This is the next blog in the continuing series of interviews with top-echelon and renowned professionals. In this blog, I interview Rory McCaw, Leading Authority in Microsoft Technologies, Microsoft Certified Trainer, Consultant and Advisor to Corporations, Microsoft Systems Center Operation Manager Most Valuable Professional Award Recipient.

Go to www.microsoft.com/youshapeit/technet March edition, for a deeper look at this interview and much more on Systems Management.

Enjoy,
Stephen Ibaraki,
FCIPS, I.S.P., ITCP/IFIP IP3, MVP , DFNPA, CNP, Advanced Technology,YouShapeIT

Rory McCaw is a Principal Consultant and OpsMgr MVP at Infront Consulting Group, a Microsoft Gold Certified Partner based in Toronto, and the author of a number of technical books, including How to Cheat at Managing Microsoft Operations Manager 2005. Rory actively consults to large organizations helping them architect, implement, configure and customize System Center technologies integrating them into their business processes. Rory holds numerous industry designations, in addition to being an accomplished public speaker who has delivered numerous webcasts and online learning sessions on MOM 2005, SCOM 2007, SMS 2003, SCCM 2007, SQL Reporting Services, Branch Office Infrastructure and Security. Rory has also spoken on these and other topics at industry events such as MMS, TechEd and Comdex.

Rory enjoys developing training materials on the applications that he consults on and regularly delivers this training around the world for large enterprise customers. Rory has been nominated as a Ops Mgr MVP for the last 6 years and actively posts to his blog at http://spaces.msn.com/rorymccaw and company web site http://www.infrontconsulting.com. Rory is also the author of the System Center Operations Manager 2007 Boot Camps (http://www.infrontconsulting.com/events.htm) which deliver in-depth technical knowledge of Ops Mgr to customers worldwide.

To listen to the interview, click on this MP3 file link

DISCUSSION:

Interview Time Index (MM:SS) and Topic

:00:34:
Can you share a little bit about your background?
"....I am a Principal Consultant at a company called Infront Consulting Group. Infront focuses on the deployment and integration and customization of different Microsoft Systems Center technologies within large corporate enterprise environments. My role is to help and assist in the deployment and integration of those technologies as well as manage a group of consultants that we have that provide similar services to our corporate customers...."

:01:06:
Can you share one or more stories centered around these themes and which involve the Systems Management: Focus on the System Center family?
"....Some of the challenges that customers are facing, particularly in today's economic times, are that they are looking at the investments they are making from their capital budgets (primarily into monitoring technologies and changing management technologies) and needing to justify those to senior levels of management. When faced with analyzing their current investments into a variety of different technologies, the Systems Center suite of products typically comes as one of the less expensive offerings. That is where we are typically engaged to help a customer deploy and integrate those technologies within their environment...."

:04:53:
Why are you passionate about Systems Management using System Center?
"....One of the reasons that I'm passionate is because we do tend to see an almost immediate return of investment to a customer....The other is the ability to get inside...into all of the mission critical systems within an enterprise...."

:07:01:
Can you profile the products in the System Center Family?
"....There are four core products right now.....They consist of Systems Center Configuration Manager which is primarily used for change and configuration management....On the Operations Manager's side....we had MOM 2005 and now we have Systems Center Operations Manager 2007....The second component of Operations Manager is the ability to centrally collect and report on all of the security events that are written to Windows security event log.....The Data Protection Center products would be the third offering in the Systems Center suite....A newcomer to the Systems Center space is the Systems Center Virtual Machine manager...."

:10:58:
What are some other related Microsoft solutions connected to Systems Management?
"....Microsoft has a suite of technologies that they have incorporated into the Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack (MDOP). MDOP provides access to technology that would enhance the support in a large enterprise environment of desktop applications...."

:16:57:
Do you have any other additional related Microsoft solutions?
"....Different resource kits are available that can enhance the monitoring and the maintenance of Windows' systems and there are a number of third party tools that provide point solutions to different problems within a large corporate environment...."

:18:54:
Would you consider PowerShell part of the tools to help with system management?
"....integration of PowerShell into some of the Systems Center suites (it's not available in all of the System Center products) certainly extends the system's capabilities and provides an alternative to administrators who may have a necessity to automate certain tasks....It does have its place in helping you make administrative changes en masse and automate those through the configuration family maintenance mode type task...."

:20:21:
What hard-to-find tips do you have for IT Pros concerning Systems Management?
"....An evaluation of what they truly want to accomplish and to come up with a requirements list and a wish list. When they sit down to evaluate the different phases within their project they will be able to realistically identify what the architecture looks like and what the hardware requirements are and what the resources are going to be required....A requirement analysis...."

:22:28:
What's cool about System Center?
"....The Systems Center tools allow the systems administrators to become proactively notified as well as more proactive in their day-to-day role. By becoming more proactive and having an understanding ahead of time of potential issues, they can schedule a time that is convenient for them to deal with the issue before it becomes an outage and they have to go into 'fire fighting' mode...."

:24:09:
What are the pain points and solutions for IT Pros when installing, managing, and working with Systems Management?
"....Look for commonalities between different server roles. Try to identify what it is that could be grouped together from a logical monitoring or deployment perspective....In the context of operations management look at what it is that you are needing to monitor and what your immediate needs are....Look at the overall health of your operating system and the logical drive, memory and CPU utilization and other key performance indicators....Look at monitoring the applications that run on those systems, extend that to monitoring network devices....Then integrating the system into the business process...."

:26:53:
What do you consider to be the best resources for working with Systems Management and System Center?
"....There are a number of resources out there that are easily accessible on the Internet....microsoft.com website (systems center section)....Technet for different how-to and documentation....When it comes to Operations Manager, the best community website is systemcenterforum.org....If you are looking for Systems Center Configuration Manager information my IT forum (http://spaces.msn.com/rorymccaw) tends to be a site where SMS or SCCM administrators contribute .... FAQShop.com ....momanswers.net ....Different blogs from MVPs in the community who post resolutions to different problems on an ongoing basis...."

:28:36:
What about the future of Systems Management?
"....From a Microsoft perspective I think there is a lot of potential there...."

:30:09:
Can you tell us more about Systems Management with System Center Operations Manager?
"....The Operations Manager technology provides customers the ability through an agent-to-server like configuration, to monitor their production systems and possibly development or QA systems within the large enterprise - to locally identify issues and generate alerts based upon those issues on the agent and have that forwarded back and centrally logged and collected into a backend SQL server database...."

:33:08:
What is required to ensure a successful deployment?
"....Make sure you have the right skill set in-house and you have experience with the technology so that you can get it up and running quickly....Look at it from a phased or staged perspective....Allocating the right project resources to those who are knowledgeable in the operations manager technology is important but having administrative resources there to deal with resolving the issues as they are identified and as alerts are generated is another very important component to a successful implementation within a large organization....Integrate through bi-directional communications into a second system so that the business processes can be adhered to...."

:37:19:
What are your tips for moving from another product to System Center Operations Manager successfully?
"....First step is identifying what the customer wants to achieve....There are some ways depending on the tool to move different configurations from one platform to another...Other challenges to take into consideration include the need to have multiple agents performing duplicate monitoring during that transition period...."

:40:08:
What does it mean to do change and configuration management?
"....From our perspective it includes everything from receiving a new system from your Original Equipment Manufacturer and getting that system to a point where it is ready to be released into your production environment....Patch deployment and application deployment are a very important aspect of configuration and change management ....Having the ability to collect and gather both hardware and software inventory information and licensing information is another component, as is the need for remote administration...."

:44:13:
Can you describe the biggest challenges organizations face when implementing a monitoring tool?
"....The biggest challenge that we see is approaching it methodically....We want to encourage the customer to make an investment in a requirements analysis...."

:48:00:
What 3 questions would you ask and what would be your answers if you were doing this interview?
"....What are the keys to success for Systems Center deployment?....What do each of the technologies do within the Systems Center suite?...What are some best practices around the System Center toolset?...."

This is the next blog in the continuing series of interviews with top-echelon and renowned professionals. In this blog, I interview Pat McGee, Top Development and Gaming Authority, top-selling Author, and Microsoft Most Valuable Professional (MVP). 

Pat has an infectious enthusiasm that appears in this interview. When you consider that gaming is a $18B industry in NA versus $9B for movies, you can see its continuing rise is readily apparent. In fact, it’s predicted that e-sport federations will supplant traditional sports as the most popular spectator pastime. This is happening now in parts of the world where stadiums are filled to capacity to watch on gigantic screens while e-teams compete.

Enjoy,
Stephen Ibaraki,
FCIPS, I.S.P., MVP , DFNPA, CNP, Advanced Technology

Pat McGee, Top Development Authority, Author, and Microsoft Most Valuable Professional

This week, Stephen Ibaraki has an exclusive interview with Pat McGee.

Pat is a Microsoft XNA / DirectX MVP and has co-authored the Microsoft XNA Game Studio Creator's Guide. Pat McGee is an Instructor and curriculum developer for both CST part-time studies and for BCIT's High Tech Professional Programs. In his career he has been a Games Programmer and a Technical Engineer at Business Objects where he worked with business intelligence technologies. Pat began his teaching career by leading several video games courses for teens in summer sessions. Since then Pat has gone on to develop several courses for BCIT and for Part-Time studies in addition to writing two books on games programming.

