Back late last night from Genband's Perspectives conference in Orlando - takeaways post and pix coming tomorrow.
That's it for biz travel til the Fall - I hope! It's been 5 events in the last 7 weeks, and 7 in the last 10, so I'm conferenced-out for now. Time to stay local while the sun is shining. I already have 4 R&R trips happening this summer, but you'll have to ask me about those - I don't share my private life online.
Couldn't get any blogging done during Genband, but here's a quick item to share. For the past couple of years, I've been invited to judge by Best in Biz Awards International for various categories. This year, I've been asked to judge entries for the 2014 Most Innovative International Company category. That's a mouthful, and I just received the company profiles, so it's time to get to work on these.
Am not sure when the winners will be announced, but I'll post updates as needed. Otherwise, feel free to follow things directly on their twitter feed: @bestinbizawards.
Thursday, June 12, 2014
Friday, June 6, 2014
Interactions 2014 - PureCloud, Millennials, Boulders, Football and the SIPtones!
As conferences go in the collab/communications space, Interactions 2014 is right up there. I stayed til Wednesday afternoon, and wish I could have been there til the end. During that time, though, I saw plenty to confirm that Interactive Intelligence is living up to their tagline for being Deliberately Innovative.
I'm just going to share some high level takeaways here, and will likely drill down further on some themes next week elsewhere. There's a lot to like about ININ, and not much to dislike. Maybe I could rag on about the weather we had, but otherwise, this company has a pretty good handle on its destiny.
I have a lot of notes, but am not going to do a data dump here. I'll do my best to distill my thoughts into 2 basic takeaways.
1. Great growth story.
This is always easier to tell with a public company, and we saw lots of metrics to validate their performance. ININ would be a great target for a company with deep pockets looking to become an overnight force in the contact center space, but Don Brown is a very sharp guy. He's got a good thing going in Indy, including an I-could-work-here-forever culture that's pretty rare these days. Anyhow, it's great to hear about a company in this space with no debt, nice profits, strong margins, $105 million in the bank, and a 25% revenue CAGR since 2010.
That aside, their rapid growth for cloud-based deployments is hurting their stock price - but over time, this will even out. It's pretty clear that those who migrate to the cloud intelligently will be the winners, and ININ is definitely on the leading edge here. Problem is that you trade the up-front revenue from a premise-based sale to the annuity model of smaller but ongoing payments from customers. That's going to result in a smaller CAGR, but a more viable future. Wall Street doesn't quite follow this logic since they live quarter to quarter. Have faith, folks - I'll take this scenario over most any of their competitors, public or private. Is the recent dip a good time to buy ININ? I'm not a financial analyst, but it looks that way to me.
2. PureCloud is a big bet, but with a big upside.
This was the "big news" of the conference, and if you've been following the online coverage, you'll know by now what this is about. Basically, Don Brown looked at Amazon Web Services, and said, hey, why don't we use that model for the contact center? I think he's exactly right, and while I'm not a Web guru, I understand the basic concept of ELB - elastic load balancing. As Don explained, if this works so well for Netflix - which it does - imagine what it could do for ININ. From what I know, AWS is tops at being scalable and economical, and there's really no benefit for ININ to do this in-house.
Like any mid-tier player trying to beat the top tier guys, you have to have the right solution to win the Tier 1 business, and PureCloud gives them a great shot at doing so. More importantly, ININ understands how the cloud is changing everything - the business value of physical infrastructure and solutions/applications is going in different directions. Anyone can partner with AWS, but nobody quite has the contact center tools that ININ does. Once the end customer is ready for the cloud, they really don't care whether the data centers are ININ's or AWS's - they just want it to work and deliver on the product promise.
Another "aha" for PureCloud is that it's not a contact center solution. It's a cloud solution with a contact center module, but also does social media, directory, telephony, UC and add-ons like document management and WFM. Clearly, many of their customers are interested in doing more than contact center with ININ, and PureCloud is a great delivery platform to support a more complete offering. It's not a big leap now to see how ININ can truly go head-to-head with Cisco, Avaya, Unify, et al - how's that for stirring the pot?
