The escalating terror attacks that are gripping the world will dramatically change the technology landscape in the coming year. As the threats of more deadly attacks on innocent people become more pervasive, people’s attitudes and public policies toward technology will fundamentally change.

Whether we like it or not, technology has become a tool of today’s rapidly growing terrorist groups. They recruit new members, showcase their latest atrocities and promote their causes via social media. They use encryption to hide their plans and coordinate their attacks. And they are becoming more adept at not only hacking government and corporate databases for political purposes but also getting closer to gaining access to power plants, manufacturing operations and other key components of the “grid.”

As a consequence of these intensifying threats, there will be a groundswell of demands in 2016 for new technology policies, products … Read More »

Everyone is talking about the ‘Internet of Things’ (IoT), but few organizations are getting very far in capitalizing on the exciting new market opportunities created by IoT because they lack a designated executive leader responsible for spearheading their IoT initiatives. Capitalizing on current and future IoT opportunities depends on pulling together numerous technological components and assembling them to achieve a number of corporate objectives. This is a significant undertaking. It can require a technological supply-chain extending from remotely deployed sensors; numerous mobile, desktop and enterprise software applications; a variety of databases; and multiple cloud services.

Click here to read THINKstrategies’ views in Datamation about why enterprises should establish a new Chief IoT Officer position to lead their efforts in this rapidly growing marketplace.

Only a small number of forward-thinking business executives see the opportunities created by the cloud in today’s Internet of Things (IoT) marketplace. However, in the not too distant future, delivering information services powered by connected products and enabled by the cloud will become a necessity to survive in nearly every industry, as customer demands for data-driven insights escalate.

Click here to read THINKstrategies’ views in E-Commerce Times about how enlightened companies can transform their businesses by capitalizing on the Cloud to leverage Big Data in an increasingly connected world.

I would like to make you aware of a special Oracle event series that I am keynoting in January and February geared towards senior executives at Independent Software Vendors (ISVs) and application providers interested in gaining a competitive advantage in the rapidly evolving Cloud marketplace.

As you’re well aware, the Cloud is changing the way software companies do business. It’s not only the new paradigm for computing, it is also the new platform for software development, innovation and delivery.

Oracle offers a broad portfolio of products and services for companies transitioning to the cloud – including a new set of recently announced Oracle Cloud Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS) and Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) offerings. I’m pleased to be participating in an eight-city, Oracle ‘roadshow’ designed specifically for ISVs, OEMs and Software Resellers interested in learning how they can leverage Oracle’s Cloud solutions to achieve … Read More »

Last month, I had the privilege of moderating a panel that discussed how Data is taking over the business world and participated in an Analysts Roundup regarding the Cloud opportunities and challenges ahead. You can check out these video recordings of these sessions below.

Data: Taking Over the Business World

Analysts Roundup – Your Opportunities Ahead

It seems like everywhere you look there is a natural or man-made disaster in the news. These events not only cause human tragedy, but can also be fatal to many businesses. A growing number of enlightened corporate executives and IT professionals are starting to recognize that Cloud-based Recovery-as-a-Service (RaaS) alternatives are perfectly suited to mitigate the business risks associated with these events.

While there is plenty of debate about what is causing the increase in the number of hurricanes, tornados, floods, fires and other natural disasters, there is no argument about the fact that they are becoming more common. And, the consequence to businesses caught in these disasters can be severe. Ever since Hurricane Katrina, I’ve been talking to CIOs about how this type of life-changing event also changes their view of the ‘Cloud’. Click here to read THINKstrategies’ perspective about … Read More »

Even as enterprise adoption of cloud-based alternatives accelerates, IT and business executives are learning that fully capitalizing on these new ‘on-demand’ resources entails extensive systems integration, staff training and process reengineering. Despite these obstacles, my travels have confirmed that enterprises of all sizes across nearly every industry are moving quickly to take advantage of cloud services to achieve their corporate objectives. Read my views in Datamation about how these enterprises are expecting their Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) deployments to entail a long, multi-stage process that will produce significant business benefits beyond simply reducing operating costs.

When the success of Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) solutions sparked broader interest in a wider array of cloud computing alternatives a few years ago, many industry analysts predicted that this trend would lead to the “disintermediation” of the channel as software and system vendors gained unprecedented direct access to end customers via their on-demand services. Instead, escalating demand for cloud alternatives is fueling even greater market opportunities for systems integrators and other service-oriented channel companies and is threatening to commoditize and usurp the market power of some of the largest software and technology vendors. Click here to read THINKstrategies’ views about the industry implications of this shift in power in Sandhill.com.

I’ve just returned from my third visit to Dublin where once again I participated in another terrific event hosted by Enterprise Ireland aimed at helping local software companies, both incumbent software vendors (ISVs) and Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) companies, capitalize on the rapidly evolving Cloud Computing market.

My prior visits to Dublin were to help Enterprise Ireland organize and host full-day symposiums regarding SaaS opportunities in 2006-2007. The specific focus of this week’s half-day workshop was Cloud Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). The event attracted 105 CXOs from a wide array of Irish ISVs and SaaS companies.

I was joined at the workshop by Evanegelos Simoudis, Senior Managing Director, Trident Capital, LinkedIN Profile, who provided metrics of breakout Cloud/SaaS companies; Brian Caulfield, Partner, DFJ Esprit, LinkedIN Profile, who discussed the investors’ perspective re: key considerations and criteria for investing in Cloud companies; and Fergus Gloster, Managing Director EMEA, Marketo, LinkedIn Profile, … Read More »

One of the biggest dilemmas facing cloud vendors is how to penetrate mainstream small and midsize businesses (SMBs). Selling to SMBs has never been easy and historically it’s been a task delegated to tech channel partners. However, the cloud business model has created a new set of challenges regarding this age-old dilemma that have raised questions about whether traditional channel companies can meet today’s demands.

So, why are mainstream SMBs slow to move to the cloud? Click here to read THINKstrategies’ views in Sandhill.com.