To listen to the interview, click on this MP3 file link

DISCUSSION:

Interview Time Index (MM:SS) and Topic

:00:38:
What triggered your initial interest in computing?
"....Being able to combine an interest in technology with any industry or sector, and being able to create something from nothing using software was a real selling point for me...."

:01:15:
Pat profiles how he got to his present position in his career.

:03:23:
Pat describes his upcoming work at BCIT.
"....A web programming option, very Microsoft based...."

:04:18:
Please define XNA: what it is, who uses it, where and how do you get it?
"....It is a C# based platform from Microsoft that enables development for the Xbox 360 and PC....As far as 3D games are concerned, it's really the number one freeware library out there for hobbyists, programmers and independents. It's really changed the gaming programming world...."

:06:38:
Based on your experience if someone had some background in computing but wanted to get into the gaming area, how long do you think it would take them to go from scratch to having some proficiency?
"....Not long at all....The XNA creative site has tons of examples.....These libraries have been built by thousands of people over millions of hours so they've really streamlined it and made the 3D graphics development very simple...."

:07:38:
Profile key lessons from the XNA Game Studio Creator's Guide which you co-authored.
"....It's really a complete solution showing how to build the entire game. That's the approach that I use in the classroom too....How to build a complete project and also to encourage the readers or students to take it further and customize it and make it their own...."

:09:26:
What best practices can you share from other books you have written?
"....We had Nick Gravelyn help with the tech review of our latest book. He's a Microsoft MVP for XNA and really knows his stuff and is a really big community champion as well....We've really benefited from having that expertise in the technical review and that's really going to take the 2nd edition to another level...."

:10:43:
What gaming best practices can you share from the courses you are teaching?
"....The ones who do really well are the ones that experiment, who look things up on their own. They'll take the framework that I provide them but they will go and try things on their own...."

:11:31:
Can you talk about the suitability of XNA for schools and for encouraging students to learn programming?
"....I think it's a great technology for schools. At BCIT we run kids camps almost every summer and the game programming courses are extremely popular....It's exciting for children, they can learn about programming and even if they don't become game programmers, the skills they learn, applying the logic, they can apply in other industries. It really is a great, healthy learning tool for young learners...."

:14:28:
Can you explore further key new and recent features surrounding: Developers selling their games on Xbox Live, Networking, and Zune deployment (Microsoft's mobile mp3 player)?
"....This is going to drive game innovation. We are going to see a lot of small game developers and independents driving innovation. I think it's going to change the way games are made and I think big companies are going to be paying attention to what the smaller developers are doing with XMA...."

:18:25:
What are some little known but essential tips in XNA?
"....In general 3D graphics are easy to program. The main area of math that you can benefit from knowing is linear algebra which is mostly addition, multiplication and volume....All 3D worlds, everything from plants to people, are just a collection of triangles...."

:20:59:
Where is gaming heading in 3, 5, and then 10 years?
"....More advertising in games....Athletics integrated into the games....Resort companies hiring companies to build 3D models of their resorts so they can be toured virtually....A convergence of animation and 3D programming...."

:24:12:
The industry is changing. What advice would you give to IT professionals to stay on top of what is happening in the industry in order to position them (from a career standpoint) and their organization to benefit from these trends?
"....Anybody interested in this industry really needs to find what interests them the most and to focus on it. Over time, as they gain experience they will find a way to take a lead and find a niche...."

:25:48:
In your current role, what are the biggest challenges, and their solutions? How does this relate to business?
"....For me it's trying to create complete solutions that are good foundations for anyone to start with; to challenge people to customize by adding to it and to develop it into a framework and make it their own....Find what's important to you and pursue it. That's how I've approached it for myself...."

:26:48:
Pat shares some stories (something surprising, unexpected, amazing, or humorous) from his work.

:30:42:
Provide your predictions of future IT/Business trends and their implications/opportunities?
"....Independent developers are going to see their ideas come to light and we'll see a lot of good small games come out of this. There's always going to be room for the big companies too. I think they will definitely co-exist. But we will benefit more from having platforms like XNA...."

:31:36:
Which are your top recommended resources and why?
"....XMA Creater's club....Shawn Hargreaves blog....Michael from Ziggyware....Andy Dunn from ZBuffer....George Clingerman....Nick Gravelyn...."

:34:04:
Provide commentary on any topics of your choosing.
"....XNA is a great platform for schools. If I were to choose a games platform for a school/college/university, I would choose XNA. It's free, it has incredible support from Microsoft....You've got a great suite of products that you can use to develop the games....More and more applications are going to use advanced graphics and elements of XMA graphics libraries are finding their way into other applications...."

This one caught my eye since it’s about students, education, innovation, and addressing the skills gap. Each ICT worker contributes about $120,000 to the Canadian Economy and with the world economic challenges, the skill value of IT professionals is more pronounced then ever. Well David O’leary is at the forefront of making a substantive difference to all of the areas noted above.

My last extended chat with Dave O’leary happened at the March 2008 National Council of IT Deans Summit hosted by Microsoft Canada, where academic leaders from across the country shared solutions to increase technology enrollments, address the skills shortage, foster passion and industry-leading competencies in students, and innovate. I was invited to keynote and advise, and will do this again in Feb 5/6 of 2009 at the National Council of IT Deans Summit. Dave, led the summit as both incoming Chair of the National Council of IT Deans and also as a Dean at Northwest College. Dave also now holds the position as CIO at the college.

Dave spoke at the summit about an innovative consortium of colleges and universities launching a new collaborative academic program which features the use of Microsoft technologies and solutions. This is often not widely known but Microsoft has extensive and far reaching programs to support the academic community through academic forums, research and software, gaming tools and curriculum, student ambassador/partner programs, faculty connections, sponsorships, awards, events such as TechDays/EnergizeIT, Webcasts (Ignite Your Career, Academic), and much more.

Late in 2008, Northwest Science & Innovation sponsored an innovation award, and David O’leary was spotlighted by a nomination for his leadership.

As noted in the nomination, Dave “has been instrumental in the development of a new collaborative Information Technology Program which not only addresses the skills shortages in the IT field both locally and nationally, but also which uses modern communications technology to break down geographic and other barriers to students, and allows students to train, work and stay in their communities.”

I wanted to congratulate Dave on this special honour! Well Done!

And a special thank you to Dave for his continuing commitment to excellence and to Microsoft Canada (and the award-winning, world top-ranked advisor, evangelist teams you see in the MS blogs) for providing the enabling support to make real change happen.

Cheers,
Stephen

How many of you have wanted to start a company? My guess is the majority of you have considered this at some point in your career. With online services increasingly prevalent, it can be done with limited capital, piloting and testing new innovations.

My history advising/creating startups, goes back to the 1970s’--more than 30 years. In fact, I have several new startups I am working with now with one holding No.1 position internationally in the social media space. So, I found this news item on “startups” reported in www.itbusiness.ca of great interest. Here are extracts from the MS web site…

Enjoy,
Stephen Ibaraki, FCIPS, I.S.P., MVP , DFNPA, CNP

More about the MS BizSpark program: http://www.microsoftstartupzone.com/BizSpark/Pages/At_a_Glance.aspx

--
Microsoft® BizSpark™ is a global program designed to help accelerate the success of early stage startups by providing key resources when they need it the most:

• Software. Receive fast and easy access to current full-featured Microsoft development tools, platform technologies, and production licenses of server products for immediate use in developing and bringing to market innovative and interoperable solutions. There is no upfront cost to enroll.
• Support. Get connected to Network Partners around the world — incubators, investors, advisors, government agencies and hosters — that are equally involved and vested in software-fueled innovation and entrepreneurship who will provide a wide range of support resources.
• Visibility. Achieve global visibility to an audience of potential investors, clients and partners
  As a Microsoft BizSpark member, you’ll be tapping into a rich, vibrant ecosystem of peers, partners and support resources around the globe, helping you grow and succeed. Microsoft BizSpark is the quickest way to get your Startup fired up.

Cheers,
Stephen Ibaraki,
FCIPS, I.S.P., DFNPA, CNP, Advanced Technology

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This is the next blog in the continuing series of interviews with top-echelon and renowned professionals. In this blog, I interview Raffael Marty, Leading Security Strategist and Author.

Raffael provides a unique perspective on Security Visualization due to his pioneering efforts in this area. In this podcast, he shares his deep insights developed from actually “doing it” all.

Enjoy,
Stephen Ibaraki, FCIPS, I.S.P., MVP , DFNPA, CNP

As chief security strategist and director of application product management, Raffy is customer advocate and guardian - expert on all things security and log analysis at Splunk. Starting with IBM Research and Price Waterhouse Coopers Consulting, then ArcSight and Splunk, Raffy has been in the log management and analysis world for many years. He has built numerous log analysis systems and implemented use-cases for hundreds of customers that deal with log management challenges on a daily basis. Currently he uses his skills in data visualization, log management, intrusion detection, and compliance to solve problems and create solutions for Splunk customers. Fully immersed in industry initiatives, standards efforts and activities, Raffy lives and breathes security and visualization.

His passion for visualization is evident in the many presentations he gives at conferences around the world and his book: "Applied Security Visualization". In addition, Raffy is the author of AfterGlow, founder of the security visualization portal http://secviz.org, and contributing author to a number of books on security and visualization.

To listen to the interview, click on this MP3 file link

DISCUSSION:

Interview Time Index (MM:SS) and Topic

:00:36:
What triggered your initial interest in technology?
"....When I was exposed to my first computer, an Apple II, I was fascinated by being able to teach this machine what to do...."

