Or is that Business Technology Optimization? Or perhaps Adaptive Infrastructure?
I found a recent HP press release worthy of a few comments.
http://www.hp.com/hpinfo/newsroom/press/2007/070926xa.html
There is a “Pony in this Pile” somewhere (so the old joke goes)…Take a read. Then read again. Then drop me a note and tell me what they said, would ya?
Seriously HP is struggling to move from techno-speak (where we talk about our technology and how cool it is) and move to an expression of understanding REAL CUSTOMER ISSUES and then mapping their technology to that.
We (techies) all struggle with this. But have you noticed how much more effort we are all putting into it?
I applaud HP actually. Here is a really big company trying to invert their view from technology coolness to customer awareness and alignment.
A cornerstone of this strategy turn in the enterprise is the assimilation of newly acquired Opsware. This is a clear and unambiguous indicator of “IT in Transition.” I have noted in other writings and presentations that the $1.6B cash price tag for Opsware was a big play for HP. And with the release referenced above, you can see them begin to play this new asset into their broader portfolio.
I like the guys at Opsware. I like what they are doing. They have dug below the surface over the past few years to get really focused on solving real customer issues. Find the pain, articulate a clean solution, and you’ll find the budget.
But here is the issue: Much like the difficulty that the capable HP PR team had in articulating the message in a few clean crisp phrases, “Business Information Optimization” (BIO?) involves a “heavy deployment lift.” Much like SAP is a heavy implementation lift for manufacturing companies.
Implementing these methods, if you can afford the time and investment, can pay big dividends – in time. We may have the budget, but do we really have the time?
We are finding something different in this transitional IT market. Customers are really driven by the notion of quick gratification by implanting “light lift” methods, with “step function” and highly demonstrable benefits. To the extent we don’t have to “rip and replace” existing business methods, we make it easier for our customer to assimilate our value.
Parallel-implemented IT controls that enforce standard image builds are one method to provide high-value quickly without major disruption of our customers’ business process.
Our customers would likely just call this “a keen sense for the obvious…”
Wyatt.
