Exclusive Interview: Francois Bourdoncle, Dassault Exalead
January 4, 2011
Before the New Year break, I interviewed François Bourdoncle, who is the co-founder and Chief Strategist of Exalead, a global leader of information access software for businesses and the Web. You can see the complete interview on Vimeo.
François Bourdoncle, Chief Strategist of Dassault Exalead
As you may know, Dassault Systèmes acquired Exalead in June 2010. In my analyses of search and content processing systems, Exalead has scored at the top of the league table I maintain for many years. Since I first tested the firm’s technology in 2003, Exalead has moved up the league table as other vendors stalled or drifted downwards. Not Exalead, however.
I have been invited to Exalead several times to explain my views about Exalead’s search-based applications approach and my particular method of analyzing content processing. In late 2010, I was able to interview François Bourdoncle after my presentation.
This interview provides insight into how Mr. Bourdoncle’s passion for understanding Internet technologies, and search technologies in particular, can be used as the foundation of next-generation business applications that are faster to develop, less expensive to deploy and operate, and more intuitive to use.
Exalead, asserted Mr. Bourdoncle, takes a platform approach. The platform angle is one key to Exalead’s success. Most vendors repackage traditional key word methods. Exalead has an infrastructure approach which has some characteristics of mainstream database vendors. Exalead supports cloud methods, delivers a holistic view of digital information, and provides a new way of performing many enterprise tasks, including business intelligence, customer support, and finding the item of information necessary to close a deal.
In the interview Mr. Bourdoncle said:
Key word search does not work…. The question is now how do we help people find the what they want.
I asked Mr. Bourdoncle about the benefits of joining the Dassault organization. He emphasized, “Visibility and the company as a whole.”
The interview runs about eight minutes, and you can access it at this link. For 2011, my suggestion is that organizations wanting to improve such diverse information functions as customer support to business intelligence, check out Exalead. You can also read the Search Wizards Speak interview with Mr. Bourdoncle at this link. If you have not added Exalead’s excellent Web search function to your bookmarks, navigate to http://www.exalead.com/search/. I use this service as my primary Web search system because the results are not distorted by ad-driven hit boosting.
Stephen E Arnold, January 4, 2011
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