Busting the omnichannel - enterprise hacks and chats

Talking IoT use cases, smart cities and security - with Mrinal Wadhwa

In this live podcast from SAP TechEd Barcelona, Jon finally gets his schedule aligned with Mrinal Wadhwa of Fybr, which has a very interesting IoT play underway. The guys talk about Wadhwa's career shifts, before moving to a deeper talk on Internet of Things use cases. Wadhwa shares customer projects with cities, and how those projects are designed and funded.

The guys discuss what the IoT value is underneath the hype, and wrap with some words on IoT security. There is a bit of wind noise at the beginning as the guys taped outside, but otherwise this should be a good listen. Note: though this podcast was taped at an SAP show, there is not much SAP talk in this podcast. The guys delved into SAP's IoT plays in a shorter, companion podcast. Yes, you can get Busting the Omnichannel on iTunes.

The SAP TechEd Review - Cloud and Devops with Dick Hirsch

In this SAP TechEd 2016 Barcelona review podcast, Jon Reed talks with cloud and DevOps expert and SAP Mentor Dick Hirsch about his reactions. The guys break down the high points of their meetings, with a look at digital transformation, Hybris and micro-services, IoT, and progress with SAP's Apple iOS development partnership. They also explore the question: why isn't there more DevOps at SAP TechEd? The impact of DevOps and pros/cons of micro-services are other topics the guys explore from their outdoor - though slightly chilly - poolside taping. Yes, you can get Busting the Omnichannel on iTunes.

HR tech review - problems in analytics and recruiting

At the Acumatica analyst day, Jon Reed sat down with world class event troublemaker Brian Sommer not long after blowing a fuse. Jon sees if he can get Brian worked up again as the guys review current issues in HR tech, with the HR tech event season about to hit. The guys hit on problems in HR analytics and recruiting in this fairly short conversation. The guys also taped a separate cloud ERP review and closer look at Acumatica. Yes, you can get Busting the Omnichannel on iTunes.

Acumatica - reviewing their cloud ERP pursuits with Brian Sommer

After Acumatica's analyst day, prior to the next-day launch of Acumatica 6, Jon Reed and Brian Sommer convene for an informal review of what they learned about Acumatica's cloud ERP pursuits. After a bit of fun at the expense of non-disclosure agreements, Jon and Brian hit on the areas that stood out from the show, including a different approach to IoT and machine learning, the emphasis on a platform partners can build on, and the merits of a vertical cloud strategy. The guys also kick around the long term future of multi-tenant/public clouds - and why Acumatica is optimistic about their midmarket cloud ERP approach. Yes, you can get Busting the Omnichannel on iTunes.

SuccessConnect 2016 in review - pesky questions with Jarret Pazahanick

In this live conference wrap, taped on SuccessConnect day two, Jon Reed and SuccessFactors consultant Jarret Pazahanick kick around the key themes of the conference and provide a gut check. Pazahanick is known for his pesky questions, but this review catches Pazahanick in an upbeat mood. Pazahanick explains why his views on SuccessFactors have shifted, and the guys hit on multiple themes of the conference, including diversity and business without bias, Intelligent Services. mobile UX and more. The guys hit on under-reported news, keynote reviews, and Pazahanick detailed his biggest concerns going forward. Jon does manage to get Pazahanick in a feisty mood regarding ASUG's announcement of their "Partner Place" program for evaluating SAP consulting partners. Yes, you can get Busting the Omnichannel on iTunes.

Brian Sommer on the radical future of finance - impact of big data and robotics

In the second of their seat-of-the-pants Inforum 2016 podcasts, Jon and Brian Sommer discuss the radical future of finance, based on Brian's recent posts on radical EPM on diginomica.com. Brian makes his case for why big data threatens spreadsheet culture, and how robotics is changing the finance profession. He brings in real world examples on social media sentiment analysis, and why finance people and CIOs have to get on the same page. The guys wrap with a preview of Brian's piece on how the airlines can redeem the customer experience with applied analytics - the topic of a recent multi-part series, "The Right Stuff" - now up on diginomica.com. Listeners who make it to the end get to sample Brian's Rodney Dangerfield "no respect" impersonation, dedicated to frequent flyers everywhere. Yes, you can get Busting the Omnichannel on iTunes.