Downside? Well, for contact center, PureCloud isn't much different from CaaS in terms of features. The architecture, however, is very different, and this will take some explaining. Pushing CaaS customers further into the cloud may be a hard sell - both for end customers and their channel partners. We heard how only 10% of the cloud business is through channels, but that level is now rising. Still, they have a lot of work to do to find the right channel partners and get them up to speed. This also means cannibalizing some CaaS business, so there's a bit of risk there. Two other factors to consider - one is how well the broader market will view ININ as a partner for applications other than contact center. Second is the AWS relationship, which is essential for PureCloud's ultimate success.
Lots more to say, but we all have jobs and can't read blogs all day! I'll leave you with a few more quick thoughts along with these photos.
I'm just going to share some high level takeaways here, and will likely drill down further on some themes next week elsewhere. There's a lot to like about ININ, and not much to dislike. Maybe I could rag on about the weather we had, but otherwise, this company has a pretty good handle on its destiny.
I have a lot of notes, but am not going to do a data dump here. I'll do my best to distill my thoughts into 2 basic takeaways.
1. Great growth story.
This is always easier to tell with a public company, and we saw lots of metrics to validate their performance. ININ would be a great target for a company with deep pockets looking to become an overnight force in the contact center space, but Don Brown is a very sharp guy. He's got a good thing going in Indy, including an I-could-work-here-forever culture that's pretty rare these days. Anyhow, it's great to hear about a company in this space with no debt, nice profits, strong margins, $105 million in the bank, and a 25% revenue CAGR since 2010.
That aside, their rapid growth for cloud-based deployments is hurting their stock price - but over time, this will even out. It's pretty clear that those who migrate to the cloud intelligently will be the winners, and ININ is definitely on the leading edge here. Problem is that you trade the up-front revenue from a premise-based sale to the annuity model of smaller but ongoing payments from customers. That's going to result in a smaller CAGR, but a more viable future. Wall Street doesn't quite follow this logic since they live quarter to quarter. Have faith, folks - I'll take this scenario over most any of their competitors, public or private. Is the recent dip a good time to buy ININ? I'm not a financial analyst, but it looks that way to me.
2. PureCloud is a big bet, but with a big upside.
This was the "big news" of the conference, and if you've been following the online coverage, you'll know by now what this is about. Basically, Don Brown looked at Amazon Web Services, and said, hey, why don't we use that model for the contact center? I think he's exactly right, and while I'm not a Web guru, I understand the basic concept of ELB - elastic load balancing. As Don explained, if this works so well for Netflix - which it does - imagine what it could do for ININ. From what I know, AWS is tops at being scalable and economical, and there's really no benefit for ININ to do this in-house.
Like any mid-tier player trying to beat the top tier guys, you have to have the right solution to win the Tier 1 business, and PureCloud gives them a great shot at doing so. More importantly, ININ understands how the cloud is changing everything - the business value of physical infrastructure and solutions/applications is going in different directions. Anyone can partner with AWS, but nobody quite has the contact center tools that ININ does. Once the end customer is ready for the cloud, they really don't care whether the data centers are ININ's or AWS's - they just want it to work and deliver on the product promise.
Another "aha" for PureCloud is that it's not a contact center solution. It's a cloud solution with a contact center module, but also does social media, directory, telephony, UC and add-ons like document management and WFM. Clearly, many of their customers are interested in doing more than contact center with ININ, and PureCloud is a great delivery platform to support a more complete offering. It's not a big leap now to see how ININ can truly go head-to-head with Cisco, Avaya, Unify, et al - how's that for stirring the pot?
Downside? Well, for contact center, PureCloud isn't much different from CaaS in terms of features. The architecture, however, is very different, and this will take some explaining. Pushing CaaS customers further into the cloud may be a hard sell - both for end customers and their channel partners. We heard how only 10% of the cloud business is through channels, but that level is now rising. Still, they have a lot of work to do to find the right channel partners and get them up to speed. This also means cannibalizing some CaaS business, so there's a bit of risk there. Two other factors to consider - one is how well the broader market will view ININ as a partner for applications other than contact center. Second is the AWS relationship, which is essential for PureCloud's ultimate success.
