I always get this comment: “We’re looking for a VP-Sales/VP-Business Development/Sales Manager/Sales Rep with a strong Rolodex in the (pick your market segment) market”. I’m using “Rolodex” as a generic term for “contacts” since the advent of CRM software. But how important is a strong Rolodex really in the IT business? In my opinion, it’s […]
Musings on Software Market Segmentation and TV Morning Shows
Bear with me on this one, as the title may leave you feeling a bit confused. But trust me, I will show you the connection! I like to check out one of the morning TV shows on one of the major US-based networks for a few minutes, as I’m eating my breakfast cereal. There are […]
Separating Technology Wheat from the Chaff
New ideas, technologies, and products come down the pike rapidly in software and hardware businesses. Many fail immediately and some muddle along before finally fizzling out. Some meet with modest success. Only a very select few turn into long-run, big-time hits. How can you tell which products will become hits out of a sea of […]
Are There Any Software Segments The Cloud Won’t Swallow?
It’s become pretty clear in the last couple of years that we are heading irrevocably toward a cloud-dominated future in the software business. The evidence is irrefutable. To attempt to get a traditionally licensed PC or enterprise software business funded by an institutional investor would be a suicide mission these days. Whether it’s SaaS, PaaS, […]
Health of the Tech Economy
I was reading an article recently about how the number of new tech startups in my local San Diego area has doubled, to 70 new companies, compared to the same quarter last year. More than half of those startups were in software, computer hardware or communications. The article included a number of other criteria useful […]
