News

The Offshore Rub

National Grid gets stimulus money for high-tech projects and then considers offshoring high-tech positions.

Ballmer’s CES Keynote: Element of Surprise Was Sorely Lacking

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer's keynote at CES was long on summaries and short on revelations. Is Microsoft afraid to surprise us?

Data Center

Microsoft at CES: In-Car Tech, Windows Phones, Zune, Bing and Lots of PCs

Microsoft's booth at the 2010 Consumer Electronics Show (CES) is one of if not the largest exhibit on the Las Vegas Convention Center show floor this week. CIO.com's Al Sacco brings the action to you without the hassle of CES crowds via thi

Laptops Small and Medium Business Smartphones

New Year’s Resolutions at Work: Broken All-Too-Soon

Already behind on your New Year's resolutions with regards to work: Haven't asked for that raise yet? Still reading Maxim, not The Economist? We completely understand.

Business IT Alignment Cloud Computing Data Center

Taming the Transfer of Monster-Sized Files

Your files are bigger than ever, but good old FTP doesn't cut it. No wonder the market for software and services for managing the transfer of large data files between a company and its data center or partners should surpass $500 million this yea

By Robert Lemos

By Rama Murthy Prabhala and Rahul M. Joshi

Data Center

Cost Saving for IT Infrastructure Management

In a turbulent economic environment there is tremendous pressure on IT organizations to take a hard look at the cost of running IT operations. Infosys' Rama Murthy Prabhala and Rahul M. Joshi discuss long-term and near-term strategies that will

Budgeting CIO IT Leadership

Why IT Leaders Must Demonstrate Accountability

An executive coach offers three concrete reasons why IT leaders should demonstrate accountability in their organizations.

By Meridith Levinson

Careers

BlackBerry at CES 2010: RIM Booth Tour in Images

Are you a "CrackBerry" addict or gadget fiend who couldn't make it to Las Vegas for the 2010 Consumer Electronics Show this year? Fret not. CIO.com's Al Sacco is on the scene, where he snapped piles of photos from RIM's Black

Data Center Small and Medium Business Smartphones

Supply Chains Are Bigger Today, But Are They Better?

Even as IT tools have improved and companies' confidence in global supply chains' value has flourished, businesses still struggle with visibility into and collaboration with their supply chain partners.

Enterprise Applications Risk Management Supply Chain Management Software

Touchy-Feely CRM: How to Get More Customer-Driven Data

Like most enterprise software, CRM systems are filled with data from your company and filled out by your people. But isn't that missing the point of the "C" in CRM? What do you need to do to get more customer-driven data in the system

By David Taber

CRM Systems

10 Virtualization Vendors to Watch in 2010

Which virtualization tool vendors should be on your radar screen in 2010? Here's CIO.com's third-annual list of intriguing innovators in virtualization management, security and more.

By Kevin Fogarty

Virtualization

The Apple Leak: A Marketer’s Magic Bullet

Was Apple behind a controlled leak about its rumored tablet? A controlled leak lets you decide where and when the information will appear and fires up the buzz machine.

By Tom Kaneshige

Consumer Electronics Small and Medium Business Tablets

5 Web 2.0 Startups to Watch in 2010

Keep an eye on these five businesses that bring fresh ideas to the Web 2.0 arena. From search to microbogging, these tools deserve your attention.

By Kristin Burnham

Productivity Software Social Networking Apps

What Microsoft Can Learn from Google’s Nexus One Phone

As Google risks burning partner bridges by branding its own phone, Microsoft chooses to keep the peace. Who's the wiser one?

Data Center

Happy New Year, CIOs!

By Martha Heller

Careers

Cloud Computing: IT Operations Changes Are Mandatory

Take a peek at the cloud's role in the web pages of the future: built on the fly from a portfolio of high-volume applications. CIO.com's Bernard Golden takes you inside the next wave of application scale and what it means for IT ops.

By Bernard Golden

Cloud Computing Virtualization

The Future of IT Project Management Software

Economic and technological trends are converging to create a bright future for project management software.

