Quote of the Day - On Staying Focused

This is a quote from Tim Cook at Apple, I found on Seth Godin’s Blog:

“This is the most focused company I know of, am aware of, or have any knowledge of... We say no to good ideas every day.” Cook then pointed out to analysts that every single product the company makes would fit on the single conference table in front of him. “And we had revenue last year of $40 billion."

Symantec State of Enterprise Security

Symantec released their “State of Enterprise Security” Report. It is clear that security will continue to be a high priority in most companies since 75% of enterprises have experienced cyber attacks and 41% say the attacks were effective. The study found all companies experienced some cyber loss either by theft or downtime. Not sure how 100% can have loss and only 75% say they were attacked but I will let that one go….

Here is the full Symantec Report:

http://www.symantec.com/content/en/us/about/presskits/SES_report_Feb2010.pdf

Time to Upgrade to Windows 7

It is time to upgrade to Windows 7. I have been running Windows 7 ever since it was released and I am very happy with the performance – It is quick to boot and snappy. The adoption rate is twice what Vista’s adoption rate and is now used by 9% of all users. Most users are still using Windows XP and it is time for those users to adopt the next generation technology. If you are still running Vista it makes very little sense not to upgrade to Windows 7 since Windows 7 solves the sluggishness of Vista.


Here is an article in Computerworld: “Windows 7 early adoption beats Vista's 2 to 1 -
Five months after release, Microsoft's newest OS owns twice the share of Vista at the same point” by Gregg Keizer

http://www.computerworld.com/s/article/9160538/Windows_7_early_adoption_beats_Vista_s_2_to_1

Symantec State of SPAM and Phishing Report

According to the Symantec State of SPAM and Phishing Report there continues to be targeted attacks. Spammers like to take advantage of current affairs – Haiti disaster or Valentines. The next one to watch for will be scams around tax season. Clearly we will continue to be under attack so do not click on those suspicious links in emails or unknown attachments especially form social media sites.

Here is a link to the full Symantec Report:

http://eval.symantec.com/mktginfo/enterprise/other_resources/b-state_of_spam_and_phishing_report_02-2010.en-us.pdf

Understanding Microsoft Virtualization R2 Soluions

Microsoft Press has released a free 480 page ebook on Microsoft Virtualization - Here is the link:

http://blogs.msdn.com/microsoft_press/archive/2010/02/16/free-ebook-understanding-microsoft-virtualization-r2-solutions.aspx

Virtualization Adoption

Companies are virtualizing their infrastructure at a rapid rate primarily to save money by consolidating servers. The savings are reported to be 50% - 60% on capital expenditure and 25% on operational expenditure. The industry’s leading in virtualization are education and manufacturing and this speaks to the savings.

Currently 20% - 30% of servers are virtualized on average. Most businesses are trying to get to 70% to 80%. The hurdles are controlling the VM sprawl and virtualization skill set within the organizations. The VM sprawl can happen so fast that it frightens IT leaders. This highlights the need for a well planned managed approach to virtualization. The virtualization technology has been growing and changing so rapidly the experts with competent skills have been scarce. Most companies are investing in developing virtualization skills to better manage their new agile virtual infrastructure.

Sources: VMWare, ESG Strategies Cornerstones

Virtualization Top 10 Initiatives for 2010:

I attended VMWare Partner Exchange last week. Virtualization is the top priority for most companies followed by security and storage hardware. Here are the top 10 virtualization initiatives:

1. Consolidation
2. Improve backup and recovery
3. Expand applications into virtual infrastructure
4. Disaster recovery
5. Secure virtual infrastructure
6. Improve operational process
7. Move from test to production
8. Storage deployment
9. High availability
10. Management software integration

Source: ESG Strategies Cornerstones
http://www.enterprisestrategygroup.com/

Cloud Computing Shift in 2010

I read “CIOs See Big Cloud Computing Shifts In 2010” by Steven Burke. The shift is a result of the pressure from business leaders to reduce technology spending and drive profits. Peter Forte, CIO of Analog Devices had a good quote in the article:

“This is a matter of survival," Forte said. "In the last 20 years, I haven't seen this kind of dramatic cost cutting. Luckily, the good news here is technology has evolved to the point where it is helping us make this transition. We would never have been able to make a 25-30 percent budget reduction 10 years ago without an incredible fall off in service."

