With that said you know things will settle down over the next several weeks for some due to the holidays, and this will give you some time to think about your New Year’s resolution for IT.  Now you might already be thinking about those resolutions – for example, going deeper into mobile applications deployment, or maybe the New Year will bring the promise of executing on your vision for Cloud in the enterprise. Still, there is always that never-ending challenge that comes with enhancing your global network to ensure it is secure and extends to your many end points domestically and internationally.

I think these potential resolutions are great, but let me offer an alternative.  I think there is one fundamental resolution that all of IT should have heading into 2013.  That is getting closer to the business.

By that I mean getting closer to the line-of business owners, operations, and/or the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO).  This resolution will move the business forward and faster for sure.  Yes it’s tricky, but the upside is huge.  Being on the inside track of the business can help you guide senior management through some strategic corporate initiatives.  As a seasoned IT expert, you know what it takes to stand up a new online channel, or build a contact center to embrace a corporate market expansion from B2B to B2C, or extend the reach of the global network to new partners or suppliers.

I truly believe that 2013 will be the year of IT gaining the inside track and getting a seat at the broader planning table.  The time is right for you to get closer to the business in the New Year.

What is your IT New Year’s resolution?  Does it involve getting the seat at the business table?  If not maybe it should involve building that internal positing plan to get there. What are your thoughts?

That experience got me thinking about the publishing industry and where it’s heading. Official Wire sees the decline, as does practically anyone else following the industry.  In a recent article, OW reported that the U.S. newspaper publishing market has been forecast an annualized revenue decline of 4.2% through 2017. The big question is why the shift?  Why now?  What is driving the publishers to rethink their business? 

Moving at the speed of life

In my opinion it has everything thing to do with the need for information delivered in a timely matter and also the ability to share information in real time.  To succeed in today’s business pace, firms must share information through different time zones, share information among their companies’ functional areas, and reach across the ecosystem to communicate with strategic partners and suppliers. This is driving Unified Communications platforms and the Global MPLS network that facilitate the information flow.

Publishers are embracing this technology shift and enabling the digital experience to drive businesses forward. They are looking to deploy online versions to subscribers that satisfy readers’ need to acquire information digitally, creating the experience across three screens: desktop, smartphones, and tablets. Let’s look at a few examples of how the publishers are adapting in the face of monumental industry change:

Wall Street Journal – In addition to the WSJ online experience, the WSJ has just introduced a mobile video portal called, World Stream.  World Stream is the newest in multi-media solutions that publishers are embracing to differentiate themselves.  This is a new asset that gives the WSJ reporters a way to stream video to their subscribers.

Gannett (USA Today) – Gracia C. Martore, Chief Executive Officer, President, Director and Member of Executive Committee, said in 2Q12 transcripts from seekingalpha.com, “We continue to make strong progress on our strategic initiatives, including our new all access content subscription model.  We’re making good progress as well in our push into new businesses like Digital Marketing Services and sports that leverage our hometown and brand advantages. These advantages put Gannett in a unique position to succeed in the digital age…”

The New York Times – Arthur O. Sulzberger – Chairman, Interim Chief Executive Officer and Publisher of The Times said in 2Q12 transcripts from seekingalpha.com that, “second quarter results reflect the ongoing progress we have made in repositioning The Times Company for the future, led by another quarter of solid circulation revenue growth, driven by digital subscriptions. Last month, The Times launched a Chinese language website, cn.nytimes.com. The site is designed to bring Times journalism to an audience that is educated, affluent and increasingly connected to the rest of the world.”

Multi-media models — Full steam ahead

As you can see the publishers are looking to digital subscriptions, differentiated news, and multi-media models all in an effort to drive incremental subscribers to the paywall. In a recent article in thewrap.com’s Media Ally, Brent Lang shared his perspective on the paywall.  “After being battered by years of plummeting earnings and deep subscriber losses, newspapers got a rare piece of good news this week. Newspapers across the country showed modest circulation gains in the last six months according to a report by the Audit Bureau of Circulations, thanks largely to the increasing popularity of digital subscription plans.”

Analysts and entrepreneurs say that the rising circulation numbers reflect a paradigm shift across the industry towards paywalls. L. Gordon Crovitz, co-founder of Press+, a company that helps newspapers charge for content online, defined 2012 as the year when “it becomes the exception for publishers to have fully free websites.”