:01:29:
How did you get to your current position and please share your essential career and technology tips from this journey?
"....I studied computer science(focus on cryptography) and got interested in applied security....I was always driven by curiosity....I always felt a sense of "ownership" for certain topics during my career and wanted to learn everything about it...I started with security, then... intrusion detection, correlation, anomaly detection, visualization....Most recently, I am moving more into the business side and am interested in the strategic and market analysis of business markets and products and the problems which businesses need to solve and how to resolve them...."

:07:00:
Please share some lessons from your various roles. What do you hope to accomplish in your current role and can you overview your key initiatives?
"....In my various roles, I've always tried to see what is coming next and where is it going....You can't just wait and hope that it happens....Move in the direction (of new things) and don't be afraid of the goal being too far away....I am currently leading the application development efforts and helping to define the applications and the markets...."

:11:33:
How would you define Security Visualization and what are its benefits?
"....A picture is worth a thousand log records....Visualization, in the security sense, is the process of generating a picture based on log records...."

:13:28:
Can you talk more about data sources?
"....No data, no image...It is the basis for visualization....We are trying to work to standardize the log records....We are trying to bring industry together with customers to define these log records....The effort is called the Common Event Expression (CEE) hosted by MITRE...."

:15:40:
What are the best ways for representing data and why?
"....This really depends on the problem. In some cases the best way to represent the data is textual....Graphs are being abused a lot....The challenge happens when you have highly dimensional data...."

:17:02:
Can you overview the steps from data to graphs?
"....Define the problem...Assess available data....Filter....Parsing/Normalization....Visual transformation....View transformation....Interpret and decide...."

:19:26:
What are the important lessons behind visual security analysis?
"....The visualization mantra as Ben Shneiderman calls it: look at an overview first, then zoom in on the areas that are important, then look at details on demand...."

:20:45:
Can you talk more about perimeter threats?
"....Perimeter threats are things that are trying to attack your organization from the outside...It's the traditional network security use cases....The problem for perimeter threat analysis is to consolidate a lot of these things and to try to visually represent the vulnerabilities and exposures that the network has right now...."

:22:21:
Looking at this from a global standpoint, how does this influence compliance?
"....Compliance is shifting towards continuous monitoring...."

:24:25:
Provide your best practices around insider threats?
".....There are products now that try to detect certain kinds of insider threats. But in the end there will never be a tool and there is no tool that flags insiders when they become active or commit a crime....What do you do to detect them?....My approach to this is to try to define certain pre-cursors...."

:29:02:
What are your recommended Data Visualization Tools?
"....AfterGlow....Treemap....Excel...ChartDirector....DAVIX (Data Analysis Visualization Linux) http://davix.secviz.org...."

:30:55:
Please share your picks for the top trends in IT?
"....Virtualization (operational and security impact)....Application security monitoring...."

:32:36:
What you do see as the top trends in Business?
"....Consolidation....A need for more metrics and more data....GRC (Governance, Risk and Compliance) is now a part of the project itself and not an afterthought...."

:34:29:
What do you see at the top tends in security education?
"....I don't know if I can see any trends but there are certain needs out there....IT environments are getting incredibly complicated. If you want to become a really good security analyst today and understand the different things that can happen to your environment, you need to be an expert in many areas...."

:35:51:
What are the major disruptive forces that IT practitioners and managers need to highlight as their top priorities? Why do you spotlight these areas?
"....Integration...the Green Initiative....Web as a platform...."

:38:20:
What are your top recommended resources and why?
"....Co-workers....Conferences..."

:38:28:
Can you share stories centered around one or more of these themes: Amusing, Surprising, Inspirational, Disruptive, Historical?
"....The human species is capable of doing so much and you can do things that seem absolutely impossible if you put your mind to something and you really try...."

:41:30:
The UN-founded International Federation for Information Processing or IFIP has their Professional Practice Partnership Program which received full ratification at the world general assembly in August 2007 with their first implementation meeting in Montreal hosted by CIPS in October. This marks an historical inflection point and speaks to IT as a recognized profession with global standards, profession-based code of ethics, and widely adopted professional certification-all happening in 2009. Can you comment on the benefits of this global initiative?
"....International standards will help bring everybody on the same level, which will make it more fair for people.....A common education and certification will help establish a common standard that facilitates interdisciplinary work...."

:46:43:
What question would you ask and what would be your answer if you were doing this interview?
"....What prompted you to write the book, "Applied Security Visualization"?...."

This is the next blog in the continuing series of interviews with top-echelon and renowned professionals. In this blog, I interview David Ticoll: Chair, Expert Panel, Information & Communications Technology Council and Senior Advisor, Canadian Coalition for Tomorrow's ICT Skills.

David shares his views on the nature of the skills landscape and the IT labour market plus industry challenges, trends, and solutions. In a follow-up podcast, we will delve deeper in business, innovation, technology and the competitive ecosystem.

Enjoy,
Stephen Ibaraki, FCIPS, I.S.P., MVP , DFNPA, CNP

David Ticoll on the IT Talent Crisis

Organizations in Canada, the United States, and many other countries face an IT talent crisis. Baby boomers are headed for the retirement exits. Technical skills are becoming ever more specialized. And technical skills are no longer enough; today's employees must combine technical proficiency with business knowledge and judgment, leadership and collaboration skills. We increasingly need Renaissance men and women. Meanwhile, colleges and universities are seeing plummeting enrollments in their technology and engineering programs.

David Ticoll is one of Canada's leading visionaries, speakers and advisers on competitiveness, globalization, technology and business innovation.

David has authored several bestselling business books, including Digital Capital: Harnessing the Power of Business Webs, and The Naked Corporation: How the Age of Transparency will Revolutionize Business.

David chairs the Expert Panel of the Information & Communications Technology Council (ICTC), a national sector council for the ICT industry; this places him at the forefront of state-of the art strategic and policy issues for the ICT sector. He is a senior advisor to the Canadian Coalition for Tomorow's ICT Skills, an alliance of companies, universities, and industry associations which is tackling the generational challenges of talent management and competitiveness in the global economy.

David has authored many reports on the globalization of knowledge work and the rise of collaborative business networks, such as:

• Jobs 2.0: How Canada can win in the 21st century global marketplace for information & communications technologies and services (Information & Communications Technology Council)
• Outsourcing Comes of Age: the Rise of Collaborative Partnering which reports on a global survey of 300 outsourcing customers and service providers, published by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLC.
• Dances with Penguins: Harnessing Self-organization for Competitive Advantage

David was CEO of the international thought leadership think tank and consulting firm, Digital 4Sight, which he founded in 1994. The firm's clients included leading firms in information technology, financial services, telecommunications, automotive, consumer packaged goods, resources, government, and other industries.

He was a columnist on business strategy and information technology topics for The Globe & Mail.

David is a Director of the Information Technology Association of Canada (ITAC), a position he has held for ten years. He is an advisor to the EMBA program at Athabasca University.

To listen to the interview, click on this MP3 file link

DISCUSSION:

Interview Time Index (MM:SS) and Topic

:00:31:
Can you describe what triggered your interest in technology and business?
"....It was really thrilling to see somebody who was actually trying to understand the broader applications of technology for the marketplace. It kind of triangulated - social issue, business issues, technology issues - to try to figure out what was really going on...."

:02:10:
In your roles with Information Technology Association of Canada (ITAC) and Information & Communications Technology Council (ICTC), what do you hope to accomplish?
"....Even though there is that disproportionate contribution to GDP, we're under investing (compared with the US) to the tune of about 50% - so that makes us [Canada] less competitive. Another thing that is happening is that a lot of people think IT is a field that in some ways is in decline. But in fact it is growing and the demand for ICTs is growing in Canada. Companies are realizing that they need to invest in this area in order to be more competitive and for a number of other reasons as well. We are facing a crisis in the labour market where we have all the old fogies like me retiring or on the eve of retirement. At the other end of the labour market we have declining enrollments and people not entering the field....So those are my interests, both in ITAC and in ICTC...."

:05:15:
A lot of people seem to be worried about the IT labour market. Some say the jobs are disappearing due to offshoring. Others, that we face a shortage of workers. What's really going on?
"....Both of those things are happening....Even though we are moving jobs offshore, demand is growing and it's growing firstly because we have underinvested for a very long time in this area. And secondly because companies are using IT in ever more areas of the business and it's becoming pervasive in every aspect in our lives...There's a myth out there that this offshoring is creating a decline in jobs - that is absolutely not the case. What is happening is that the kinds of people that we need are changing...."

:07:58:
What are the underlying factors behind these changes? How are the jobs of tomorrow going to change, and why?
"....I think there is a lot of mythology out there about this issue. A lot of people think that the reason that the kids are not enrolling is because of the dot com crash five years ago so people think that this is a field that is in decline. Or the offshoring phenomenon where people say why should I go into a field where I might not actually be able to get a job. That may be a bit of a factor but I don't think it's the central factor....Look at the data that does exist out there and what you find is there's a certain perception among young people that IT is not the greatest career choice compared with other fields....We need to look at ourselves as an industry or as a field and ask the hard nosed question - what is the ROI on going into the field of information technology as compared with some of the other options...."

:20:07:
Why are enrollments dropping?
"....I think that the main issue is that kids don't think that they want to go into this field. They don't want to be perceived or have the experience of being nerds who are stuck in front of a computer screen for the rest of their lives....even though that is actually not the future of these jobs...."

