Small-business IT strategy
Information technology integration with company processes has become essential to business success in the digital age. This is not easy for the largest organizations, never mind a small business with limited resources. We are here to help: Read news and tips that provide small organizations with IT/business strategies to help stretch limited IT resources for maximum gain.
Top Stories
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Tip
20 May 2022
8 free IT strategic planning templates and examples for CIOs
As technology becomes a business differentiator, a well-thought-out IT strategy plan is more crucial than ever. These IT strategy templates help CIOs make IT a business driver. Continue Reading
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Feature
04 Feb 2021
Biden wants review of IT exemption in Buy American law
Commercial IT products including hardware and software systems could soon fall under the purview of the Buy American Act if their exemption is removed. Continue Reading
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Blog Post
27 Mar 2012
What's the right data for your analytics project?
Like the zombies of "The Walking Dead," data growth is threatening to overrun us. Managers worry about the right data that can be captured and used effectively, but what about the right data that ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
06 Mar 2012
Big data in context is how real understanding begins
Big data, big picture, big salad. It really doesn't matter, according to IBM's Jeff Jonas: The more the merrier. Jonas, the big brain behind IBM's business analytics efforts, spoke about the latest ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
20 Feb 2012
Are personal privacy violations just the cost of mobility?
Each week, we scour the Web and bring you the most tantalizing tidbits that hit our radar. This week, we're looking at the nasty reality of personal privacy violations, the price of insider trading ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
14 Feb 2012
CIOs learning to juggle business growth strategies with technology
You start spending enough time around CIOs and you can really feel the changes swirling around them. On the one hand, CIOs and senior IT executives must drive business growth strategies through ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
13 Feb 2012
How free mobile apps risk personal data privacy and security
Each week, we scour the Web and bring you the choicest cuts for your approval. This week, we're looking at data privacy and security in the form of denial-of-service attacks, smart chatting and two ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
02 Feb 2012
Post-PC era: Is 100% remote desktop virtualization even smart?
Last August, I sat at VMworld 2011 with 19,000 other IT literati and heard CEO Paul Maritz assure us that we were in the post-PC era. But are we really? Certainly there isn't much argument about ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
31 Jan 2012
Shared services are the next generation of IT
Last week I wrote about the transformation of banking services into products. This week I want to discuss different types of services--shared services. One of the first technology news stories I ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
24 Jan 2012
Anti-piracy laws like SOPA and PIPA highlight online priorities
The recent pullbacks of the two controversial anti-online piracy bills -- SOPA and PIPA -- don't mean that users can continue indefinitely to download their favorite content whenever and wherever ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
24 Jan 2012
Google data center solutions to adapt in your own IT shop
Each week, we scour the World Wide Web to give you a quick punch of last week's biggest news stories and interesting blog posts. This week, we're taking a look at whether computer science should be ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
16 Jan 2012
Banks on Twitter? Don't bank on it
Recently, I was with my son to open an account at the local branch of my once mighty but now struggling Mega Bank. The customer service rep ran through the "product" options we had for creating his ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
10 Jan 2012
IT salary satisfaction survey says IT directors squeezed in midmarket
A question for all of you midlevel IT managers and directors out there: What's got you down? According to new data from the CIO/IT Strategy Group poll on IT salary satisfaction, your subgroup in ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
20 Dec 2011
Responsibilities of a CIO: Long on demands, short on time
You never know where you might gain more insight on the responsibilities of a CIO. Somewhere along the line, my job title and the websites I work on got mixed up, and as a result I often am ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
13 Dec 2011
Cloud security planning should be part of strategy from beginning
What are you doing about cloud security planning? I say planning because, in a survey of attendees at the recent SearchCompliance.com Making the Case for the Cloud virtual seminar, more than ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
02 Dec 2011
Are you at risk? Huge Java vulnerability now weaponized and exploited
It's every CIO's worst nightmare -- that panicked call when you least expect it, delivering the worst possible news: "The firewall has been breached." We know that you do everything possible to ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
22 Nov 2011
Celebrate a colleague with our CIO awards
We all know those amazing IT leaders who make a difference in our companies day in and day out but often go unrecognized by the IT world at large. Not everyone can pull a Steve Jobs or a Bill ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
21 Nov 2011
Will the outsourcing model be the death of CIOs?
