Supplier Report: 9/28/2014

Big news coming out of this week is EMC.  It isn’t just VMWare that they were looking to move (which btw is 54% of their market value).  We also have some clear evidence that IBM is executing against the cloud and mobile strategy while HP still deals with the fallout of their bribe scandal and Autonomy purchase.

IBM:

  1. IBM creating secure banking apps for Busan Bank:
    http://finchannel.com/index.php/technology/item/38986-busan-bank-selects-ibm-to-enhance-customer-experience-with-new-mobile-apps
    (Customer less interesting – although banking – but another step in their mobile platform reinvention)
  2. And another article highlighting “Bluemix” – their platform as a service hosted on Softlayer:
    http://www.infotechlead.com/2014/09/25/ibm-bluemix-wins-new-customers-analytics-customer-engagement-25538
  3. Softlayer going after Amazon cloud services:
    https://gigaom.com/2014/09/25/ibm-softlayer-woos-startups-running-amazon-web-services-rackspace/
  4. IBM launches a watson b2b tool – which competes with some of their own existing tools (need to know more about this vs. Blueworks Live).
    http://www.mrweb.com/drno/news19743.htm

HP:

  1. More information on last week’s note about on EMC/Vmare:
    http://www.bidnessetc.com/26229-cisco-not-interested-in-emc-corporation/
    Looks like HP and EMC (whole company) were in merger talks for 2 years but recently fell through.  Cisco is also not interested.
  2. HP could face a 10-year ban on selling to the Canadian gov due to the Russian bribe scandal:
    http://www.theglobeandmail.com/technology/hp-faces-10-year-ban-as-canadian-governments-technology-supplier/article20774807/
  3. U.S. judge scrutinizes HP shareholder deal in Autonomy case
    http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/09/26/hp-autonomy-lawsuit-idUSL2N0RQ33V20140926
  4. HP is giving away SDS (software defined storage) software to drive usage:
    http://www.arnnet.com.au/article/555812/hp-gives-away-software-defined-storage-drive-adoption/

Oracle:

  1. Oracle is still rumored to be interested in EMC… need to pay attention to this one.
  2. Hurd wants to go after Microsoft’s cloud business (Microsoft? Very “meh” statement – M$ “Azure” platform isn’t setting the world on fire)
    http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2014/09/22/hurd-oracle-takes-on-microsoft-in-the-cloud/
  3. A little more on why Ellison stepped down (not much is changing)
    http://www.techtimes.com/articles/15962/20140919/larry-ellison-oracle-ceo-no-more-heres-why-he-quit-and-what-he-will-do-now.htm
    (PS: He made $67M in Oracle’s fiscal 2014)

Other:

  1. More on EMC:
    http://www.benchmarkmonitor.com/emc-nyseemc-likely-to-announce-a-major-change-in-the-coming-weeks/182917/
  2. More information on the “bash” bug (impacts unix/linux/apple shells)
    http://money.cnn.com/2014/09/24/technology/security/bash-bug/

Career:

  1. Improving yourself by understanding what traits you don’t like in others:
    http://qz.com/271074/how-to-stop-comparing-yourself-to-everyone-else-at-work/
  2. Having owned a business, this is very sage advice that we can apply to our positions: When starting a partnership, have an exist strategy:
    http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/237699
  3. Getting more from difficult people by asking questions:
    http://www.dumblittleman.com/2014/09/secret-technique-get-want-difficult-people.html?utm_source=feedly

Article Count: 1014

Supplier Report: 9/14/2014

More “big thoughts” this week instead of cloud (bla bla bla)

IBM

  1. How IBM is going to help Apple sell more i-Devices (hint: applications)
    http://www.businessinsider.com/tim-cook-ibm-has-what-we-need-2014-9
  2. IBM is going after Cancer (Watson via Mayo-Clinic)
    http://www.nbcnews.com/watch/nbc-news-channel/ibm-takes-on-cancer-327192131802
  3. IBM looking into block-chain technology for the “internet of things” (non-computer devices talking to each other, like your pacemaker, your car, and your stove)
    http://www.coindesk.com/ibm-sees-role-block-chain-internet-things/

HP

  1. HP Russia pleads guilty of bribery (remember that international ethics workshop?) – $59M fine potentially
    http://www.bidnessetc.com/25519-hp-russia-pleads-guilty-in-bribery-probe-slapped-with-fine/
  2. HP buys cloud startup Eucalyptus (less than $100M, used to help build out HP’s “Helion” cloud
    http://www.itnews.com.au/News/392027,hp-buys-hybrid-cloud-startup-eucalyptus.aspx?utm_source=feed&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=iTnews+
  3. With that being said, here is an article that discusses why HP needs to go out and buy some companies (they are sitting on $70B cash)
    http://www.businessweek.com/news/2014-09-08/rev-that-deal-engine-hp-dot-autonomy-is-history-real-m-and-a

