There is no question that success for the entrepreneur starts with a breakthrough (or at the very least great) product or service. Yet too often, entrepreneurs fall into the “field of dreams” mentality (in the words of Terence Mann, AKA James Earl Jones: “build it and they’ll come”). But the truth is that defining the product is just the beginning. Entrepreneurs must spend significant time thinking about the complexity of their sales process and the cost of customer acquisition, as these factors will strongly impact a company’s ability to make money and attract investors. An obvious requirement for a successful startup is that they are able to make more money from a customer than they spend for a customer, i.e. Lifetime value (LTV) should be greater than cost of customer acquisition (CAC) (see my prior blog post, Startup Killer: the Cost of Customer Acquisition). In this post, we’ll focus on the complexity of the sales cycle for various different types of B2B software and hardware products, and looking at how that impacts the viablity of startup business models by increasing CAC. And I will introduce a “zone system” that entrepreneurs can use to help evaluate different start up sales models.(Note: This post is primarily about B2B technology companies. Some of the concepts may apply to B2C internet, or to other industries, but it was not written with them in mind.)
There is no question that success for the entrepreneur starts with a breakthrough (or at the very least great) product or service. Yet too often, entrepreneurs fall into the “field of dreams” mentality (in the words of Terence Mann, AKA James Earl Jones: “build it and they’ll come”). But the truth is that defining the product is just the beginning. Entrepreneurs must spend significant time thinking about the complexity of their sales process and the cost of customer acquisition, as these factors will strongly impact a company’s ability to make money and attract investors. An obvious requirement for a successful startup is that they are able to make more money from a customer than they spend for a customer, i.e. Lifetime value (LTV) should be greater than cost of customer acquisition (CAC) (see my prior blog post, Startup Killer: the Cost of Customer Acquisition). In this post, we’ll focus on the complexity of the sales cycle for various different types of B2B software and hardware products, and looking at how that impacts the viablity of startup business models by increasing CAC. And I will introduce a “zone system” that entrepreneurs can use to help evaluate different start up sales models.(Note: This post is primarily about B2B technology companies. Some of the concepts may apply to B2C internet, or to other industries, but it was not written with them in mind.)
VMWare and Salesforce.com joined hands to launch VMforce which they claim the world's first enterprise Java cloud. Not sure why it is the first enterprise cloud for Java? We have Java-based cloud solutions from the industry leaders Google (AppEngine), Microsoft (Azure) and from other cloud vendors such as Stax, Rightscale, etc. Can't these host enterprise Java applications? I don't understand why VMforce is claiming their solution is the first enterprise Java solution. It is another PaaS (Platform as a service) solution similar to AppEngine, Azure, etc. In fact SpringSource has the similar solution called SpingSource Cloud foundry that runs on Amazon EC2 infrastructure. The only difference is - VMforce runs on Force.com infrastructure using vSphere 4, a virtualization operating system from VMWare.
VMWare and Salesforce.com joined hands to launch VMforce which they claim the world's first enterprise Java cloud. Not sure why it is the first enterprise cloud for Java? We have Java-based cloud solutions from the industry leaders Google (AppEngine), Microsoft (Azure) and from other cloud vendors such as Stax, Rightscale, etc. Can't these host enterprise Java applications? I don't understand why VMforce is claiming their solution is the first enterprise Java solution. It is another PaaS (Platform as a service) solution similar to AppEngine, Azure, etc. In fact SpringSource has the similar solution called SpingSource Cloud foundry that runs on Amazon EC2 infrastructure. The only difference is - VMforce runs on Force.com infrastructure using vSphere 4, a virtualization operating system from VMWare.
Salesforce.com and VMware on Tuesday announced a partnership to jointly deliver, sell and support a new enterprise Java cloud called VMforce. VMforce will bring together the technologies, expertise and communities of these two cloud computing companies, driving the tectonic shifts in the information technology industry. With VMforce, the more than 6 million enterprise Java developers, including the over 2 million developers using the Spring framework backed by the SpringSource division of VMware, will have an open path to cloud computing. Now, CIOs and IT departments will be able to leverage their existing programming skills and investments in Java applications, and take full advantage of the industry-leading Force.com platform to build Cloud 2 enterprise applications that are social and work on any mobile device in real-time. VMforce will dramatically simplify how enterprises and enterprise Java developers can harness the economics of cloud computing without compromising the flexibility, control and choice they require.
Salesforce.com and VMware on Tuesday announced a partnership to jointly deliver, sell and support a new enterprise Java cloud called VMforce. VMforce will bring together the technologies, expertise and communities of these two cloud computing companies, driving the tectonic shifts in the information technology industry. With VMforce, the more than 6 million enterprise Java developers, including the over 2 million developers using the Spring framework backed by the SpringSource division of VMware, will have an open path to cloud computing. Now, CIOs and IT departments will be able to leverage their existing programming skills and investments in Java applications, and take full advantage of the industry-leading Force.com platform to build Cloud 2 enterprise applications that are social and work on any mobile device in real-time. VMforce will dramatically simplify how enterprises and enterprise Java developers can harness the economics of cloud computing without compromising the flexibility, control and choice they require.