Each week, we scour the Web to track down interesting news pieces and commentary to help you maximize your surfing potential and information consumption. This week, we've got analysis of the Kindle ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
08 Nov 2011
A new take on building CIO community
We're always trying to consider what's on the minds of CIOs today. We write tips and news articles about it. We interview CIOs and profile them. But much of that commentary happens in a controlled ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
01 Nov 2011
PCI DSS compliance may be the answer to more than credit card privacy
The Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard -- PCI DSS -- has been around for a few years and has seemingly done a good job of keeping credit card data safe. No, it's not a binding regulation, ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
25 Oct 2011
Apple's Siri speaks to iPhone users, but what is the message?
Full disclosure: I've been an iPhone user since 2008 and I just bought my second iPad. So, I'm not bashing Apple products, and I'm not bashing iPhone users or users of Apple products in general. ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
20 Oct 2011
Gartner Symposium/ITxpo urges creative destruction
Creative destruction. I've heard that term a lot this year, although it's hardly a new concept. From what's happening with the Occupy Wall Street madness to the pressure to innovate in the IT ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
04 Oct 2011
Strong passwords are more important than ever
I recently asked one of my sons for passwords to his online accounts, for gaming, email, etc. Not because I'm nosy but because I'm trying to be a responsible parent and home IT administrator, and ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
06 Sep 2011
Banning Facebook to solve privacy, productivity issues not the answer
Facebook surpassed 750 million users this summer. That's a heck of a lot of people, but not really news. What is news is the movement afoot banning Facebook from users. Many companies are still ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
02 Aug 2011
What cleaning computer viruses can teach you
In my spare time I run a little PC service repair business, mostly for friends and family. It's mostly cleaning computer viruses, installing wireless networks and sometimes building gaming systems. ... Continue Reading
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Tip
28 Jul 2011
How adopting an ITIL framework can lead to cost savings for business
An ITIL framework isn't easy, but it can drive huge cost savings. Learn how ITIL cost reduction strategies translate back to your business. Continue Reading
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Blog Post
24 May 2011
Failed promotion for Amazon cloud storage affects consumer confidence
It's one of those things that looks fantastic on paper: Introduce your cloud service to the consumer market by packaging it with a super-cheap, eagerly anticipated superstar's new album. Amazon did ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
19 Apr 2011
Cisco killed the Flip camera and other surprises
The news last week that Cisco killed the Flip mini-camcorder -- or, as Cisco put it, restructured its consumer products division -- is full of surprises. First, I have to admit, even as a Cisco ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
15 Apr 2011
CIOs and facilities managers need to be BFFs with green IT practices
Green IT practices are a no-brainer, but is your company's effort thwarting your IT strategy? Your connectivity problems may be inside your walls. Continue Reading
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Blog Post
12 Apr 2011
What have we learned from the Epsilon security breach?
My wife and I started getting the emails April 4. Best Buy. Our bank. Other e-commerce sites we had shopped. The impact of the Epsilon security breach was far and wide. My first thought was that at ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
05 Apr 2011
Are the Mozilla Firefox 4 and IE9 releases wreaking havoc on your old apps?
Microsoft Internet Explorer 9 and Mozilla Firefox 4 dropped within a week of each other, and now that the dust has settled, Internet users are finding that there are pieces of their daily lives ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
11 Mar 2011
Why aren't more women in executive careers in IT?
Tuesday was International Women's Day. The United Nations' theme for 2011: "Equal access to education, training and science and technology." Last week at the FusionCIO conference in Madison, Wis., ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
08 Feb 2011
Software tools can be basis for successful ITIL strategy
The IT Infrastructure Library (ITIL) can be a useful tool -- for those who have ventured into it. Just 40% of 169 IT managers at midmarket firms surveyed by SearchCIO-Midmarket.com last year ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
01 Feb 2011
IT innovation is just a matter of time
Innovation is a popular topic among IT professionals and media. It's also one of the more misunderstood concepts. If you ask 10 CIOs what IT innovation means to them or to their companies, you will ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
25 Jan 2011
IT salary survey numbers may obscure still struggling economy
Reader Jim Dries offered me another point of view on the SearchCIO.com salary and careers survey, which was completed late last year. In our 2010 IT salary survey, all signs point to increased ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
13 Jan 2011
IT salaries creeping up in 2011, mood mostly positive
The average IT salary in 2010 for senior IT executives, mid-level IT executives and IT managers was $121,797, according to our annual CIO Salary and Careers Survey, taken in November. This is a ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
13 Jan 2011
Data center transformation: Evolution or revolution?