What trends have you noticed in the publishing industry? What does the shift to digital publishing mean for your business?  And what do you see as essential news sources to provide to your employees?

Editor’s Note: This article was

During my time in “The Big Apple” checking out the Digital Content Monetization (DCM) East Conference recently,  I wanted to get a broad view of how entertainment and media companies – whether they be publishers, film studios, radio or network broadcasters – are evolving in the digital world.  The conference kicked off with the 3^rd Annual DCM East Sports Summit, which included digital strategies around the “second screen” from ESPN, The Worldwide Leader in Sports; The Boston Celtics; New York Giants; and The NJ Devils.

Marc Horine, Vice President, Digital Partnerships & Revenue Development at ESPN, took center stage talking through the basic building blocks of the ESPN digital strategy.  First and foremost, the message was to focus on the customer.  The customer — or the fan in this case — is number one, and ESPN wants to serve all of them anytime and anywhere.

Mr. Horine said, “It’s all about delivering the right products and/or quality content with a balanced, elegant, and impactful advertising experience.”  But ESPN is not relying on its advertising alone through espn.go.com. The company is also looking at other areas, like ESPN insider, where for a small fee, you can subscribe to premium content and become the expert in the majors or gain valuable insights to help you manage your fantasy team.  Another example is the recently launched ESPN W, exclusively for women in sports to get the latest on emerging stories coming out of the London 2012 Olympic Games, professional and college sports coverage, and conversations with their favorite female athletes.

These are just some of the digital strategies that ESPN has implemented. When you look at the big picture, it’s all about knowing who your customers are, what they like, what they want for free, what they are willing to pay for, and of course where they want to see it!!!

Now we all know that mobile subscribers continue to climb, but as Mary Meeker, Partner, Kliener Perkins Caufield & Byers, put it in her recent article, Mary Meeker Explains the Mobile Monetization Challenge, “Looming over the Internet industry is the mismatch between the growth in mobile usage and mobile monetization.”

As you can see by the graph in this post, these firms have to balance current advertising revenue from TV with the smartphone phenomenon.

We can see that monetization will take some time to crystalize in the mobile world, and companies like ESPN, CBS, TBS, FOX, NBC and others are evolving their strategies for this shift that is inevitable.  They stand poised to be the big winners here, but why? Well all have to execute with perfection and make sure they are hitting the right target market, but in the end these firms own the rights to their content.

In an earlier post, I reiterated that content is king, and for sports franchises like the Celtics or the NY Giants, they don’t have the rights to the content.  Since the NFL, the cable companies, and other broadcasters have the rights, what is a franchise supposed to do?  How do they monetize in this complex world?

Peter Stringer, Director, Interactive Media of the Boston Celtics and Doug Smoyer, Vice President, Business Development, New York Giants, took part in the panel discussion where they talked about their digital strategies to grow the brand and monetize their content.  The Celtics executed an online game called, “the three-point play” through Facebook, where fans compete by selecting players based upon anticipated points, rebounds, and assists and where winners claim their prize.  The New York Giants put together a game plan around game-day programs, like fans voting for the NY Giant “Extra Effort” in order to drive fan interaction and the sharing of game-day content from pre-season games in which they had exclusive rights.

The game has really just started, and the outcome looks very promising for any company connected to media and entertainment.  All businesses stand to benefit from the intersection of rich content — whether it is sports, movies, network programming, or radio – and the consumer’s desire to see it when and where they want it.

Just a few ways AT&T can help are through network services, hosting and cloud services, and our content delivery platform.  In fact AT&T will be providing networking services to NBC Olympics for its production of the London Olympic Games.

AT&T will provide managed networking services for NBC Olympics, a division of the NBC Sports Group, during its coverage of the 2012 London Olympic Games from London, England, July 27 through August 12, 2012.  NBC’s Olympics division will use a managed private networking solution from AT&T to help deliver its high-definition broadcast coverage of the 2012 London Olympic Games.  AT&T’s networking solution will create a connection between NBC’s Olympics division’s space in the International Broadcast Center (IBC) production facilities at the London Olympics and NBC’s Olympics division’s facilities in the U.S.

So what’s your monetization strategy?  Is it designed with the customer in mind?  Are they willing to pay for it?

From a game perspective, the Red Bulls found themselves down just 16 minutes into the match when Adam Johansson’s cross was finished in the penalty area by Alvaro Fernandez. New York’s newly acquired striker, Sebastien Le Toux, scored eight minutes later when he pounced on a rebound given up by Sounders goalkeeper Bryan Meredith. In the end, it was a 2-2 draw.