By Stacy A. Goff

Project Management Tools

IT Outsourcing: Don’t Get Caught in Multi-Sourcing’s Costly Trap

Many IT outsourcing customers and analysts praise the potential merits of multi-sourcing, but one sourcing advisor warns that exiting such arrangements can be prohibitively expensive.

By Stephanie Overby

IT Leadership IT Strategy Outsourcing

Software Audits on the Rise: Survival Tips

Enterprises faced an increased number of software audits from revenue-hungry vendors in 2009, as well as new types of disputes, says a new Forrester report. Here are some areas to watch, plus advice on playing smart defense with "traffic cop&quo

ERP Systems Legal Risk Management

BMW Calls Windows 7 Rollout Smooth Driving So Far

German car giant BMW is racing to the next phase of its company-wide Windows 7 migration faster than expected, having won over internal skeptics. Here's a look inside their rollout to date.

IT Leadership Small and Medium Business Windows

RIM Unveils New “BlackBerry Presenter” for PowerPoint Presos

BlackBerry-maker RIM this morning announced its latest smartphone accessory, the BlackBerry Presenter. The new gadget lets users project PowerPoint presentations stored on their BlackBerry smartphones to projectors or monitors, eliminating the need f

Data Center Small and Medium Business Smartphones

5 Burning Questions Surrounding Oracle Right Now

Some troubling, lingering questions are casting a cloud over Larry Ellison & Co.'s current party.

Enterprise Applications

If one of your New Year's resolutions is to get more organized, consider these seven tools that save time and streamline your social networking interactions.

By Kristin Burnham

Productivity Software Social Networking Apps

The CIO Job Market in 2010: More Opportunity and More Competition

The CIO job market gained steam during the fourth quarter of 2009, and executive recruiters expect that momentum to build in 2010 as the economy recovers.

By Meridith Levinson

Careers IT Jobs

Apple Tablet: Screen Cost is The Price Hurdle Apple Can’t Jump

As reports surfaced Monday that Apple's upcoming tablet may cost right around $1000, industry critics began debating the not-so-appetizing price. CIO.com talked to a touchscreen maker to get the inside scoop on one big factor keeping the tablet&

By Tom Kaneshige

Tablets

Watching the Project Management Curves

Project managers need to monitor their project patterns.

By Jim Vaughan

Smartphones: Corporate Shackles or Tool for Work-Life Balance?

BlackBerrys, iPhones and other smart mobile devices are in demand by employees today. But who gets them, who pays for them and who controls them are questions with no easy answers.

Enterprise Applications IT Leadership Small and Medium Business

Jan 4, 2010

Microsoft’s Latest Plan to Win SMBs: Windows 7 Pro

Microsoft says small businesses didn't get enough attention with Windows Vista. So it baked new features into Windows 7 Professional just for SMBs. Will this effort, plus new hardware bundles, be enough to woo SMBs to upgrade?

IT Strategy Laptops Small and Medium Business

Jan 4, 2010

ATTN BlackBerry Bold 9700 Users: All OS Code Not Created Equally…

New BlackBerry Bold 9700 owners should be particularly cautious about installing new operating-system code on their smartphones. That's true whether the OS was released "officially" by a wireless carrier other than your own–or leaked

Carriers Small and Medium Business Smartphones

Jan 4, 2010

IBM Scores Outsourcing Deals, Plans New Hires – Is this Good News?

In late December, IBM announced three outsourcing deals, one worth $83 million. It also plans some new hires. What’s it all add

Dec 27, 2009

Offshoring’s Antidote: The Power of Persuasion?

Hear what Hira thinks about offshoring, and let us know what you think about how to discourage its practice.

Dec 26, 2009

The Business Application of the Decade: And the Winner Is…

It's not flashy or pretty, and used incorrectly it can create a big nightmare. But business users simply can't quit this app.

Dec 23, 2009

Enterprise Applications

Ballmer in 2010: Should He Stay or Should He Go Now?

