Welcome to 2012

Use Aurasma Augmented Reality App

Here we are at the beginning of 2012 and a year that I feel will be pivotal in redirecting the recruitment industry and its function within the Enterprise space. We are set for a truly game changing 12 months and one where I feel the candidate will be realised as an asset again rather than a commodity (I will share more on this unstoppable journey in my next blog).

Let’s take a quick look at the changes that took place over the last 12 months across other sectors so we can realise the pace of change.

Cloud Infrastructure
We entered the year with the adoption of cloud computing as a viable option for infrastructure (IaaS) or platform (PaaS) software.

A year that saw many leading IT vendors plaster “Cloud Computing Solutions” all over their websites while, behind the scenes they were actually creating their cloud value propositions.

There have been some interesting challenges in this space with traditional software vendors pitching existing solutions rebadged as cloud offerings competing against true cloud vendors with leaner, more agile and innovative value propositions at a lower cost.

Cloud v’s Licence Software
Many traditional vendors chose the acquisition route to gain cloud solutions rather than developing their own which I believe is the option if they are to gain a foothold early on. Oracle (ORCL) purchased InQuira and RightNow Technologies (RNOW) and the widely publicised overpayment by SAP (SAP) for SuccessFactors (SFSF). This is a trend that I feel will continue for some time while traditional enterprise software vendors complete their cloud stack.

My main concern with this is where will all the traditional Enterprise software go? What will happen to the revenue allocated to traditional Enterprise software licencing? Will it end up in a virtual warehouse somewhere gathering dust like it does within many government departments who have bought licences but never install them? I guess we will have to wait and see…

Smart Phones
Anyway, moving on during February 2011 it was reported that Smart phones outsold PC’s for the first time in history (100.9M shipped worldwide during Q4 2010). This was a year earlier than some predicted which has created a new channel for customer engagement and due to this unexpected growth this is an area where skills are still scarce and demand is high.

Mega Trio Cloud, Mobile and Social
The Mega Trio of cloud, mobile and social became firmly embedded in retail strategy ensuring a more unified approach to multichannel retailing. There are definitely skills shortages in this area at a strategic level with the majority of the talent pool client side rather than on the consulting side.

Big Data
The rapid growth cloud computing, mobile and social commerce has injected pace, change and energy into the business community that is set to develop even further. This growth has created a new challenge, BigData as it is now known, the cloud name for BI (business Intelligence).

Whatever you decide to name it, (Big Data or Business Intelligence) the ability to analyse data acquired across cloud, mobile and social allows enterprises and retailers to harness the real power of this mega trio. This ultimately provides visibility across the main customer touch points, providing access to a more targeted approach that reduces costs, improves brand recognition and increases performance across all areas of the business.

Ninety per cent of the data in the world today has been created in the last two years alone; Big Data is a major sector ripe for acquisition during 2012. As we saw before with cloud computing many leading vendors are already marketing Big Data propositions on their websites in a bid win the early adopters.

Mobile in Recruitment
Will 2012 be the year of the Mobile for recruitment both for the employers and recruiters themselves? Many experts are citing different opinions for 2012 although all are endorsing its potential. I think there will be a few disruptions this year in the use of mobile for recruitment and I am conducting a survey this month to establish demand for these solutions. Click on the link to complete the survey.

Best Exhibitions of 2012
Infosec - Infosecurity Europe - Always exciting
TFM&A – Awesome
ad:tech - Most energy

Worst Exhibition of 2012
Cloud Computing World Forum – Dull, not because of the exhibitors or the speakers it was the atmosphere. The contrast between the most exciting thing happening on the planet Cloud Computing and the uninspiring atmosphere as you enter Cloud Computing World Forum are worlds apart. Common organisers get some energy in there…

Most amusing Exhibition of 2012
Appsworld – No App for the exhibition – you still receive a paper brochure on entry – over 50 exhibitors and no one thought to sell them an app for visitors to navigate and plan for the exhibition or even select potential suppliers. Awesome exhibition though, shame about the app!

Best community 2012
CloudCircle “These people get it”. They know their subject and they have a talented and highly knowledgeable network. They raise thought provoking questions that are based solving challenges rather than empty content that only deals with the hype.

Most inspiring speaker on cloud issues and challenges has to be Simon May from Microsoft (yes Microsoft) high energy and always able to answer any question thrown at him by the audience.

Predictions for 2012
The winners will definitely be cloud infrastructure, eCommerce especially in Multi-Channel Retailing, cloud applications that capture social behavioural trends and massive growth in Big Data. I also think there will be some game changing disruptive technologies emerge in towards the second half of 2012. More info on Disruptive Technologies see Gartner’s 10 Most Disruptive Technologies – take a look at the technologies Gartner analysts voted most likely to succeed—at changing the face of business.

Oh and can everyone please limit the use of the phrase Anything as a Service (AaaS) in 2012; right amount of letters just too many A’s and not enough S’s in my opinion. I have just read an article in the New York Times (NYT) blog titled - Will Amazon Offer Analytics as a Service? – Providing analytics has always been a service. Anyway gripe over, may I wish you all a very prosperous 2012, despite all the reports of doom and gloom 2012 looks like it is set to be a winner for many!

And finally…

Augmented Reality
I am also looking forward to seeing some exciting developments and the different uses of augmented reality an area of great potential for the creative minds. I have created a simple one here.

You will need an iPad 2, iPhone 4 or Android Smartphone to install the Aurasma App, it’s free and you can have loads of fun with it.

Once installed just open the App and hold it over the image at the top of this blog post. This one is just a bit of fun but this technology has some serious potential too.

Now, it’s easy to get it…

1) Open this blog post on your device and click the Aurasma link below or copy and email the link below to your device and then click on the link.
2) If you don’t have Aurasma installed, the link will take you to the iOS App Store or Android Market; install the app then come back and click the link again.
3) The link will launch Aurasma, and share my Aura with you (which may take a while depending on your network speed).
4) As soon as the sharing is complete, follow my instructions above to find it.

Aurasma Link

Aurasma allows you to see the world differently where everyday objects can become animated when viewed through an iPad 2, iPhone 4 or Android Smartphone.