“CIOs See Big Cloud Computing Shifts In 2010” by Steven Burke:
http://tinyurl.com/yk8wryg

Working within a Team

I watched a documentary on Haskell Wexler an Oscar winning Cinematographer. He is highly regarded with multiple awards and worked on famous films such as American Graffiti. The interesting part to me was the dynamics and the egos of the teams producing movies. Mr. Wexler’s award winning success created challenges when he is working with directors. In the documentary, he basically says the directors usually don’t know what they are doing and he could do it better. Some directors described Haskell Wexler as having been a pain in the neck to work with and he was removed from working on “One Flew over the Cuckoo’s Nest” for his failure to get along.

Haskell Wexler is of course a tremendously successful person and his strong ego is paramount to his success. No matter how successful someone is there will always be this balance of control and keeping ego in check. There is a fine line to navigate - if you give up too much control you risk failure and if you try to take too much control no one will work with you! It is a conundrum – the yin and the yang.

Recent Google Hack

I read an interesting article on the recent hack into Google “Is Google hack an attack on cloud computing?” by Jon Brodkin, Network World. Google was hacked but the hack was through social engineering. The argument is that since the hack was through social engineering that this can happen anywhere. It is not really a hack on cloud computing. However, it does undermine cloud computing so it is a hack on cloud computing. It is also an attack on the use of the biggest supplier of a solution. Similar to the concept of most email attacks target Microsoft email because it is most widely used. If Google is the most widely used cloud provider it may be the biggest target for attacks on the cloud.

Article: “Is Google hack an attack on cloud computing?” by Jon Brodkin, Network World:

http://www.networkworld.com/news/2010/011510-google-hack-cloud-computing.html

Hosted Exchange Lessons Learned / Best Practices

We have been offering hosted exchange for a few years now. There are three key steps to ensuring an effective move to a hosted email environment:

1. CALCULATE YOUR BANDWIDTH
The first crucial step involves calculating user bandwidth requirements for your new hosted solution. Add this to the bandwidth you are currently using (call your ISP to find out the number). The result will let you know if you need to upgrade your internet service before implementation.

2. RIGHTSIZE YOUR MAILBOXES
Migrations are time consuming. Optimize your time by reducing the size of the mailboxes. Delete sent items, unused folders, and archive old date to a .PST file.

3. INCLUDE TRAINING IN YOUR PLAN
Users will have a new User Control Panel in the hosted environment. The User Control Panel allows everyone to customize their personal email settings. Training is the last step in a smooth transition to the hosted environment for your organization.

Intel Virtualization White Paper

Intel internal IT released a White Paper “Implementing and expanding a virtual environment” by Bill Sunderland and Steve Anderson. It is their experience implementing the virtual environment at Intel. The white paper states they are getting 10:1 ratio on their server consolidation and 15:1 on storage. They have only consolidated 10% - 20% of their environment with a goal of going to 70% - 80%. 10:1 Consolidation is actually low, many companies are now seeing 20:1 and 30:1 with the latest virtualization technology! It is a very detailed and technical document but I think worth reading. You realize even Intel has to do the same analysis and planning as everyone else.

http://communities.intel.com/docs/DOC-4724

Exchange 2010

Exchange 2010 has been out for a month now so it is time to take a closer look. Here are the key benefits:

1. Controlling Cost:
a. Improved performance with 90% reduction in Disk IO.
b. Lower cost of storage by leveraging DAS/JBOD with larger mailboxes
c. Simplified administration

