Jul 21, 2008
Listen to the Podcast
The networking industry has started to open up its software in the form of SDKs and APIs. Cisco, Juniper, Extreme, 3Com and the open source routing initiatives are allowing developers to write to well defined router software interfaces. This is an important development as it provides a venue for increased innovation in networking. But Cisco has taken this activity to a higher level by offering Linux and Windows platforms within its Integrated Services Router (ISR) and Wide Area Application Services (WAAS) products, delivering on the network as a platform concept. We focus on the ISR-based solution today as I talk with Shashi Kiran, Senior Manager Network Systems for Cisco Systems. We discuss this new trend in IT which takes integrated networking to the next level by integrating computing and applications in to the network fabric offering business and IT leaders a new approach to branch office value creation with the Application eXtension Platform. If you’re designing new applications for, or optimizing branch office operations then you need to listen to this podcast.
Let us know what you think. Start the discussion »
Posted in Podcasts, Cisco
Jul 14, 2008
The global economic slowdown forecasted by economists and government agencies during the beginning of the year became real on March 7, 2008 when the Labor Department estimated that the nation lost 63,000 jobs in February. Since then, job loss continued to grow to nearly a half a million; Bear Stearns was sold to JP Morgan with help from the Federal Reserve; the housing mortgage crisis continued to brew while the drums of recession beat louder. This slow march of bad economic news culminated in the worst stock market performance during June since the Great Depression.
Read more of this article »
Let us know what you think. Start the discussion »
Posted in Lippis Report
Jul 14, 2008
Download the White Paper
By Extreme Networks
St. Johannes Hospital in Troisdorf-Sieglar, Germany, with just over 400 staff members, has more than 182 beds and treats approximately 8,800 inpatients and equally as many outpatients each year. The hospital introduced Gigabit Ethernet at the core and switched fast Ethernet at the edge in 1998 to support its Picture Archiving and Communication System (PACS) for digital medical imaging. The Hospital Information System (HIS) was looking to create a virtually paperless hospital operations chain. Ideally, the intent was to have all patient information processed and stored digitally and made available to its staff whenever and wherever needed. The latest goal in making the hospital completely digital was to introduce mobile rounds with the use of Wireless Ethernet and laptops at patients’ bedsides. This capability would mean the availability of all relevant patient information at each patient’s bedside with each bed check. At the same time, the new infrastructure solution would have to support the hospital’s mission-critical life-saving applications, all of which are bandwidth-intensive.
Let us know what you think. Start the discussion »
Posted in Extreme Networks
Jul 14, 2008
Download the White Paper
By Cisco Systems
As individuals, many of us struggle to keep up with the latest innovations. How many of us are waiting for the prices to come down before investing in a high-definition TV? In that case, waiting can prove beneficial. But companies and organizations that wait to take advantage of the latest technical advancements are at risk of being left behind. Innovations of the past 10 years are enabling a more productive, responsive, and collaborative workforce and customer community resulting in increased interaction, reduced expenses, and improved profits. This phenomenon is nothing short of a digital communications revolution. There is no question about the benefits it brings. The question is: Are you ready? More importantly: Is your network ready?
Let us know what you think. Start the discussion »
Posted in Cisco
Jul 14, 2008
Download the White Paper
By DK and Authored by Michael Miller
We are pleased to provide you with this 50-page book on delivering extraordinary customer service. This book is written for business and IT leaders and offers best practices for improving your customer’s experience with your company. What your customers think about your company is often a result of their experience when they contact you. Whether or not they remain customers is often a result of the quality of service you provide. Extraordinary Customer Service explores the contact center as a strategic part of your enterprise, where you can leverage differentiated services to provide a superior customer experience that can build brand loyalty and increase profits. Presented here are the best practices, trends, and innovations that can help empower your people to be more productive, your processes to be more intelligent, and your customers to be more satisfied.
Let us know what you think. 1 Comment »
Posted in Foundry Networks
Jul 8, 2008
Listen to the Podcast
aCerno is a company that serves online ads at sub-millisecond speeds. It uses anonymous shopping data from a group of over 450 multichannel retailers to predict which products of more than 140 million online consumers will be likely to purchase. aCerno reaches nearly all online shoppers and processes over a couple billion queries per day. From the time of the query to the time an ad is served has to be 150 milliseconds or less. Foundry Networks’ equipment makes that possible. Wayne Earl, Director of Network Operations at aCerno is my guest as we explore aCerno’s IT infrastructure that allows it to deliver a fantastic service to its customers with very strict time constraints. If you’re looking to increase application performance then you need to listen to this podcast.
Let us know what you think. Start the discussion »
Posted in Podcasts, Foundry Networks
Jun 30, 2008
At the Siemens Enterprise Communications Analyst Conference in Vienna discussion of a deal that would consolidate the enterprise communications industry further was rampant. Thomas Zimmermann, COO and Gerhard Otterbach, CMO let the room full of analysts know that a deal was close at hand and would be announced any day in the business press. I had dinner with Thomas and a few other analysts high atop Vienna on a wine vineyard complete with a full moon rising over the city as the backdrop to an industry restructuring conversation.
Many believe that Siemens will either be acquired by Nortel or private equity firm Cerberus Capital. We discussed the potential scenarios of Siemens being acquired by a competitor, software provider and financial sponsor to see which would be best for customers, partners and Siemens. I’m concerned that a competitor match up would not create additional value beyond the combination of the two firms.
