On the eve of Microsoft’s first Lync User Conference, I think it’s a great time to start a frank and direct conversation about what’s changed in collaboration and, because of those changes, what’s really important for IT decision makers to consider as they evaluate collaboration vendors and solutions. This conversation, which I’m confident will spark a lively and healthy debate, will last for weeks and will include input from a variety of Cisco Collaboration leaders.

So, to start, what has changed in collaboration? At the macro level, I would argue that collaboration has evolved from a tolerated office tool into the single most important technology investment that an organization can make. Why? Because the next breakthrough levels of performance and productivity needed in business won’t come from a better-looking web portal or a bigger Inbox — they’ll come from the ability to tap into the collective knowledge and creativity of our people.

But, here’s the catch: not all collaboration solutions are designed to help people engage the way they want to engage, and they’re also not architected from the ground up to cater to IT’s needs and requirements.

Customers tell us time and again that a modern collaboration platform needs to deliver more than the basics like IM, conferencing and VoIP.  It needs to offer flexibility and choice in support of trends such as BYOD (Bring Your Own Device), high-quality video, and cloud-based deployments (private, public, hybrid, and hosted). The modern collaboration platform needs to be usable not just by office workers but by anyone, from physicians to customer care agents, executives, mobile and desk-less workers. And it needs to be as complete of a solution as possible — including the underlying infrastructure, a wide choice of compatible endpoints, and world-class support and maintenance — to maximize business and IT value.

Which brings me back to Microsoft and Lync. We believe Read More »

Tags: Bring your Own Device (BYOD), cloud collaboration, collaboration, conferencing, instant messaging, research, video, voip

Not One-size-fits-all

In the world of fashion, one-size-fits all has very limited appeal. People come in all shapes and sizes, with tastes, preferences, and needs that are equally diverse. So too are the diverse approaches and use cases that are driving interest in Software Defined Networking (SDN), automation, simplification, orchestration, and other solutions. Service providers are exploring technologies for more efficient, flexible, and cost-efficient network operations that will in turn make their businesses more agile and competitive.

Last year at Cisco Live in San Diego, Cisco introduced a broad vision and strategy  ̶  The Cisco Open Network Environment  ̶  an evolutionary approach that not only includes SDN but also encompasses an array of solutions, products, and technologies that are applicable to most, if not all, use cases that are much broader than what SDN alone could address. Since then, as part of our “Build, Buy, and Partner” strategy, we have announced newly developed technologies and products accompanied by strategic company acquisitions that add tools to enhance visibility, orchestration, programmability, and other capabilities to Cisco offerings.

At the end of January at Cisco Live in London 2013, we discussed a variety of solutions that we are working on with service providers to start their journey toward making their networks more programmable. From custom routing and traffic processing, to security applications and automation of fulfillment and assurance, here are just a few of the use cases explored and implemented by early adopters of our technologies that were discussed: Read More »

Tags: Open Network Environment, SDN, Service Provider, software defined networking

Hills, hills and more hills but the view is amazing and does everyone here have a device tracking them? Stream of consciousness, yes, and my thoughts after participating in last weekend’s Coastal Trail Run along with 599 other runners.

Race bib with chip on the back that tracks runners progress.

Connected Runners
Most of whom were connected to some sort of device to help track their progress or just to communicate with family and friends during their race. Whether it was an iPhone app that syncs a playlist and shows your progress, some kind of satellite tracking device like a Garmin watch or just the simple bib with the tracking device right in it – all runners were connected. As soon as I got on the shuttle bus that took us to the start line I saw several people snapping photos because not only are runners more connected now than ever before but they also share their experience on social media sites. You could say it’s a way to keep them honest and seek out encouragement as they continue to train for the next race.