2. Enabling Mobile Work Force:
a. Broad device support
b. Phone-base access to inbox
c. Great Outlook based experience to mailbox

3. Managing Risk:
a. Moderate, encrypt, and block sensitive data
b. Efficient data management by eliminating PSTs
c. Simplified compliance with granular retention policies and mailbox search

Microsoft Exchange 2010 free ebook:
http://ow.ly/YL6n

Cloud Computing Growth

Gartner recently predicted significant growth in cloud computing stating 20% of companies would be completely cloud based by 2010 and reach 11% of the market this year. The growth is primarily from companies that have already implemented cloud computing. The implication is that if you try it you will love it.

Last year in April I posted an article on the growth rate of cloud computing: How much of the Market is Cloud Computing? At that time I calculated cloud computing to be about 2% of IT spending and that it would grow to 10% by 2019. Gartner's prediction of 20% of businesses will be completely using cloud computing is considerably higher than the information less than a year ago. It appears that cloud computing is growing more rapidly than expected!

It is time to take a closer look at using the cloud and creating a plan for your business.

This quote from Bill Gates sums it up:
"The next sea change is upon us."

CIO Magazine Article:
http://ow.ly/WraP


Article: “Cloud computing’s only for grown ups, survey says” by Carl Brooks: http://searchcloudcomputing.techtarget.com/news/article/0,289142,sid201_gci1379117,00.html

Tech Spending Growth in 2010

Forrester released a prediction of global technology spending growth to be 8% in 2010 to 1.6 Trillion and US spending to grow 6.6 % to 568 Billion. This is close to the previous predictions in late 2009 by Goldman Sachs and Gartner. Forrester is predicting a slow start in 2010 with spending increasing through the end of the year. Paul Otellini, CEO Intel summed it up at the end of last year, "There is a very good chance corporate spending on PCs will improve significantly in 2010."

Article reporting Forester prediction:

http://www.thonline.com/article.cfm?id=270046

Should IT be run as a business?

I read an Article in CIO Magazine “Run IT as a business -- why that's a train wreck waiting to happen - Everything you've been told is wrong: What IT should do instead” by Bob Lewis. As I read the article I imagined the cheering from the IT professionals in data centers across the country. Their frustration with unrealistic users and business leaders is finally articulated.

Clearly Mr. Lewis makes some great points in his article and it is an interesting article to read. However, many of his points are the very reason businesses fail as well. What he is getting to is the importance of creating solutions that will solve the long term business needs as opposed to running around resolving point solutions and every user demand. The essence of where he is going is that internal IT professionals must operate more like consultants and not just turning wrenches. The key here is having solid IT strategic plan and trained IT team to work like consultants. The strategic plan should be short enough that the key leaders will read and buy into the plan. The IT Team needs the consulting skills to work with the business managers and users to deliver on the plan.

IT departments that do not treat the users and business manager as customers are on a slippery slope. A major challenge for IT leaders is getting their team to communicate and to not give attitude to the users. Good IT professionals are scarce and in high demand. They are constantly being pulled in multiple directions and this causes them frustration when dealing with less technical staff. This amplifies the challenge to develop IT professionals that are effective as consultants.

Oh, in case you are wondering – I say yes, IT should be run like a business. And why not – last I checked it is part of business and frankly you should treat everyone like a customer internally and externally. It is a mantra for me!

CIO Magazine Article by Bob Lewis:

http://www.cio.com/article/517879/Run_IT_As_a_Business_Why_That_s_a_Train_Wreck_Waiting_to_Happen?page=1&taxonomyId=3123

Virtualized Management

I have discussed the importance of management and planning in a virtualized environment. IDC Technologies is predicting 20% annual growth in virtualization management software going from $871 Million market to $2.3 Billion by 2013.

