What Are CIOs Thinking?

More than 150 CIOs gathered last fall at an Oracle-sponsored CIO Summit at the Ritz-Carlton in Half Moon Bay, California. Their goal: to learn about the technologies that are—or soon will be—affecting their business, to listen to celebrities such as Sam Donaldson and Ari Fleischer, and maybe to play a little golf. In true tech fashion, it was an interactive event, peppered with audience-participation instant polls on topics ranging from the current economic climate to who will win the World Series.

There is good news for technology providers: 44 percent of the CIOs indicated that their spending this year will be "higher" or "significantly higher" than in 2003, while only 24 percent of budgets would remain flat. The better news is that the spend trend is expected to continue for the next five years, with 86 percent stating that their IT purchasing will increase. In fact, 17 percent of attendees see an increase of more than 10 percent in that time period.

Where is the money going? Much of the investment is likely aimed at resolving the top three issues facing these CIOs: debilitating disintegration, which 35 percent cited as their primary problem, and increasing IT ownership costs and fragmented systems—both identified as their main concern by 22 percent of attendees.

When asked the big question: "What's your view of the economy?," 80 percent of CIOs view it as improving, while only 1 percent see it as getting worse. On the question of offshore outsourcing, 35 percent say that they are currently engaged in it, and, surprisingly, almost the same number (36 percent) say that they are not, and probably will not. A majority of attendees (51 percent) agree that software will become a service and computing will become a utility, as routine as the water or electrical utilities. Will these predictions become reality? Who knows? But this group of CIOs was right about one thing—when asked who will win the California governor's race, 61 percent of CIOs sagely chose Arnold.

What Are CEOs Drinking?

Many people looking for a cocktail these days are likely ordering a dry vodka martini. "Which is a shame," laments cocktail expert Gary Regan, author of The Joy of Mixology (Clarkson Potter, 2003). "The original gin-based version is far more interesting, but today, vodka rules." Except for CEOs—the classic CEO drink is the dry gin martini, according to Regan. "It gives people a chance to tell those around them who they are. They get to choose a brand name of gin, which tells everyone they know what they're talking about; then they get to demand a certain ratio of gin to vermouth, which can add all sorts of complexity to their personality," notes Regan. "'Just rinse the glass with vermouth,' for instance, might tell people that this person is a no-nonsense type."

What's going to be big this year? "I think that blue drinks will continue to be big, provided they're made with quality products. Hpnotiq, for instance, will prove not to be a fad, but a staple behind bars, so any drink that utilizes that ingredient stands a chance of survival," says Regan. "My second choice would be the return to the Manhattan, but perhaps using straight rye whiskey instead of bourbon. There has been a big push toward rye recently, and I believe it's actually working."

Giving Your People What They Want

Surprisingly, business consultant Cindy Ventrice, in her book Make Their Day! Employee Recognition That Works (Berrett-Koehler Publishers, Inc., 2003), doesn't want you to put employee recognition on your to-do list, where it's likely to get bumped off. Instead, she recommends making recognition part of every interaction. "If you're delegating a task," asks Ventrice, "are you telling the person why they've been chosen to handle it?"

For managers seeking new and better ways to recognize employees, Ventrice offers a range of practical ideas that can help you showcase your employees' accomplishments.

In the end, recognition, regardless of the form it takes, is the key that can unlock the best in your employees' performance, says Ventrice. "It builds rapport and loyalty and makes employees more eager to get the job done."

Oracle Events

Oracle Industries Executive Forums
<Various cities>
Find out how leaders in your industry are using changes in the global economy and business technology to reduce costs, improve business processes, increase profitability, and position themselves for success. For more information, go to oracle.com/start Keyword:ifmag.

Donovan Executive Seminar Series
<Various cities>
The Donovan Seminars are hosted by Professor John Donovan, adjunct professor at the MIT Sloan School of Management. Executives will learn how to align business with IT tools and strategies, with a special emphasis on operational efficiency and cost reduction. For more information, go to oracle.com/start Keyword: Donovan.

Sweet Dreams

Looking for a gift that'll make your customers take notice or melt the heart of the sternest assistant? Try some of these treats:

Aida Opera Candies.
The hands-down winner of our taste test is the raspberry rocky road.
www.aidacandies.com

Enstrom's almond toffee.
Buttery, crunchy, chocolatey—it's traditional toffee that melts in your mouth.
www.enstrom.com/enstrom/shop

Leonidas.
Our top pick is the Europe dark (a rum truffle in dark chocolate) for its strong chocolate-rum aroma and taste.
www.leonidas-us.com

Joseph Schmidt Confections.
We loved the Frangelico minitruffle.
www.jschmidtconfections.com

L.A. Burdick.
Irresistibly cute chocolate mice in white, milk, and dark chocolate—the almond ears are a crunchy delight.
www.burdickchocolate.com

Lake Champlain Chocolates.
The small-world truffles (includes flavors like lemon ginger, chai, molé, and mango) are delightful. Our favorite is the pistachio.
www.lakechamplainchocolates.com

Every Business has a Story

In a Loyola Marymount University auditorium, fabled screenwriting instructor Bob McKee takes the stage. Among the audience of aspiring screenwriters sit several corporate marketers, there to learn how good storytelling is good for business. Just as bad scripts equal bad movies—and box office losses—bad corporate stories could be punishing your bottom line.