Read more of this article »
Let us know what you think. Start the discussion »
Posted in Lippis Report
Jun 30, 2008
Download the White Paper
By Avaya
Lowering the cost of raising the customer experience is a major imperative for most, if not all, businesses today. As a result, enterprises of all sizes are investing in multi-site contact centers to improve the customer experience and reduce operating costs while addressing redundancy and business continuity.
This paper explores how Internet Protocol (IP) can be leveraged to lower the cost of enhancing customer service via the contact center, whether H.323 or SIP. IP is a critical enabler for multi-site contact centers, providing the underlying technology that enables enterprises to cost-effectively extend their contact centers to locations anywhere around the world — from regional satellite and branch offices to offshore outsourcers, hosted solutions and at-home agents — and deliver consistent, high-quality service.
For companies such as ebookers.com and Delta Airlines, contact center migration from a traditional TDM-based environment to IP has had tangible benefits — typically resulting in enhancements to contact center management, financial management and IT management. In addition to providing a look at how ebookers.com and Delta have successfully leveraged IP in their contact centers, this paper offers a checklist that can help other enterprises determine if IP is a viable solution for their contact centers. Finally, the paper offers insight into the some of the advantages that Avaya brings to the table when an enterprise is considering migrating to or expanding its use of IP in the multi-site contact center environment.
Let us know what you think. Start the discussion »
Posted in Service Provider IP Services, Avaya
Jun 30, 2008
Download the White Paper
By Cisco Systems
In many enterprises, physical security departments are making a notable transition, from traditional analog and proprietary systems for video surveillance to open, digital solutions based on IP networking technologies. This transition arises from the limitations of traditional systems and the opportunities offered by IP networks for reducing costs, improving surveillance capabilities, and gaining new value from physical security operations. In this white paper, both network and physical security managers can discover:
- Limitations of traditional video surveillance solutions, due to isolated, disparate systems that are not integrated with other network resources
- How network-based capabilities improve the efficiency and flexibility of physical security operations across an enterprise, as well as how video can be linked with other branch applications
- The Cisco® Integrated Video Surveillance Solution for the Cisco 3800 and 2800 Series Integrated Services Routers, which deliver multiple network services in branch offices and other remote sites; and the Cisco Empowered Branch framework, which unifies services at the branch office to reduce operational complexity
Let us know what you think. Start the discussion »
Posted in Service Provider IP Services, Cisco
Jun 30, 2008
Download the White Paper
By Extreme Networks and New Jersey Township
Middletown, New Jersey is a 42-square mile community located in Monmouth County, home to more than 67,000 people. The Township had many of its municipal buildings networked together, including its main administration building (which houses the police and court) as well as the Department of Public Works, three parks department buildings, and the Johnson Gill annex (which houses the tax and MIS departments). The network was facing constant and massive congestion problems with users often pulling down streaming videos. “It bogged things down, causing troublesome bottlenecks. We needed a more complete, leading-edge network foundation that would allow us to build an intelligent, segmented network”, according to Todd Costello, IT Manager with the Township of Middletown.
Let us know what you think. Start the discussion »
Posted in Extreme Networks
Jun 30, 2008
Download the White Paper
By Extreme Networks and Marysville Schools
The Marysville Exempted Village School District is a growing school district located approximately 20 miles northwest of Columbus, Ohio. The district has over 5,000 students within its six elementary schools, one intermediate school, one middle school, and one high school. In mid-2007, it had an outdated and under-performing network that wasn’t able to support some of the applications the schools planned to deploy, including Voice-over-IP (VoIP) and video streaming for on-demand educational presentations within the classrooms. There was also the need for fast Internet access. Not all Marysville Schools were on the same network, so the plan was to standardize on one infrastructure that could support Internet access, streaming video and a stable backbone for VoIP, as well as other educational and administrative applications that the faculty and staff needed.
Marysville Schools wanted a comprehensive wired and wireless solution, preferably from one vendor, and issued a Request for Proposal (RFP) to leading equipment providers. Placing priority on feature functionality, ease of use and management, and cost-effectiveness, Marysville Schools chose Extreme Networks and the Summit WM200 solution.
Let us know what you think. Start the discussion »
Posted in Extreme Networks
Jun 30, 2008
Listen to the Podcast
It’s a fact that the global economy has slowed, prompting contact center managers and IT leaders to explore strategies for maintaining efficiency and meeting revenue targets with fewer resources and constrained budgets. But within a contact center environment, there are many opportunities, sometimes hidden, to actually maximize efficiency and still control and possibly reduce costs. With an expert, holistic examination of operations and identification of areas of improvement, management can be proactive in identifying and implementing strategies that not only help their businesses navigate through a potential economic downturn, but accomplish business results that remain beneficial after the economy recovers. Eddie Jenkins, Vice President, Customer Service Practice for the Professional Services business at Avaya, joins me to discuss leveraging contact centers for strategic corporate value, which means increasing revenues, corporate productivity and gaining market share during down markets.
Let us know what you think. Start the discussion »
Posted in Podcasts, Avaya, Unified Communications & Comm.-Enabled Business
Corporate Communication Strategies During Down Markets