Tracking chip on back of race bib

High Tech Athletic Gear

The gear everyone was wearing was also laced with technology. Compression socks, Kinesio tape, every kind of contraption to hold water you can think of and running tights to stay warm. My Dad used to run and constantly tells me, “We didn’t have all that stuff you have now, I used to cut the feet out of your Mom’s pantyhose to stay warm.” Well Dad – we’ve got all that “stuff” now and so much more. For example, the Connected Athlete, which is a simple shoe insole one can use to track activity all day long. The Connected Athlete leverages the Cisco Intelligent Network and ACM Systems’ smart-insole wireless sensor technology, to help improve an athlete’s performance and reduce the chance of injury. So you don’t need a gadget strapped to you at all times, with this technology you can really get a sense of your activity throughout the day just by putting the insole in your shoe. The gear athletes wear to improve performance is constantly changing and improving. Just this week the Warriors announced the players will be wearing new compression style short-sleeved uniforms that will apparently allow for optimal performance.

View during Coastal Trail Run

Times Have Changed

Yes, times have changed, and the way technology is used to enhance an athlete’s performance will continue to evolve. But the end result stays the same- at least for me. Running helps clear the mind, it’s an excellent cardio workout, it helps lower blood pressure and at the same time I get to experience views like this and then turn around and share it with family and friends through a social networking site.

Tags: connected athlete, network

What better way to spend Valentine’s day than to watch a webcast on OpenFlow and SDN, perhaps with your significant other? The last couple of years have seen considerable buzz around aspects of software-defined networking.  A significant portion of the early seed discussion was around OpenFlow.  As part of the Cisco Open Network Environment webcast series, this time on February 14th, 2013 at 9 AM PST, we take look at an :Introduction to OpenFlow”: What is it? How does it work? What are some of the potential use-cases?

Joining me in this discussion with be David Ward, Cisco CTO of Engineering and Chief Architect. At the time of recording David also wears the hat of the being the Chair of the Technical Advisory Group at Open Network Foundation (ONF). So he brings perspectives both as someone who’s driving the evolution of the protocol, as well as somebody guiding its implementation across several products within the Cisco portfolio.

Also joining the webcast to lend end-user perspectives will be Matt Davy, who is formerly of Indiana University, having been the executive director of the INCenter facility there. Matt’s recently moved onto a new role, but he built a lighthouse test bed around OpenFlow and SDN the last few years during this employment at the university. Matt will talk about campus slicing and his experiences around OpenFlow.  Providing service provider perspectives from NTT communications will be Yuichi Ikejiri, Director of the Network Technology Services division.

Register here for this webcast:

As mentioned before, this is part of an educational series. If you’ve not watched the first in the series, entitled “An Introduction to OpenStack” – please feel free to register and watch it here.  The panel of Lew Tucker and Raj Patel below provide interesting perspectives on OpenStack.

Read More »

Tags: Cisco ONE, David Ward, Lew Tucket, Matt Davy, OpenFlow, OpenStack, Raj Patel, Shashi Kiran, Yuichi Ikejiri

The future of television may well include holographic, multisensory experiences worthy of science fiction. But many other visionary predictions are closer to the horizon, if not already upon us. These are creating exciting opportunities, while forcing all players in the television value chain to adapt quickly.

Recently, I met via Cisco^® TelePresence^® with more than 50 journalists from 11 countries—all in Central and Eastern Europe—to discuss the future of television and its impact on these mostly emerging markets. I participated with two of my colleagues: Kate Griffin, from the Cisco Internet Business Solutions Group (IBSG) service provider practice; and Guillaume de Saint Marc, from Cisco’s service provider video technology group (SPVTG). The roundtable took place over two days and used a Cisco IBSG study, “The Future of Television: Sweeping Change at Breakneck Speed,” as a springboard for discussions that were lively and free-spirited. Read More »

Tags: advertising, Central Europe, Cisco, cloud, Eastern Europe, Emerging Markets, Fresco, future, IBSG, immersive, interactive, multiscreen, personalized, Service Provider, targeted, television, video, videoscape unity