Lots more to say, but we all have jobs and can't read blogs all day! I'll leave you with a few more quick thoughts along with these photos.
CMO/overall host Joe Staples setting/taking the stage. He provided some great data points showing just how much impact social media has on how we communicate and what that means for customer service. They get social, and the PureCloud demos nicely showed how it can make agents more effective. Joe also made similar cases for the impact of mobility and the cloud - and how ININ has factored these not just into current offerings, but also for what's coming - which we later saw during the red-hot technologies segment.
We also heard from keynoter Jay Baer, a very engaging digital marketing star, who shared lots of cool data points/factoids that jived with Joe's themes. One killer takeaway - "if your company sucks, social media isn't your biggest problem." Yup. Companies that shy away from social because they're afraid of getting photo-bombed, etc. aren't thinking this through. As we heard often, the upside of social will be greater than the downside - presuming you do things at least half-right. Apologies -Jay was so much fun to watch, I forgot to take his picture.
CEO Don Brown - he sure sets the tone for ININ's casual culture, but also one that's very open. No big egos here, and their execs are always accessible to us.
What a treat - Aron Ralston. I didn't know his name until Tuesday, but you know the movie - Between a Rock and a Hard Place. Well, that's him - prosthetic arm and all. Kinda tenuous connection to the contact center, but he did a credible job trying. Just an incredible story, and you should just go see the movie. He tells it with a lot of emotion and it sure kept the 2,000 or so in the audience damned still - not too much Facebooking going on then. Inspirational talks don't get much better than this, and for me, the main takeaway is that you have to learn to confront the boulders that trap you in life - learn to embrace them and not push them away. Hard to do - cost him his arm - but it gave him the right mindset to survive an otherwise certain death sentence deep in a valley that nobody ever stumbles across. Wow.
Wednesday morning was another highlight - a panel of Millennials, moderated by Joe Staples. Great idea - get some 20 somethings to talk directly to us about how they engage with technology and what customer service means to them. Biggest surprise - to hear about how little they use email - it's all about text and chat with them. Totally different communication regime, and yes, they live with their mobile devices 24/7. And yes, they shop online - a lot - almost no point in going to a store any more. I really don't understand why/how people buy things like shoes online, but hey, if the price is right...
The "All American Tailgate Party" at Lucas Oil Stadium. Well, the crowd was a bit sparse, but how often do you get to do this?
Or this? The fun for me was here later on Tuesday night. This is at the Slippery Noodle, Indy's top blues bar, and the SIPtones are in fine form. Left to right - Wayne Sos on bass, Stephen Leaden on drums, Rick Hathaway on saxes, and Mike Moszynski on guitar.
I guested on a few songs - mostly keyboard, but also guitar, and it was all good. More photos will emerge soon, and hopefully some video - stay tuned.
Next Stop - Orlando and GENBAND
Barring any last minute developments, this should be my last business trip til the Fall, and I'm good with that. After next week, I'll have attended 8 industry events over a 10 week period. No mas!
Genband - or GENBAND to be proper - is another one of those vendors not afraid to try new things, and I'm good with that too. I've followed them for a while, and the company truly is a survivor with a long history of growing through acquisition. It's a hard way to build a growth story, but they're still here, going strong. Like many of their competitors, GENBAND has been reinventing themselves as fast as possible from legacy technology to software, and now to cloud.
Starting Monday, I'll be there to hear all about it, and am looking forward to re-connecting with the company, as I couldn't make their event last year. Perspectives14 will be in Orlando, and I'll blog/tweet as time allows. My twitter handle is @arnoldjon, and you can follow the full event feed via their handle #GBP14.
Genband - or GENBAND to be proper - is another one of those vendors not afraid to try new things, and I'm good with that too. I've followed them for a while, and the company truly is a survivor with a long history of growing through acquisition. It's a hard way to build a growth story, but they're still here, going strong. Like many of their competitors, GENBAND has been reinventing themselves as fast as possible from legacy technology to software, and now to cloud.