As we continue to chronicle the "disappearing" data center, we have to consider the ongoing transformation of the enterprise application. Software as a Service, Web-based applications, cloud ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
07 Jan 2011
CIO resumes: Passing the eyeball test and the black ink test
Judging character and qualifications is a tough thing. The annual debate over the Major League Baseball Hall of Fame voting is going on, following the announcement of the two newest members, ... Continue Reading
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Tip
16 Dec 2010
Must-have ITSM tool features
When looking for an ITSM tool, audit the capabilities of the tool sets you have in place, and follow this check list of must-have features. Continue Reading
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Blog Post
11 Nov 2010
Political underpinnings of data governance
I asked Gwen Thomas, founder of the Data Governance Institute, how businesses’ data management plans were changing , and she started to explain why “The Tragedy of the Commons” summed up the ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
28 Oct 2010
Agile adoption basics, and basic mistakes
I came across a helpful post on the Edge of Chaos/Agile development blog on the 10 most common mistakes for agile adoption. No. 1: Don’t start with a tool. Choosing a tool will only slow down agile ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
14 Oct 2010
Virtual data center: A panacea for governance
Virtualization, to me, is in many ways like vitamin supplements: Whether you want to save money, pool resources or make employees more productive, there’s a virtualization pill for that. What I ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
07 Sep 2010
Improving business services management, one vehicle at a time
It's funny the places where you can gain some insight about business services management. Last week, I spent two hours waiting at my local Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles to exchange a ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
02 Sep 2010
Mobile application development made easy … eventually
A while back, I checked in with a few IT managers about their mobile application development plans. I was wondering if business intelligence applications were making their way on to their users’ ... Continue Reading
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Tip
26 Aug 2010
Storage area network fundamentals: The right questions to ask
Will a storage area network be a good fit in your IT environment? Consult our guide to storage area network fundamentals, including how to evaluate your current setup and needs. Continue Reading
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Blog Post
17 Aug 2010
Midsized companies migrating to Windows 7 find the payback worthwhile
If the sagging economy has forced midsized companies to delay hiring more IT staff, maybe migrating to Windows 7 can move them off that dime. In a recent report by IDC, an impressive number of ... Continue Reading
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News
11 Aug 2010
Free sample gap analysis templates: Software, security, architecture
Learn how other organizations tackle gap analysis, from software projects to IT portfolio assessments, in this list of sample gap analysis templates. Continue Reading
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Blog Post
10 Aug 2010
The end of online anonymity, part 2
Google CEO Eric Schmidt's statement last week about the end of online anonymity recalls similar words by one of his former colleagues, Scott McNealy of Sun, more than a decade ago. McNealy caused a ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
05 Aug 2010
Agile best practices applied to business problems
In the past few years, Ross Pettit, client principal at Chicago-based ThoughtWorks Inc., has seen a shift in client requests. The agile software development consulting firm’s projects are still ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
30 Jul 2010
A world without legacy systems
How frustrating is it to be one of the little guys without the resources to bear for big projects. Well, those frustrations may actually be easier to deal with than the alternative: Being a large ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
29 Jul 2010
Taking notations on agile data modeling
You can’t talk about agile data modeling without mentioning Scott Ambler, whom many consider the authority if not founder of agile data modeling. In this tip, Ambler takes readers through an ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
14 Jul 2010
IT consolidation for business innovation
I’ve been touching base with IT folks and analysts lately to get a feel for the projects people are working on these days, and the phrases that keep coming up are IT consolidation, modernization ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
08 Jul 2010
Think lean before you start agile projects
In the past few weeks I’ve been writing about agile projects, Scrum vs. waterfall or using the two project approaches together, and a theme that keeps coming up when I talk to project managers is ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
17 Jun 2010
New England GiveCamp: One NERD and multiple IT project success stories
A lot of projects fail. If business requirements aren't clear or gathered effectively, or if the scope of the project is inaccurate, failure happens. But this past weekend, at New England GiveCamp ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
10 Jun 2010
When it comes to an agile model, failure is an option
It’s OK to fail when taking an agile approach to a business service or software development project, but if you fail, fail fast. As one expert explained to me, if you don’t fail, you don’t really ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
27 May 2010
Is the new CIO role of today cultivating CEOs of the future?