:24:58:
There's a big gender issue here too - what's your take on that?
"....Women have been grossly under represented in terms of their percentage of the workforce in this field and it has never really gotten any better. We've stood at around the 25% mark of women in IT for as long back as people can remember....But actually what is happening, as enrollments are declining across Canada (and in all industrialized countries) of men in post-secondary programs, we are seeing a commensurate declining enrollment of women....What that says is that there is a broader set of issues here that effect both women and men and there are some specific gender issues that affect women...."

:28:40:
How does the value proposition of an IT career rate in comparison to the other career options that are available to young people?
"....Historically it hasn't been that great....Look at IT companies....Hardly any IT companies or telecom companies have a CEO whose principle credentials are IT credentials....We've got to fix that if we are going to make this an attractive field...."

:32:00:
Can immigration solve this problem?
"....We have not been able to tackle immigration effectively to fill this gap....There are probably two primary reasons. One is that we are not very good at recognizing the credentials of internationally educated professionals....Secondly our immigration systems has not been focused on this challenge and we have not been focused on getting the type of people with the market skills that we require...."

:35:53:
What about retraining of IT workers? Of laid off manufacturing workers?
"....Immigration is a part of the solution but it's not going to get us there. At the end of the day we need a way to solve the enrollment problem and also to retrain people. Retraining is one way to tackle this, both in terms of taking business people and giving them the IT skills that they need, but also we should be looking at what's happening with the automotive industry or the manufacturing industry in general...."

:41:40:
Who are the key players who need to fix this problem, and what should they be doing about it? Are we seeing any signs of progress right now?
"....All the organizations that I've talked to are trying to get the real players mobilized to take action....We need to change the way that we manage people's careers in IT, we need to change the way we educate people to prepare for this field....We need to get a lot better at communicating those choices and educating people about them....We need to get the influencers understanding this and not just the kids themselves...."

:47:05:
What are the most important broader business challenges and solutions?
"....This kind of disaggregation of control that information communications technologies have wrought on markets is part of what is driving the current economic crisis that we see in the world....What we are seeing are two levels of disaggregation that are happening now because of the power of information technology. On one hand, historically a lot of relationships were managed hierarchically through fairly controlled ways of doing things.... And the other thing that's happening is that we are seeing increasingly a shift away from pre-designed, pre-packaged and pre-specified solutions, toward emergent solutions where the participants in the network are the ones who are designing the solutions, the outcomes, almost 'on the fly'...."

:51:48:
Would you say that this ties in with what you see as your predictions of major trends and their opportunities?
"....The opportunities are finding new ways and more creative ways to manage against these problems....There are big opportunities for any country that can build a new kind of economy that is more energy efficient and creates new kinds of technologies that can facilitate energy efficiency because there will be a huge global demand for those kinds of solutions...."

:52:36:
Which are your top recommended resources and why?
"....I pay close attention to both web-based resources like Tech Crunch....I have a set of blogs that I track through Google Reader....I also pay close attention to the major media, not so much the technology media as the business media, how they are tracking technology - Wall Street Journal, the New York Times, the Economist....I also still read books.... "

:55:32:
Do you have any closing comments you would like to make?
"....Anybody who's alive today should consider themselves to be very privileged. On one hand, it is kind of a crucial moment in terms of the history of our planet because of the huge global issues that I talked about earlier. But on the other hand, it is a period of tremendous innovation and learning....We are in a period of exponential growth in human knowledge so it's a wonderful time to be alive...."

This is the next blog in the continuing series of interviews with top-echelon and renowned professionals. In this blog, I interview Michael Williams (BSc, PhD, DSc), World-Renowned Computing Pioneer, Past-President (2007) IEEE Computer Society, Professor Emeritus University of Calgary.

Often as IT professionals, we can lose site of the industry, the profession, its remarkable history, and its founding pioneers. Mike is one of those rare individuals who has shaped our world through his lifetime achievements. Take the time to listen to the podcast, to be inspired, and to smile too--Mike provides some amazing stories and insights into our profession.

Enjoy,
Stephen Ibaraki, FCIPS, I.S.P., MVP , DFNPA, CNP

Michael R. Williams (BSc, PhD, DSc), Past-President (2007) IEEE Computer Society, Professor Emeritus University of Calgary, graduated in 1964 with a BSc in Chemistry from the University of Alberta and in 1968 he obtained a PhD in Computer Science from the University of Glasgow. In 1969 he joined the University of Calgary, first in the Department of Mathematics then as a Professor of Computer Science. It was while working at Glasgow that he acquired an interest in the history of computing, something which has developed over the years into his main research and teaching interest.

He has participated in the publishing of 11 books, 92 articles, 58 technical reviews and 72 invited lectures and has been involved in the creation of 10 different radio, television, and museum productions. During his career he has had the opportunity to work for extended periods at several different universities, and at the National Museum of American History (Smithsonian Institution), and as Head Curator at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View California.

Besides his work as Editor-in-Chief for the journal The Annals of the History of Computing, he has worked closely with the IEEE History Committee (serving as its chairman in 1994 and 1995), the IEEE History Center, is past President of the IEEE Computer Society, (serving as its President in 2007), serves as a member of many different committees of the IEEE and is a member of editorial boards concerned with publishing material in the area of the history of computing.

He has received several awards, the most interesting of which are:

• C.C. Gotlieb Award - "In recognition of Outstanding Contributions to the Canadian Information Processing Society and to the Profession on CIPS behalf." Presented by the Canadian Prime Minister, May 17, 1990
• University of Calgary, Faculty of Science, Award of Excellence for Consistently Outstanding Contributions in Teaching, April 1993.
• In 2005 the University of Glasgow, Scotland, awarded him an honorary Doctor of Science degree for his contributions to computer science, particularly the history of computing.

To listen to the interview, click on this MP3 file link

DISCUSSION:

Interview Time Index (MM:SS) and Topic

:00:44:
Michael shares what triggered his initial interest in computing.

:01:54:
Can you profile your areas of research early in your career?
"... I can remember a session in his (John Peck) office when he was describing an area of mathematics known as graph theory and how colouring of these graphs might actually help him produce an exam timetable. At that point I got very interested in this particular branch of mathematics and how computers might actually help to solve what was an intractable problem...."

:03:49:
Michael comments on the roles he undertook while at the University of Calgary and his experiences there.
"....I had an administrative appointment (Chair of the new division of Computer Science), albeit a junior one, early on in my career. That led to all sorts of interesting experiences and eventually I took other administrative jobs, as well as my teaching...."

:08:31:
While at Glasgow, what was the catalyst for your interest in the history of computing?
"....it turns out that our professor had somehow acquired the library of the people that he worked with in London and had brought this library to Glasgow....There was a book there that was written by Charles Babbage, a very early computer pioneer (pre-electronic days in the middle of the 1800s) and I started flipping through this book....I got very interested in this book and the sort of things that Charles Babbage was trying to do. That was really the beginning of my interest in the history of computing....purely by accident...."

:10:44:
How did you to come to be at the National Museum of American History and can you describe your contributions?
"....That museum is part of the Smithsonian and they had a very early exhibit on computing (from about 1980s).....They decided that they had to refresh this exhibit and to start over again to create a proper exhibit for the then developing information age. They were looking around for some help. One of their advisors happened to know of me and so I got this phone call one day asking me to come down to talk with them. In the end they asked me to arrange with my university to take a leave of absence for about four months to help them get the ideas together and to look over their artifacts and see how they could be arranged into a proper story...."

:12:42:
What notable moments can you share as Head Curator at the Computer History Museum?
"....This is the world's largest collection of computing artifacts - if you take everything in the Smithsonian, in the London Science museum, in the Deutsches museum in Germany and a few others and combine then altogether - this collection in California is still much larger. It's everything from tiny microchips to various Cray supercomputers that weighed about nine tons and these were all jammed into a number of these leaky warehouses. Trying to organize the movement of this collection of artifacts into the new building and to arrange them in some sort of way so that we could at least tell a preliminary story was a very interesting task and quite frankly it's one that I don't ever want to repeat. It was very hard work...."

:16:08:
Can you share your insights as Editor-in-Chief for the journal, The Annals of the History of Computing?
"....The early days of that journal were basically the computer pioneers discussing their own work. The reason for starting the journal was that a lot of these stories were being lost as these people were passing away - in particular the inside stories (those little interesting anecdotes). It has now shifted because there is now a thriving community of technical historians who are writing historical papers for publishing in that journal....It has certainly served to preserve some of the stories about the creation of the computer and how it was used in the early days, and the journal is now thriving. It has a long waiting list for things to be published and has a very lively group of both subscribers and authors...."

:18:35:
Looking back, what were key initiatives as Chairman of the IEEE History Committee?
"....One of the things they did was to have a series of milestones; for example, the first electrical power generating plant, the things that had been instrumental in the development of technology, and the electrical engineering field. They would place a suitable plaque on the site. One of the things I proposed was to broaden it out from power engineering so that it also included slightly more modern things such as the development of various computing facilities, things like the first Canadian satellite for radio communication....We managed to erect plaques so that the general public could see that there was a historic site in the neighborhood and that might twig their interest to investigate things slightly further...."

:21:31:
From your lifetime of researching the history of computing, which contributions can you share as particularly meaningful to you-that resonated with you personally?
"....I think what I found the most interesting about the history of computing was the people. This included not only the early pioneers but people like Charles Babbage....and going back as far as 4000 years ago....the scribes in Egypt who left records of how they actually did computations. It's the stories of these people rather than the actual physical things they created that I found by far the most interesting...."

