Opinion

Opinion

• Security Zone: Planning is the key to successfully implement data governance

  When some people think about data governance they immediately jump to the conclusion that a technological solution is a holy grail for defining an answer to this substantial task, writes Finn Rye, CISSP. While a technology solution is an integral ...  Continue Reading

• Why IT leaders need to prepare for the Bribery Act

  The Bribery Act hits the UK statute book on 1 July 2011. The new legislation widens coverage from public officials and their agents to the whole of the private sector and associated transactions. Clearly this area is being taken seriously as failure...  Continue Reading

• Back to the future with government ID plans

  The government's new identity scheme promises to put citizens at the centre of online public services, says Centre for Technology Policy Research director Jerry Fishenden.  Continue Reading

• Security profession must banish flu symptoms with nimble risk-based decisions

  We talk a lot about new technology, but there are few times when technology really tears up an organisation's rulebook - but that is what the "cloud" and the iPad have done, writes Matthew Lord, CISSP. These technologies have entered our ...  Continue Reading

• Top five tips for gTLD strategy: What does Icann's decision mean for your business?

  The generic top-level domains (gTLDs) programme, approved by Icann has seen the introduction of tailored domain name suffixes and means that brands will be able to pay to use their own name as a gTLD. The shift marks one of the biggest changes to ...  Continue Reading

• ITSM and social media: maintaining best practice and adding business value

  Following mainstream adoption at the turn of the millennium, ITIL has set the pace for best practice in IT service management (ITSM), writes Patrick Bolger. By providing a practical framework for delivering and supporting IT services, ITIL has ...  Continue Reading

• Cutting costs with variable SLAs

  CIO Connect CEO Nick Kirkland looks at how service level agreements (SLAs) are often overlooked as vehicles for reducing costs.  Continue Reading

• What are the opportunities mCommerce offers?

  Throughout 2010, a flurry of announcements from players in the mobile value chain placed the spotlight squarely on the potential of the mCommerce market and highlighted it as a valuable revenue driver in a tough and competitive economic environment,...  Continue Reading

• When an IT function does as little technology as possible

  I've just returned from giving a key-note address at the Ovum Industry Congress in London, writes Terry White, research director, CXO Advisor.  Continue Reading

• The IT team of the future: Jack of all trades, but certainly not master of none

  Despite the growing consensus around the advantages of cloud computing, be that private, hybrid or public, there is often an elephant in the room during many of my cloud conversations with customers - what will cloud mean for my IT team?  Continue Reading

• Seven trends in public sector procurement that are scaring suppliers

  The government's austerity programme is having predicable knock-on effects on IT procurement and outsourcing strategies, and while there are a number of inter-related themes they all stem from a single overriding imperative - the need to cut costs.  Continue Reading

• An evolutionary approach to cloud computing

  In the midst of the hype surrounding cloud computing it is sometimes difficult to remember that it is not the panacea, or silver bullet, for all IT service delivery issues. While it will be the right answer in certain, perhaps many, scenarios it ...  Continue Reading

• Don’t listen to marketing – IT is working

  If one were to believe even a tenth of the marketing messages that are thrown out by IT vendors, the quality of IT services delivered inside organisations today are horribly expensive, poorly delivered and way too inflexible, writes Tony Lock, ...  Continue Reading

• PCI DSS v2.0: How does it affect your web application security testing?

  The latest version of PCI DSS came into effect on 1 January 2011. If you are a merchant of any size accepting credit cards, you must comply with PCI DSS v2.0 Standards from 2012, writes Fabio Cerullo, CISSP.  Continue Reading

• Open University prepares students for the business-focused reality of IT

  The stereotypical view of an IT worker separated from their organisation in a windowless basement is increasingly far removed from the reality of the role, writes Kevin Streater, executive director for IT employer engagement at The Open University.  Continue Reading

• Top skills for IT managers - Part 3: Critical Thinking and Problem Solving

  In this six-part series, Joseph R. Czarnecki, project management specialist and senior consultant at ESI International, identifies six top business skills at which every IT project managers needs to excel.  Continue Reading

• No excuses for Lockheed Martin cyber attack

  US defence contractor Lockheed Martin is reportedly blaming an apparently successful hack of its IT systems on an earlier breach of RSA Security's system, but this is nothing but smoke and mirrors, writes Steve Watts, co-founder of SecurEnvoy.  Continue Reading

