How internet shrunk the world and made us global citizens.

We take much for granted today as we race towards a digitally connected world, thanks to the Internet; the internet is less then 50 years old and has transformed every aspect of our life.

The telegram is dead in most parts of the world and its successor the fax machine is on its way out  ; I remember getting my intimation for my job interview in the early 80's by telegram, fitting in a legible message with the least number of worlds in telegrams was an art. You paid per word for a telegram; verbosity was a luxury. Also there was the noisy teleprinter which was a dedicated point to point messaging systems and we needed special skills to operate the telex machines, these were known as telex operators.  Later these telex machines did get electronics and a computer inter-phase, but even that did not save them from extinction. 

In the old days you had to wait for many years to get a land line telephone else you went to a post office to make a call, long distance calls were known as trunk calls and were metered for a duration of 3 minutes, so brevity was the key to save on the cost. Foreign calls were also through trunk calls and it was a major event when a relative called from another country in the old days.  Later on we had in India the STD (Subscribed trunk dialing) which put many trunk call booking operators out of work and you could call anyone by clicking a code from your phone, post office or a STD booth. Then came the mobile revolution for voice and then finally today we have the smart phone and even toddlers have their connectivity. 

Today we use Twitter for real time communication instead of the telegram. We can address the world real time and share our thoughts , ideas and news.  Voice  communication has move to IP telephony, you can do a voice chat for free for hours in most places of the world through a Skype and a keyboard chat on  Google Chat or Microsoft Live and if you like text you have the BBM and  WhatsApp etc... Everyone is available on real time to send or receive messages.

Of course the email too has changed our lives, though it slowly losing its sheen to social media and chat rooms; email continues in business as a mode of communication, But on the personal front Social Media leads the way. Without social media I will not be able to publish or share this blog post. 

Where does this take us next, the world is shrinking and the common man can reach to any citizen of the world on the digital highway, this allows free flow of thoughts and ideas and gives humanity a platform to share, create and agree or dissent.  

This is impacting the world power structure as we have defined it, especially the pace is accelerated by Social Media and one sincerely hopes it will help break barriers, prejudices and makes us all global citizens of one World. 

All this would not have been possible without the Internet and the waves of innovation that have ridden on it as the backbone.

The CIO role in supporting top line growth

The urgency of the CIO to ride the juggernaut called inclusive technology is a challenge. Today the young executive is more tech savvy then most people in the IT department who have become tired and jaded in just keeping the lights on.
Innovation and Excellence from the IT department needs a CIO who can juggle being a strategist, innovator and also hit the sweet spot in emerging technology swings.
The CIO needs to deploy  technology as a catalyst to stitch the organization together in delivering the same goal and vision as articulated by the Board .

CIO has Miles to Go and Promise to Keep in an Uncharted Terrain!

In the world of SMAC the CIO has to become an aggregator and has to change his teams pace in adopting technology which is driven by his company's employees and customers rather than by the IT Team.
Gone are the days when the CIO had a chance to choose build deploy and support technology, today the CIO  has to deliver in real time in a hyper competitive environment and show direct correlation to market share and top line growth of the company.
Let me share a SMAC story, this is the story of start up  company named Vondasoft ( www.vondasoft.com) who have a SMAC solution on the cloud, they trawl the digital world 24x7 and aggregate data about your company, product or whatever you wish to know.
They come up with real time analysis or time series analysis on what your customers are thinking or doing or posting about your product, they give you a customer insight which will help you micro manage your relationship with every customer you own in the digital world.
Money is scarce and the old capex model is history, we live in an opex world with tighter accounting and a business which has shorter time to markets and a very impatient end user of technology. If the IT team does not deliver, the business will use underground technology, they are many in the market which can be used with a simple credit card.
The CIO's role in  supporting the top line growth is under threat unless the CIO is willing to  adapt  to today's ever changing technology landscape and use technology for business agility, value addition and simplifying the way we do business.




 

Everybody is a Winner Baby that is the Truth !

Everybody is a Winner Baby was a popular song many decades ago and  is true for Cloud Computing.

Everybody wins in the Cloud, the service provider, the application developer, the network provider, the end point device maker and all the innovators who come up with a new idea everyday in the cloud.

Cloud is about Innovation and Excellence with a small investment to get started and if your idea is big enough you are all set to be a Winner.

