November 11, 2014

Big Data Survey: Trouble Brewing For IT
Enterprises are faltering in their ability to comprehensively analyze big data, and IT has opted to walk away. Look, for years IT organizations have been told they don't own enterprise data, the business does. Lately we've heard about the rise of the CMO and how it takes that mindset to really know what data matters and how to mine it. So the message too many IT teams seem to be taking away: "This isn't an IT problem. We build the systems, keep the lights on, try to keep attackers out. We don't own big data. Our input isn't wanted."


Rackspace Launches Azure Services From Data Centers
Microsoft's partnership with Rackspace looks a lot like VMware's moves in the same hybrid cloud space. It launched its own vCloud Air data centers, offering VMware-compatible public cloud services. But it also commissioned a wide variety of regional providers to offer vCloud services, calling it the vCloud Air Network (versus Microsoft's Cloud OS Network). At the same time, Rackspace's adoption of private cloud packaging inside its cloud data centers is another step back from the brink. In May, it hired Morgan Stanley to act as an agent to explore the possibility of being acquired or taking on a tight partner relationship.


Are fingerprints PINs or physical artifacts?
“Courts are essentially wrong distinguishing between various methods of encryption and decryption,” said Rasch. “They are all, at their core, a mechanism for protecting the privacy and security of data. Indeed, a person encrypting a drive with a biometric would have cause to believe that this was more secure, and that they had a greater expectation of privacy in the biometric than they do in a simple four-digit PIN. To say that announcing the numbers ‘2580’ as a password is testimonial incrimination, but handing over a complex PGP key, or causing a complicated mathematical calculation based upon a biometric is not testimonial misses the point.


Why Your 2015 Plan Needs To Include Data & Analytics Governance
An extremely important aspect of a centralized data governance group is representation from various stakeholders across the organization. Even the word “analytics” means very different things across the different groups within your organization. Finance, web, marketing, customer and business teams all generate and use data in very different ways, and often these data sets can end up living in isolated silos. And, beyond your own organization, keep in mind that there are typically many third parties and agencies you’re working with, and often organizations will choose to bring in an external specialist or consultant to provide insight into trends and new opportunities in the data & analytics space.


SaaS: The dilemma of visibility and control
The supply of SaaS solutions is increasing and will continue to do so at an ever increasing pace. According to Forrester Research (Application Adoption Trends: The Rise Of SaaS) SaaS spending accounts for the 23% of the application software budget. However, it grew a whopping 53% over the previous year (4Q 2012-4Q 2013). In addition to customer relationship management (CRM), SaaS adoption is strong in human resources management, collaboration tools, and e-procurement. Forrester is also seeing a dramatic increase in SaaS interest in business intelligence (BI) and several other application categories.


Here's what your tech budget is being spent on
Andrew Horne, managing director at CEB, said IT departments are introducing more flexible budgeting and making better use of cloud computing which allows them to reallocate budget to innovation. The CIO's attitude towards innovation is often tempered by a big dose of caution, so much so that they have started to lose responsibility for innovation projects to other managers. Meanwhile, IT chiefs are finally waking up to the threat coming from shadow IT, where other execs have been getting more interested in developing their own digital projects outside of the control of the CIO.


10 bad technology decisions that can come back to haunt you
As organizations build their tech roadmap for the years ahead, the wrong choices and strategies could have unfortunate repercussions. Here are some pitfalls to watch out for. A bad strategic or tactical move can unleash an avalanche of negative effects on your organization, some lasting for years to come. Here are some of the worst of the worst -- and a few suggestions on how to avoid them.


Cures For The Common Help Desk Headaches
With all three of the most common help desk headaches, though, you need to go beyond technology and look to training and cross-departmental collaboration to really build skills into your corporate cultures. Defining a technological skillset matrix for your team will reveal gaps in knowledge. A simple "X skills needed, Y people on the team with a 1-, 2-, or 3-rating per block" will show where you need to provide more training and where you can hold a related session in a conference room each month.


Why Hire Veterans? They Bring a Lot to the Table, Say CompTIA Members
Veterans do bring a lot to the table, agreed Aaron Woods, director of USSP relationship and partner programs for Xerox Corp.’s Global Customer Service Delivery and a six-year veteran of the U.S. Army. “All veterans have attained a number of skills while in the military that would fit the needs of any employer,” Woods said, citing teamwork, leadership, discipline and the ability to follow a chain of command. IT companies should consider the specific traits that veterans possess, like being team-focused and disciplined with a strong drive to complete a task. “The ability to work in a team environment is one of the most important attributes a veteran will bring to an IT company,” he said.


Hire Self-Motivated People — the Single Smartest Thing a Hiring Manager Can Do
A self-motivated recruiting prospect, candidate, or employee is an individual with a track record of having the internal drive and motivation to begin and continue tasks without external prodding or extra rewards. You don’t have to identify why they are so driven. Just be satisfied with the fact that it is something in their character, upbringing, training, or attitude that drives them to work without any external stimulus or threat. Once you bring this recruiting approach to any hiring manager’s attention, they almost instantly appreciate its value. But if you are cynical, I have listed below some of the many benefits that come from hiring self-motivated people.



Quote for the day:

"Everything you want is just outside your comfort zone." -- Robert Allen

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