• Consumerism and productivity: How to deal with employees' devices in the workplace

  In the first part of this discussion, I covered the hard reality of consumerisation and the dangers of letting end users take too much control of IT, writes Dale Vile, chief executive of analyst Freeform Dynamics.  Continue Reading

• Seven critical elements to maintaining a balance between regulation and innovation

  Regulation is sapping IT resources, but is there hope for innovation? asks Dave Upton  Continue Reading

• The cookies monster: How to deal with the new cookies law

  From 26 May 2011, the law concerning the use of cookies and similar technologies for storing information on a user's computer equipment is changing. Henrietta Neate looks at what the new law says and what you will need to do to ensure that you ...  Continue Reading

• Byte Night 2011: IT takes to the streets in the fight against youth homelessness

  Last week, many IT professionals stood together in the offices of BDO Stoy Hayward in Baker Street, London, to pledge support for the launch of Byte Night 2011, the IT industry's annual sleep-out which supports Action for Children's fight against ...  Continue Reading

• Can in-memory computing answer the big questions about Big Data?

  Like it or not, the amount of information an organisation will deal with only ever increases, writes Alan Bowling, chairman of the UK & Ireland SAP User Group. This has led to the concept of "Big Data", whereby organisations will increasingly rely ...  Continue Reading

• Opinion: Personal device momentum will challenge traditional mobile sourcing strategies

  Enterprises are embracing mobility at an unprecedented pace, and this trend will continue to gain momentum over the next five years, writes Brownlee Thomas, principal analyst at Forrester Research.  Continue Reading

• Dragons' Den star Deborah Meaden backs online micro-finance initiative

  Dragons' Den star Deborah Meaden came face to face with entrepreneurs she described as "inspirational" during a recent trip to Cambodia with leading aid and development agency CARE International UK.  Continue Reading

• Seven steps to successful negotiation for IT buyers

  Nigel Owen of training consultancy Huthwaite International provides some key tips for benefiting both seller and buyer when negotiating a sale or purchase.  Continue Reading

• Rationalising software licencing in the virtual age

  During any consolidation project, software licensing arrangements must be given careful thought. Andrew Buss of Freeform Dynamics discusses the legal and commercial considerations.  Continue Reading

• Security Zone: Best of breed versus single vendor solutions creates challenge and opportunity

  The concept of an eclectic mix of security appliances, OS and hardware that seeks to maximise security architectures through diversity may be outdated thinking.  Continue Reading

• Top skills for IT managers - Part 2: Advanced Communication and Interpersonal Skills

  Joseph R. Czarnecki, project management specialist and senior consultant at ESI International, identifies six top business skills at which every IT project managers needs to excel.  Continue Reading

• How evolved is IT in your company?

  There are a number of cartoons...  Continue Reading

• CIOs are from Mars, CMOs are from Venus? Not any more

  To many people, marketing and IT, and CMOs and CIOs could not be more extreme in their differences, writes Forrester's Simon Yates.  Continue Reading

• What is the point of BDUK?

  Guy Jarvis, director at NextGenUs UK, on Broadband Delivery UK's bidding guide for local authorities and others interested in taking part in the government's £530m rural broadband programme.  Continue Reading

• Gartner: Combine strategy and leadership to maximise the contribution of IT

  Strategy and leadership are the two most important disciplines for CIOs to exercise to drive sustained success, writes Dave Aron, vice-president and Gartner Fellow.  Continue Reading

• Unglamorus batch processing is 'the new sexy' for financial services IT

  Sebastien Quoirin, general manager at ORSYP, on why unglamorous batch processing is "the new sexy" for financial services IT  Continue Reading

• Security zone: Extending compliance to the cloud

  Most security and compliance mandates were simply not designed with cloud environments in mind – an unfortunate state of affairs as a huge amount of our data is about to go "cloudwards".  Continue Reading

• Funding for IT businesses - where and how to get it

  Grant Thornton's Wendy Hart shares her insight on sources of funding for high-tech businesses in the current market and what technology companies should do to get it.  Continue Reading

• Spectrum auction ignores delivery, quality, timescale issues

  David Harrington of the Communications Management Association (CMA) gives his views on the Ofcom 4G auction  Continue Reading

