Technology Revolution: The Future of Now

Reality check: Health matters. More than your job, social status, money, car, house. But health is elusive. So much so that 65 million U.S. caregivers provide weekly care to the ill, disabled, aged. How can technology help? The experts speak. Robert M. Miller, National Fragile X Foundation: "Technology will never replace the caring spirit, but technology can provide the necessary tools for caring to make a real difference in the lives of those with special needs." Louise W. Gane, MS, M.I.N.D. Institute: "Love the moment, and the energy of that moment will spread beyond all boundaries." (Corita Kent) Cheryl Pray, Els for Autism Foundation: "Autism: It's not game over. It's GAME ON!" Faheem Ahmed, SAP: "Social networks have already transformed how we find music, discover restaurants, compare prices, and plan vacations. Isn't it about time that we apply this technology to transform how we care for our loved ones?" Join us for People Who Need People: Caregiving Goes Social and Mobile.

Today's buzz: Should we pin our hopes for a vibrant global economy, sustainable innovation and job creation on high growth entrepreneurs aka small and midsized enterprises (SMEs)? The experts speak. Aviva Freudmann, EIU: "SMEs in developed and developing economies show surprising similarities in their goals and expectations. For all the challenges they face in their business environments, they are an exceedingly optimistic bunch..." Bryan Pearce, Ernst & Young: "Last year, our 650 U.S. EOY finalists employed 700,000 people, grew revenues 48% over two years, and achieved 30% job growth. They've learned how to defy gravity." Carl B. Lewis, Vision33, "Some SMEs are enterprise business in disguise, expanding their operations into other countries by starting new and independent business units." Kevin Gilroy, SAP: "SMEs have to change their mindset regarding IT in order to excel: understand IT is their friend, not foe. It's simple..." Join us for more on Defying Gravity: SMEs Go Global.

Big Data dominates the business conversation. Of its "3 V" attributes – Volume, Variety, Velocity – the third is grabbing the spotlight. Bottom line: Are you getting answers fast enough to support real-time business? The experts speak. Lee Dittmar, Deloitte: "Analytics prowess will determine winners and losers. But even as we talk about Big Data and the importance of 'predictive analytics,' many organizations still struggle to accomplish basic reporting efficiently and effectively. As companies compete for a limited supply of data scientists to perform advanced analytics, there is a lot of work to do to fix the foundation." John H. Fleming, PhD, Gallup: "How do we ensure quality data? Garbage in garbage out. Is more better or is better more?" Reza Soudagar, SAP: "Airplanes are interesting toys but of no military value." (Marechal Ferdinand Foch, Professor of Strategy, Ecole Superieure de Guerre, 1904) Join us for more insights on Business on Speed: Real-Time Insights and Execution.

Dizzy from all the hype around Small vs. Big Data, big picture vs. exact insights, real-time vs. right-time answers, and more? The experts speak. Evan Quinn, ESG Global: "We're entering a new world in which data may be more important than software."(Tim O'Reilly) Marie Goodell, SAP: "Every day, 3 times per second, we produce the equivalent amount of data that the Library of Congress has in its entire print collection. But most of it is like cat videos on YouTube or 13-year-olds exchanging text messages about the next Twilight movie." (Nate Silver, statistician and author, "The Signal and the Noise." Silver correctly predicted the winner in 50 out of 50 states in the 2012 U.S. presidential election.) Surya Mukherjee, Ovum: "To sustain beyond the hype, Big Data needs to become a first class citizen of the enterprise IT environment." Join us for more insights on Debunking Big Data Myths: The Elephant in the Room.

Business networks. You connect with people you know, want to know, should know on social networks. Should your company join, too? Tim Minahan: "Online social networking tools have transformed our personal lives by connecting us to people and information in new ways. Businesses are undergoing that same process. How many times did you check Facebook, LinkedIn, send a tweet, text, Instagram in the past 30 minutes?" Quentin Fisher: "'Ants aren't smart, ant colonies are.' (D. Gordon, Stanford Univ.). Let's look to biology for insights and a vision to the possibilities in our ever-evolving business ecosystem." Sameer Patel: "In the world of work, connecting doesn't come from just bringing people together. Really really connecting to impact performance and execution comes from surrounding real purpose and context such as a sales forecast data point...a curve ball customer request, a need for supplier arbitration, with your network of people." Join us for Business Networks: More Than Social

