deal architect

Bite the Hand that Cares?

"Can’t find no sleeves for my records
Can’t get no laces for my shoes
Can’t get no fancy notes
On my blue guitar
Can’t get no antidote for blues"

Dire Straits, Mark Knopfler, One World

For years we have sought antidote to computers viruses, spyware etc. And voila -  Microsoft announces Live OneCare. $ 49.95 a year for up to 3 PCs for anti-virus, anti-spyware, firewall protection. It is competitively priced though I am sure Symantec and McAfee will match it. (Symantec is also suing Microsoft)

I am struggling, though, with the thought of rewarding Microsoft with my dollars here. I switched to Firefox a couple of years ago because of all the pop-ups in IE. The mind-boggling series of security breaches and bugs MS has unleashed over the years have helped spawn these new categories of anti-xxx software  in the first place. MS says it has beta tested the product with over 200,000 users but given its recent track record, who knows if that is enough testing. 

I am sure the rational consumer in me will eventually take over, but short term I am not signing up for this antidote. Dire Straits sounds like a better buy for now.

The Infosys of China?

Good friend David Scott Lewis has joined Worksoft, a Chinese IT Outsourcing firm. Even more exciting Sequoia is about to invest $ 30 million in their B round.  He is moving to Shanghai (he has spent time in many other Chinese cities in previous roles) - an amazing metropolis which combines spanking new technology (17% of the world's cranes are here constructing away at amazing speed some of the most exotic architectures this side of the cities in Star Wars) with centuries old traditions.

He is joining what he calls the "Infosys of China".

But Chinese firms will evolve very differently from Indian ones. They will borrow capital and aggressively make Western acquisitions. Indian firms in spite of huge valuations are still primarily organic in growth and self-funded till they go IPO (with exceptions like Patni which took capital from GA).  China offers its firms a lot better infrastructure than India. The talent, at least for now, is cheaper than in India.

Indian firms have a significant global delivery model advantage today. But as I wrote here, give Chinese firms 3 years and they will be giving Indian vendors fits. Tier 1 VCs like Sequoia invest in what they believe are game changers.

The Goose is Cooked

In Killing the Golden Goose? I talked about how the economics of buying software were pushing more companies to building instead. Here Erik Keller provides more data points.  He does not really elaborate on one area where custom development has continued unabated - in a number of vertical sectors where the packaged software industry has mostly paid lip service while talking "wall to wall" coverage, "100% solutions" etc.

The sad thing is both Erik and I are package bigots - at Gartner, and before and after we have advised buyers and sellers of packages in various roles. We are not happy about the trend towards building - we all know that has its own set of thorny issues. But it is tough to fight City Hall when the data smacks you in the face.

The Two Andersens

I have heard versions of this from Brian Sommer over the years now, but I am glad he has blogged about the split between the two Andersens and how he felt on one bank of the turbulent river. What Brian describes makes you just shake your head and wonder what the firm could have done with just slightly well defined rules of engagement. But then again may be not.

As Brian says, Accenture partners should be glad they de-coupled from Andersen. But they may not have run far away enough. Through the 90s, the combined firm used to lose more business because of itself rather than its competition deserving to win. There are plenty of clients who admired its staff training (in spite of jokes about young consultants and school buses), work ethic and discipline but could not stand its pricing model, and its style of steamrolling client middle management and going to the top. You continue to hear that complaint, fairly or unfairly, about the surviving Andersen - Accenture.

Technology Innovation and ATMs

The ubiquitous ATM does not appear to have evolved much in the last decade. It is estimated that 80% of customers still use them to withdraw cash and another 10% to view balances statements - pretty basic transactions. Of course, some allow you to dispense postage stamps. In Russia, they can convert rubles to dollars. In Japan, they allow you to play games of chance (can you imagine being stuck behind someone doing that?)

But given how hungry banks are for getting your funds, deposits have been difficult for ATMs to automate. They are somewhat cumbersome today with need to fill out envelopes and for them to be verified by the bank the next day. Banks also discourage cash deposits.

That is about to change. This WSJ article describes new ATMs which can scan images of checks and accept currency and coins.

Another step in the introduction of the Check 21 initiative. One less reason for banks to  hold on to funds for days on out of town checks. 