This Wednesday I gave a presentation on 'Java in the Cloud' at the Phoenix Java User Group and lot of people attended it. I was thrilled with the interest in cloud and great to see cloud enthusiasts here in Phoenix. Lots of people asked for the presentation.
This Wednesday I gave a presentation on 'Java in the Cloud' at the Phoenix Java User Group and lot of people attended it. I was thrilled with the interest in cloud and great to see cloud enthusiasts here in Phoenix. Lots of people asked for the presentation.
What prevents an enterprise scale explosion in cloud processing that matches the individual and SMB growth patterns that have already been recorded? What stops important government and commercial mission-essential applications and services from being confidently migrated to the cloud in a style that captures the biggest possible payoff? The answer lies in restoring visibility into and through the cloud, and delivering a technique that can reclaim transparency even as services are being delivered through cloud processing. In his session at the 5th International Cloud Expo, Ron Knode, director in the Global Security Solutions (GSS) business unit of CSC, will discuss how this transparency is reclaimed, and will conclude with a brief demonstration scenario so the attendees can get a sense of what such transparency will look like and how it can make a difference in cloud usage.
What prevents an enterprise scale explosion in cloud processing that matches the individual and SMB growth patterns that have already been recorded? What stops important government and commercial mission-essential applications and services from being confidently migrated to the cloud in a style that captures the biggest possible payoff? The answer lies in restoring visibility into and through the cloud, and delivering a technique that can reclaim transparency even as services are being delivered through cloud processing. In his session at the 5th International Cloud Expo, Ron Knode, director in the Global Security Solutions (GSS) business unit of CSC, will discuss how this transparency is reclaimed, and will conclude with a brief demonstration scenario so the attendees can get a sense of what such transparency will look like and how it can make a difference in cloud usage.
Monitis, a provider of all-in-one Cloud-based network and application monitoring suite, has announced a major new product launch: Java Application Monitoring. Using their leading-edge hosted software as a service (SaaS) approach, Monitis’ Cloud-based Java Application Monitoring Tool enables IT managers to monitor any Java-based service with JMX hooks, but to do so from the Cloud. This means that in addition to enabling users to see inside a production Java (also JRuby) application deployed in a cloud or in a datacenter, users are free to monitor these processes from anywhere at any time. Said Monitis Founder and CEO, Hovhannes Avoyan, “This is a big deal. This is a major step forward in the industry and we are excited to be at the forefront of this innovation. With this new addition Monitis becomes a true Swiss army knife for the IT administrators. Our host of useful tools in one simple, easy-to-use package can be configured in 5 minutes and require zero maintenance efforts.”
Monitis, a provider of all-in-one Cloud-based network and application monitoring suite, has announced a major new product launch: Java Application Monitoring. Using their leading-edge hosted software as a service (SaaS) approach, Monitis’ Cloud-based Java Application Monitoring Tool enables IT managers to monitor any Java-based service with JMX hooks, but to do so from the Cloud. This means that in addition to enabling users to see inside a production Java (also JRuby) application deployed in a cloud or in a datacenter, users are free to monitor these processes from anywhere at any time. Said Monitis Founder and CEO, Hovhannes Avoyan, “This is a big deal. This is a major step forward in the industry and we are excited to be at the forefront of this innovation. With this new addition Monitis becomes a true Swiss army knife for the IT administrators. Our host of useful tools in one simple, easy-to-use package can be configured in 5 minutes and require zero maintenance efforts.”
Java papa James Gosling, who left Oracle on Good Friday slamming the door behind him, has dropped another provocative hint about the circumstances of his departure from Sun's new master. When he blogged that he'd quit, he wrote "As to why I left, it's difficult to answer: Just about anything I could say that would be accurate and honest would do more harm than good. The hardest part is no longer being with all the great people I've had the privilege to work with over the years."
Java papa James Gosling, who left Oracle on Good Friday slamming the door behind him, has dropped another provocative hint about the circumstances of his departure from Sun's new master. When he blogged that he'd quit, he wrote "As to why I left, it's difficult to answer: Just about anything I could say that would be accurate and honest would do more harm than good. The hardest part is no longer being with all the great people I've had the privilege to work with over the years."
No one is talking about the Web 2.0, AJAX, SaaS, or SOA these days. It doesn't mean that no one is using these technologies, it is just that these are not the buzzwords anymore. The latest buzzword is "Cloud Computing". Every one is talking about building apps in cloud or moving the apps to cloud. There are plenty of jobs on job boards looking for the people with the skills: "familiarity with cloud" or "expertise in cloud". What is the cloud? Every one defines the cloud in their own way, here is my take on it. Companies whose main business is not Computer related, they outsource their IT work to some computer consulting firm. It is because IT is not their main business and some times it makes sense to hand it over. Similarly, for application development companies - the focus is application development, not hosting the applications. In addition to the application developers, they need to have IT people, hardware to host the apps. For some companies it makes sense to outsource the IT and hardware. In other words, you are outsourcing your application to a different company. Application outsourcing used to be to hosting companies, but that's changing to the cloud due to its infrastructure. The cloud makes it very easy to scale an app for rapid growth compared to the hosting companies. Cloud will take away all the hardware management and IT risks from you.