When you compare the capital invested to the rewards by companies like Twitter and FB the  poster boys of today your realize that no other investment has provided humongous valuation for such a small investment, The valuation hinges on the innovative ideas and excellence of delivery and savvy marketing to the end consumer.

Everyone is a Winner in Cloud Computing ! 

In cloud computing  you signed for Salesforce or Google or Zoho  for free and got hooked and   realized you could be technology illiterate and still  add more value to your business and yourself. 

The winner is the end user of computing who uses cloud for their music, exercise, health monitoring, sharing, pictures, videos , and crowd sourcing, suddenly collaboration is a breeze.

No rigorous training needed for the cloud and bulky manual as passe; the cloud applications are  intuitive & they delight the end user and also allow them to customize the application based on their moods and fancy.

Cloud Computing has made access to the Global Digital Highway easy with almost no barriers, causing a headache for Governments to regulate their citizens.  But the growth of social media goes on unabated and  it is the medium of communication in many countries where other forms of media are controlled. 

The advent of Mobility too has changed the way we live and work and interact as global citizens and it may be difficult to stop this growth.

Cloud has transformed into the new avatar of SMAC - Social Mobile Analytics and Cloud bringing in more power to the digital user.{Read http://cloudbus.blogspot.in/2013/11/smac-and-transformation-of-customer.html}

Every person who is part of the cloud eco-system has benefited, whether it is connecting with old school mates, changing the way government thinks and acts, sharing with family or even inviting your friends for a party and sharing the photos. There is no part of our social fabric which is not touched by cloud including virtual engagements, marriages and separations.

Cloud company valuations are astronomical and we await with bated breath for the next big game changer, and these are not people in pin striped suits but rather school kids, college dropouts and any citizen of the world.

No wonder "Everybody is a Winner Baby that is the Truth" in the world of Cloud Computing !

IBM should ignore AWS !

Recent advertisements have shown IBM  comparing itself against AWS in the cloud.
Here is the ZDNet article http://www.zdnet.com/ibm-takes-aim-at-amazon-web-services-via-marketing-campaign-7000022805/.
It seems to be a let down for Big Blue who has forgotten its blue blood and is stooping to compare itself to a company which is about a decade old.
If you missed my blog on the Big 5 it is worth a read again, since most of the analogies seems to have panned out, here is the link
http://cloudbus.blogspot.in/2011/04/big-5-in-cloud-computing.html?q=the+big+five

Photo Credit : Sudesh

IBM seems to have forgotten that the Elephant can Dance and only  needs to learn new steps in the world of SMAC and Internet of Things.IBM should not discount its loyal customer base who are there to cheer and support IBM through thick and thin; some customers could also teach IBM to dance to their tunes.

IBM has all the arsenal required, but is reluctant to open its chest and take off to the cloud, IBM's survival is not about beating AWS, it needs to do more to make Wall Street smile.
For one it needs to provide all its software applications on a SAAS model ASAP so that it can change the world of computing.
There is no business application that IBM does not have in its arsenal, but it is internally so divided that it has forgotten that the "Sum of parts is greater than Whole".
It needs to bandy all its application under one SAAS roof and make them available to the world.
Here is what IBM has as per its  own web page.
http://www-304.ibm.com/partnerworld/wps/servlet/ContentHandler/pw_com_swg_application-specific-licensing-solution-areas

The only element that IBM is missing the inertia to put together a Winning GO TO Market strategy.

Here are some pointers which can put IBM on top of the heap in the cloud war.
a. Selling cloud to the Government is not where the action is , the action is in delivering cloud services to the retail computing user. The Government and large business is a saturated market for IBM, and it needs to focus on the smaller user for future growth. Though winning big deals is always a joy, but the such deals are few. The retail is money on the table, more like the dollar bill on the table before the drink in an US bar, this is real money and now.
b. The Planet story is old, IBM needs to move into the clouds and acquire the speed of Mercury to compete in the world of SMAC which is always turbulent. IBM has to learn new steps, and needs to be quick to respond in  the consumer driven marketplace. They need a ship commander like Captain Spock!
c. IBM has to realize that the action is with the end user and not the CIO; the power user has shifted  and IBM has address this segment.
d. IBM will come on top if it can change direction, it has shown the world before it can do this, it is time for the Titanic to change course, if it does not then 2014 may be the Titanic year for IBM.
e. Shooting at AWS is not doing any good for IBM, it is not an IBM way of doing business. Remember AWS has the first mover advantage, IBM is entering the party late, no use shooting the leader of the pack.
If AWS goes there is a good chance that Cloud Computing may also crumble; a 10 year old will die without being given a chance to be a teenager.
This will not help IBM if it is betting big on cloud computing since it will not have any competition unless it believes Google is competition.
If AWS goes down so would Twitter and Facebook and many more social media sites which we take for granted in our daily lives.
IBM should not behave like the fox n the story "Grapes as Sour",
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Fox_and_the_Grapes
IBM needs to take the mantle of the wizened elder and understand there is space for all including AWS and IBM in the cloud and  realize that good  wine is not sour grapes.