:24:00:
As a computing pioneer, you have participated in the publishing of 11 books, 92 articles, 58 technical reviews and 72 invited lectures and have been involved in the creation of 10 different radio, television, and museum productions, plus much more. Which three specific events or personal interactions standout for you and can you provide the context?
"....As I was trying to document the history of computing I would deliberately go out and try to meet the people who had done it and I would try to find out their motivation and contributions in various ways. This led to meeting such eminent pioneers as Conrad and Wilkes....There were a lot in Canada including Kelly Gotlieb in Toronto, and various other people at the University of Toronto, and another one at the University of Saskatoon - Andrew Donald Booth. All of these people have lived fascinating lives and they were desperate to try to develop computing in some way and each approached it differently. They often had almost no resources and the effort that they had to make just to get things started was wonderful lesson in overcoming all sorts of problems...."

:29:37:
You received the Award for Excellence for Consistently Outstanding Contributions in Teaching. Can you share some lessons from this distinguished career?
"....First of all, I love teaching....You have to be prepared....You have to have plan, you have to have examples all prepared and have everything laid out rather than just leaving it to chance...That I think is the biggest lesson I learned very early on in my career...."

:32:07:
You have many remarkable achievements in your life and you have received the C. C. Gotlieb award and also a Doctor of Science degree. Can you provide some background on those accomplishments?
"....I think there are many, many others who deserve these awards and I was suitably humbled to receive them. I certainly never expected that I would ever get either one. They both came as tremendous surprises...."

:34:49:
From your time in 2007 as President of the IEEE-CS, what compelling tips can you share from this time as president? I know it was a very interesting time for you.
"....That was a lesson in trying to look at a large organization and to see where the organization was not as efficient as it could be. Then to sort out what our actual priorities were and to drop things that weren't a first priority in order to get our financial situation back in order....The major lesson I took away from that is if you take a job of that nature, (of course it's a volunteer job), you've got to be interested in people because it is people who actually do the work....All of these are very interesting learning experiences and unfortunately once you've learned them, you can't go back and do the job again...."

:38:56:
The UN-founded International Federation for Information Processing or IFIP has their Professional Practice Partnership Program which received full ratification at the world general assembly in August 2007 with their first implementation meeting in Montreal hosted by CIPS in October. This marks an historical inflection point and speaks to IT as a recognized profession with global standards, profession-based code of ethics, and widely adopted professional certification-all happening in 2009. Can you comment on the benefits of this global initiative? Can you provide your perspective on IFIP, IP3, and then the global professionalism and certification program?
"....As with other industries, various groups have set up certification programs so that people can take these certifications and have some sort of standard that they can compare themselves against....It is now beginning to be recognized that there are several different kinds of certifications that are needed. Different national groups as well as IFIP are starting to offer these different kinds of certifications to bring not only those people who classify themselves as software professionals, but also the class of IT professionals that competes in the day to day business of computing, working in industry or business, to get them some sort of international recognition from international standards and things like Code of Ethics...I think that the industry is now maturing to the point where these certifications are both necessary and desirable and I hope that this will continue to develop along this line that has been started...."

:43:43:
Mike shares some interesting stories centered around the following themes: Amusing, Surprising, Inspirational, Disruptive, or Historical that will give the audience a feel for some of the things that he has done or some of the people he has met.

:57:25:
If you were doing this interview, what questions or topics would you ask of yourself and what would be your answers?
"....Background?....Hardships?....People sometimes ask me what can they do to advance their career....If you accomplish anything at all you have to collaborate both with staff and with other volunteers, as well as friends and colleagues. The biggest thing is you have to treat them well if you want to be treated well yourself...."

This is the next blog in the continuing series of interviews with top-echelon and renowned professionals. In this blog, I interview Vaclav Vincalek, IT Authority, Founder and President of Pacific Coast Information Systems (PCIS) Ltd. Take the time to look at Vaclav's very strong background and then the topic index. Vaclav shares his views on security, best practices, recommended resources, and business trends.

With Vaclav's extensive history in the industry, we also dialogued after the podcast about his insights on IT as a Profession which I'm sharing with you here...

------
The UN-founded International Federation for Information Processing or IFIP has their Professional Practice Partnership (IP3) program which received full ratification at the world general assembly in August 2007 with their first implementation meeting in Montreal hosted by CIPS in October of 2007. This marks an historical inflection point and speaks to IT as a recognized profession with global standards, profession-based code of ethics, and widely adopted professional certification--all happening in 2009. Can you comment on this global initiative?

"Global standards and a professional code of ethics would benefit the IT industry. Until this point, the position of “IT professional” has not been clearly defined with firm standards and codes of conduct. Without exaggerating, the definition of an IT professional in some organizations has meant the person at the office who knows more than everyone else about computers – even if the extent of their knowledge was limited to opening up a box with a computer in it and getting the Internet hookup working.

The technology industry proved itself capable of instituting standards for technology. Clearly, the capacity exists for the industry to develop a professional association and codes of conduct like other established professions have already developed, like in accounting, architecture or law.

The IFIP is a long-awaited move for a maturing industry as technology plays an increasing role in our lives. It will ensure that IT professionals have the training and credentials to do their jobs and benchmarks to measure their skills, experience and value to their organizations. It will also allow industries to benefit from more free movement of trained IT professionals. Additionally, it can help IT professionals carry out their objectives, not of using more technology for technology's sake, but focusing on better understanding their customers to develop solutions for their organizations' real business needs."
------

Enjoy the podcast,
Stephen Ibaraki, FCIPS, I.S.P., MVP , DFNPA, CNP

Vaclav Vincalek is the founder and president of Pacific Coast Information Systems (PCIS) Ltd., a Vancouver-based company that provides strategic consulting, application development, technology solutions and managed services to companies and government organizations throughout North America. He has over 25 years of experience in the information technology industry.

In 1995, Mr. Vincalek started PCIS, turning it into one of British Columbia's leading providers of IT solutions for business. His strategic vision, proven management style, keen understanding of business technology and ability to predict and manage technology trends helped him to successfully grow PCIS. He oversees and mentors a talented team of technology and business specialists.

Mr. Vincalek launched Boonbox in 2007 as a division of PCIS, currently offering unique web security, password management and secure data backup solutions. The division was established in response to growing demand from businesses trying to remain competitive while faced with an increasingly complex IT landscape and greater demand on scarce IT resources.

Before founding PCIS, Mr. Vincalek was a Systems Analyst with Process Automation Controls Ltd. in Burnaby, BC, from 1991-1995. He has also worked with the Jones Soda Co. to invent a patented personalized bottle labeling process, developed the overall technical framework and oversaw the coordination of the development teams involved. He also developed BCTV's back-end web system in 1998.

Mr. Vincalek has spent four years in post-graduate university research and has a Masters degree in Electrical Engineering at Czech Technical University. During that time Mr. Vincalek also worked with Nokia in Tampere, Finland and later in Prague, Czech Republic.

Mr. Vincalek speaks at seminars about web security and integrating technology solutions to improve business productivity. He is a member of the Knowledge Management Community of Practice, British Columbia Technology Industry Association (BCTIA) and Academy for Technology Company CEOs (ACETECH). He has been recognized by the IBM Systems Group for the work he completed on the HUB International Limited Intranet Development Project.

Mr. Vincalek produces the Pacific Coast Informer, authors a blog about technology trends and is frequently interviewed and quoted by media in programs and articles dealing with the technology industry, such as BCTV News, CBC radio, the National Post, Vancouver Sun, ComputerWorld Canada and BC Business Magazine. He can be reached at info@pcis.com

To listen to the interview, click on this MP3 file link

DISCUSSION:

Interview Time Index (MM:SS) and Topic

:00:34:
Can you describe what triggered your interest in computing and business?
"....I was raised in technically savvy company. Everybody from my grandfather, father, uncle, were involved in technology in some shape or form. My grandfather and father were pioneers and definitely leaders in communication technology in Czechoslovakia...."

:01:44:
You have a Masters in Electrical Engineering and worked for Nokia. Profile your work and valuable lessons you learned from these experiences.
"....When I worked for Nokia it was during my post-grad studies at the Czech Technical University in Prague....I was working in Tempere for the R & D department for Nokia....Definitely working for Nokia was a highlight of my career at that time...."

:03:01:
What was the nature of your HUB work?
"....HUB International is an umbrella for insurance companies through North America....They came to us to create a portal for all their employees and to be able to cross various divisions and to be able to share the experience, expertise and knowledge within this large group....A collaboration portal where people could share information.... not only across geographical distances but also different business groups...."

:04:36:
Since you developed the back-end web system for a major media network, what were the main challenges and solutions in this type of work?
"....At that time it was quite a revolutionary undertaking (1998-99)....It was a feature that through a browser the editor or a news reporter could update the story 'real time on the fly'. Today nobody thinks twice about it but at that time it was quite revolutionary for them...."

:06:50:
Describe your work with the Pacific Coast Informer and your blog. What business and IT trends would you like to share?
"....We have been, as a company, in business for over 13 years, we see that the technology is coming to the marketplace at such a speed that even for seasoned IT professionals, it is sometimes difficult to keep up with all the technology....Our aim with the Pacific Coast Informer (on the formal side) and my blog (less formal)....we want them to stop and think about all the implications....that technology has on their lives. For example one of the issues which is important to me is privacy and security...."