Oracle

  1. Will Oracle’s acquisitions become profitable?
    http://seekingalpha.com/article/2489325-can-oracle-make-its-costly-acquisitions-count
  2. Oracle may buy WorkDay (big impact to our friend a few offices down)
    http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2014/09/08/why-buying-this-17-billion-company-makes-sense-for.aspx
  3. Oracle’s sudden stock turn around (sell to buy)
    http://investorplace.com/2014/09/orcl-oracle-predicting-bright-future/

Other

  1. EMC look to sell of a stake in VMWare?
    http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/09/11/us-vmware-emc-corp-sale-idUSKBN0H618S20140911
  2. No shock here, HP and IBM want to buy VMWare:
    http://www.infotechlead.com/2014/09/11/hp-and-ibm-target-vmware-as-emc-plans-to-exit-25252
  3. SalesForce CEO sells $3.6M in stock
    http://tickerreport.com/banking-finance/296148/salesforce-com-inc-ceo-sells-3615600-in-stock-crm/

Career

  1. Getting motivated after a vacation:
    http://zenhabits.net/vacation/
  2. When the going gets tough, make a temporary plan:
    http://calnewport.com/blog/2014/09/09/deep-habits-when-the-going-gets-tough-build-a-temporary-plan/?utm_source=feedly&utm_reader=feedly&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=deep-habits-when-the-going-gets-tough-build-a-temporary-plan
  3. Meetings = Clutter:
    https://signalvnoise.com/posts/3768-clutter-is-taking-a-toll-on-both-morale-and

Supplier Report: 9/7/2014

The patterns displayed over the last 4 months continue. Cloud is a major focus for all of these companies.  All three are dealing bad deals biting them back.  Re-invention is looming for all of these companies and the IT field in general, the curiosity is how each organization plans to address that change and how that impacts, educates, and assists us.

IBM

  1. IBM hiring more domestic workers over concerns of Obama administration backlash and visa issues:

    IBM’s ‘Jobs at IBM’ website currently lists about 6,750 jobs, of which nearly a third, 2,150, are in the US. India follows way behind at a little over 700, and China is third with about 650. More striking are the entry level positions. Of the total of 446 entry level positions open as on September 2, as many as 172, or nearly 40%, are in the US. In India, there are a mere five.

    http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/IBM-now-hires-more-in-US-than-India-amid-tax-visa-worries/articleshow/41830687.cms

  2. Accenture going after IBM in product lifecycle management:
    http://news.thomasnet.com/IMT/2014/09/04/why-accenture-thinks-it-can-rattle-ibm-in-plm/
  3. How mobility is changing the enterprise (IBM white paper):
    http://public.dhe.ibm.com/common/ssi/ecm/en/gbe03614usen/GBE03614USEN.PDF
  4. SoftLayer’s “bare metal” (30 min deployments, rent by the hour) to the cloud:
    http://www.dbta.com/Editorial/News-Flashes/IBM-SoftLayer-Brings-Bare-Metal-to-the-Cloud-99095.aspx
  5. IBM’s debt load: ($47.5B in debt, $18B matures in the next 3 years)
    http://seekingalpha.com/article/2456845-ibm-a-huge-debt-load

HP

  1. HP introducing tools to monitor “shadow it” deployments. (Kev – this links into our conversation last week about cloud technology).
    http://blogs.wsj.com/cio/2014/09/05/cisco-h-p-use-shadow-it-as-a-roadmap/
  2. More background on the HP/Autonomy fight (this reads more like an angry divorce, but it gives insight into the mentality of HP when it comes to Autonomy and integration).
    http://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/markets/article-2745522/Hewlett-Packard-ramps-fight-against-Autonomy-court-files.html

    Wait… there is a whole website dedicate to this case!
    http://autonomyaccounts.org/

    One more article with the highlights of the 90 pages (they cooked up imaginary deals):
    http://recode.net/2014/09/05/hp-lays-out-detailed-case-against-former-autonomy-execs/

  3. HP’s focus on “new it” (basically their 5 year tech investment plan):
    http://marketrealist.com/2014/09/hps-multi-year-restructuring-plan-focuses-new-style/
  4. HP’s prepping for the next round of server wars:
    http://thevarguy.com/computer-technology-hardware-solutions-and-news/082814/hp-gears-next-phase-server-war-embargo-1230-pm
  5. Note: there are a bunch HP articles about the laptop power cord recall.  Doesn’t impact us, but since there were at least 60 mentions of it, I thought I should mention it (6 million power bricks are being recalled)
    http://money.cnn.com/2014/08/26/technology/hp-laptop-cord-recall/

Oracle

  1. Oracle loses $1.3B appeal for SAP ruling:
    http://www.stockwisedaily.com/oracle-corporation-orcl-looses-appeal-to-restore-1-3b-verdict-in-sap-se-sap-case/235085/
  2. Why Oracle will grow (they had bad quarter results)
    http://www.gurufocus.com/news/276146/heres-why-oracle-should-continue-getting-better-in-the-future

Other

  1. Lenovo’s mean, lean, supply chain:
    http://www.ebnonline.com/author.asp?section_id=1084&doc_id=274642&itc=ebnonline_gnews

Career

  1. I won’t call this an ibm item, but an IBM report is showing companies are using “citizen developers” to drive innovation (sound familiar team?)
    http://www.gisuser.com/content/view/33881/2/
  2. Keeping conference calls on track: the # key rule:
    http://lifehacker.com/keep-conference-calls-on-target-with-the-pound-key-1629324850
    I don’t see this going over well in our office, but an interesting concept to discuss and explore
  3. Cleaning your gadgets without ruining them:
    http://lifehacker.com/5875667/how-to-properly-clean-all-your-gadgets-without-ruining-them
    PS: Joey’s #1 rule of cube-guest-etiquette: “don’t touch the monitor!”

