October
2005
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| Issue X |
October
2005 |
 Letter
From the Chair | ||
| Author: John Dickson, Denim Group | ||
|
As 2005
winds down, the North Chamber's Tech Council is beginning to take
stake on what has been another outstanding year. Tech Council
participation reached a new high this year with a broader and more
diverse group of techies and tech supporters driving several key
successes. Drawing record crowds each time, the Tech Council hosted
three successful installments of the Distinguished Technology Speakers
Series luncheons - a CIO Roundtable, a senior exec from Dell, and a
Rep. Charlie Gonzales (check spelling). These cornerstone events
have been central to the growing tech community in San Antonio - an
opportunity to meet, great, and interact with business leaders and
other techies.
In
addition to the Speakers Series, the Tech Council has hosted a second
year's worth of CIO breakfasts which attracting 30+ CIO and CIO-level
equivalents on a monthly basis. Each month a different speaker
covered a topic near and dear to the hearts of the CIO's - Sarbanes
Oxley, security, and broadband technologies are some of the
representative topics covered by the CIO's this year.
As you
might have seen and read, the Tech Council also has published several
"Technology News You Can Use" newsletters that capture hands-on tips
and techniques on the latest technology topics relevant to the Chamber
membership at large. Guest columnists have written articles about
wireless technologies, small business services, and other topics that
the Chamber's smaller businesses valued.
Also,
stay tuned for the Tech Council's newest innovation - the CIO Resource
Guide. If your business has not been included as a registered vendor
in this guide, it should be. Contact Debby Zucker at 344.4848 to make
sure you are included in future updated versions of the Guide.
Finally,
I want to thank Debby Zucker from the North Chamber staff, my Council
Vice Chairs (Katrina and Jeff), and the rest of the Tech Council for a
wonderful year.
I look
forward to working with you in 2006. Here's to any even more
successful next year!!!
Sincerely, John
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| Most Web
Sites Don't Work! | ||
| Author: Larry W. Patrick, WSI | ||
|
You are a small or medium size business owner and you intuitively know that you need to use the internet as a marketing tool. So you look in the yellow pages and pick one of the many web developers listed. They meet with you; get your head spinning about Java, HTML, C++, MS SQL databases, and on and on. They tell you what you need and you pay the money. However, they don’t have any idea about internet marketing or how to drive profits to your business using the web. This is why most web sites fail. Your web site should not cost you
anything! Deploying a modular development technology approach to building, rebuilding, or enhancing your site, the developer can bring you a solution rapidly with high quality and massive cost savings. Holding the number one position in the
search engines doesn’t matter! Search engines have rules and they change periodically. Actually being the second or third position is preferable and will generate greater profits for your business. The goal is to generate high visitor levels on all your pages, not just hits to your home page. With millions of new sites coming online every month, not all of them will attract the visitors they need to be successful. With this in mind, some of the more sophisticated methods to use are Phantom Scripting, Push Technology, Affiliate Marketing, and Ad Push Technology. These tools are designed to increase sales and productivity, and reduce costs; and this is really what you as a small or medium size business owner want. Most sites are left unattended!
You measure your sales activity and channels on a monthly basis, and your web site is one of your sales channels. Knowing the number of visitors and not just hits is extremely important. Knowing which pages are being viewed and how long a visitor is on each page is critical information. What search engine did the visitor come through to visit your site, or did the visitor reach the site over a link from another site. As a small or medium size business owner, you are constantly measuring yourself against your competition. How your web site performs is no different. You need to know how your site ranks compared to your competitors sites as well. The bottom line is to think about using an internet solutions provider rather than just a web site developer. Then get them in sync with your unique selling points, core competencies, customer demographics, sales targets, operating costs, and target ROI. If your internet solutions provider integrates all of your business goals within the design, hosting, and managing of your site, then they will be met. If not your web site will not work. | ||
| CIO Resource
Guide | ||
| Author: Terry Snow | ||
|
The Technology Council of the North Chamber is sponsoring the inaugural CIO Resource Guide to be distributed to area CIO’s at our monthly CIO Breakfast series. This valuable Guide is designed to be a desktop reference for IT-decision-makers to use in procuring IT hardware, software and services. The goal of the North Chamber and the Technology Council is to promote its member companies to these IT decision-makers and ultimately generate more business for North Chamber members. The CIO Resource Guide includes insightful information about your company, delivered to the desktop of key IT decision-makers in our community. Every day IT departments are looking for valuable hardware, software or professional services to fill an immediate need in their firm. Inclusion in the CIO Resource Guide will enhance your chances of being seen. Being included in the inaugural CIO Resource Guide is easy. You can contact Terry Snow of the Technology Council at 210-372-1488, or send an email to tesnow23@sbcglobal.net. You can also contact Debby Zucker at the North Chamber. Don’t miss your chance to be included in this publication that is sure to be a valuable resource to IT leaders in our community. We will be taking company profile information through October 31 st, 2005. | ||
| Which SharePoint is Right for You? | ||
| Author: Sheridan Chambers, Kevin Edwards and John Saboe | ||
|