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer's leadership has come under fire in the last few years, and Newsweek predicts he will be ousted in 2010. But there are pros and cons to Ballmer, and he should have just enough clout to stay the head honcho at Microsof

IT Leadership Small and Medium Business Windows

Dec 23, 2009

RIM Blames Service Outage on Bum BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) Updates

BlackBerry-maker RIM says it believes a major North American BlackBerry service outage that started yesterday and lasted into early this morning can be attributed to two recent flawed updates to its popular BlackBerry IM application, BlackBerry Messe

Data Center Small and Medium Business Smartphones

Dec 23, 2009

Europe Overtakes North America in Outsourcing Games

This year, companies in Europe are on track to spend more in outsourcing than North American companies by more than $1 billion.

Dec 22, 2009

The people connections that drive social media will continue to grow in value and change the way we work and communicate.

By Forrester Research

Dec 22, 2009 4 mins

IT Leadership Outsourcing

6 Offshore Outsourcing Hot Spots for 2010

The headlines in offshore outsourcing in 2010 may focus less on the quantity of work organizations are sending overseas and more on where they're sending it.

By Stephanie Overby

Dec 22, 2009

9 Tech Things I Won’t Do This Holiday ’09 Vacation

CIO.com blogger Thomas Wailgum has identified nine "technology traps" to avoid this holiday season, and he's taken the pledge to do so himself. But does he really stand a chance?

Small and Medium Business Social Networking Apps Twitter

Dec 22, 2009

Analyst Firm Tells Asia’S CIOs to Adopt an IT Recovery

The new year is quickly approaching and IDC has provided Asia/Pacific chief information officers (CIOs) with the top ten insights that they need to be aware of in 2010.

By Anuradha Shukla

By Ravi Karanam and Cem Tanyel

CIO IT Strategy

Boomers Transfer Knowledge to Gen Y for Legacy Apps

Unisys' Ravi Karanam and Cem Tanyel share some best practices and techniques to minimize the inherent risk involved in knowledge transfer.

IT Strategy

Honest Feedback for Public Speakers: How to Get It and Give It

Speakers crave useful critiques of their talks yet most people shy away from offering helpful feedback. But good speakers are always looking to fine-tune their craft.

By Maryfran Johnson

CIO

Verizon Forcing Microsoft Bing Search on BlackBerry Users

U.S. wireless carrier Verizon wants its BlackBerry customers to employ Microsoft's Bing search engine, and it's not-so-subtly pushing some of its users in the Bing-direction by removing all other default search-engine options from their Bla

Carriers Small and Medium Business Smartphones

Make Your Home a Digital Music Hall

If digital music is an important part of your life, the Sonos wireless music system can fill every room in your house with high-quality sound — without a house-remodeling project.

By Bill Snyder

Data Center Enterprise Applications Small and Medium Business

Security Heavyweights Predict 2010 Threats

Upcoming security threats for 2010, as predicted by CA, Cisco, Symantec, Websense and a group of experts at Independent Security Evaluators. Plus, Info-Tech on security trends.

By Jennifer Kavur

Dec 18, 2009

Data Breach Malware Viruses

Microsoft and Consumers: Friends or Foes?

Windows Mobile's failure to compete has put a spotlight Microsoft's struggles to win over consumers in general, whose Web-based needs and habits will soon spill over into the corporate world, say industry analysts.

Small and Medium Business Smartphones Windows

Alignment 2010

What's in store for 2010 business/IT alignment.

By Maryfran Johnson

Business IT Alignment CIO

The Future-State CIO Starts Here

Why an external focus is the right way for IT leaders nto stay relevant

By Louie Ehrlich

Business IT Alignment

2010 State of the CIO: Today’s Focus for IT Departments – Business Opportunities

The recession has deepened CIO understanding of and commitment to business beyond IT. It's not just about installing BI tools or upgrading ERP, but about working side by side with other company leaders to build IT into new goods and services.

By Kim S. Nash