Posts by Ian Campbell
Three economic principles
Economic downturns are natural. They come in waves and rebalance runaway exuberance. They need a spark—in this case a pandemic— but they are always followed by a crest. Nucleus is built on the economic foundation of assessing value and when looking into the future, we like to refer back to a few core principles: Economics…
Read MoreApple iOS 14 – Tell me there’s more.
If you’ve followed our blog over the years you know we’re not big fans of Apple. From an ROI standpoint, the Mac is just too expensive when compared to Windows-based alternatives to make it a legitimate business computer. The iPhone was a fantastic device when it first came out — I had one of the…
Read MoreThe business case against Boston
We’re in the second phase of Governor Baker’s four-stage plan for Massachusetts’ re-opening. Right now, I’m leaning toward Phase 5: “Seriously wondering if Boston is worth the hassle.” The Governor along with Mayor Walsh might do well to start thinking of Boston as a product they need to keep selling to the citizens. A little…
Read MoreEverything to know about ROI, TCO, NPV, and Payback
One of the really great things about finance is that there’s nothing new. Financial metrics have been around since the beginning of time and haven’t changed since. Early cavemen performed rudimentary return on investment (ROI) assessments when they decided to go hunting for food. This is where the idea of a cost benefit analysis started. …
Read MoreTechnology and the Nature of Work
Let’s dispense with the obvious. For the next few years, fewer people will be working — either because the downturn in business will reduce the number of workers needed or because companies will deploy technology to increase productivity of workers through automation and self-service. I know I will replace all of our analysts with Boston…
Read MoreIf you want to survive, build an ROI-focused sales and marketing team now.
Downturns happen. We saw them in 2000 and 2008. Granted, this one is a little more interesting and there’s no question restarting the economy will be bumpy, but return on investment (ROI) is a measurement that always sells. Gone are the days where sales are driven by gut feel or “nice to have.” If you…
Read MoreThree technology steps to take now to win the business restart
It’s been a tough few weeks. Employee productivity is down and CEOs have scrambled to cut costs and stabilize cash flow. The velocity of money may have slowed, but one thing is certain: business, and the relentless race that it is, will restart. Now, with offices, stores, and factory lines dark, is the time to…
Read MoreIn A Downturn, ROI Matters
Well, that happened quickly. Coming into 2020, there were rumblings of a slowdown. “Brace yourselves. Turbulence is coming to the world economy, but don’t expect a 2008 redux,” said a Fortune “2020 Crystal Ball” roundup of predictions. (I mean, technically, they were correct in that this is so much worse than 2008.) Even our incredibly…
Read MoreTime for some changes at Amazon.com
I know I’m not the only one who has started to notice the growing problem with Amazon. AWS is doing well, despite losing the US Defense contract to Azure, and Alexa is certainly good enough to turn my lights on and off, but Amazon.com — the shopping site — is starting to show a critical…
Read MoreOracle’s Cloud Journey Can Withstand Hurd’s Departure
For more mature enterprise technology companies, the path from on-premise to the cloud has been challenging — a unique, nonlinear journey that each vendor has achieved with varying degrees of success. Oracle’s transition has been no different — and while the company no longer breaks down its cloud vs. on-premise revenues with any granularity, the…
Read MoreBlockchain for the Supply Chain: Are we there yet?
Earlier this month, IBM announced its latest Blockchain pilot, the clumsily-named “Trust Your Supplier.” IBM has both lofty and modest goals for the program. First, shooting for the stars: Trust Your Supplier will “improve supplier qualification, validation, onboarding and life cycle information management.” Most specifically, it purports to improve the most cumbersome, manual tactics of…
Read MoreApple’s Fading Glory, Boring Products and Enterprise Indifference
Looking at its past few quarters, it’s clear Apple’s stratospheric trajectory has flattened. Admittedly, most companies would kill to have results like these, but clearly, Apple isn’t most companies. Is Apple still the “it” company? No, and it hasn’t been for some time. The company is transitioning from hardware-first to leading with the services and…
Read MoreCES and our Obsession with Shiny Objects
[IanInsights] – The Consumer Electronics Show or CES has become an annual ritual for tech geeks and gadget aficionados to kick off the New Year. Starting as a spin-off from the Chicago Music Show in 1967, the massive trade conference has grown, introducing many consumer technology firsts, such as the home VCR, many iterations of personal…
Read MoreThe Incredible Shrinking Productivity Benefits of Slack
[IanInsights] – Slack has got to be the single worst brand name I’ve ever heard, especially for a productivity app. Or so I thought when I first heard about the collaboration tool. Finding out that Slack is an acronym for ‘Searchable Log of All Conversations and Knowledge’ didn’t change my view of the lousy marketing for…
Read MoreThe ROI of Philanthropy: The 6% Bump
[IanInsights] – We all know it’s good for companies to give back to their communities and help worthy causes, but who knew social responsibility and philanthropic efforts could be so good for business? I mean, I’ve heard many marketers make the case for social responsibility to help strengthen the overall brand, but I’ve never seen any…
Read MoreIBM’s $34 Billion Distraction
[IanInsights] – Change the narrative. Flip the script. It’s Marketing 101 when a company is burdened with bad news. Politicians live or die by it. Companies that can change their narrative can often go on to reach new heights. Apple in 1997 and Ford in 2006 to name a few. And IBM under Lou Gerstner in…
Read MoreThe Rise of Human Capital Management
[IanInsights] – Unemployment is at its lowest point since 1969. Competition for top talent is intense now. In fact, filling positions is so tough for some companies, they’ve dropped requirements for college degrees. It’s no longer an employer’s market. Talent is now driving. (read more)
Read MoreBreaking Down Enterprise Software’s Biggest Obstacle: Aligning Tech to Business (Not Business to Tech)
[IanInsights] – Since the dawn of the modern computing era, businesses have reacted to the latest and greatest technology advancements in hopes of gaining competitive advantage. We’ve seen numerous companies break out or fail spectacularly based on tech decisions. Retailers early to adopt e-commerce are mostly still around, for example while manufacturers that fumbled the supply…
Read MoreNewsflash: Blockchain Won’t Make You Sexier or Extend Your Lifespan
[IanInsights] – So why all the overhype on this latest ‘break-through’ technology? Imagine a technology so red hot that the mere mention of it during an earnings’ call drives the stock up sharply. VCs all but throwing unprecedented sums of money at unproven start-ups focused on it. Blue Chip corporations betting their very future and even…
Read MoreHow to Cut Through Industry Analysts Opinions & Make Better Decisions: ROI
[IanInsights] – The Numbers Don’t Lie. I left IDC 17 years ago completely frustrated with the softening of industry research away from hard numbers to opinion. Worse yet, I saw major analyst firms moving toward pay-for-play models where a big investment influenced results. Vendors that increase their budget significantly magically appeared in the Leader Quadrant, while…
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