We cannot trust Freddy Delgado

Tom Peters compliments Freddy Delgado, an elementary school principal who was a juror on the recent Enron case  - ""I can't say that I don't know what my teachers were doing in the classroom. I am still responsible if a child gets lost."

In the current SOX spirit though, I suggest we make him put GPS trackers on every student and have him certify each night that they were accounted for. And then audit him frequently. And while we are at it, have the school buy a bunch of software to keep track of the records for the auditors to scan.

Blogs Get Real

Four signs blogs are reflecting "real life"

a) After several bloggers met face to face at Sapphire in Orlando, the NY Times reports that over a thousand political bloggers and politicians are getting together in Vegas this week. There is something intriguing about breaking bread and doing real things with folks you bust chops with in the virtual world. I, for one, would like to hear what political bloggers do for day jobs. An aside about Vegas - with a thousand plus blogs looking for fodder, what is the probability what happens there will stay there? -)

b) Mathew Ingram analyzes the court decision that bloggers have same First Amendment protections as journalists. I know some journalists think we are aliens, and most bloggers think they are practitioners not journalists, but the case shows the growing influence of blogs on daily life.

c) As in retail, I am pleased to see "categories" emerge in blogs - I see John Sun who writes about mobile technologies also has a (separate) blog on gadgets (and shoes) of interest to joggers.  Even more specialized - Sangeeta Patni has one focused on Duet, the joint SAP/Microsoft offering.  I guess category killers like Best Buy and Home Depot will follow.

d) Rock, Movie, Sports stars have their fans. So do famous bloggers like  Tom Peters - good to see him recognize Trevor.

Cringley makes IBM cringe

In a post titled Big Blues: Why IBM is in trouble Robert X. Cringely is tough on IBM.  What caught my attention in particular was the IBM consultant who commented they are expected to be billable 93.5 % or almost 1950 hours a year.  Sounds like they are just removing 2 weeks of vacation and a week of holidays out of the possible 40x52 hours in a year.

If true, it should be a red light for IBM clients.  Read more at TechSpend.

Technology Innovation and Indy 500

Unlike NASCAR which likes to bring out the individual driver more than the technology, Indy racing is far more showy about all the technology that goes in to all aspects of the race.

Telemetry allows teams to monitor and analyze amazing amounts of data like on tire pressure and drag. Aerodynamic analysis keeps getting more sophisticated. Technology allows for tracking of micro-changes of weather - humidity, wind, temperatures. Driver Cockpit displays keep evolving. Tire technology is optimized to get just 100 miles of super charged performance.

ABC and ESPN are leveraging Sportvision's Racef/x technology uses GPS data from IndyCar Series cars and transmits real-time data, including speed, acceleration/deceleration, time behind the leader, exact car position and RPMs to television viewers.

Microsoft's Channel 9 has a nice set of videos on some of the technology used by Target's Indy team.

Indy technology improvements show up on Main Street a few years later.  Examples include tire improvements, and automatic manual transmissions that can shift gears before you could push the clutch.

Gentlemen, start your GPSes. A refreshing bottle of milk awaits.

The future - and past - of food

In 1994, I ran a unit of PwC in Oakbrook, IL. I happened to find myself back there this week. Oakbrook is home to McDonalds, and they also have a new concept store across the street from HQ. It has several components of what we will see from them in the future. A patio for outside munching. A section with a fire place. A Starbucks like McCafe. WI-FI. CD Burners. Upstairs seating area. Large plasma TVs. Bar area with stools. Two lane drive through. Tasteful vases on every table. Two booths in corner with seat level power outlets for quick meetings. Very little plastic on seats. Lots of natural light.

A few miles from Oakbrook, the Gerasole sisters, 10 and 8 want to introduce young and old to food way beyond what McDonalds is ever likely to serve - Armenian, Japanese and American fare. They run a site call Spatulatta.com and recently won a Gerald Beard award that far more experienced chefs covet.

In a restaurant industry where average life span is less than 5 years, I was pleasantly surprised to find Baisi Thai still around in Oakbrook after I first went there 12 years ago. My favorite beer - Singha. My favorite sauce - Green coconut and basil curry. Nice to see the food industry evolve, but am sure glad some things do not change.