Robotics and jobs - what lies ahead, with Silicon Collar author Vinnie Mirchandani

Jon Reed and Vinnie Mirchandani have their differences when it comes to the outlook for robotics and jobs. At Inforum 2016, they sat down for a podcast taping where Vinnie explained the motivations behind his soon-to-be-released book and why he is optimistic about robotics and how workers can find new ways of working with tech and alongside the robots of the future. Vinnie made his case for why alarmists aren't helping us and the guys do some back and forth over the responsibilities of workers and employers and our educational system for adapting to the changes that automation brings.Yes, you can get Busting the Omnichannel on iTunes.

The evolution of Infor - a cloudy chat with Brian Sommer

In this live chat from Inforum 2016, Jon talks with Brian Sommer about Infor's evolution, and how Brian sees Infor's cloud play based on his view of cloud business. The guys cover the takeaways from the show, and Infor's strengths and potential pitfalls. Brian closes with advice to customers on assessing Infor. Note: part two of this podcast, to be released soon, will look at radical enterprise performance management, data science, and the change in the accounting profession. Yes, you can get Busting the Omnichannel on iTunes.

Inforum 2016 in review - with Vinnie Mirchandani

In part one of his two part podcast with Vinnie Mirchandani, the guys review Inforum 2016 near the end of day 2. Mirchandani has been tracking Inforum for years, and weighs in on Infor's digital transformation and cloud transition themes. The guys weigh Infor's success in moving customers to a pure SaaS model, and Jon presses Vinnie on whether digital transformation is vendor BS or customer reality. In part two of this podcast, to be issued soon, the guys delve into the theme of Vinnie's new book on robotics and the future of work, Silicon Collar. Yes, you can get Busting the Omnichannel on iTunes.

Cloud HCM from the field - bad vs good practices, SuccessFactors certification and more

In part two of their informal video hangout, Jon Reed of diginomica.com, Jarret Pazahanick and Luke Marson shift their focus to cloud HCM in the field. Using their recent podcast with Steve Bogner's SAP HCM Insighs as a starting point, Jarret and Luke talk about bad versus good practices in SuccessFactors consulting. the guys hit on the demand for SuccessFactors skills, the need for independent experts, and they hit the always-hot issue of SAP certification. Yes, you can get Busting the Omnichannel on iTunes.

The problem of IoT security - a live discussion with Giesecke & Devrient

At the day one LiveWorx keynotes, Internet of Things security was an overlooked topic. Jon set about to correct that by sitting down with Volker Gerstenberger and Tomi Ronkainen of Giesecke & Devrient, a firm with a deep history of security everything from bank notes to, now, the IoT. The guys talk about the thorny security issues raised by IoT, and how they can be addressed during the design process. Autonomous/smart cars are one hacking controversy the guys cover. They also discuss the tensions between airtight security and great UX, and what they tell end customers about security preparedness.   Yes, you can get Busting the Omnichannel on iTunes.

On digital transformation, the SAP user group perspective - with ASUG CEO Geoff Scott

During this candid interview with ASUG CEO Geoff Scott, Jon gets the skinny on ASUG's latest collaboration with DSAG - a position paper on digital transformation that is a key issue for SAP customers. Scott shares the story on how the collaboration came about, and Jon presses to find out if ASUG endorses S/4HANA and SAP's view of S/4HANA as the digital core. Taped live in Orlando the day before ASUG Annual Conference and Sapphire Now, Scott shares his goals for the show and beyond. He also gives the view on ASUG's surprise acquisition of the U.S. division of The Eventful Group. This is the audio of a video shoot - you can check the companion analysis Jon wrote of this shoot on diginomica.com. Yes, you can get Busting the Omnichannel on iTunes.

Inside the evil plans of Steemit - a blockchain powered social media platform

During this live interview, taped in the midst of a bustling Consensus 2016, Steemit co-founder Ned Scott gives Jon the inside view on the creation of Steemit, and their unique approach to rewarding/paying content creators and curators through their blockchain-based platform. He also announces the launch of Steemit.com. Ned talks about Steemit's different asset classes, including Steem dollars, and how they've sparked their launch with a Slack-based community. The guys also get into the failure of existing networks to compensate content creators, and create a civil environment for discourse.  Jon also vows to jump off a bridge it companies like Steemit can't build new media models as viable alternatives to living on Facebook. Yes, you can get Busting the Omnichannel on iTunes.