As I was watching the game, I thought about some additional opportunities that would make the fan experience that much better. The stadium holds 25,000 and has three stadium clubs and two retail shops. I assessed the technology at the stadium, where they have invested in over 300 video flat-screens for event viewing so you don’t miss a play. They also have field-level L.E.D. signage in both end zones and opposite player benches.

From Big Screen to Mobile App

But fan expectations today go beyond big-screen viewing. I had my iPhone with me and thought wouldn’t it be great to have access to a series of mobile applications that could improve the fan experience and generate additional revenues for the team as well?

1. Preferred Parking – Why not have an application that lets you reserve your parking spot on the way to the stadium? I would pay extra for a spot that enables me to beat the traffic after the match, wouldn’t you? A simple application that lets you register your parking spot as you arrive would work. You could have to pay for two if you are going to tailgate!
2. Increase Apparel Sales – Think how awesome it would have been for my son Ryan to have a new Sebastien Le Toux #9 jersey on at the stadium the same day he makes his Red Bull debut and scores his first goal! That transaction is just a couple of clicks away from any portal. Pickup could take place at the nearest kiosk for added convenience.
3. Following the Home Team – You’re sitting there without the game day program, but what about the game day program on your smartphone. A simple link to the starting eleven and substitutions — oh and of course my favorites, the formation, who is playing where, and maybe some insights as to why — would be nice. We could follow the stats as they unfold.
4. Food and Beverage Orders – Imagine sitting in your seat and checking out the menu of the nearby vending station on your smartphone. You could pick out your burger and fries or grilled chicken sandwich, placing your order — and off you go.  No line, you are in the express lane! I can tell you for sure, since it was about 99 degrees that day, being first in line for ice cream would have been equal to the price of admission!
5. Fan Analytics – In the end, sports teams want you to come out to the ballpark or stadium over and over again. They are delighted to see a packed house, but sometimes it’s really hard filling all the seats. Now, we were gifted the tickets, so we are not in any season ticket holder database. So, shouldn’t there be a mobile application out there that lets you register once you are at the stadium for a prize? It could be something as simple as a drawing that gives the information to marketing and places you on an acquisition list to help drive the win-win, season tickets, games packages, or single game tickets.

My “wish list of apps” for sports fans just touches the surface of what is possible – and of opportunities companies should be taking advantage of to interact with their customers. Real-time access to intelligence can radically change the way any company does business, be a sports franchise or corporate-owned theme park. It can help businesses respond to customers and get an edge over competitors. 

Our Mobile Enterprise Applications Platform (AT&T MEAP) managed solution is one such solution. MEAP is a comprehensive suite of products and services that combine a software platform, hosting, professional services and managed services to design, build, and run dynamic enterprise mobile business applications. These applications include business-to-employee (B2E), business-to-consumer (B2C), and business-to-partner (B2P) applications for smartphones, tablets, and mobile devices.

What mobile applications do you see coming in the future? Or better yet, what business process will you focus on mobilizing and help drive your competitive advantage?

Marc Horine, Vice President, Digital Partnerships & Revenue Development at ESPN, took center stage talking through the basic building blocks of the ESPN digital strategy.  First and foremost, the message was to focus on the customer.  The customer — or the fan in this case — is number one, and ESPN wants to serve all of them anytime and anywhere.

Mr. Horine said, “It’s all about delivering the right products and/or quality content with a balanced, elegant, and impactful advertising experience.”  But ESPN is not relying on its advertising alone through espn.go.com. The company is also looking at other areas, like ESPN insider, where for a small fee, you can subscribe to premium content and become the expert in the majors or gain valuable insights to help you manage your fantasy team.  Another example is the recently launched ESPN W, exclusively for women in sports to get the latest on emerging stories coming out of the London 2012 Olympic Games, professional and college sports coverage, and conversations with their favorite female athletes.

These are just some of the digital strategies that ESPN has implemented. When you look at the big picture, it’s all about knowing who your customers are, what they like, what they want for free, what they are willing to pay for, and of course where they want to see it!!!

Now we all know that mobile subscribers continue to climb, but as Mary Meeker, Partner, Kliener Perkins Caufield & Byers, put it in her recent article, Mary Meeker Explains the Mobile Monetization Challenge, “Looming over the Internet industry is the mismatch between the growth in mobile usage and mobile monetization.”