Starting Monday, I'll be there to hear all about it, and am looking forward to re-connecting with the company, as I couldn't make their event last year. Perspectives14 will be in Orlando, and I'll blog/tweet as time allows. My twitter handle is @arnoldjon, and you can follow the full event feed via their handle #GBP14.
Thursday, June 5, 2014
Infographic - The Rise and Fall of Nortel
Well, here's a new way to tell an old story.
I do various forms of writing for Ziff Davis B2B, but you can also tell a story pretty well with pictures. Infographics have become a good canvas for that, especially since people are so saturated with content all day long. I worry that I'll be out of work if people can't be bothered to read anything longer than 140 characters, so best to go with what's working.
Recently, I wrote a series of posts for Ziff Davis about Nortel's demise, along with a well-attended webinar on the topic. Nortel still resonates with most people I know, so as a companion to all this writing and talking, they engaged me to develop a storyline outlining the company's rise and fall.
I put the pieces together a few weeks back, but graphics take a while to develop, and that's the downside compared to writing and posting on the spot. Anyhow, it was just posted the other day, and if you want an easy-on-the-eyes recap of Nortel's roller coaster rise and fall, here's the infographic.
Comments are welcome, and if you like what you see, tell them you want to see more infographics like this. My PR director will be grateful!
I do various forms of writing for Ziff Davis B2B, but you can also tell a story pretty well with pictures. Infographics have become a good canvas for that, especially since people are so saturated with content all day long. I worry that I'll be out of work if people can't be bothered to read anything longer than 140 characters, so best to go with what's working.
Recently, I wrote a series of posts for Ziff Davis about Nortel's demise, along with a well-attended webinar on the topic. Nortel still resonates with most people I know, so as a companion to all this writing and talking, they engaged me to develop a storyline outlining the company's rise and fall.
I put the pieces together a few weeks back, but graphics take a while to develop, and that's the downside compared to writing and posting on the spot. Anyhow, it was just posted the other day, and if you want an easy-on-the-eyes recap of Nortel's roller coaster rise and fall, here's the infographic.
Comments are welcome, and if you like what you see, tell them you want to see more infographics like this. My PR director will be grateful!
Monday, June 2, 2014
May Writing Roundup
Not as busy as April, but I still had plenty of writing on the go. Hopefully by now you're familiar with my monthly roundup post. The idea is to provide a digest of last month's posts that I think you will still enjoy reading.
I don't expect you to follow everything I write, so this is a one-stop-shop to get a high level sense of what I'm seeing in the UC/collaboration space. So, here you go...
Wanna Hangout? Can We Do UC There? May 28, UCStrategies portal
VoIP and UC - Know the Differences! May 23, Toolbox for IT portal
Metaswitch Forum 10 - Quick Thoughts May 15, my blog
What is Cisco Selling? It's not UC. May 13, UCStrategies portal
Saving Money with VoIP - and Spending too May 12, Toolbox for IT portal
Personal Video and UC, Part 1 - What are you Afraid of? May issue, Internet Telephony Magazine
Ask Your UC Vendor - How Can You Make Me Successful? May 6, ADTRAN UC blog
Migrating to VoIP - What to Look for in a new Vendor May 6, Toolbox for IT portal
Migrating to VoIP - What's Your Starting Point? May 2, Toolbox for IT portal
I don't expect you to follow everything I write, so this is a one-stop-shop to get a high level sense of what I'm seeing in the UC/collaboration space. So, here you go...
Wanna Hangout? Can We Do UC There? May 28, UCStrategies portal
VoIP and UC - Know the Differences! May 23, Toolbox for IT portal
Metaswitch Forum 10 - Quick Thoughts May 15, my blog
What is Cisco Selling? It's not UC. May 13, UCStrategies portal
Saving Money with VoIP - and Spending too May 12, Toolbox for IT portal
Personal Video and UC, Part 1 - What are you Afraid of? May issue, Internet Telephony Magazine
Ask Your UC Vendor - How Can You Make Me Successful? May 6, ADTRAN UC blog
Migrating to VoIP - What to Look for in a new Vendor May 6, Toolbox for IT portal
Migrating to VoIP - What's Your Starting Point? May 2, Toolbox for IT portal
Friday, May 30, 2014
Next Stop - Interactions in Indy
Am flying to Indianapolis on Sunday for the 2014 Interactions event. This is Interactive Intelligence's showcase event for customers and partners, along with the analyst/consultant/media communities.