• IT teams signing up to CARE IT Adventure Challenge

  Teams from across the IT industry are signing up to challenge themselves and challenge poverty in the CARE IT Adventure Challenge supported by Computer Weekly.  Continue Reading

• Forrester's four steps for CISOs marketing security

  While many security groups focus their communication activities on end-user security awareness, they have stopped short of planning for the fundamental activity of presenting their products, services and capabilities to their key stakeholders  Continue Reading

• Delivering IT for economic recovery

  In many organisations public, private or third sector, it is no longer "business as usual". The almost unprecedented scale of public sector budget...  Continue Reading

• How technology can make or break a carve-out

  Technology has long been a critical element of M&A; transactions. Handled correctly, it can be a key driver of value, enabling business processes to operate more efficiently, but done incorrectly, it can have devastating consequences  Continue Reading

• Top skills for IT managers - Part 1: Establishing a business mindset

  In this six-part series, Joseph R. Czarnecki, project management specialist and senior consultant at ESI International, identifies six top business skills at which every IT project manager needs to excel.  Continue Reading

• How tablets are transforming how SAP runs SAP

  Unwiring the enterprise can pay huge dividends for workers and the corporate bottom line, writes Oliver Bussmann, global CIO at SAP. I've seen firsthand proof of that. Since joining SAP as global CIO in late 2009, I have made mobile adoption one of ...  Continue Reading

• Interview: Askar Sheibani, CEO of Comtek - People need to change their ways on e-waste

  Askar Sheibani, CEO of IT repairs firm Comtek, talks to Computer Weekly about fighting e-waste, the benefits of reuse to the UK economy, and how big manufacturers are fuelling an unsustainable future  Continue Reading

• Getting to grips with software licencing

  Building a solid platform for licence management  Continue Reading

• 10 steps to get Internet Explorer 9 going

  As more and more companies migrate to Windows 7, the uptake of Internet Explorer 8 and now Internet Explorer 9 is booming - and it needs just as much careful attention. In fact, if you don't have plans in place for IE8 or IE9, it will hold up your ...  Continue Reading

• High touch is just as important as high tech

  The promise of any form of communication technology, whether paper, the printing press or a PC, has always been to help people connect more effectively. On this measure, the explosion of IT in the last two decades has been disappointing. We all know...  Continue Reading

• Guide for employers on the abolition of the default retirement age (part 1)

  The question of how to deal with older members of staff, particularly those who have worked for a business for a long time, can be a difficult one for managers  Continue Reading

• Guide for employers on the abolition of the default retirement age (part 2)

  The most obvious difficulty for employers will be that there is no longer a ready-made timetable for retirement  Continue Reading

• Check your software licence agreement for these common flaws

  During 2010, Forrester clients bombarded us with an increased volume of questions and complaints about software contract issues  Continue Reading

• Security zone: Mobile malware is already costing you money

  Mobile malware has already been predicted, and it is fair to say that it is now here. There are already numerous exploits and scams in the wild that have been used to exploit users and mobile devices alike.  Continue Reading

• Prepare for the mobile wallet

  Entrepreneurs like tipping-points. Their sources are many and varied; a spur from technology perhaps, the first time you say 'no' to business you don't need...  Continue Reading

• New assurance standard required for cloud confidence

  One of the perceived inhibitors in the uptake of cloud computing, particularly...  Continue Reading

• Lessons from the NAO's report on government IT

  The UK's public-spending review body, the National Audit office (NAO) last week published "Information and Communications Technology in Government Landscape Review"  Continue Reading

• Rising values must drive change on software patentability issue

  Recent speculation that Facebook and Google may be considering a takeover of Twitter for an estimated $8-10 billion has shocked the business world.  Continue Reading

• Are you a natural risk taker? Take our free personality test to find out

  Managing IT risk in today's cyber economy is a high priority. New standards and regulations focus on operational risk management – weighing risk against reward and building in systems and procedures to try to reduce or eliminate risk.  Continue Reading

• Software engineering, but not as we know it

  With the further developments of the Chartered Information Technology Professional status, or CITP, BCS, the Chartered Institute for IT, encourages us to reconsider our understanding of our profession, writes Jon G Hall.  Continue Reading

• Security sceptics should 'just say yes'

  Companies need to realise that important business opportunities can only be achieved by taking a positive approach to IT security, writes Etienne Greeff  Continue Reading