:09:08:
What are key best practices for integrating technology solutions to improve business productivity?
"....Every time you want to implement any technology, start first with the business. Understand why you are doing it, where is the benefit to the business....Another is to find seasoned professionals who understand both - the technology and the business...."

:10:57:
What are some important lessons around improving web security?
"....It's like when you go food shopping, you go into places where you know you can get fresh food which won't make you sick. The same thing applies to people browsing the internet. Go to websites which can prove to you that they are serious about protecting your personal information and your privacy and your secure transactions...."

:14:15:
What do you see as the most important broader business challenges and their solutions?
"....Businesses have to understand where the technology makes sense and how they can compete on the global level and how to do it as efficiently as possible...."

:16:57:
In your current role, what are the biggest challenges, and their solutions? How does this relate to business?
"....The market is opening and the competition is increasing....we are trying to improve our internal business processes. We are trying to minimize the time being spent on unproductive tasks and we are trying to make our organization as lean and efficient as possible....We are trying to identify all the issues which other companies are facing and then deliver solutions which are helpful to these organizations...."

:20:37:
Vaclav Vincalek shares an interesting experience from his work.
"....If one can create great encryption, there are always people who are smarter who can break the encryption. The moral of the story is if you don't want to lose something don't put it on your computer...."

:25:40:
Which are your top recommended resources and why?
"....To stay informed I spend about two hours every day reading on the internet....I subscribe to about 15 newsfeeds from various vendors or publications from around the world....Wikipedia....Because of our work with major vendors (IBM, Microsoft, Novell etc.)....they supply us with information from their point of view....But I would say the most important thing for me is talking to other IT professionals (that cannot be substituted for anything else)...."

:28:00:
It is interesting that what you are saying is that the top resource for you is your connection to communities enabled through technology and other means. This podcast will go out to different IT communities and you are saying that is a great resource to get involved with.
"....Technology is here to help us but it is the connectivity to other people who are knowledgeable and who can provide great wisdom and perspective on things...that is the ultimate for me. I am looking forward [perhaps as a result of this podcast] that I will be able to talk with similar minded people...."

:28:58:
If you were doing this interview, what would you ask and then what would be your answers?
"....unclear ownership of digital information on the internet...."

This is the next blog in the continuing series of interviews with top-echelon and renowned professionals. In this blog, I interview Jeff Kempiners, Top-ranking IT and Business Strategist and Leading Executive, Chief Technology Officer, Avanade Canada Inc.

Jeff provides insight into the "next generation workplace" and why it's essential to keep the relevant technologies (unified communications, digital collaboration, enterprise content management, enterprise search, ...) high on your planning cycle. Take the time to look at the topic index since all key trends are discussed. Jeff also provides an overview of the need for global professionalism and how this is coming about this year and in 2009 worldwide through the UN-founded IFIP IP3 initiative which Avanade is formally supporting. In Canada, CIPS is the official representative for the International Federation for Information Processing (IFIP).

Enjoy,
Stephen Ibaraki, FCIPS, I.S.P., MVP , DFNPA, CNP

Mr. Jeff Kempiners, as Chief Technology Officer, leads the strategic direction and growth of Avanade Canada. Avanade has more than 7,200 professionals in 22 countries, including more than 230 in its Canadian business, which has offices in Toronto, Vancouver, Calgary, Edmonton, Ottawa and Montreal. Recently, the company grew its business by 25%.

A seasoned leader, Mr. Kempiners has more than 12 years of experience in IT management and consulting. Mr. Kempiners joined Avanade in August, 2000 as a Solution Architect in the US-Central region. Most recently, he served as Avanade Canada Capability Director for Infrastructure and Application Solutions, overseeing the deployment of Avanade's infrastructure and application development solutions and working closely with Avanade customers. Prior to joining Avanade, Mr. Kempiners was employed with Accenture in a variety of roles, including System Analyst, Project Manager, and Engagement Manager for large customer accounts in all industries.

Over the past five years, Avanade Canada has worked with several enterprises to help them meet their business objectives, including First Canadian Title, PCL Construction, and Future Electronics.

To listen to the interview, click on this MP3 file link

DISCUSSION:

Interview Time Index (MM:SS) and Topic

:00:42:
What is the outlook for unified messaging?
"....It's going to become part of the building foundation upon which we start to recompose business processes in order to better leverage concepts like digital collaboration and workflow...."

:03:49:
What value is returned by enterprise content management (ECM)?
"....When I think of enterprise content management, eventually we will move back to the space where ECM hosts corporate official documents (for example, public press releases, HR policy documents, quarterly sales reports - things that you are looking for that are one single version of the truth) and we will start to take away from ECM space those things that are currently a poor fit for ECM (just leveraging its search capabilities). I believe that enterprise content management will continue to be misused for at least some time in the new future...."

:07:49:
Can you explain how collaborative workspaces improve all the elements of business agility?
"....My opinion on collaborative work spaces is that it's not just about enabling two individuals but rather it's about enabling a knowledge management repository for it to grow in such a way that other individuals can leverage previous collaborative sessions...."

:10:54:
Do you have a definition of business agility?
"....Your ability to make change; to measure it against the market you are attempting to serve..."

:13:43:
What does enterprise search mean to the user and ultimately to the business?
"....Think of the applications that you use at home - your media players, consumer devices, websites - everything has searches and a search is amazingly accurate and amazingly fast. Then you get to work and it's not at all like that. You sit down in your office and log into your enterprise portal, you're digging 15 file menus deep into a shared "s" drive in order to launch the document that you work on day to day....Ultimately enterprise search means a high degree of efficiency and the ability to get what you are after without any search whatsoever...."

:17:04:
What is meant by workplace transformation vehicles?
"....As we have new ways to communicate with one another, we're are then redesigning the business processes that leverage those communications and that's a workplace transformation vehicle...."

:19:10:
How do the elements we discussed weave into the Next Generation Workplace?
"....It's collaborative, it allows business insight via business intelligence and it enables crowd sourcing via wikis and via challenges and it has unified communications and unified messaging as the core that all enables a searchable, secure, managed environment...."

:21:04:
Jeff discusses and shares a story about search as being one of the most impactful and disruptive technologies of its generation.

:26:21:
What do you see as the top five opportunities and innovations in IT and how can they be exploited for competitive advantage?
"....In no particular order.....Search....Concept of digital collaboration and capture....Service oriented architectures....Dynamic computing....Customer relationship management...."

:33:24:
Can you delve into the top risks for businesses and how they can be resolved?
"....A lack of agility....The ability to attract top talent...."

:39:24:
What question would you ask and what would be your answer if you were doing this interview?
"....Clarify the Next Generation Workplace and how Avanade differentiates itself in that space...."

:42:10:
Jeff gives his current thoughts on the International Standard for IT Professionals initiative which Avanade is supporting formally.
"....The other are truly interested in industrializing software and information technology processes in such a way that we are really adding a sense of professionalism to what it is we do in a measurable and a consistent manner. That is a big part of what the International Federation of Information Processing (IFIP) is attempting to accomplish. They are attempting to bring a broad professionalism and global consistency to what it is we do...."

This is the next blog in the continuing series of interviews with top-echelon and renowned professionals. In this blog, I interview - Dave Remmer, Architect Advisor Developer/Platform Group Microsoft, Top Architecture Authority.

Dave was the principal organizer for the Strategic Architecture Forum held in Vancouver and a featured speaker due to his acknowledged expertise. Ruth provided an earlier blog for the forum where there are links to the major presentations from Dave.

Dave continues to share his valued insights in this podcast. Take the time to look at the topic index and then listen to Dave's thoughts on what IT/Business professionals, managers, and leaders need to know.

Enjoy,
Stephen Ibaraki, FCIPS, I.S.P., MVP , DFNPA, CNP

Dave Remmer, Architect Advisor Developer/Platform Group Microsoft, Top Architecture Authority

This week, Stephen Ibaraki has an exclusive interview with Dave Remmer.

An industry veteran, Dave Remmer has architected solutions in the financial, multi-media, security, manufacturing, services and health care industries. He specializes in leveraging SOA, security, and standards development to realize ongoing business value within organizations. Dave focuses on current issues in architecting enterprise solutions and how to leverage the Microsoft platform to support project's architectural success. He has achieved certifications in the Java architecture and development environment as well as the Microsoft Certified Solution Developer designation.

Dave is an Architect Advisor with the Developer and Platform Group in Microsoft Canada and works with some of the largest organizations in Canada.

To listen to the interview, click on this MP3 file link

DISCUSSION:

Interview Time Index (MM:SS) and Topic

:00:44:
How would you best define yourself and your work?
"....I think my title, Architect Advisor, in many ways is the best way of describing what I do and what my mission statement is...."

:01:49:
What is the meaning behind being an IT architect?
"....as architects, we primarily help develop plans and models for the successful delivery of IT projects ....but that encompasses a lot of activities and one of the most important is looking at the process of how we build projects and successful solutions...."

:03:13:
What would you classify as the different categories of architects? For example, what is meant by Enterprise architect, Solutions architect, Infrastructure architect?
"....Traditionally what we've seen is that software developers as they mature in their career get very good at the process of building software and some of the challenges we experience in our projects. We often call those Solution architects....On the other side, we have Infrastructure architects who typically have filled the role of IT managers or IT professionals who help operate the systems and infrastructure we have in an organization. Then there is this concept of an Enterprise architect and that role is a lot less about building a software solution or maintaining a data center and more about looking at how the enterprise itself is architected...and then looking at how you want to align all the various resources inside an organization to best align with that particular strategic goal...."

