Andreessen Predicts Trouble for Traditional Workers
February 8, 2013
Venture capitalist Marc Andreessen has some strong, educated opinions about the ups and downs of technology-related businesses and where the industry is headed. TechCrunch shares an interview with the professional prognosticator in, “Marc Andreessen on the Future of Enterprise.”
Journalist Alexia Tsotsis spoke to Andreessen for her piece, “The Enterprise Cool Kids” (also at TechCrunch), but thought the interview insightful enough to share in its entirety. The piece retains the casual, conversational tone of their chat.
The two cover a lot of ground: an industry focus that continually swings between enterprise and consumer markets; a decrease in hardware investments in favor of a shift to the cloud; the nimbleness of new businesses run by millennials compared to the comparatively bogged-down state of larger companies. The piece as a whole is a valuable read.
What caught our eye most, though, was Andreessen’s predictions for the worker bees among us. He states:
“It feels a lot like in the new economy you will have a lot more contractors. You will have a lot more people with sort of fluid careers contracting on a project basis, and then all this technology is going to be an enabling layer for that. . . .
“For some people it feels great to never be tied to a specific employer and to always be doing contract work and be changing jobs every two years, and it feels like it’s fun and exciting and exhilarating. For a lot of people that’s really scary. And so the lifetime employment promise that the big companies used to be able to make was very compelling for a lot of people because it felt safe.
“So now you are in a world where the big companies can’t deliver — even if they wanted to deliver on lifetime employment, they can’t.”
You have been warned.
Cynthia Murrell, February 08, 2013
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
How to Gain the Maximum Value Out of Big Data
February 5, 2013
From the Harvard Business Review comes an article that outlines the results of an interesting survey conducted by NewVantage Partners on how businesses plan to achieve value from big data and the technological solutions that tap into it. In the article, “Getting the Maximum Value Out of Your Big Data Initiative both statistics from the study are shared in addition to next steps for organizations looking to employ big data.
As many as 85% of participating companies answered that that either have big data initiatives in the works or currently underway in order to improve business practices and increase efficiency.
The article states:
In order to achieve this goal, many of the firms interviewed have established a new business metric for measuring the value of their Big Data initiatives — Time-to-Answer (TTA). TTA reflects the speed by which executives can answer critical business questions and has become a common measure on Wall Street and among other leading firms. The Pentagon has established an equivalent metric known as Data-to-Decision, which is dramatized in the analyses conducted by the intelligence community in the Academy Award–nominated film Zero Dark Thirty.
These organizations developing metrics for evaluating ROI such as TTA are a few steps ahead of others. These such organizations were most likely the early adopters of key technology components such as PolySpot. Their solutions enable connectivity between data across the enterprise.
Megan Feil, February 5, 2013
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Beyond Search.
Business Users and IT Pros View Things Differently
January 31, 2013
No wonder there are clashes between users and their enterprise systems. Network Computing ‘s “IT Perceptions, End User Realities” examines a recent report from InformationWeek that revealed a bit of a schism between IT pros and, well, everyone else. In the perception study, end users and IT personnel expressed divergent views on IT’s role and how well its members have been performing.
The study (available here, free with registration) asked survey takers IT-related questions, and broke answers down into those of IT and non-IT professionals. While 60 percent of the techies saw IT as integral to their organization, only 43 percent of the rest agreed. And though only 34 percent of the IT folks saw their department as “not especially innovative,” 42 percent of other respondents held that disparaging view. The survey also found that only half of business users were at all satisfied (“moderately,” “very,” or “completely”) with the performance of their IT divisions, and 20 percent reported being not satisfied at all.
Having dipped a toe in the IT field, I can sympathize. Hardware and software and, especially, the intersection of the two often fail to perform as expected even for the most seasoned technician. The challenge of tracking down a problem within an eclectic system is a process only those who have closely observed it can begin to appreciate. On top of that, IT is one of those jobs where people tend not to notice your work until something goes wrong. Still, IT pros used to get more respect. What changed? Writer Kevin Fogarty suggests:
“In the past, IT held the technology trump card. If the marketing department asked for a new application and IT said no, there was no chance a rouge team was going to sneak into the data center, rack a server, run the cables and fire up the software. Now those who chafe under restrictions from find themselves with easy, relatively inexpensive access to applications and services online. . . .
“Unfortunately for IT, this state of affairs enforces the notion that hot new technology comes from outside the company, while IT faithfully keeps the old, busted stuff alive inside the company. It’s an attitude that the technologists theoretically responsible for moving the company into the future are, in fact, anchoring it in the past.”