As you can see by the graph in this post, these firms have to balance current advertising revenue from TV with the smartphone phenomenon.

We can see that monetization will take some time to crystalize in the mobile world, and companies like ESPN, CBS, TBS, FOX, NBC and others are evolving their strategies for this shift that is inevitable.  They stand poised to be the big winners here, but why? Well all have to execute with perfection and make sure they are hitting the right target market, but in the end these firms own the rights to their content.

In an earlier post, I reiterated that content is king, and for sports franchises like the Celtics or the NY Giants, they don’t have the rights to the content.  Since the NFL, the cable companies, and other broadcasters have the rights, what is a franchise supposed to do?  How do they monetize in this complex world?

Peter Stringer, Director, Interactive Media of the Boston Celtics and Doug Smoyer, Vice President, Business Development, New York Giants, took part in the panel discussion where they talked about their digital strategies to grow the brand and monetize their content.  The Celtics executed an online game called, “the three-point play” through Facebook, where fans compete by selecting players based upon anticipated points, rebounds, and assists and where winners claim their prize.  The New York Giants put together a game plan around game-day programs, like fans voting for the NY Giant “Extra Effort” in order to drive fan interaction and the sharing of game-day content from pre-season games in which they had exclusive rights.

The game has really just started, and the outcome looks very promising for any company connected to media and entertainment.  All businesses stand to benefit from the intersection of rich content — whether it is sports, movies, network programming, or radio – and the consumer’s desire to see it when and where they want it.

Just a few ways AT&T can help are through network services, hosting and cloud services, and our content delivery platform.  In fact AT&T will be providing networking services to NBC Olympics for its production of the London Olympic Games.

AT&T will provide managed networking services for NBC Olympics, a division of the NBC Sports Group, during its coverage of the 2012 London Olympic Games from London, England, July 27 through August 12, 2012.  NBC’s Olympics division will use a managed private networking solution from AT&T to help deliver its high-definition broadcast coverage of the 2012 London Olympic Games.  AT&T’s networking solution will create a connection between NBC’s Olympics division’s space in the International Broadcast Center (IBC) production facilities at the London Olympics and NBC’s Olympics division’s facilities in the U.S.

So what’s your monetization strategy?  Is it designed with the customer in mind?  Are they willing to pay for it?

Bell Laboratories was a critical part of the personal computing evolution back then and Dennis Ritchie and Ken Thompson began and completed work on what was the UNIX operating system.   The UNIX operating system was enhanced over time by AT&T and many other commercial partners and has a legacy to some of the major operating systems today.

Now fast forward to the 80’s where UNIX, the operating system, was in desperate need of application software!!  What good, you ask, is a mini computer running UNIX without application software?  Well it looks pretty, but it does not improve employee productivity at all.

Soon after this recognition, application after application began to pop up.  I recall working on a project with the UNIX platform which was the basis for an outbound call manager application.  If you integrated this with account management software and the PBX of the day, you were off and running.

These were hard lessons learned back then, but I still think we can continue to learn from that era.  The point here is that no matter how cool the device, how awesome the form factor is, not matter how great the resolution, if it does not have a robust operating system or a comprehensive application suite, it’s a non-starter.

The OS and the application suite are jacks to open.  Let’s take a look at this a bit more and we can start with the most popular set of devices on the planet — the mobile smart phone/tablet.

Netmarketshare estimates that the top 5 mobile operating systems in order of magnitude are:  iOS, Android, Java ME, Symbian and RIM’s Blackberry OS as shown by the graph below:

Now let’s take a look at the PC market.  You guessed it, Netmarketshare reports Microsoft at the top with MacOS and Linux fighting it out for second.

So now you have a cool new desktop, laptop, tablet or mobile smartphone.  It’s running the latest and greatest operating system and its killer.  Of course you get your share of standard applications like your Internet Explorer or Safari, POP3 mail access, calendar, contacts, etc.   These applications are jacks to open but the real productivity comes from you or your business’ top productivity software picks.

Let’s examine the top 5 for Android and iOS.

For Android IBTimes picks the following productivity driver applications:  Quickoffice Pro, Camcard, ToughDown, PocketCloud and Call Reminder Notes.

Let’s look at iOS from appsdude.net: Quickoffice Pro, mbPointer, Analytics app, PDF Reader Pro and myCard.