The CIO role is changing -- there's no doubt about that -- but the question remains: What does the new CIO role comprise? During her keynote presentation at the Forrester IT Forum in Las Vegas this ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
20 May 2010
USB memory sticks spark concern -- but still prove hard to pass up
"Is this safe?" seemed to be the first question out of everyone's mouth when a colleague of mine was handing out USB memory sticks at the recent MIT Sloan CIO Symposium. The tiny memory sticks did ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
02 Apr 2010
Microsoft business intelligence tools here in May
I just got word from Microsoft that they plan to release Office 2010 and SharePoint 2010 -- with the new Microsoft business intelligence (BI) features -- on May 12. To back up a bit, we wrote about ... Continue Reading
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Tip
25 Mar 2010
Don't skip ITIL Service Design: Questions, checklists to get started
ITIL Service Design sits between strategy and implementation -- and is often skipped by midmarket companies. Learn which questions and checklists can keep Service Design simple. Continue Reading
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Blog Post
19 Mar 2010
IT execs weigh in on cloud computing and IT business transformation
I was at a Boston Society for Information Management (SIM) event the other day on transformation: how CIOs are transforming the business and the role of IT, but what struck me is how little a role ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
18 Mar 2010
Top IT certifications: Do they matter to you?
How important are IT certifications today? As organizations start to hire again (there were 58,229 available tech jobs on Dice.com this month), IT certifications could help potential candidates ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
11 Mar 2010
Why one IT guy found Windows 7 to be too user-friendly
There has been a lot of Windows 7 coverage on SearchCIO-Midmarket.com -- everything from planning your migration strategy to making it your last operating system. Part of the appeal of the new OS ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
04 Mar 2010
Reasons to adopt desktop virtualization
Desktop virtualization is not the slam dunk that server virtualization is in terms of cost savings. In a recent article, I talked to experts about how the cost of desktop PCs was replaced by even ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
11 Dec 2009
Paying the price for server uptime
What’s the price for server uptime? How much would you be willing to invest to maintain five 9s of availability on your mission-critical line of business applications? With limited budgets and ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
13 Nov 2009
What is transparency, and how can Agile practices help?
As I was interviewing experts and practitioners this week on the uses of Agile practices, the term transparency kept popping up in comments about the benefits of using this type of software ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
09 Oct 2009
The challenge of managing risk when IT budgets tighten
I see an interesting sea change when it comes to risk: Thanks to the recession, as IT risk management is constrained by tightening IT budgets, the risk of doing business goes up. As part of my ... Continue Reading
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Tip
08 Oct 2009
How to decide if changing technology vendors is worth the time, risk
The cost savings offered by a second-tier vendor may or may not be worth the risk and expense of migration. Here's how to decide when to make a switch. Continue Reading
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News
06 Oct 2009
Software vendor evaluation criteria: Sample scorecard templates for IT projects
Need a hand in evaluating prospective vendors or managing your current crop? Here's a sampling of software vendor scorecards and requirements to help you create your own. Continue Reading
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Blog Post
21 Aug 2009
Beware of rising server room temperatures
When you’re cranking the A/C during these final hot days of summer, don’t forget about data center cooling as well. The consequences for not monitoring server room temperatures could burn you well ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
17 Jul 2009
With PPM software, don't always throw in the kitchen sink
Project and portfolio management (PPM) software is definitely not overlooked in the midmarket. According to a recent SearchCIO-Midmarket.com survey, 17% use some form of PPM software. But how many ... Continue Reading
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Tip
02 Jul 2009
Even with a PPM solution, IT project and portfolio challenges remain
A PPM solution can help you allocate resources among IT projects and calculate ROI, but it's no panacea for organizational issues. Here's why. Continue Reading
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Blog Post
02 Jun 2009
Don't be like GM: How a BPM strategy can help you avoid bankruptcy
Midmarket CIOs who think of a business process management (BPM) strategy in its basic form as a tool for putting processes around purchase orders, claims or employee onboarding and offboarding ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
30 Jan 2009
The Super Bowl and server virtualization: Don’t drop the ball!