• The business impact of TMMi

  In today's demanding business environment organisations face increasing compliance and regulatory risks. The consequences of getting it wrong can be serious,...  Continue Reading

• ECJ trade mark ruling lets eBay off the hook

  The European Court of Justice has moved a step closer to judgement in a case referred from the English High Court, which it is hoped will provide guidance...  Continue Reading

• Increase in IT jobs continues into 2011

  There has been a noticeable increase in IT recruitment levels over the past 18 months, writes Jason Addicott, associate director of IT recruitment at Robert...  Continue Reading

• Opinion: Key role for IT in M&A; success

  The much anticipated economic recovery has set tongues wagging about the prospects of new life returning to the mergers and acquisitions industry.  Continue Reading

• Is it time for IT professionals to return to the City?

  Now the City is back on track and confidence has picked up, many employers are being allocated budget to recruit externally to re-build their IT functions.  Continue Reading

• Review: WikiLeaks - Inside Julian Assange's war on secrecy

  The one enduring thing Wikileaks has taught us is that the internet works, if you know what you are doing.  Continue Reading

• IT governance and mobile technology

  The mobile world is undergoing explosive growth. Luckily, enterprises are beginning to realise the potential gains and losses this technology offers, enabling them to act appropriately.  Continue Reading

• How can we find the new recruits that IT needs?

  Last month's "Technology Insights 2011" report from e-Skill UK warned that the IT sector requires 110,000 new entrants a year from education, unemployment and job switchers to fulfil its potential.  Continue Reading

• Global sourcing trends in 2011

  Every January, we survey our outsourcing experts in Asia, Europe and the USA about the state of the market and the likely trends over the next 12 months. The results always show interesting similarities – and differences – in attitudes around the ...  Continue Reading

• Justifying your cloud investment: high-performance computing

  High-performance computing (HPC) is no longer exclusive to large companies and governments with substantial scientific budgets  Continue Reading

• Software as a service can breed dependency so choose suppliers with care

  SaaS is not utility computing: it matters who delivers it and how  Continue Reading

• IT skills require industry engagement

  Recent figures from Reed's annual job index suggest that the UK need for IT professionals is now 23% higher than a year ago. This could be viewed as a positive sign of a recovering industry pulling itself out of economic recession. However, the news...  Continue Reading

• Security Zone: DLP – Did we miss the point?

  Data Loss Prevention, DLP for short, is a phrase that should strike fear into everyone who does not take it seriously. And with good reason. Many companies have found themselves embroiled in legal battles, facing court cases, and even complete ...  Continue Reading

• Cloud predictions for 2011: Gains from early experiences come alive

  The second half of 2010 has laid a foundation in the infrastructure-as-a-service (IaaS) market that looks likely to make 2011 a landmark year.  Continue Reading

• Think Tank: What are the security implications of putting a smart meter in every UK home?

  The government is planning to put a smart meter in every home in the UK by 2017 as a step towards a smart grid, but what are the security implications?  Continue Reading

• Security Zone: The ISO/IEC 38500 IT Governance Standard

  IT governance means different things to different folks, yet it is generally understood to require alignment with best practice standards and methodologies. However, it can be really hard to see the wood for the trees due to the multiple frameworks,...  Continue Reading

• CES 2011: Security and mobile working

  Corporate computer security has recently been forced to expand beyond the usual remit of protecting company-owned devices by also protecting consumer endpoints...

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• IT leads the charge on project management

  IT has led the charge on project management . No other industry has had as much impact on the field of project management as IT has.  Continue Reading

• Innovation out of recession: what’s ahead in 2011

  The technology sector has played a leading role in recovery from the downturn and IT departments will have to get to grips with being the brokers of IT services, writes Mark Settle, CIO of BMC Software.  Continue Reading

• The seven most common project management mistakes CIOs make

  CIOs spend much of their time identifying the right strategies for IT implementations, which invariably morph into projects and programmes, writes Raed Haddad.  Continue Reading

• Don’t let techno-babble cloud your judgement

  Robert Morgan believes businesses must fully understand what cloud computing actually is and what it means to them as 2011 inevitable brings with it a new wave of cloud hype in the outsourcing sector.  Continue Reading