:05:17:
What sort of attributes should one have to be an architect (i.e. Enterprise, Solutions, Infrastructure)?
"....Clearly in the IT industry you need to have IT skills, you need to understand technology, but to really evolve your career and get into the architecture game, you really need to start concentrating on the people dynamics, the ability to communicate and collaborate with your peers as well as with your fellow organizations...."

:07:34:
Dave profiles how he got to his present position in his career.

:11:12:
What do you hope to achieve professionally in the next five years?
"....One of the things that I'm hoping to do in the next five years is to help my peers really achieve their potential in their own careers, as well as, to make their own organization's strategies successful...One of the things that really excites me about that role is that it's not one of those things that is ever "done". You are constantly learning new things, you are constantly finding the priorities changing on you which are both challenging and therefore exciting...."

:14:01:
You organized the 2008 Strategic Architecture Forum. Can you first overview the forum and its intent and then share key architecture lessons of high value from the forum?
"....In Redmond, we hold a Global Strategic Architect Forum at Microsoft every year....We feel very strongly that the Canadian architecture industry needs to be supported and to have events such as the Architecture Forum closer to home so that we can invite a larger set of architects to join us. So in April we held our 4th annual Strategic Architects Forum in Vancouver BC....The number one theme that came out of the conference is this over-powering requirement in the IT industry to become better aligned with the businesses we are working in...."

:17:00:
Dave shares his views of the cloud, SAAS, Software Plus Services, and SOA.
"....We in the IT industry have had in the past, much more of the luxury of time of being able to say, 'Oh that's interesting, we'll see if we can build a project to meet that need and when we are done we will give you a call'. That's no longer possible; we are really getting ourselves to a place where we have to be able to keep up with the amazing rates of change that our business customers are experiencing and in fact, in many respects, try to get ahead of those rates of change so that we can help lead the change in positive ways...."

:24:00:
What are the major interoperability challenges and their solutions?
"....I think that interoperability is a hard problem to solve and I think that it's going to remain a hard problem to solve throughout the lifetime of our industry. But I do think that there are some tools and techniques that really are starting to help us solve some of those deep problems. One of these is the idea of having standardized vocabularies and standardized processes...."

:26:44:
From your current work, what IT insights can you give that would be of greatest value to the audience?
"....We are seeing the information technology world becoming more and more commoditized and I think that we as IT professionals need to be prepared for that...."

:29:39:
What are your recommended IT best practices?
"....I have one overarching best practice....that is to remain extremely pragmatic...My best practice is the 80 - 20 rule. To look at the 20% of the things that we do that creates the 80% of the value to our organizations...."

:30:52:
What are five little known but essential tips in IT?
"....Not necessarily little known.....Communication is key....Organizations have very ambiguous strategy....Less is more....The complexity is the greatest challenge we have in IT....Agility is becoming the key driver for our success in IT...."

:34:18:
What are the most important current roadmap-level tips involving architecture?
"....the idea of using service oriented architecture combining a variety of services as well as technologies that we purchase, and building around that rather than proprietary systems really gives the roadmap for architecture moving forward....."

:36:18:
Take the prior question and apply it to the next 3 to 5 years.
"....I think that is one of the things we are going to see more and more over the next five years. Higher level patterns describing how business patterns have been solved and our ability to adapt those patterns for the needs of our own organizations...."

:37:21:
What is the most important broader IT and business challenge and solution in 2008?
"....having to do more with less...."

:40:38:
The industry is changing. What advice would you give to IT professionals to stay on top of what is happening in the industry in order to position themselves (from a career standpoint) and their organizations to benefit from these trends?
"....We as an industry have been forced to evolve because the industry itself is so immature and I think we have to make sure that we get on top of that and continue to lead change...."

:43:26:
In your current role, what are the biggest challenges, and their solutions? How does this relate to business?
"....I think that change is in fact one of my biggest challenges....Working with architects trying to understand the complexity in their systems and look for strategies and avenues to reduce that complexity....Helping individuals and teams build maintainable systems really concentrating on this idea of solutions....We as IT professionals really need to start stepping up to the plate and become full partners with the business in helping to develop strategy and helping to organize structure...."

:46:45:
Dave shares some thoughts about his work.

:48:42:
Provide your predictions of future IT/Business trends and their implications/opportunities?
"....We are going to find that this idea of mega projects is really becoming much less sustainable....We are going to find ourselves much more entwined in the cycles of the business....The idea of communication and coordination will be the norm. We are going to see the tools around collaboration will be very tightly woven into pretty much everything we do in IT....We are going to start using models a lot more than we have in the past....Computing is going to become increasingly important in an integrated platform as opposed to a propriety platform...."

:55:26:
Which are your top recommended resources and why?
"....Almost everybody does research on the web....but the one thing the web lacks is really strong editing. I think that is its strength and it weakness....Another is the Economist magazine....Also the Harvard Business Review and the Sloan Management Review....There are some fantastic technology books as well less technology focused....'Enterprise Architecture as Strategy: Creating a Foundation for Business Execution' (by Jeanne W. Ross, Peter Weill, and David C. Robertson)..."

:59:15:
If you were doing this interview, what questions would you ask and what would be your answers?
"....What kind of problems have you been seeing at your customer's organizations and how can they been solved?...."

This is the next blog in the continuing series of interviews with top-echelon and renowned professionals. In this blog, I interview computing pioneer, Calvin C. (Kelly) Gotlieb, C.M., M.A., Ph.D. (University of Toronto), D. Math. (Hon., University of Waterloo), D. Eng. (Hon., Technical University of Nova Scotia), Fellow CIPS (FCIPS), Fellow of the Royal Society of Canada, the British Computer Society and the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM).

In my next chat with Kelly, we will discuss Kelly's work with the UN-Founded International Federation For Information Processing (IFIP) and the Canadian Information Processing Society (CIPS). Kelly was instrumental in the founding of IFIP and CIPS.

Enjoy,
Stephen Ibaraki, FCIPS, I.S.P., MVP , DFNPA, CNP

Kelly Gotlieb is currently Professor Emeritus in Computer Science and in the Faculty of Information Studies at the University of Toronto (UT). He is a computing pioneer, whose innovations and accomplishments helped lay the foundation of an entire worldwide industry, educational stream, and profession. His contributions are so profound and their impact so diverse and in so many areas that the lasting value cannot be comprehended. Have a look at this blog to find out more: http://blogs.technet.com/cdnitmanagers/archive/2006/09/29/459971.aspx

To listen to the interview, click on this MP3 file link

DISCUSSION:

Interview Time Index (MM:SS) and Topic

:00:36:
Can you provide a brief history of how you initially got into computing?
"....During the war we were doing calculations (usually on desk computers) and electronics. After the war when the interest came up in electronics in the days of computers, it was a natural for me...."

:02:00:
You joined the ACM in 1949. Can you tell us more about the ACM and how you got initially involved?
"....I got to meet the founder and the early principals and contributed some articles. Ed Berkeley, for example, was one of the key persons....I wrote some articles on the Future of Computing for his magazine, Computers and Automation...."

:03:12:
How did you get into ACM publications? What led to you being Editor-in-Chief of two flagship journals of the ACM?
".....the first journal they started was the Journal of ACM but later on they formed the Communications of ACM. I was invited to become an editor of the Business Section because I had written some articles on computer sorting ....... Then when the founding editor became president of ACM, he decided not to be editor-in-chief so they invited me to be editor in chief of Com ACM which I did for about three years....When the editor-in-chief of the Journal of ACM left, I was invited to me to move over to that, which I did....I was involved with the publications for about eight or nine years...."

:04:54:
Can you tell us more about the book you wrote with Hume?
"....We wrote this book called 'High Speed Data Processing' with Hume. It is one of the things of great satisfaction to me...."

:07:34:
Kelly met Turing in 1952. He shares more about that time.
"....It's kind of interesting that computer people think of Turing and the Turing Test and the giant which he was in the computer field. Chemists regard him as the originator of the Chaos theory and they regard him highly for a completely different discipline.... "

:12:30:
Kelly talks about the ACM National Computing Conference which was held in Canada in 1952.
"....We were getting a Ferranti machine.....There was a tremendous interest in the machine. So the ACM was holding a conference and they decided to hold their 4th (I think at it was one of the only ones they ever held outside the US)....They were so anxious to see this Ferranti machine that they accepted our invitation to hold the conference here and it was a very successful one. Almost anyone who was famous in computing came up to see that machine...."

:14:28:
You had an interesting offer from the Dean at Cornell - can you tell us more about that?
"....One day while I was walking outside the university, someone introduced himself to me as the Dean of Graduate School at Cornell University. He said they were starting up a new department and they would like me to become the Chair of the department...."

:16:14:
You were involved in creating the glossary of computing - please share more about this?
"....I wasn't involved in that for long....but I was a participant in creating one of the glossaries of computing terms...."

:17:01:
Tell us more about the travelling lecture program for the ACM?
"....In the early days, the ACM was heavily populated by academics and they set up a lecture program which they make available to universities. Volunteers would give lectures and would travel around. So I volunteered...."

