A Software Insider's Point of View

IBM Adds A Leading Customer Data Integration/MDM Pioneer To Its Master Information Management Arsenal

With arguably 10 master information management acquisitions since 2003, IBM continues to push towards its goal of adaptive master data management (MDM) (see Figure 1).  The recent acquisition of Initiate Systems comes after the heals of Oracle’s purchase of SilverCreek Systems in [...]

Keep In Mind Basic Rules Still Apply Regardless Of Deployment Option

The proliferation of SaaS solutions provides organizations with a myriad of sorely needed point and disruptive solutions.  Good news - business users can rapidly procure and deploy, while innovating with minimal budget and IT team constraints.  Bad news - users must depend more on their [...]

(Photos by R Wang & Insider Associates, LLC.   Copyright © 2009 All rights reserved.)
Re-innovation Now At The Heart Of SAP’s Focus And Strategy
SAP has faced a rough two years.  From the continuing market pressure on new license revenue, false-start launch of Business By Design (ByD), management restructuring, and issues with [...]

Market pressures and organizational maturity drives new master data management (MDM) trends
Conversations with 31 leading edge organizations seeking business transformation highlight shifts in the MDM trends of the past.  Organizations awash in data need to move beyond the clutter and get to the information.  More data does not equate to more information.  In order to [...]

Proliferation and access to new social tools creates significant challenges for organizations
Organizations engaged in Social CRM initiatives often start out by monitoring the chatter and conversation across a few platforms and channels such as Facebook and Twitter.  As these organizations increase their savviness, they quickly realize the enormity of the challenge.  The exponential number of [...]

When I read about CRM failure rates, I tend to focus on the positive – a majority of companies now are at least somewhat satisfied with their CRM deployments. Why?  The front office is full of free-wheeling knowledge workers — impatient, process-averse, and led by revolving door executives.  So, why are the expectations so much [...]

With a few days left in the year, it’s hard to believe that 2008 is almost over.  Just like our paltry .401K’s and lowered gas prices, it’s like we reverted to the Dot Com bust.  Extreme contrasts in positions and tremendous change made 2008 both exciting, suspenseful, and frankly sobering like 2002.  In fact, it [...]

(Photo: Siperian Masters’08 registration area.  Copyright © 2008 R Wang. All rights reserved.)
About 200 attendees were present as Ramon Chen, VP of Marketing, kicked off the event to the theme of adventurers and pioneers in MDM at the Bridgewater Marriott (New Jersey).   CEO, Peter Caswell, led the keynote session with a view on where [...]

Quick thoughts from Scottsdale.  Initiate as many you know is one of the leaders in the customer hubs/MDM market.  At their annual conference, Initiate Exchange, a few key trends emerged from conversations with customers and partners:

Rapid deployment still key to securing buy-in a the business level. The registry style approach lends itself to demonstrating quick [...]