Supplier Report: 8/24/2014

IBM:

  1. IBM is forming a partnership with Chinese rival to load WAS and other enterprise applications:
    http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/biz/archives/2014/08/24/2003598104
  2. A really interesting take on IBM’s issues.  While a little too gloom and doom, it makes alot of points I have observed and agree with:
    http://seekingalpha.com/article/2441665-ibms-problems-may-be-fatal
  3. IBM says BYOD may go away (following the announcement of IBM’s deal with Apple and the IPad)
    http://www.crn.com/news/channel-programs/video/300073774/ibms-tami-duncan-byod-may-go-away.htm 
  4. IBM restructuring in Korea:
    http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/tech/2014/08/133_163142.html
  5. Jeff Smith named IBM Global CIO:
    http://www.itnews.com.au/News/391143,jeff-smith-appointed-ibm-global-cio.aspx

HP:

  1. HP loses network virtualization lead to startup.
    http://www.computerworld.in/news/hp-loses-its-leader-on-nfv,-a-key-carrier-network-trend
    NOTE: Less interested in the personnel move, but I am curious about the service.  (NFV)
  2. HP is actually selling PCs??
    http://www.istreetresearch.com/hp-gains-surprising-profit-from-pcs-sales/255419/
  3. Why HP saw a Q3 bump:
    http://www.techinsider.net/why-hewlett-packard-company-hpq-saw-sales-boost-in-q3/1113666.html

Oracle:

  1. Oracle is still being sued by Oregon for failed health portal:
    http://www.bidnessetc.com/24569-oregon-sues-oracle-for-200-million-over-failed-health-care-website/
  2. Oracle breaking out a new social media management module:
    http://www.zdnet.com/oracle-intros-social-station-to-beef-up-social-cloud-7000032799/

Other:

  1. Salesforce getting into remote health diagnostics:
    http://www.bizjournals.com/sanfrancisco/blog/biotech/2014/08/salesforce-crm-philips-phg-healthcare-monitor.html

Supplier Report: 8/17/2014

IBM:

  1. $2.3B Server Sale to Levovo approved:
    http://www.themalaymailonline.com/money/article/ibm-us2.3b-server-sale-to-lenovo-receives-regulator-approval
  2. Penn State’s usage of IBM software is saving money:
    http://news.psu.edu/story/322984/2014/08/15/research/ibm-software-helps-keep-penn-state-sustainable-while-saving-money
  3. ACQUISITION: IBM purchases Lighthouse Security:
    http://itic-corp.com/blog/2014/08/ibm-fortifies-security-with-lighthouse-security-crossideas-acquisitions/
  4. IBM opens new SoftLayer office in Toronto:
    http://www.telecompaper.com/news/ibm-opens-new-softlayer-data-centre-in-toronto—1030874

HP:

  1. Google and HP are trying to make a strategic partnership of their own:
    http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2014/08/17/how-hp-could-help-google-take-on-apple-in-enterpri.aspx
  2. HP Senior Software Engineer Posting:
    https://www.linkedin.com/jobs2/view/18676730?trk=biz-overview-job-post
  3. HP taking advantage of IBM’s server sell off and urging customers to switch to HP:
    http://www.crn.com/news/data-center/300073695/hp-urges-customers-to-dump-ibm-jump-to-an-hp-partner.htm

Oracle:

  1. Oracle sales state of Oregon committed “smear campaign”:
    http://www.bizjournals.com/portland/blog/health-care-inc/2014/08/oracle-says-it-was-the-victim-of-a-smear-campaign.html
  2. What Oracle is looking for in a financial controller:
    https://www.linkedin.com/jobs2/view/18516236?trk=jobs_biz_pub

Other:

  1. Microsoft’s Partnership with Salesforce is odd and will likely result in MS competing with SF anyway:
    http://seekingalpha.com/article/2429855-microsoft-partnership-is-likely-to-give-salesforce-com-a-headache

Career:

  1. 7 Ways to make your boss happy:
    https://www.themuse.com/advice/7-ways-to-become-your-boss-dream-employee
  2. How to avoid being a human bottleneck:
    http://blog.sandglaz.com/human-bottleneck/
  3. Free Microsoft training **cough**Visio**cough**
    http://www.microsoftvirtualacademy.com/