Digital Workplace Update: Why Enterprise Collaboration is Exciting Again
The way that digital tools enable collaboration in the workforce is set for one of the largest shifts in years as new technologies and techniques provide several paths forward towards effective new methods. The root causes of these advances appear to be a confluence of three things: a) New emerging technologies, b) a trend back towards lightweight text chat, and c) newly successful experiments in integrating productivity tools together with collaboration apps.
Modernizing Legacy Systems for Mobile Environments is Essential but Challenging, Study Finds
More than 30 percent of IT professionals are prioritizing the modernization of legacy systems in 2017, according to a survey from PowWow Mobile in partnership with Enterprise Mobility Exchange. More specifically, they are looking to make their systems mobile-friendly, with 72 percent of IT executives believing that mobile-enabling employees can yield upwards of 30 percent in costs being saved.
Employees are Unhappy with Enterprise Mobile Apps
Demand is strong for enterprise mobile apps, but penetration is low, and few employees are satisfied with their company apps compared to their personal, non-work apps, says a new study, “Functional But Unfriendly: A UX Study of Enterprise Mobile App User Experience.” “There is a large unmet appetite for apps among the workforce,” said Adam Fingerman, co-founder and CXO, ArcTouch Mobile & Connected Experiences.
IBM Applies Cognitive Insights to Reduce Phishing Risks
IBM has been talking a lot lately about its cognitive capabilities, often in the context of the cloud and usually in reference to the company’s Watson platform. IBM today announced a new cognitive technology that aims to help reduce the risk of phishing. The new cognitive phishing capability however is not directly related to IBM Watson.
Apple Patches Large Number of Flaws in iOS, macOS Updates
Apple on March 27 released updates for both iOS and macOS Sierra, its second security updates of 2017 for the operating systems. Both iOS 10.3 for iPhone and iPad users and macOS Sierra 10.12.4 for desktop users patch myriad flaws.
Key Network Strategies for the Connected Enterprise
Successful rollout of enterprise digital transformation continues to be a mixed bag. We continue to see the explosive increase in connected devices and large advances in application capabilities to improve enterprise productivity. But we’ve also seen the challenges of securely implementing these technologies potentially delaying greater enterprise adoption.
Google Launches New Website for its Open Source Projects
Google has launched a new site that centralizes information on all of the company’s various open source projects and gives developers details on how it uses, releases and supports open source software.
Machine Learning May Supercharge Enterprise Architecture
APIs as products in their own right, serverless architectures, and “legacy in a box” are the trends shaping IT management this year, according to ThoughtWorks’ annual report on emerging technologies. The report covered a host of techniques, languages, frameworks, tools and platforms. I had the opportunity to get more perspective from Mike Mason, global head of technology at ThoughtWorks, who provided his take on where the enterprise development world.
How EMM Can Help with General Data Protection Regulation Compliance
There is a major global trend in compliance towards codifying into the law the concept of reasonable, common sense security standards. Compliance is moving away from compliance on paper to compliance in practice. The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which will go into effect in May 2018, will bring Europe under one comprehensive data security and privacy legal regime. GDPR applies to controllers in the European Union (EU), as well as those located outside the EU if the individual whose personal data is being processed is located in the EU.
Microsoft Thwarts Cyber-Attacks with Azure Web Application Firewall
Microsoft is making it harder for cyber-attackers to target web applications hosted on its Azure cloud computing platform. Azure Web Application Firewall, a component of the company’s Azure Application Gateway offering, is now generally available in all public Azure data center regions. Azure Application Gateway is a cloud-based HTTP load-balancing and SSL offloading system that enables businesses to build and deliver scalable and secure web applications.
Citrix, Samsung Combine to Make Galaxy 8 a Virtual Desktop
Sometime later in Q2 2017, owners of the new Samsung Galaxy 8 smartphone will be able to use it as a virtual desktop running on the Citrix platform if they so choose. Samsung and Citrix announced March 30 at a press event in New York that they are connecting the new Samsung DeX dock to Citrix’s Receiver software. This converts the Galaxy S8 into a desktop environment that includes an optimized UI for multi-tasking with keyboard and mouse support, resizable window capabilities and task bar pop-up notifications.
Samsung to Include its Bixby AI Assistant on Galaxy S8 Phones
After months of speculation and rumors about creating a personal digital assistant that will compete with Apple’s Siri, Samsung is now sharing more about the technology behind its Bixby voice-activated “intelligent interface.” Set to debut March 29 when Samsung is expected to unveil its latest Galaxy S8 flagship smartphone models, Bixby will use artificial intelligence and a new side-mounted button on the S8 handsets to allow users to explore its capabilities.
AWS’s Amazon Connect Provides Instant Call Centers in the Cloud
Enterprises now can subscribe to a call center in the cloud and let other folks handle all those important customer calls that require so much corporate time and effort. Amazon Web Services on March 28 launched Amazon Connect, a self-service contact center service designed to make it easy for a business to provide professional customer service at much lower cost than it takes to set up a physical call center and hire people for 24/7 duty in various languages.
Analytics and Machine Learning at the Frontiers of Finance
In the banking and finance sector where trust and confidence are central to the business, information security, reliability, and resilience are critical. Given its central position in the world of global finance, HSBC understands this very well. “We have to make sure our customers feel confident and trust in us to be the custodian of their assets,” stated Darryl West, Group Chief Information Officer at HSBC. West, whose team is currently at the center of transformation happening within the organization, said that HSBC seeks to achieve this by leveraging Google Cloud’s data analytics and machine learning tools to derive insights out of its growing volumes of data.
Samsung’s Real Challenge: Apple’s Upcoming iPhone ‘Supercycle’
Samsung mobile chief DJ Koh rolled out the Galaxy S8 and Galaxy S8 Plus with curved edges and a bezel-free design. Toss in some virtual desktop tools, services, and artificial intelligence, and Samsung may have a hit on its hands. But Koh’s launch of the Galaxy S8, which is supposed to provide a new start in what has been a “challenging year for Samsung” and a ticket out of hell from the Galaxy Note 7 debacle, had a big elephant in the room. That elephant: Apple’s upcoming 10th anniversary iPhone. Apple’s next iPhone is expected to kick off a “super cycle,” according to Wall Street analysts.
Biometrics, The CIO’s Challenge and How AI Could Finally Improve Mobile Security
Kevin Gilroy, executive vice president and head of Samsung Business, writes that biometric scanning technology is a ‘game-changer’ for mobile security. “As biometric scanning continues to evolve, it will offer more benefits to businesses, including enhanced security, increased customer satisfaction and most importantly, bottom-line growth,” he explains. How so? Gilroy cites a study from Gigya last year, which revealed that only 16 percent of consumers use a unique password for each online account.
Accenture: Healthcare Can Save $60 Billion with Digital Transformation
Accenture researchers project that healthcare organizations can save a collective $60 billion by making strategic investments in digital technologies. Accenture’s report follows one from technology consultancy IDC that estimated the worldwide market for digital transformation will surpass $20 trillion in the short-term. IDC focused on 14 verticals, among which a mere 5 percent of companies have completed a digital transformation, while Accenture looked at the cost-savings potential.
Two Big Mistakes CIOs Make with Digital Strategy
Traditionally, CIOs won acclaim for managing lengthy IT projects. But that methodical, project-focused approach isn’t ideal for digital transformations, where the goal is to deliver a great customer experience, according to a Forrester Research report.