There seems to be confusion in the marketplace about the difference between these products. Because of the price difference, it pays to understand what each application offers compared to what your organization needs. Both applications allow collaboration and information sharing through documents, lists, and discussion boards between users. Both include document versioning and help improve document-management across an organization through document libraries and workspaces. Both allow for the creation of team sites, enabling small groups of workers to share and work together on documents. So what is the
difference? Individual User Dashboards – combines your alerts and targeted content onto a single page and gathers other personal content into a single view. Content Targeting – routes information to specific groups of users based on their logon. Enterprise-wide Search – extends search capabilities beyond the portal and into the organization itself. Single Sign-on – allows permission and role management through a single facility, SharePoint, and permission and role sharing with other enterprise applications. BizTalk Integration – enables information sharing and work flow in conjunction with other enterprise applications through common connectors to BizTalk. Which SharePoint is right for your organization? If you are looking for a solution for pushing information across a medium- to large-sized enterprise, the features of the Portal Server will be necessary. If you are a small or a large organization trying to help small teams work together, SharePoint Services may be enough. As a part of Windows Server 2003, SharePoint Services is included in the price and does not need to be licensed as a separate application. SharePoint Portal Server 2003, on the other hand, is a separately licensed application. It requires the use of SharePoint Services and must run on Windows Server 2003. | ||
| What to ask the Service Providers of Converged
Internet... | ||
| Contributed by : Mel Indyk, Mel Indyk & Associates | ||
|
Convergence of IPVideo, IPVoice, and Data over the Internet will become a fundamental aspect of the new communications landscape. However it is not clear what the telecom providers role will be in the future communications landscape. Is being a network provider enough? Can providers actually differentiate on a network? Surviving telecom providers will continue to improve the existing Internet, but leading providers will work with partners to create a service experience for both consumers and enterprise. In your planning role for converged Internet services, ask your providers these key questions: How will converged
communications networks evolve on the Internet? Carriers appear to be deploying the same set of technologies (VOIP, MPLS, etc. ). Will the value created going forward be in the network layer or above the network layer? What kind of intelligence will live in the network, and what makes sense for devices at the edge? What types of partnerships will the carriers enter into which will be necessary to thrive? Mel Indyk& Associates has relocated to San Antonio. It is a consultancy focused on strategy, technology, and integrated services that advance clients' strategic agendas and deliver results. | ||
| Local News - Items of Interest | ||
|
SATAI Names Poage President and CEO Contributed by : Debby Zucker , North SA Chamber of Commerce The San Antonio Technology Accelerator Initiative (SATAI Network) today announced that James Poage, an entrepreneur, investment advisor and former senior information technology executive, has been named SATAIs president and CEO. Poage began his new assignment on Sept. 19, 2005. Poage, most recently CEO of H20 Advisors, which provides counsel to selected companies seeking funding, also has been active as a founder and investor in early stage companies and provided senior management consulting services to companies in need of leadership, during mergers and in times of crisis. His previous background as an operations and marketing executive of information technology-related companies, including Sabre, Texas Instruments and Intel as well as a joint venture between Fluor Corporation and IBM, spans more than 30 years, including both domestic and overseas assignments. Specific areas of involvement included software advanced IT systems and artificial intelligence. "We are extremely pleased to find an executive of Jim Poages caliber to take the helm of SATAI", said John Dickson, chairman of the board of SATAI. "His outstanding and diverse background including entrepreneurship, marketing and information technology will be a tremendous asset to the organization as we go forward." Dickson added that the board is very grateful for the able service of Alex Briseo, who served as interim president of SATAI. Ramiro A. Cavazos, director of economic development for the city of San Antonio, a co-chair of the SATAI search committee for the new CEO, said, "We looked at a number of qualified candidates and were extremely impressed with what Jim brings to the table. His range of experience and capabilities enables him to help take SATAI to the next level in its growth and development." Randy Goldsmith, president and CEO of SATAI from 2002 until June of 2005, who continues as a director, remarked, "I have previously worked with Jim Poage on other early stage venture development and he is an outstanding individual." Goldsmith, now assistant vice president of technology transfer and economic development at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio, said he will provide advice and counsel as Poage makes the transition into his new job. Poage is relocating to San Antonio from Marble Falls, Texas. He holds bachelor of electrical engineering and MBA degrees from the University of Wyoming, and is past chair of its Engineering National Advisory Board. The new SATAI CEO has served on a number of other international boards and advisory panels, and has been an active public speaker with many national media appearances. The SATAI Network is a target economic development initiative focused on developing the regional advanced technology economy from the ground up. A collaboration of business, government, academia and other nonprofit organizations, SATAI plays a vital role in developing and implementing initiatives to further the entrepreneurial environment and opportunities produced by a tech economy. For more information on the San Antonio Technology Accelerator Initiative, visit www.SATAI-network.com. | ||
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|
Technology Chair |
Editor | |