I've been to a few of these, and the event keeps getting bigger and better each year. It always has a relaxed mid-Western vibe that sits well with my small town USA roots. No overkill or excessive hype here - just stuff you can understand and take at face value. My kind of event.
If you follow me, you'll know I write often about ININ, and based on their stock price trajectory - at least up til a month or so ago - it looks like the world is catching up to all the good things they've been doing. As analysts, we get a closer view of that, and the company has become a bellwether for whether there's a viable business model for cloud communications. If anyone can do it, they can, and I expect to see more validation of this next week.
Stay tuned, both here and on my twitter feed - @arnoldjon. You can also follow their direct feed for all the tweets - #InteractIndy2014.
Finally, for a change, I get to be part of the fun. The SIPtones are a group of consultants who play at these events when the stars line up, and are always great to watch. At last year's Interactions, I guested on guitar for a couple of songs - here my post from last year, including a YouTube link to a video compilation someone put together of their set.
Well, I'm glad to be back again. This time, I'll split time on keyboards and guitar, and the SIPtones get to stretch out for a full night of music. Interactive has set this up at a local club, and this will be part of the Tuesday night entertainment. If you're comning to Indy, we'll see you Tuesday night at the Slippery Noodle!
I've been to a few of these, and the event keeps getting bigger and better each year. It always has a relaxed mid-Western vibe that sits well with my small town USA roots. No overkill or excessive hype here - just stuff you can understand and take at face value. My kind of event.
If you follow me, you'll know I write often about ININ, and based on their stock price trajectory - at least up til a month or so ago - it looks like the world is catching up to all the good things they've been doing. As analysts, we get a closer view of that, and the company has become a bellwether for whether there's a viable business model for cloud communications. If anyone can do it, they can, and I expect to see more validation of this next week.
Stay tuned, both here and on my twitter feed - @arnoldjon. You can also follow their direct feed for all the tweets - #InteractIndy2014.
Finally, for a change, I get to be part of the fun. The SIPtones are a group of consultants who play at these events when the stars line up, and are always great to watch. At last year's Interactions, I guested on guitar for a couple of songs - here my post from last year, including a YouTube link to a video compilation someone put together of their set.
Well, I'm glad to be back again. This time, I'll split time on keyboards and guitar, and the SIPtones get to stretch out for a full night of music. Interactive has set this up at a local club, and this will be part of the Tuesday night entertainment. If you're comning to Indy, we'll see you Tuesday night at the Slippery Noodle!
Thursday, May 29, 2014
Wanna Hangout? Google Hangouts and UC
Where does the time go? Been ages since I last posted - sometimes things just don't get on the radar. No shortage of things going on, though, and trips coming up the next two weeks.
For now, I wanted to share my latest article for UCStrategies. It's sponsored by NextPlane, but as you'll see, it's pure thought leadership - no reference to them at all. The focus is on Google Hangouts, which is making some noise in the UC space. Depending on your POV, Hangouts can be a great UC application, or totally not. I believe a lot of this is generational, but other factors are at play, and my post looks at the pros and cons of Hangouts for UC.
The article has been in the works for a while, but has finally been posted on the site, and in the spirit of collaboration, I hope you give it a read and then share your thoughts with us.
For now, I wanted to share my latest article for UCStrategies. It's sponsored by NextPlane, but as you'll see, it's pure thought leadership - no reference to them at all. The focus is on Google Hangouts, which is making some noise in the UC space. Depending on your POV, Hangouts can be a great UC application, or totally not. I believe a lot of this is generational, but other factors are at play, and my post looks at the pros and cons of Hangouts for UC.
The article has been in the works for a while, but has finally been posted on the site, and in the spirit of collaboration, I hope you give it a read and then share your thoughts with us.
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