So what is your go to app on your mobile smart phone, tablet, laptop or PC?  We look forward to getting your comments.

So I thought, how can we help these firms continue to serve their customers, subscribers, viewers.  Well I truly believe it all starts with understanding the business trends that are impacting their industries.  Let’s take a look at the Software Industry.  PwC interviewed the CEOs and senior executives of large software providers around the world and asked how the software industry key trends will impact their business over the next five years.  PWC wanted to know how software companies would adapt to thrive.

The software industry faces mutually reinforcing forces — cloud computing, mobile computing and the consumerisation of technology — that reshape software provider strategies in several areas: the design and deployment of software, the delivery channels for software, and the economics of software licensing.   PWC sat down with Rob Tarkoff, Adobe Systems, SVP/GM Digital Enterprise Solutions Group and found out the following:

“Providers need to get products out a lot faster than before. People expect rapid deployment of services. And they use different devices for different things. There´s a real opportunity to change the pricing model, to move to value-based pricing. SaaS [software-as a-service] providers like NetSuite and Salesforce.com have just scratched the surface”

“Digital channels today offer small companies incredible level of insight into their customers and your interactions with them. When you can tie into information you have on your customer in your own databases, you can do some amazing things. … The Big Data phenomenon is a major part of getting a 360-degree view of the customer and their activities.”

Now let’s shift a bit to the Entertainment & Media Industry.  Phil Asmundson, Vice Chairman and U.S. Media & Telecommunications leader, Deloitte, LLP, shared his perspective on the year ahead 2012 key trends.  Phil stated that, “For content creators, from film and television to music and print, this change certainly has an impact on revenue streams.  Business models are changing as consumers are looking to use new devices to view and access content on the go. Think tablets; think smartphones.   All of the media and entertainment subsectors will have to deal with this true life disruption.”

So across these industries we are starting to see similar themes.  Themes like time to market, business agility, innovation, managing through a rapidly changing set of end user devices and demands from consumers.  This is all changing the game, so the question is, can cloud help?  The answer is, Cloud Can.

I sat down with Donald Parente, Director of Product Marketing for AT&T Cloud Services and we talked about how Cloud Can help these customers stay out in front of these key trends driving the industry forward.   We talked about three key services that could help these firms gain efficiencies, improve time to market, improve the end user experience and enable business agility.

AT&T Platform As A Service – AT&T Platform as a Service provides a fully managed application environment for building and running cloud based applications.  It is like a database in the cloud.  This is a great tool for automating business processes, sharing data and information with business partners, and providing mobile access to information.  For example, media companies can use it to track sales leads as they seek advertising revenue.  They can also improve studio or media productions workflow as well as accelerate many aspects of content creation and distribution.  Software companies can use it to log and track license key registration.

AT&T Synaptic Compute as a Service℠ with VMware vCloud® Datacenter Service is a pay-as-you-go, on-demand service that virtual provide servers. This is great for turning up applications and services quickly, without having to wait weeks or months for infrastructure to be deployed.  Think of it as a tool for improving business velocity.  Media companies can use this service to enhance their web presence during big events like the Olympics or Presidential Election.  Software companies may use it for development or testing new applications.

AT&T Synaptic Storage as a Service℠ provides cloud-based virtual data storage with on-demand scalability, pay-as-you go pricing and the enterprise-class security of the AT&T network.  You will never out grow our cloud based storage, so you can just worry about your business and we will make sure the storage infrastructure is their when you need it.  Media companies may want to archive old commercials, graphics, or print adds in an inexpensive yet highly available way using AT&T Storage as a Service.

What are the major trends impacting your industry?  Have you considered the possibilities of leveraging cloud as an industry solution?  If so, where is your firm in evaluating the “Cloud Can” promise?

That was then and this is now.  Now is a time when students can utilize digital content, the web, mobile devices, the Intranet and more to take on the daily challenges of school work.   Students are no longer tied to the classroom and a “desktop”, but are free to utilize tools that enhance the learning experience on the road, in the library or in your study group of the week.

Given this trend that is certainty here to stay, more and more I see companies trying to help improve the education experience enabling the transformation to the digital age.  For example, take NBC. NBC  Corp. launched the “Education Nation” in September 2010 and hosted the first Educational Nation Summit in New York City.  This brought educators, parents, and students together to understand and share perspectives about education here in the U.S.