Are you ready for some server virtualization? This year, the Super Bowl will be running on one of IBM's smallest systems, the BladeCenter S. The system will support security and credentialing for ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
19 Dec 2008
Vendor gifts: Holiday cheer or ethical dilemma?
Twas the night before deadline and all through the office, we worked with our heads down, appeasing our bosses. But what to my weary eyes should appear? The USPS delivery, bringing vendor-purchased ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
09 Dec 2008
Recent FBI vishing scam warning an old issue
Last Friday, the FBI issued a warning about a security vulnerability that could be used by cybercriminals to make vishing telephone scams. Vishing (combining phishing and voice) uses Voice over IP ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
14 Nov 2008
The Web 2.0/social media revolution inches along
More evidence this week that the Web 2.0/social media revolution may be advancing, but it ain’t here yet: Instant messaging hasn’t become the preferred method of communication among IT staff; nor ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
06 Nov 2008
Google Chrome: How secure is your information?
Google is growing. From Chrome to G1, it’s not just for searching anymore. As the Google giant is creating new breeds of consumers (“cross-consumers,” I call them -- spanning email, news, mobile ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
29 Sep 2008
I’m a PC, and I don’t necessarily like Microsoft
After the annoyingly strange Jerry Seinfeld/Bill Gates commercials promoting Microsoft, a new batch of adverts surfaced featuring the slogan “I’m a PC.” It goes something like this: Microsoft ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
05 Sep 2008
Don't ignore internal security (and don't write passwords on Post-it's)
Last year 8% of the IT budget went towards security. This year? 10%. Khalid Kark, principal analyst at Forrester Research, Inc., presented security statistics at Forrester’s Security Forum 2008. ... Continue Reading
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Tip
27 Aug 2008
How to perform a cost/benefit analysis: Build a model, not a number
CIO Niel Nickolaisen recommends doing a cost/benefit analysis based on building a working model, not numbers. Continue Reading
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Blog Post
08 Aug 2008
Save the data! How safe is our personal information?
The search for the missing Registered Traveler laptop is finally over. The laptop, belonging to Verified Identity Pass Inc.(VIP), was reported missing from a locked office in the San Francisco ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
04 Aug 2008
Forrester: No room for cowboy culture in IT
Just like Toby Keith, I should have been a cowboy. Alas, I went into journalism and never did get the hang of a lasso. If you’re in IT, a new Forrester report says, you should let those cattle ... Continue Reading
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Tip
04 Aug 2008
Database security: Who should have access?
The only users who should be allowed full access to any data store should be your system administrators. What about everybody else? Continue Reading
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Blog Post
21 Jul 2008
Fighting for a Vista rebate. Because somebody has to.
Some people suffer the insufferable for piece of mind and for the good of all of us who want to live safe, comfortable lives. The mysterious uncle_benji is one of those people. Ben, as I’ll call ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
21 Jul 2008
Big green HP scheme
With polar bears balancing on ice cubes in the Arctic Circle and gas prices skyrocketing, we are all looking to be a bit more ‘green’ in our everyday lifestyle choices. Right? Well, we’re trying. ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
07 May 2008
Will a Chief Blogging Officer get a Golden Parachute?
Excellent little news blurb on HealthLeaders Media this morning: “Chief Blogging Officer title catching on with corporations.” Chief Blogging Officer. Ok, one more time: Chief Blogging Officer. ... Continue Reading
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Blog Post
22 Apr 2008
Justifying IT expenditures: Outsourcing isn’t always the answer
Accountability, budget constraints and cost of provisioning services – these are all issues that CIOs hear about when presenting IT budget numbers. “Why does this cost what it costs?” and “Can’t we ... Continue Reading
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Tip
17 Mar 2008
Computer recycling: Dangers for even the well intentioned
Recycling computers involves more than just passing them off to another company for cleaning. Due diligence requires CIOs to go even further to make sure data is eradicated. Continue Reading
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Tip
07 Feb 2008
Software license agreements: Scope is key
Been through a usage audit lately? Here are some license terms to watch for so you'll be on the up and up. Continue Reading