Do share your thoughts. I am an old IBM fan and wish Big Blue all Success.

SMAC and the Transformation of Customer Service & Dialogue

"SMAC" is the a acronym for Social, mobile, analytics & cloud the four pillars of the fifth wave of technology as defined by  Cognizant Technology the  Teaneck, New Jersey headquartered ITES company (NASDAQ Symbol : CTSH).
SMAC will change the customer dialogue by leveraging on the collective strength of the Social Media Network, Mobile devices, Analytics driven by Big Data solutions and Cloud Computing as the underlying backbone of affordable and reliable engine for computation. 

Let us look at each of these components and their impact on our lives today:

1. Social Media - The Social Media has seen breakneck growth and significant valuation with the winners, we have the four undisputed leaders in this segment Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest  & LinkedIn with competition from Yahoo, Google and Microsoft and another hundred more social media sites of different hues and aspirations.  

2. Mobility - The way we handle and process information anytime anywhere  is significantly driven by Mobile Devices. Whether it is a mobile phone with two undisputed leaders Samsung and Apple, with two leading operating systems Google's Android and Apples iOS and two fundamental devices a phone or tablet or an hybrid Phablet.  The mobile is the most used device today to access, converse and interact in the internet. 

3. Analytics - Big Data and the ability to bring affordable analytics by use of cloud computing has transformed the way we dice and slice our data and we can do much more in nano seconds with our Terabytes of data to get a better understanding which influences our strategy and decision making. Analytics has invaded every aspect of business, financial markets, banking, healthcare, manufacturing, the potential is endless on how it can add value to bring insight into the way we do business. 

4. Cloud Computing - In a brief period of ten years the cloud computing has taken the world by storm and has been the catalyst for the growth of social media companies like Facebook, Youtube, LinkedIn, Twitter and more.  The pioneer and leader in the cloud computing space continues to be AWS with others playing catch up, the software giant's Microsoft, Oracle, the hardware giant's Dell, IBM, CISCO and HP.  Cloud Computing is today mainstream computing as more government and business adopt Cloud to bring about reliability, efficiency and cost saving. 

SMAC is the future of our digital lives and these four pillars in conjunction will define the way we deal with our customers.

Companies who have the right SMAC strategy will profit and grow in a flat world. 

Banks who shunned the cloud have taken to Facebook for Banking.

Newsprint companies have be on Twitter today if it wants to reach its audience and garner revenue.
If you want a job today the best place to begin is LinkedIn and if you have a pretty picture to share and profit look no further than Pinterest.

Retailers are discovering the joys of growing their business with a SMAC strategy, understanding their customers needs and serving them in more innovative ways. 

With SMAC we need business leaders who understand their customers lifestyle, use digital technology and the live in a world of social media.

A significant number of the customer base with spending power are GEN Y  today and without a SMAC strategy we may not be able to connect with the GEN Y customer.

The customer dialogue is real time and companies need to respond to this changing scenario.  

We will have companies giving away mobile devices free to their customers as a glue to customer dialogue and interface. 

Imagine a scenario of a bank, it is connected to its customer in a mobile world and the customer lives and thrives on Facebook, the Bank today builds its  banking services around the customer in the world of Facebook. A New Zealand Bank (ASB Bank) has been the pioneer in using Facebook in serving its customers and is laughing all the way to the Bank, other banks are playing catch up. 

Twitter announced its public issue in a Tweet and in day one of its public issue Twitter's offering price was $26 but by the end of the day the stock had risen dramatically and closed at $44.90. On day one of its public issue Twitter's market cap was USD 24.4 Billion ; opening value in the morning was USD 18 Billion; a cool appreciation of USD 6.4 Billion. You need look no further to understand the business dynamics of social media. 

Companies need to address SMAC as the most significant business strategy for their very survival in next few quarters, is your company ready to use SMAC to transform the customer service and  dialogue?