:19:05:
From your ACM work, this afforded opportunities to have guest lecturers-can you share some memorable stories?
"....For about twenty years I've been chair and co-chair of the ACM Awards committee so you get to meet award winners who are bright and have a huge range of interests....You get to meet a wonderful range of interesting people....It's one of the kinds that keeps me doing this because you get to meet some interesting people.... "

:23:54:
You have touched on this earlier - about your work on the various Awards committees which continues to this day. What insights can you share?
"....They have more and more profile, for example, the Turing Award and the Infosys Foundation Award (new) - the winners attract attention and are written up in the New York Times. The Turing award has always been spoken of as the equivalent of the Nobel Prize but for computing....One thing that has helped a lot is the recognition that the ACM award process is one that is very fair...."

:29:19:
With regards to the awards themselves I know that you were able to establish some of the key policies in the early days of the awards to bring that shape and formality to the awards. Can you share more about this?
"....When we invite someone to the awards committee usually they serve for three to five years. One policy I did was....when you are appointed to the committee you gravitate up and you become chair of the committee usually in your second last year.....Everybody who is on the committee is game to be worthy of chairing the committee so that is never a concern...."

:31:00:
Kelly talks about his Fellow's work with the ACM.

:32:40:
As we come to a close with this interview, what else would you like to share about ACM?
"....It's a very dynamic organization....When it started it was heavily populated by academics but now about two thirds of the membership are practitioners....They are making special efforts right now to provide technical backgrounds for their practitioners who form a large part of their membership by conferences and digital library. I'm quite admiring of the organization. I think they have a lot lessons for others...."

This is the next blog in the continuing series of interviews with top-echelon and renowned professionals. In this blog, I interview World-Renowned Business and Technology Thought Leader and Educator: F. Warren McFarlan, Professor Emeritus, Harvard Business School. You hear a lot about China, and India in the news. Warren provides unique insights into this region. Moreover, he shares his views into education, aligning IT with business, and more. Here's an opportunity to hear the insights of one of the top thought leaders in the world!

Enjoy!
Stephen Ibaraki, FCIPS, I.S.P., MVP

An exclusive interview with Warren McFarlan; T.J. DERMOT DUNPHY BAKER FOUNDATION PROFESSOR OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION;  ALBERT H. GORDON PROFESSOR OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION, EMERITUS.

Professor McFarlan earned his AB from Harvard University in 1959, and his MBA and DBA from the Harvard Business School in 1961 and 1965 respectively. He has had a significant role in introducing materials on Management Information Systems to all major programs at the Harvard Business School since the first course on the subject was offered in 1962. He has been a long-time teacher in the Advanced Management Program: International Senior Managers Program, Delivering Information Services Program, and several of the Social Sector programs. He teaches currently in the First Year Financial Reporting and Control course as well as in several short Executive Education programs. He is co-chair of the Senior Executives Program for China.

To listen to the interview, click on this MP3 file link

Interview Time Index (MM:SS) and Topic

:00:028:
Professor McFarlan profiles how he got to his present position and what his current role entails.
"....I started at the very beginning of the Information Systems field and it was a course I took in computer programming in 1958 at Harvard College...."

:01:09:
What important career insights and lessons can you share from your considerable experiences as a world-renowned leader?
"....continual reinvention....to surround yourself in the network of good colleagues, both inside the school and throughout the broader society.....(over time) to be adaptive and flexible...."

:02:21:
What do you hope to accomplish in the next five years?
"....to complete the development of the material (of a new course launched last year on Doing Business in China in the early 21st Century).....a book written in Mandarin, on cases in Chinese management practice, (by the end of this year).....the outline for a draft of a book on non-profit management...."

:03:45:
As you indicated in a previous answer, you are also involved in Asia. Can you profile your vision, goals, and objectives in more detail for this region?
"....The challenges of Asia will probably be the dominant business challenges that they, (the new generation of students coming out of university at this particular time), will be facing in their professional lifetime..."

:06:05:
Warren talks about the top trends in China, their opportunities and implications.
"....they've had 10 to 11% growth for year after year....extraordinary demand on the world's energy and mineral resources...as part of this incredible economic growth has come extraordinary environmental problems...."

:09:29:
Where do you see China in 5, 10, and 20 years and where/what are the greatest opportunities?
".....This is a very technologically friendly country that have made massive investments in communications, electronics, infrastructure etc. to basically allow them to go forward....I'm looking for them to be able to continue to grow in terms of technology sophistication, going up the chain in terms of ever more sophisticated manufacturing products and along the way, being able to develop enough cash flow that they will be able to turn back and deal with many other of their intense internal problems such as the quality of their healthcare, development of housing and things of that nature....There's a huge change as to how they take these foreign exchange surpluses and find a way to invest it back into the country in a way that is not socially disruptive but helps drive the quality of life up...."

:14:13:
What do you see as the top five trends globally, their opportunities and implications? What are the intersection points with China?
"....the largest migration in human history has taken place in the last 20 years in China (from countryside into the cities) and with that have provided the workforce that is producing the incredible amount of manufacturing of goods....they are running an unsustainable trade surplus with the rest of the world....The question is how they are going to take the huge surpluses and drive it back into the quality of life...."

:18:15:
What does Asia mean to the world?
"....At the present moment, it's heavy manufacturing skills in China, heavy service skills in India. Japan, with a population of barely 10% of China, continues to dominate (at the present time) on the GNP per capita...but their challenges (Japan) are that they have reached the top of a demographic bubble and the Japanese population is now subsiding at the rate of a million per year. They control immigration in a very intense way and it's becoming a much more rapidly aging society at this point in time. What this means for the United States is that we have to engage in finding ways to do business with and finding joint projects across all three of the countries...."

:21:54:
Warren comments on the popularity of specific languages in secondary educational institutions today.

:22:51:
Can you speak more specifically about innovation in Asia?
"....What has changed in the last three or four years is that as both (China and India) economies are growing, a much higher percentage of people who came to be educated here (US), are now going back home to their countries...."

:26:36:
How do you see education trending in Asia and then more specifically in China? Can you compare this with the West? What are the implications to this long term?
"....The different countries have very different approaches. All of them have highly competitive screening systems, exams systems beginning at 7th grade as they try to identify the best and the brightest and bringing them into the universities....None of the three countries (Japan, China, India) are particularly good at handling large numbers of immigrants......The competitive advantage of the States is that we've had quite an open set of borders for the intellectually gifted....."

:31:20:
Where and how do you see graduate education evolving and why?
"....I've been doing a lot of work with Tsinghua University. What great success they've had in the last few years in getting people who left China in the early to mid 80's, who got their undergraduates and doctorates and went on to become young full professors in American universities now being able to be attracted back to the homeland. My Indian students are looking much more enthusiastically about the opportunities to go back. With that, I think that is going to lead to strengthening of the doctoral programs in India and China but that they are still not of the same caliber as the very best of what we have here. But the countries are investing in these graduate programs...."

:34:15:
Can you describe your key initiatives and their impact?
"....In China....We've built up executive educational programs, we've developed research initiatives, we developed field base cases, we have brought in a significant number of students and we have been able to raise money specifically to support the research initiatives and the scholarships for people coming from China...."

:37:42:
You have written about IT Governance. Where do you see this going and why?
"....IT is one of the great disruptive technologies and for a number of organizations it really wasn't being seen for the strategic transforming device that it was and its ability to actually hollow out the entire center of the company...."

:42:41:
How do you see the technology landscape building globally and why does this matter?
"...You have to ask yourself the hard questions...what are the sustainable value-added that are being produced by your firm...are they able to endure with your staff in your place at this time?......"

:45:15:
Warren comments on the hottest technology trends and what this means to us.

:46:49:
I see news items such as: aligning IT with business needs, driving business agility, managing risk through improved governance, closing the skills gap and meeting future skill shortages, addressing the productivity gap, improving ICT adoption rates, integrating Gen-Y and more. Can you share your views and insights on what you think are the top challenges facing business, industry, government and education in 2008 and beyond?
"....I think that it starts with the trite but accurate observation that the pace of change has never been faster, that the half-life of knowledge is shorter and all of this is playing out on a global basis. And it puts tremendous pressure on you to first ask ' what is it that I do that is fundamentally value-added and local in nature and what is it that is global'. And if I get efficient enough, then what is local may become global....Example: look at medical and hospital care....."

:50:22:
Do you have any closing comments and thoughts - looking into the future?
"....We talked a lot about globalization and technology, but in the end, it's the political climate, the government, the ability to embrace risk-taking and change...."

Though not part of the podcast, I asked this added question:
Q: Can you comment on one or more of the following: the meaning and status of 100 years of MBA education; the main trends in MBA/EMBA education; and with so much focus lately on China, your recommendations for China's MBA/EMBA education stemming from your considerable insights into China?
A:
"Clearly, the biggest challenge for China's MBA/EMBA education is to be able to ramp it up fast enough while growing quality. The biggest challenge is to recruit faculty who understand and are empathetic to the needs of managers and can shape their material in that directions.
A sad reality is that an important part of MBA education is getting inside people's minds and getting them to think in a different way. That takes time. The EMBA is better at teaching tools and techniques and perhaps not as good as getting people to change the way they think about things. That has been the hallmark of the long MBA programs. It is interesting when you think about the future of MBA education, how intense the debate has been, both about where we have been and where we are going. There was an extraordinary book written this year by Professor Rakesh Khurana entitled, "From Higher Aims to Hired Hands: The Social Transformation of American Business Schools and the Unfulfilled Promise of Management as a Profession," (Princeton: Princeton University Press, 2007), which summarizes the last 100 years of MBA education and looks to challenges for the future. It is very thoughtful and provocative. It is a "must" read for anyone thinking about taking an MBA or guiding an MBA program."