Management software has been around for many years but is often shelfware. The challenge with management software is that all too often businesses will purchase the software with little to no budget for getting the software installed and their team trained. The logic is that “this is just management software” and not critical to the operation! We can just have Joe the Network Administrator run with it. Joe agrees to take on the task but with little to no experience or training. The software is setup in a manner that is not according to best practices. Joe and the rest of the team find the management software is cumbersome to operate and monitor. No one uses the software or updates …. Shelfware! The conclusion: “This management software is no good!”

The key to having success with management software is five steps:

1. Take plenty of time to select the management application and then have the team commit
2. Senior leadership needs to be committed to implementing and using the application
3. Have a consultant implement the solution according to best practices
4. Have proper training for the internal owner of the application and the team
5. Have a consultant do some hand holding and follow-up … checking back to ensure that the application is being used correctly

In a virtualized environment management software will rise in importance for successful operation so get your arms around it and commit to your solution for success.

Source Article: Virtualization Management Software Market to Grow, IDC Says:

http://www.businessmanagement1.com/business-management/virtualization-management-software-market-to-grow-idc-says/

Being Relevant in 2010

Symantec CEO, Enrique Salem spoke of the importance of being relevant.

Relevant Pronunciation [rel-uh-vuh nt] –adjective
Bearing upon or connected with the matter in hand; pertinent: a relevant remark.

We are in a new era of so many media channels. Never mind that there are now a 1000 channels on television since there is a shift to social media and the billions of web sites on the internet. How does a business or a person be relevant in an environment that is very thin and infinitely wide? This is the 2010 question and we have had all of 2009 to think about it!

The key is to engage the right people with the right information in a very broad approach. Keep in mind this quote from Seth Godin a master at staying relevant in today’s environment:

“As in high school, the winners are the ones who don't take it too seriously and understand what they're trying to accomplish. Get stuck in the never ending drama (worrying about what irrelevant people think) and you'll never get anything done. The only thing worse than coming in second place in the race for student council president is... winning.”

Use your passion for technology to be relevant in 2010!

Agile Application Development

I read an article on Agile development: “Agile Adoption – Crossing the Chasm: Why is it so difficult to switch to agile process from waterfall?” by Udayan Banerjee

The article explains how the old school waterfall process of locking down requirements when developing solutions is flawed. This process does prevent scope creep but at the end of the day the solution does not meet the business needs because business needs are changing and it is impossible to really know the requirements right from the onset. The result is that you end with an application that meets the requirement document and is completed on budget and on time but does not meet the business needs. There is a gap between what the business needs and the requirements at the onset of the project. The only way to close the gap is by using an iterative agile process like scrum. Successful application development teams know this and are actively pursuing this kind of methodology. The challenge of course becomes around budgeting, scheduling and how frequent to release each update to the user team. This article does a good job of walking through this.

Is there a place for a more agile design and deployment process for infrastructure implementation? Not completely however, understanding why agile development is effective and the direction for application development should help when doing infrastructure implementation. Keeping the agile concepts in mind and working toward more integration of the users in envisioning planning and deploying an infrastructure solution will help ensure the business needs are met.

Here is a link to Mr. Banerjee’s article:
http://udayanbanerjee.ulitzer.com/node/1137387

Goals for 2010

If you have not already created written goals for 2010 it is time. This can be done in less than an hour, so don’t let the task intimidate you. You may want to wrap it all in to a New Year’s resolution - “This year I will exercise every day and lose 20 lbs……and this time I mean it!”

Clearly the hard part about goals is executing on them. If you don’t know what they are how can you possibly execute on them. Write your goals down and keep them handy – try to review at least once a month to see how you are tracking. Create a relatively short list as too many goals are overwhelming. Create clear measurable goals and target work, personal and family. Share them with someone who will support you and this will help drive success. If you really want to put yourself out there, share your goals with everyone! You probably do not want to do this around financial goals as this can create problems.

Create one year and five year goals and it is incredible how effective this can be with a little discipline! Ok, a lot of discipline….. Nothing worthwhile is easy.