A recent MSDN blog caught my eye talking about Trends in Education 2012.  Beyond the tools at hand that Microsoft has brought forth like Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, Excel, there are broader considerations like cloud computing and data security, the digital curriculum and, of course, investing in the teacher.

Think about how Apple has changed learning with the iPad.  Cory Fitzgerald wrote a great piece in the Science of Learning Blog, called “the 10 Big Benefits of using iPads in Schools”.  Cory talks about how the iPad increases collaboration, enables mobile data collection, IT and classroom integration and much, much more.

AT&T is also part of the discussion and the evolution.  AT&T offers a broad set of solutions across security, cloud, mobility and network that can make schools more productive.

There are two trends that we see. The first trend is Mobile learning.  Students are not confined to brick and mortar classrooms.  The dynamics of learning has changed and can be enabled from tablets to netbooks to smartphones.  Check out the video, “Mobility and Education Technology Solutions from AT&T”

Another trend that we see impacting education is the ability for institutions and schools to leverage the cloud.   Cloud solutions like Synaptic Storage or Hosting can transform how schools work with secure, on-demand scalable solutions.  We deliver cloud services over our wholly owned and operated, highly -secure, intelligent network or via the public Internet, depending on the needs of the school or institution.

So how do you learn today?  Is it any different in school, higher education or business?  How will it change with the pace of technology advances? We look forward to your comments.

Who can forget where they were when Villanova, a true underdog, beat Georgetown in 1985?  Or the scene when the late great coach, Jim Valvano’s NC State team beat Houston 54-52, and Jimmy V ran to the floor looking for someone to hug?

Even better yet, where were you when Carolina’s young freshman guard, Michael Jordan, hit a jumper from the left wing with 17 seconds to put Carolina on top, 63-62 for the 1982 championship crown?   What about the unbelievable Grant Hill to Christian Laettner combination, at the 1992 east regional final, that sent Coach Patino and Kentucky packing and led the way for Duke’s national championship?

Many of these memorable moments have one thing in common, heroes.

While guys like Grant Hill, Michael Jordan, Dean Smith, John Wooden might go down in history as the hero to the basket ball fan, the real heroes of March are IT professionals!!!

That’s right IT.  They are the men and women of thousands of business enterprises keeping networks up and running to manage airline, car rental and hotel reservations.  They are up all night monitoring the global supply chain and inventory management systems to ensure consumers of all ages can get their beverages, snacks, jerseys, hoodies or the coveted final four tee!!!

They work countless hours collaborating with their carriers and solutions providers to ensure cloud solutions and hosting infrastructure is built out to handle the demand.

The demands are huge and its high risk and reward.   The heat is on especially for the network companies, CBS, Time Warner, etc.  The networks who carry the games live over wired broadband or wireless Internet include:

v  ESPN Bracket Bound & Score Center

v  Yahoo! Spiracular

v  College Basketball Scoreboard

v  CBS Sports Mobile

v  NCAA Sports, Turner Sports

v  Fox Sports Mobile

It’s as real-time as you can get and they can’t afford to miss a beat or a last minute shot.

So who is your team this year?  Who is your favorite?

My final four – IT, Operations, Advertising & Digital Media

 I look forward to your comments.

His background in Voice, IP Voice, Contact Center, Collaboration, Networking and Mobility makes him uniquely qualified to help customers in these growth oriented vertical industries.

When you see such a varied experience one might wonder how that suits Michael to work across a broad set of vertical markets. The common thread is one of Michael’s greatest strengths — being attuned to customer challenges, business priorities, needs and marketing solutions that help customers achieve their business goals like improving end user productivity, the customer experience or managing costs.  This is what Michael Nigro does best.

He is an avid user of technology and is a four screen multi-tasker.  From his HDTV, laptop, tablet and of course his number one, his smartphone.   He has found the smartphone to be a life saver.  From connecting with customers, co-workers, industry experts, wife, kids, friends, it’s a single source of organization and productivity for balancing business and personal priorities.

When asked about the future of marketing, it’s all about getting closer to customers.  AT&T recognizes this and is why the investment in resources and thought leadership in the verticals.  Mobility, Cloud, IP Voice, Networking will come together in an integrated way and play a critical role in the solution mix for our customers.

Michael is an avid soccer player, coach and fitness guy. He is married and has three boys.  He resides in Morganville, New Jersey.

With the background, experience and expertise that he brings to the Networking Exchange Blog, we look forward to Michael’s posts.  They promise to be informative and inspiring.