So now, IT departments must find new and exciting ways to justify their existence while simultaneously maintaining finicky legacy systems. Many, I would add, must do this with staffs that have been gutted over the last few years.
There is one hopeful point for IT in the report: 59 percent of the non-IT personnel think internal IT will become more important over the next two years. Maybe they don’t like the IT department very much, but at least they know they still need it. At least a little bit.
Cynthia Murrell, January 31, 2013
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
HP Autonomy Problem Larger than Accounting Snafus?
January 11, 2013
Nigel Cannings at The Global Legal Post believes HP has a more crucial Autonomy-related problem than one of financial analysis, we learn from his article, “HP and Autonomy—Lacking the Innovation Sauce.” Cannings asserts that HP’s real issue is one of squashing the potential of the company it just purchased. He writes:
“My father is a 45-year veteran of the software industry and a serial entrepreneur. His last business was acquired for a substantial sum by a North American company, so he was speaking from experience when he commented: ‘When will these large corporations learn the three golden rules of acquiring an entrepreneurial company? First, work out what it was that made it so successful and bottle it. Second, tie in the technical and marketing resources that achieved that success. Third, allow the founders to do what they do best — don’t try to reinvent them.’
“HP has ignored these rules.”
Cannings argues that had HP stayed out of the way of Autonomy’s Mike Lynch and his team, the investment would have paid off handsomely. Instead, not only did the tech titan level their startling accounting charges, they are focused on the wrong aspect of their asset. While HP seems intent on pursuing the voice retrieval technology, they would do better, he says, to go after co-processer—fueled supercomputers. This, he insists, is the path to maximize profit from the Autonomy buy. Navigate to the article to see how he makes his case.
Cannings also says that this failure is a symptom of HP’s larger lack of innovation. Specifically, he charges, the company lacks the drive to re-innovate frequently, a quality that helped propel companies like Oracle, Apple, Microsoft, and IBM to the heights of success. Is HP on the road to mediocrity?
Cynthia Murrell, January 11, 2013
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
Companies Striving for Success Choose Proven Enterprise Search Software Providers
December 25, 2012
The days of limited mobile app options came to an end a few years ago with the increased popularity of BYOD (bring your own device) work options. A growing demand for products to simplify work processes brought about phenomenal improvements on tablets and mobile devices. In turn, the enterprise app market skyrocketed, not in price but in product offerings. Companies looking to invest in the most beneficial applications for their business will want to weigh their options carefully.
Enterprise Apps Today’s article “Choosing the Right Enterprise Apps for your Business” touches on the importance of all around support when filtering through application options:
“Today, a hefty proportion of cutting-edge applications can be found on cloud platforms in the form of SaaS (software-as-a-service). While a quick glance at the website of an enterprise software offering will tell a great deal about the maturity of a project, it is hardly the entire story. For the huge investment of time and money that a business expects to make in an enterprise software deployment, it’s important to first ensure that a supporting ecosystem is in place.”
The article offers good advice and guidance on choosing the best applications, but companies striving for success will choose a proven enterprise search software provider. Intrafind offers guidance on strategy, applications and use of enterprise search software that can help businesses make the most of their investment. Financial firms and pharmaceutical industry leaders are just a few examples of the types of enterprise that rely on Intrafind’s capabilities.
Jennifer Shockley, December 25, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
PolySpot Puts Information to Work within the Enterprise with Their Unique Big Data Solution
December 19, 2012
Leveraging the power of big data is huge in terms of any discussion related to business processes and business strategy today. The Harvard Business Review carries on this conversation with their article and webinar on “Organizational Imperatives in the Era of Big Data.” This webinar from Thomas Redman discusses key organizational issues you must resolve in order to leverage big data.
Technological challenges were put into perspective with this article:
The technological challenges are legion, but they pale in comparison to the organizational challenges. From a lack of analytically capable analysts, managers, and leaders, to organizational structures that inhibit data sharing, few of today’s organizations are capable of taking advantage of the opportunities presented by “Big Data.” Resolving these challenges and readying an organization is among the most important management challenges of our times.
Companies must leave the technological challenge of creating technologies that can utilize big data to existing big data vendors such as PolySpot. Many enterprises have discovered that solutions such as PolySpot’s Information at Work aid in both the organizational aspect of locating data in near real-time when it needs to be utilized and in enriching big data so that it is primed to deliver meaning.
Megan Feil, December 19, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
Sound the Alarm: Reliable Enterprise Services Are Not Free
December 14, 2012
Sound the alarms! Information Week’s article “Google Apps No Longer Free For Businesses” announced dooms day news to those looking for a free ride including perks on the Big G. After 6 years, Google is finally pushing their premium business apps by eliminating upkeep and new availability for the free version.
