effectiveness Trumps Alignment, Finds Bain & Company
CIOs worry a lot about aligning IT and business goals -- maybe too much , according to recent research from Bain & Company. A lack of IT/business alignment topped the list of worries for... More >
September 12, 2007
H-1B Issue Gets Another Hearing in the House
One of the bills addressing the H-1B visa program, introduced earlier this year, will get a new hearing in the U.S. House of Representatives today, reports Computerworld . The STRIVE (Secur... More >
Online Data Backup Has Inherent Appeal for SMBs
Turns out we exposed only the tip of what looks to be a pretty substantial iceberg in our previous blog about the growing array of online data backup options for SMBs. Online backup has inhe... More >
Will Partners Enhance or Erode Google's Appeal?
As with any news emanating from the Googleplex, this week's announcement of a partnership between the search giant and outsourcing advisory/services firm Capgemini set computer keys a-clacking in t... More >
September 11, 2007
DHS Learns the Hard Way: Alienate Users at IT's Risk
Some folks no doubt see the Department of Homeland Security's recent decision to scrap a $42 million data-mining initiative as just another milestone in the federal government's pretty woeful record... More >
September 10, 2007
Product Recalls Put Renewed Focus on Quality Control
The flurry of product recalls that have occurred over the past several months is certainly scary -- but we'd wager that few folks can honestly say they find them surprising. In a stark illustr... More >
Keeping It Simple Should Win Apple Some SMB Love
SMBs generally like to keep their IT as simple as possible. Simplicity is something not easily offered by Microsoft and other big software vendors. And this could create a real market opening for App... More >
September 7, 2007
Is the CIO Still in the Strategy Picture?
We can't help it; we worry about inciting needless angst among CIOs. That was the case when we blogged about the decisions of some companies and government agencies to eliminate CIO roles and again... More >
Virtualization Isn't Just for Big Business
Because of their generally more homogeneous data infrastructures, x86 served-based virtualization may be an even more compelling play for SMBs than it is for their big-business brethren. An ... More >
September 6, 2007
GM Drives Effort to Develop Outsourcing Standards
Can General Motors create a set of best practices for outsourcing, a business sector that has to date appeared largely impervious to standardization? It's been about six months since we last w... More >
September 5, 2007
Leaving IT out of the SaaS Loop
When we've blogged before about "rogues," we've generally been referring to individual employees who bring favorite consumer technologies with them from home to the office. A more interesting pheno... More >
September 4, 2007
More iSCSI Storage Options for SMBs
When IT Business Edge blogger Art Cole wrote about vendors' increasing attention to the SMB storage market back in January, he spotlighted IBM's DS3000 Series and noted that "about all that's missi... More >
Indian Firms Must Look Beyond 'Currency Subsidy'
We've blogged before about the adverse impact of currency valuations on the profits of Indian outsourcing firms. Several of them, including Infosys and Wipro , noted the effects of a strengthening... More >
