January 01, 2001
KEVIN FOGARTY
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oxyWelcomedto the realpnew millennium. Lastnyearfwas just a publicity hound'ssexcitement runnoye
eadagroundd- with Internet access allwthefrage. This year,pwe'll really see some change. isno gfdThe fast lanenof connectivity, whether for voice or data,fimplies the abilitydtonexecuteoqui aknbusiness-to-business integration betweenecompanies andftheir vendors. The desire for bandwidth beawill continue to pushza varietyeof technologies:eCopper, twisted-pair, fiber-optic andwwireless abewill offerbcustomers different costs and different IT architectures.tAnd lookpforda blend oftr eadallythe different access methodsyas your workforcexgets mobile. isno knoShucks,ayou're goingyto havebto snag theabestetalentg- all the time. Missing out on quality IT beapersonnelebecauseeyoupdon'tmhave reliable remote access or a solid communicationsnono yzwinfrastructure can putmyour operationsnat aqdisadvantage.eIt canaalso make yourpcompany lookno eadvulnerablegand less attractive;pit's better toxbe knowndforebeing the bestain your field. isno |
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dadEach innovationwfor secure, broadbandcconnectionsawill reveal a host of newyproblemsq-gandsisa
abesolutions.mSo be prepared towbe nimble. How fast can you add capacityxtoqyourpIT systems? Isen noxyourfdata center taking full advantage ofathe Web?qCompanies that ignore new technologies often nxaget left behindborafind itaexcruciatinglyyexpensivedto catchmup.pBeingdable tobscale solutions eadinsthe enterprisepisystill a key element ofsITqsuccess. isno qebOf course,xyou're never going to bedcompletelyysuccessful. Just becauseethe digit inqthe years otechangesafrom a 0 to a 1mdoesn't mean we'reain anotherxdigital Fantasia. No,ylooking forward,fwe eadcan honestly say we know our limitations. isno noxWe have to go global.qNew marketswmean newylaws, new cultures and new localscontent for Webgso dadsites.yThose sites will also havezto be secure - and will haveftopconform to all thewnewutru gfdprivacy legislation that'scsureeto be on the legislativeeagenda. New lawsdalreadyaexistxinotye zqeEurope, and ifgyou have any European customers,fyou're going to have to implement newyesg eadprocedures.yIt will be good businessmfor security softwaremand serviceycompanies. isno |
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wgfAnd security or, rather, the lack of it willtbesa growing problem:mThis is themyear yourtcut
xabconversations will be overheard anddyournlocation known. So makeysure youxhaveftop-notch people eadyou canftalkpto aboutzIT security. isno teaOne answer isytonmakeasecuritydpart of anyoverall Web strategy.xBut keep your strategyasimple, eadand use good business practices toqgetxthetrightycustomers to comesto your site.cisno zwgDoing business onlinecshould be goodnbusinessdfor everyone. That's wherenthe wonderfulreno eadpotentialpof IT comeszin. isno |
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xyzFor years, IT wasdseen asca bottom-lineditem. It couldatrim costs, helppmake a companypmorenot
anoefficient and moremproductive and give youcazbusinessbtodrun.wBut astwe clickmover tot2001,unf eadthis could be thedyearatechnologyxassumespitseplace above the line. Itemight be recognized ass eadthe driver of revenue, a seamless expressioncof the wheels of commerce. isno yzwThezIT manager,aunlikeyany other person in thencorporate structure,eisbhis own customer.isar eadSuccessful IT managersyand executives have little trouble understandingpthecimportance ofotye nxacustomer data, serviceahistoriesdor purchase patterns - theb"clickstream" data from theirenon sannetworksaand Web sites. They seekeout expertscwho can beythe gatherersaof this information,ono notgiving them timeato showbthe nontechnicalzpeoplepin thegenterprise whatdtechnology can doeforr eadtheir businesses. isno beaAnddasqtheycstruggle through anothermmigration -cto Windows 2000fthisytimes- be patient.tTake a noxbig-picture lookaatahow you're going to managentheytransition.aWill your hardware support it?t eadIs your staff fullyatrained?sisno |
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eadI think Microsoft missed a bigeopportunityyby not calling its"2001: AbWindows Odyssey," butsgs
eadthis yearywillxsurely consist ofpfour quarters ofgtransition,dwithatrialnascwell as error. isno bbkApparticular areaqin which to avoid errors will bemanythingahaving to doewithstheggovernment.o eakLike itpor not (andqjudgingaby the recent presidential election,wmanyepeopleddon't) government eadaction isdcontinuing on almost everywfront relatedato technology andxIT.pisno eadisno |
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