Trusted Advisors in Emerging Technology

Today I am very excited to share with you the news of our first birthday.  

It has been an exciting, stimulating and passionate year for me, and not surprisingly, as the first year of running my own business, a year in which I have learnt so much, and been supported by so many.  I am very grateful for the support, individually and collectively.

When I started capioIT last year I wanted to be focused on emerging markets and emerging technology with collaboration and innovation at the heart of the company. I am very happy and grateful that I have been able to do that.

Some achievements or metrics that I have been most proud of include;

• Customers on five continents
• Over 100 qualitative and in-depth interviews and meetings with real decision makers in IT.
• Multiple research and advisory work with buyers of IT Solutions across the AP region
• Meeting with over 30 new IT vendors. Some have less than 10 employees, but fill an important product niche. By small size makes it easier for me to engage with these smaller firms, than my larger colleagues.
• More than 15 successful  vendor engagements across emerging markets and technology in Asia, the Middle East and Africa
• Preparation of over 20 documents, reports and data sets.
• Successful collaboration and in my role as an advisor to IBRS and with HfS Research and the Sourcing Interests Group (SIG). Through this end-user or buyer focus, I feel I have learnt more about being an analyst, and technology in the last year, than the previous 5 years.
• 39 Blog entries, with traffic that has doubled on since January. Sometimes you might not agree or like all the posts, but I am accountable and honest.
• A new and validated approach to market taxonomy focused on the customer and vendor perspective to really understand what is happening
• Fresh look at competitive analysis in the IT Solutions market through the development of the Capture Share model.

Some of the most exciting trends that I have been part of this year include:

• The investment in board portals and other niche applications that drive enterprise workplace productivity  – The board portal market leader will add 4* more new customers this quarter in comparison to 2010. All thanks to the I-Pad dominance.
• Emergence of Chinese based services providers – Have seen this first hand. They have learnt well from Indian firms, and whilst small will significantly their influence across this decade
• Growth of involvement of Gen-Y in outsourcing management and procurement – This will change the way things are done in outsourcing
• Continuing emergence of the ASEAN market as a prime opportunity for investment in IT. Regional stability and economic outlook is strong.
• A need to understand where enterprise cloud computing investment is coming from. I have looked to add a level of depth and solidity to help understand how organisational IT procurement is being transformed by cloud.

The next year will be even bigger. I am very excited as I enter the second year of capioIT. There is so much I am looking to do, and more importantly, as I get more experienced at running a business, I will get more focused and more capable.

Some of the key and very exciting initiatives for me in the second year of capioIT include

• Capability to undertake research in Chinese, in and for the Chinese market through my relationship with Maverick Research.
• At the request of a key customerI am currently finalising the selection of a provider in Japan to also allow full Japanese coverage
• Increased research into the Middle East and African (MEA) markets as the political situations stabilises
• Further innovation in the research process, including publishing more on“Where do Clouds Come From”, BI and Analytics and Data Centre Solutions.

Whilst I have to thank a lot of people for the very positive outcomes of the last year, there have been several people who have been invaluable in their support from a professional and personal perspective. These of course include my family, but the whole analyst community. It is a great community we have, and we should celebrate it more, from the vendor, analyst/advisor and buyer perspective.

Finally,to put things into context,  please see some photos of the crowds who gathered around Sydney Harbour, and the fireworks to celebrate the 1^st Birthday of capioIT with me.