Today's buzz: Airlines. New technologies are game-changing the data-intensive aviation industry – optimizing internal processes, sharpening competitive differentiation, innovating the customer experience. But is it enough, in time, and which airlines will survive? The experts speak. Michael Wm. Denis, InfoTrust Group: "Why pay billions for smart aircraft only to plug them into dumb IT? Peter Kearns, Accenture: "Airline industry business benefits related to IT improvements will be negligible unless there is business change involved. You need to change business practices and do so with your IT strategy in mind – and software developers need to help drive this process." Eva-Marie Roe, SAP: "The race is on for airlines: Get a head start and re-invent the business by adopting new technologies now. Or wait, letting others capture the competitive advantage, and then be compelled to follow after new business processes have become commodity." Join us for Airline Turnaround: Blue Skies Ahead?

Today's buzz: The city. More than just your snail-mail address, the city is a vital entity with the power to impact local quality of life as well as national and global economies. How's your city running? The experts speak. Dr. Theresa Pardo: "Running a city is a complex and challenging task. Running it well, even more so. The best run cities ... embrace the complexity of the task, see the opportunities that information and technology offer in managing that complexity, and seek out innovative yet practical solutions to the problems their citizens care about." Chris Moore: "Government technology is not for the faint of heart. Adie Tomer: "If knowledge is the key then just show me the lock." - Q-Tip, A Tribe Called Quest, Check the Rhime Sean Patrick O'Brien: "The 19th century was a century of empires. The 20th century was a century of nation states. The 21st century will be a century of cities." - Wellington E. Webb, Former Denver Mayor Join us for Best-Run Cities: Urban Matters.

M2M. Machines connected and talking to each other. By 2018, nearly everyone, everything, everywhere will be connected real time, affecting how we innovate, collaborate, produce, govern, and achieve sustainability. Think about coffee plants telling farmers how and when to irrigate, harvest, pack, tag, ship. Mmm. Miguel Blockstrand, Ericcson: "Unleashing the power of connectivity to all people places and things is inevitable." Steve Hilton, Analysys Mason: "M2M is a jumble of technology thrown together like potatoes dumped in a bowl. But something very tasty is created by mashing the potatoes together with butter, milk, and salt. Or as Aristotle said almost 2400 years ago, 'In the case of all things which have several parts and in which...the whole is something beside the parts, there is a cause.'" - Metaphysics, Book VIII, Part 6 Benjamin Wesson, SAP: "I'm sorry, Dave, I'm afraid I can't do that." - 2001: A Space Odyssey. Film 1968 Join us for M2M: Mmm, Connectivity Never Tasted So Good

Customer experience. Have you figured out what each of your customers really, really wants? If yes, have you designed a personalized, easy, conversational experience they won't perceive as intrusive or creepy? If no to either question, listen up. The experts speak. Paula Rosenblum, RSR: "The essence of precision retail is what I call 'The Grand Unified Theory' – combining the customer intimacy and knowledge of the very, very small (independents), with the economies of scale and scope of the very, very large. Yes, I stole this concept from Physics." Vicki Cantrell, NRF: ""Perfection is the enemy of the good, and it takes too long. Don't worry, be crappy." - Vicki Cantrell, combining pieces of various quotes Lori Mitchell-Keller, SAP: "Retailers will go out of business and e-commerce will dominate UNLESS retailers use their culture to draw customers into their stores." Join us for their insights on Precision Retail: What've You Done for Your Customer Lately?

Mobility is becoming ubiquitous. Exactly as planned. Some burning questions: Will the iPad Mini deliver anything new for business? Where does the BYOD (bring your own device... to work) trend end? With Windows 8, is a mobile device different from a PC? When mobility reaches full stride, will you ever have to leave the house again? The experts speak. Maribel Lopez, Lopez Research: "Mobility is about apps and business processes, not devices." Philippe Winthrop, VeliQ: "BYOD - at least for me - has become the 'Voldemort of Enterprise Mobility.'" Neil Hooper, SAP: "It's the year of the mobile application. Didn't we say that last year?" Join us for more of their insights on Mobility Enablement: Internet Coming to Your Fridge Soon?