New Site Open for Free Search and Download from Thousands of Virtual Machine Images for any Hypervisor, Speeding the Deployment of Virtualization and Cloud Computing. The virtual machine images available through Thunderflash are vitally important to IT professionals, as they contain pre-installed operating systems, applications and other tools, which can then be deployed as a unit in one simple operation. Such images can save IT professionals hours of valuable time building and configuring application servers from the ground-up. Thunderflash's advanced searching tools allow for the selection of exactly the right virtual machine image, which can then be directly download, enabling new application servers to be deployed in a fraction of the usual time.
New Site Open for Free Search and Download from Thousands of Virtual Machine Images for any Hypervisor, Speeding the Deployment of Virtualization and Cloud Computing. The virtual machine images available through Thunderflash are vitally important to IT professionals, as they contain pre-installed operating systems, applications and other tools, which can then be deployed as a unit in one simple operation. Such images can save IT professionals hours of valuable time building and configuring application servers from the ground-up. Thunderflash's advanced searching tools allow for the selection of exactly the right virtual machine image, which can then be directly download, enabling new application servers to be deployed in a fraction of the usual time.
To reassure an uneasy and dubious MySQL community about Oracle’s administration of the open source database, Oracle’s chief corporate architect Edward Screven, a Larry Ellison direct report, said at a MySQL conference Tuesday that Oracle would be increasing investment in the thing “on every front” (without putting a dollar figure on it) and improving its performance (without unveiling a roadmap). Oracle’s point in doing so is to harry Microsoft’s feature-rich SQL Server and penetrate parts of the market Oracle itself doesn’t reach. It’s also protecting Oracle’s flank since its own customers run MySQL too. It will mean better integration with Windows.
To reassure an uneasy and dubious MySQL community about Oracle’s administration of the open source database, Oracle’s chief corporate architect Edward Screven, a Larry Ellison direct report, said at a MySQL conference Tuesday that Oracle would be increasing investment in the thing “on every front” (without putting a dollar figure on it) and improving its performance (without unveiling a roadmap). Oracle’s point in doing so is to harry Microsoft’s feature-rich SQL Server and penetrate parts of the market Oracle itself doesn’t reach. It’s also protecting Oracle’s flank since its own customers run MySQL too. It will mean better integration with Windows.
Long a leader in the Software-as-a-Service space, OpSource has helped pioneer enterprise cloud computing with OpSource Cloud. OpSource Cloud™ is the first cloud computing solution to bring together the flexibility, availability and community of the public cloud with the security, performance and control the enterprise demands. Emphasizing security, OpSource Cloud provides enterprise users with a virtual private cloud within the public cloud, allowing them to determine their own degree of Internet connectivity. OpSource Cloud also offers the best SLA available from any Cloud vendor, reflecting the company's commitment to deliver enterprise-class reliability, performance and support.
Long a leader in the Software-as-a-Service space, OpSource has helped pioneer enterprise cloud computing with OpSource Cloud. OpSource Cloud™ is the first cloud computing solution to bring together the flexibility, availability and community of the public cloud with the security, performance and control the enterprise demands. Emphasizing security, OpSource Cloud provides enterprise users with a virtual private cloud within the public cloud, allowing them to determine their own degree of Internet connectivity. OpSource Cloud also offers the best SLA available from any Cloud vendor, reflecting the company's commitment to deliver enterprise-class reliability, performance and support.
Cloud Expo General Session Speaker Marty Gauvin believes that 3G-SaaS – the combined effect of Cloud Computing and outsourcing with application management – will drive the use of IT for a significant period of time. By leveraging existing Cloud service providers, the pay-as-you-go model of 3G-SaaS enables ISVs to align licensing as closely as possible to how the customer consumes the application. Enterprise customers will depend upon successfully leveraging this confluence of trends to secure their business operations, IP, data and future.
Cloud Expo General Session Speaker Marty Gauvin believes that 3G-SaaS – the combined effect of Cloud Computing and outsourcing with application management – will drive the use of IT for a significant period of time. By leveraging existing Cloud service providers, the pay-as-you-go model of 3G-SaaS enables ISVs to align licensing as closely as possible to how the customer consumes the application. Enterprise customers will depend upon successfully leveraging this confluence of trends to secure their business operations, IP, data and future.
Let me ask you this, “Can you come up with any innovation for the time interval between the moment you pressed the button Send in your email client and the moment when the send process actually begins”? No? And Microsoft couldn’t, even though MS Outlook is probably still the most popular email client.
Let me ask you this, “Can you come up with any innovation for the time interval between the moment you pressed the button Send in your email client and the moment when the send process actually begins”? No? And Microsoft couldn’t, even though MS Outlook is probably still the most popular email client.