Years ago, I spent some time covering the middleware market closely. One of the resources I found enormously valuable was a publication called Middleware Spectra. Its founder and editor, Charles Brett, is one of the most insightful, and often provocative, people I know. Over the years we became acquainted, and today I count him amongContinue reading “The Return of Spectra”
Category Archives: Research Industry
Lively LinkedIn TDWI Discussions Exemplify Community IP Values
I’m not normally a fan of blog posts that do little more than talk about information available elsewhere. But I’m going to make an exception, because what TDWI has been able to do of late on LinkedIn has generated a good deal of conversation, information sharing and intriguing conclusions. Kudos to Wayne Eckerson for hisContinue reading “Lively LinkedIn TDWI Discussions Exemplify Community IP Values”
AR: Continuity of Contact Makes A Difference
I’ve been an independent analyst for a few months now, and it’s been an eye-opening experience in many ways. One has been the way some organizations I dealt with for a decade forgot my name the next day. This is not intended to embarrass anyone; I will name no names. It’s about best practices forContinue reading “AR: Continuity of Contact Makes A Difference”
Ray Wang Leaves Forrester – What’s Next?
I rarely cover comings and goings, in vendor firms or in analyst firms, but this simply could not pass unremarked. Ray Wang (whose excellent blog is here), a longtime friend and colleague, has left Forrester Research. I was the hiring exec at Forrester when John Ragsdale brought him in, and enthusiastically approving the hire wasContinue reading “Ray Wang Leaves Forrester – What’s Next?”
Why Virtual Conferences Suck
Lately, I get a lot of questions about “virtual conferences” and how much I believe they will replace the struggling live conference business of today. My answer? In the next 12-18 months we will see a lot of awful failed experiments. Just like the ones we’ve been seeing for the past 12 months or so.
TDWI Disappoints, But There is Hope Ahead
Few events offer as much promise as The Data Warehouse Institute World Conferences. With a deep educational focus, TDWI provides important opportunities for users. For vendors, the event offers one of the most focused, serious prospect audiences possible. My expectations, tempered though they were by economic realities, were still fairly high for this year’s San Diego event.Continue reading “TDWI Disappoints, But There is Hope Ahead”
Would You Pay For Room to Work in the Air?
Airline travel in coach continues to be difficult for the business user who would like to be productive. On this trip the man across the aisle has a lovely little netbook. Much smaller than my laptop which is admittedly gargantuan with its beautiful big screen.
Civilized Discourse and the Blog
Jon Reed, a consultant in the SAP world, recently posted a blog entry about some lessons he learned years ago from Hampshire College President Gregory Price. John feels, and I agree, that these principles of discourse are a model of behavior and belief that we bloggers would do well to emulate. I rarely post about “stuffContinue reading “Civilized Discourse and the Blog”
3 Months of Blogging: What I’ve Learned
I just had my 10,000th visit. Way cool – my first post was nearly 17 weeks ago, and for the first couple of weeks not much was happening. It was important to me that I generate content and find readers; I was a newly independent analyst and consultant, and I began with the belief thatContinue reading “3 Months of Blogging: What I’ve Learned”
AR: Tiering Analysts Is Good, But Don’t Play Childish Games
Colleagues have recently told me of a disturbing AR/PR practice they’ve run into of late: some vendors have asked them to refrain from tweeting about the plan to have a briefing. Why? They don’t want others not being briefed to know about it. This is childish nonsense. Should some analysts be briefed more often than others in your planning?Continue reading “AR: Tiering Analysts Is Good, But Don’t Play Childish Games”