Google does have a heart, as they will allow existing free users to continue utilizing the bare bone services with limited customer service and no new upgrades:
“You get what you pay for because you can’t get what you didn’t pay for. That is, unless you already have it: Companies currently using the free version of Google Apps can continue to do so under the same terms. Individuals will be able to continue using Google’s Web apps, like Drive, Gmail and Docs at no cost through their Google Accounts. Businesses will be expected to pay for Google Apps for Business.”
The only surprise is that Google waited so long to push the remaining ‘free app’ businesses over to the premium side. When it comes to quality there is no such thing as free, and businesses who think they can get free, high performing enterprise solutions may be better off to invest in a tried, true and dedicated technologies. The Intrafind search technology is mature, feature rich and offers a worth return on investment – retrieving data when, where and how it is needed.
Jennifer Shockley, December 14, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
Business Process Heightened to Maximum Efficiency with PolySpot Solutions
December 14, 2012
Making a decision in a business can be done in a variety of ways. More often than not, decision-makers look to data to assist them now that there are solutions available to enable such a process. Smart Business reports on “How to Use Big Data to Make Better Business Decisions” in their recent article.
The article discusses what types of decision are made most successfully using big data:
In general, data-driven decision making works better at an operational or tactical level since there are relatively fewer risks involved. In fact, when aided by technology, data makes it easy to automate rudimentary tasks and decisions. For example, it’s hard to imagine how Amazon or Wal-Mart would fare if they relied on managers’ instincts to replenish stock levels, when a computer can synthesize inventory changes and sales trends and place orders automatically.
When the determination to make decisions using data is made, the only remaining variable is the technological solutions that will need to be in place for data access to happen efficiently and effectively. PolySpot solutions are above par in this department, for example. However, companies must research for themselves which one will suit their needs best.
Megan Feil, December 14, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com developer of Augmentext
Big Data Drives Business Decisions with Enterprise Search
December 12, 2012
Big data is making the transition from a catchy trend to a serious power in the business world. A flurry of acquisitions involving big data and enterprise search systems are proving that value is being added to big data. According to recent article “Structuring the Unstructured: Why Big Data is Suddenly Interested in Enterprise Search” on CMSWire, this can be attributed to the inclusion of unstructured data (hard-to-predict human content,) into big data analyses, and companies are becoming more and more interested in creating actionable insights from this data set.
The article continues to explain the need to obtain value from unstructured data:
“It is the hands-on application of processes, pragmatism and checksums that produce the most value from unstructured data. A focus on transparency of process creates confidence in data provenance and enables actionable intelligence from unstructured data. That combination of technology and process is what is driving recent acquisitions and what can drive your business to make better, more accurate decisions based on your unstructured big data.”
The whole point of making structured and unstructured data available is so that the right information can drive business decisions. Intrafind makes finding the right data at the right time a bit easier in the age of big data. The company’s software and enterprise search solutions can help you target necessary information from the big data madness and also provide the consultancy services to help you decide what to do with that information.
Andrea Hayden, December 12, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
Intrafind Knowledge Map Increases Overall Efficiency with a Quick Click
November 28, 2012
Network infrastructures, social media, mobile and the cloud continue to bring changes in daily business operations. Transformational technologies like these can provide the key elements necessary to stay competitive but success relies heavily on their ability to evolve within the enterprise.
The right strategy can bring prosperity through evolution to any industry. ZDNet’s article “CIOs unplugged: Straight Talk from Innovators” talks about some solid strategies to consider in order to increase operational efficiency when utilizing transformational technologies:
“Operational efficiency and cost reduction are always part of the IT mandate, so the discussion touched there. These CIOs distinguish themselves precisely because their key focus is innovation, rather than cost reduction. Many organizations primarily expect the CIO (and IT) to drive efficiency and cost savings, rather than participate in planning important strategic decisions. This view devalues IT, and is intensely shortsighted, because most industries today rely on technology to create strategic advantage.”
Innovative CIOs may find themselves more capable of driving change if their users are able to find the enterprise knowledge they need when they need it. Solutions such as Intrafind’s Knowledge Map allows for better use of enterprise knowledge assets and leaves more time for organizational innovation. Overall efficiency is increased with a user friendly interface which centralizes relevant company metadata in a 360 view for access with a few quick mouse clicks.
Jennifer Shockley, November 28, 2012
Sponsored by ArnoldIT.com, developer of Augmentext
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