Archive

In the last U.S. presidential election the candidates clashed on the issue of privatizing the Social Security system. I'll leave the political debate to the professional politicians, but I would like to address this matter from the standpoint of millions of U.S. workers. Many of them are already b...

Hewlett-Packard on Monday unveiled network management software developed from tools it acquired when it bought Novadigm and Consera Software earlier this year. OpenView Automation Manager is part of HP's plan to build a set of individually available components as a replacement for the unwieldy Utili...

Siebel Branch Teller, a new retail bank solution that invigorates cross sales and customer care at branches, finally brings CRM to the channel that originates most financial services relationships with consumers. The product, which uses IBM middleware specifically designed for the retail banking ver...

The introduction of retail RFID comes with many challenges: technological capability, the adoption of appropriate software architectures and the production of cohesive standards, to name but a few. Not the least of these challenges is finding ways to address the concerns of consumer privacy groups. ...

It's that time again; the earnings calls for CRM, ERP, hardware and services vendors are being scheduled, rehearsed and delivered to shareholders, industry and financial analysts. What's common across the more than two dozen calls I've listened to that span CRM, ERP and SCM software, hardware and se...

Pressed to establish best practices and comply with global quality audits, Indian business-process outsourcers (BPOs) have taken an interest in outsourcing firms in the United States, Ireland and the United Kingdom and employed the help of outsiders to guarantee their future success. Approximately 8...

Oracle today announced a quarterly schedule of security bulletins and patch releases for 2005 that is "a bit of a tradeoff," according to one analyst. "I fully understand why Oracle would want to use a timed release-cycle, but I'm not sure what the reason is for their decision to move away from the ...

The irony is too strong to ignore. Gartner, Forrester, IDC and other analyst firms are all forecasting that outsourcing will continue growing rapidly. Yet not one is forecasting when industry analysis itself will move offshore. With so many conceptual thinkers in these companies, someone has got to...

The consumer backlash against unsolicited telemarketing and e-mails coupled with ever-increasing competition for customer attention have forced companies to take a new look at their inbound call centers. Long considered a profit drain and necessary evil, inbound call centers are now seen as a critic...

East Coast grocer Stop & Shop has introduced shopping carts that give consumers Internet accessibility at their fingertips. The smart carts, from IBM and Cuesol of Quincy, Massachusetts, feature on-board IBM touchscreen computers that double as personal assistants when the laser scanner on the c...

The move to add tiny radio antennas on shipments of pharmaceuticals will not be enough to prevent counterfeiting and tampering, analysts said. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and several drug makers announced they would be putting RFID-tagged labels on medicine bottles beginning with the impo...

Don't breath a sigh of relief yet. Although PeopleSoft's board announced today it unanimously rejected Oracle's "best and final" offer of $24 a share, it ain't over till it's over, and it ain't over. The takeover bid is now in the hands of PeopleSoft's shareholders, who must decide by Nov. 19 wheth...

With recent regulatory developments in the industry and routine call center functions moving to offshore teleservices vendors, there is no time like the present for the Call Center Research Laboratory established at the University of Southern Mississippi a few weeks ago. The CCRL, led by USM profess...

Long known as a technology and hardware provider, Unisys has pushed to diversify, joining the ranks of large systems integrators just when many companies are drawn to the simple, low-risk offerings of hosted solutions providers. Unisys, however, sees that trend as temporary, and its CRM leaders feel...

Making inroads into the next major market for software isn't going to happen from enterprise vendors trying to wedge expensive, large application footprints into a product strategy that appeals to medium-sized companies. Despite Oracle, Siebel and others proclaiming they can make this strategy work...