Sapphire Now in Review - breaking it down with Dick Hirsch

Jon Reed and Dick Hirsch steal an empty room - or in this case, a (mostly) empty hallway - for a review of the news and events of Sapphire Now and the ASUG Annual Conference, 2016. Hirsch shares his investigations, and the guys compare notes on topics such as the HANA Cloud Platform, the SAP-iOS partnership, and S/4HANA clarifications. The guys discuss S/4HANA's viability as a digital core, SAP's cloud positioning, and how attendees reacted. Customer feedback to SAP on integration, a big theme of the conference, is addressed. This podcast leans on the technical side, which was surprising given Sapphire Now is a business conference - but even Hasso Plattner's final day keynote had an in-depth S/4HANA migration demo. Yes, you can get Busting the Omnichannel on iTunes.

Designing for consent, and AI chatbot myths - live with Caroline Sinders

During this live taping at Collision 2016, Jon talks with "User researcher, artist, and digital anthropologist" Caroline Sinders about the intersection of UX design and machine learning. Sinders shares key points from her Collision talk on design for consent, and whether online harassment can be reduced via design. Sinders gives her assessment of Facebook's chatbots and explains why calling such chatbots "AI" is inaccurate. Finally, Sinders sets the record straight on the panel controversy at SXSW and what conference organizers should learn from that brouhaha.Yes, you can get Busting the Omnichannel on iTunes.

Live views on enterprise security and encryption - with Mike Janke of Silent Circle

In this frank/informal chat, recorded live at Collision 2016 in New Orleans, Mike Janke, Co-founder and Chairman of Silent Circle, shares his field views on enterprise security, starting with the advice and wake-up calls he gives to customers. Janke also gives a blunt take on the FBI vs Apple encryption controversy. The issue of user experience design versus security is addressed. The guys wrap with some reflection from Janke on his prior work as a Navy SEAL, and what he learned about risk that carries over into his work with Silent Circle. Yes, you can get Busting the Omnichannel on iTunes.

MongoDB's Kelly Stirman on database streaming, security, and the rapidly changing DB market

In this on-site podcast, live from MongoDB Palo Alto, Jon Reed talks with MongoDB's Kelly Stirman about his database research obsessions. Stirman hits on key trends pertaining to data streaming, analysis, graph databases, and cloud adoption. He also explains why he doesn't like it when MongoDB winds up in the NoSQL database bucket. Finally, Jon and Kelly discuss the potent issue of data security, including MongoDB's responses to recent industry security events. Yes, you can get Busting the Omnichannel on iTunes.

ZERO ad budgets and the brand zealots debate - with Joseph Jaffe

Live from Advocamp 2016, Jon Reed catches Joseph Jaffe in a spirited mood after his keynote, "Using your brand to create an army of zealots." This frank/informal chat debates the pros/cons of brand zealotry, with Jaffe explaining why politicians like Trump and Obama have changed the marketing discourse. Jon worries this groundswell marketing has a dark side - Jaffe responds. Jaffe also hits on key concepts from his last book Z.E.R.O., which explores the futility of paid media. The guys also kick around the viability of customer advocates and advocate-driven marketing - a key theme of Influitive's Advocamp event. Yes, you can get Busting the Omnichannel on iTunes

Talking enterprise buyers and digital change with Brian Sommer

Live from the Acumatica Summit 2016, Jon talks to fellow diginomica contributor Brian Sommer about enterprise buyers and digital change. Brian shares some recent digital turbulence and stories of how companies are losing the plot. He also reflects on recent projects to discuss what enterprise buyers need. The guys then hit on why sales and marketing is too often out of step with today's enterprise buyer. Note: part two of this podcast gets into specifics on Acumatica's cloud ERP play. Yes, you can get Busting the Omnichannel on iTunes.

Acumatica Summit - the cloud ERP review with Brian Sommer

In this on-site podcast with a (hopefully) relaxing fountain providing the background, Jon and fellow diginomica contributor Brian Sommer discuss the 2016 Acumatica Summit and Acumatica's cloud ERP play. The guys explore the unique attributes and challenges of this rapidly growing firm. This podcast is the second from the topic - also check out the first on enterprise buyers and coping with digital change. Yes, you can get Busting the Omnichannel on iTunes.