Business Transformation Requires Transformational Leaders

The rapid growth in data center energy consumption, coupled with the relentless increase in the cost of energy, implies that energy efficiency in the data center is no longer the handmaiden of good IT governance, but a principal spearhead of it. While the construction and certification of a data center as green usually entails substantial up-front expense (estimates run from 5%-40%), the resultant reduction in cost of operations and maintenance can be dramatic.

In the chaotic world of IT, frontline leaders sometimes struggle to keep up with the pace. Projects and productivity expectations can push the most important asset -- people -- to the back of the pack. Successful organizations know, however, that no matter how good the technology, it is the people who make it work. When people come first, customers win.

Recently, I was having a short exchange with Dr. Ken Calvert, chair of our computer science department at University of Kentucky. The topic was relational databases. The question: are they relevant anymore? Do we need still need to teach formal means of describing, searching, and using information?

Companies don't set out to alienate their customers. That's often just how it works out. Many interactions leave the consumer feeling dissatisfied, sometimes even downright hostile. All too frequently, technology plays a role in these customer service disasters.