• Why FTTC isn’t enough and how the UK might do more

  The UK government recently announced its strategy to deliver improved rural broadband services - one of the longstanding and well-documented problems facing the UK. The ambition to construct the best broadband network in Europe by 2015 is admirable,...  Continue Reading

• Fibre rates – time to repeal the modern equivalent of the window tax

  Why would anyone tax windows? Well it seemed like a good idea to some in late 17th century England and in 18th century Scotland and France  Continue Reading

• Saving money through software asset management

  In the midst of global financial uncertainty, it is becoming increasingly important for organisations to effectively manage and account for their software to help to optimise IT expenditure. A common misconception is that managing software assets is...  Continue Reading

• Government broadband strategy will fail unless fibre rates are challenged

  The government strategy for broadband fails to address the taxation of fibre-optic infrastructure and puts at risk the creation of a regulatory and policy environment which would allow the market to deliver.  Continue Reading

• Security Zone: More effort needed to manage third party connections

  We are increasingly aware that every day new hazards appear on the internet as the software and systems we use continue to develop vulnerabilities at alarming rates. At the same time, businesses crave the new functionality and features found in the ...  Continue Reading

• The legal considerations of cloud computing

  It's a misconception to think that all law firms are stuck in the technological dark ages.  Continue Reading

• CW Security Think Tank: How to prevent security breaches from personal devices in the workplace

  What are the most effective security practices for allowing employees to use their own computing devices while ensuring corporate data is secure? John...  Continue Reading

• Youngsters driving the cloud to tipping point, says Rangaswami

  Cloud has reached tipping point in enterprise and the younger generation of employees are driving it. JP Rangaswami, chief scientist at Salesforce.com, talks...  Continue Reading

• Opinion: Plugging the gaps in the government's broadband strategy

  The government has outlined its vision for Britain's superfast broadband service. Chris Conder, who has first-hand experience of community networks, has...  Continue Reading

• Stopping the cloud taking your IT career away

  Most industry observers recognise that cloud computing represents a radical and irreversible transformation in the way business uses technology.  Continue Reading

• Why data analytics must change

  Wanted: people with the ability to see the relationships in big data, says Stephen Brobst, CTO of Teradata  Continue Reading

• Women could fast track the alternative IT needs

  I often sing the praises of the multi-disciplinary education that I received at the University of Sussex in the early 1990s. I 'majored' in Social...  Continue Reading

• Refining the language of risk

  When it comes to risk analysis, one of the most important tools an IT executive can deploy is compelling language.  Continue Reading

• Security Zone: Cloud computing puts the spotlight on security architecture

  Security is still regularly cited as a blocker to the adoption of cloud services, or other shared services, or anything being delivered "as a service". Assurance...  Continue Reading

• Ten trends you cannot ignore

  Vice-president of Nucleus Research, Rebecca Wetteman, counts down 10 issues which should be top of the IT agenda.  Continue Reading

• Which IT suppliers will win in next 18 months?

  While virtually all private sector companies publicly acclaim news of a shrinking public sector, the reality is often quite different. For example, pharmaceutical...  Continue Reading

• Freedom of action: preventing paralysis from risk

  In today's competitive markets, businesses must work increasingly hard to ensure they eliminate incidents of risk that impact company reputation and market...  Continue Reading

• Career structures for IT professionals: HR toys or levers for change?

  As we come out of the recession, many companies are now busily engaged in revising their IT career structures. Some are driven by mergers: they need a single...  Continue Reading

• The new EU cookie rule – so, we need to get consent then?

  In October 2009 the European Commission adopted the Citizens Rights Directive, part of the reform package for the regulation of the electronic communications...  Continue Reading

• Will a UK technology hub really rival Silicon Valley?

  Earlier this month, prime minister David Cameron set out the government's ambitious plans to create a technology hub to rival Silicon Valley in London's...  Continue Reading

• How to collaborate: Six lessons from BT Expedite

  1. Have the commercial discussion early and agree the ground rules before you begin. Is the customer jointly funding a specific project or taking a stake in the supplier's product or even a wider business venture? Does the customer get an ...  Continue Reading

• Beyond PCI DSS: Protecting more than just card data

  The latest version of the PCI Data Security Standard, formally released last month (Version 2.0, 28 October 2010), gives merchants, service providers, auditors and banks an opportunity to briefly review how far (or not) the card payment industry has...  Continue Reading