McKee's three-day, 36-hour seminar can rewrite your corporate story. Persuasion is a daily activity in marketing, advertising, and sales. Effective persuasion unites ideas with emotion, delivered in a compelling story. Good corporate stories resonate with customers who respond fervently: witness Harley-Davidson and Apple Computer.

Explaining the elements of story and character, McKee outlines how structure and design concern form and principles, not formulas and rules. Most businesses use rhetoric to persuade—presentations, Web sites, and brochures that build a case with facts, statistics, experts, and so on. But a skeptical audience isn't inspired by rhetoric; they need story. Good stories are more persuasive, evoking an emotion and creating an image of how people can effect change in their lives.

McKee's last act, a scene-by-scene analysis of Casablanca, summarizes his points. Your story should pack emotional power to be memorable, harnessing your customer's imagination. Get the whole story at www.mckeestory.com.

Catch the Asia Pacific Wave

In the global business market, key indicators for expanding business horizons are pointing toward the Asia Pacific region.

At an event with the Singapore Press Club last year, Richard Burton of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) piqued the interest of a growth-hungry audience with heartening statistics. According to Burton, excluding China, India, and Japan, growth in the region accelerated to 4.25 percent in 2002 from only 1.75 percent in 2001. And, non-Japan Asia was the fastest growing region in the world, with real Gross Domestic Product (GDP) expanding by more than 6 percent.

If you want to explore your options in Asia, take advantage of help from any of several organizations, including Asian embassies in your region; country-specific Web sites, such as Doing Business in Thailand (www.doingbusinessinthai.com); the IMF ( www.imf.org); and local ministry offices and chambers of commerce in the country of interest.

Naming is the Game

The product you shepherded through R&D is finally ready for market. It works, it's cost-effective—heck, maybe it's even adorable. But what are you going to call it? Here are a few things to remember as you launch your new product.

Arbitrary versus Descriptive

Arbitrary brand names—such as Nike or Schwab—may have no obvious connection to a company's business. It is up to marketing to help consumers make the connection. "If you don't describe the product in the brand name, you need to use precious marketing resources to describe the product elsewhere," says Casey Jones, president of Grey Advertising Worldwide, San Francisco. "You need to build meaning into a nonsensical name." But if developed successfully, an arbitrary name earns you the flexibility to market an array of products as long as they connect with the consumer's perception of the brand. A descriptive brand name tells the consumer what the product does—use Mop-n-Glo when you mop, and you'll have floors that glow. While such a brand name helps prevent confusion among customers, it can also be limiting. If Mop-n-Glo also happens to work as a bug repellent, the product name makes it difficult to move into this new market.

Survey the Field

You've got a name in mind—now what? How can you be sure that your name is free to use and will work in your target markets? The internet provides resources to help you make a preliminary check of the availability of brand names. The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office Web site (www.uspto.gov) lets you check for brand names in use in the United States. Use Google (www.google.com) to get a sense of any informal uses of your brand name. "Any particular string of syllables is likely to have some meaning in one of the developed countries," says Jones. To protect yourself—and your product—from an embarrassing linguistic error, check your proposed brand names against the languages in your top markets. If any of your selections have negative connotations, drop them and try another.

Based on these tests, you know if it's time to get the intellectual property lawyers to run a more detailed check.

Keep Your Priorities Straight

Remember, a brand name is just a symbol that stands in for the product or service you offer. "A brand's inherent message is, 'Buy our product or service because it is high-quality,'" says Jones. "If the product or service is bad, the brand suffers and no amount of advertising can make that up."

Know Your Industry

Join us at these Oracle-sponsored events. To learn about Oracle's involvement in any of these events, and to find out how to register, go to oracle.com/events and check the events calendar.

HIMSS Annual Conference and Exhibition
February 22-26, Orlando
conference.himss.org
Healthcare information technology and management systems.

National Manufacturing Week
February 23-26, Chicago
www.manufacturingweek.com
Manufacturing industry products and demos.

Call Center East
February 25-27, Orlando
east.iccm.com
Field service, sales and marketing automation, customer service and call center management.

AGC's 85th Annual
Convention/Constructor Exposition
March 10-13, Orlando
www.agc.org/Member_Resources/2004convention_front.asp
Trends in the construction industry.

ProjectWorld Los Angeles
March 22-25, Los Angeles
projectworld.com
Project management technology and systems.

Supply-Chain World Conference
March 29-31, Chicago
supplychainworld.org/na2004
Supply chain technology and systems.

Bio IT World Conference and Expo
March 30-April 1, Boston
bioitworldexpo.com
Technology for the life sciences.

Tank You

Warfare has always been a powerful metaphor for business—how many executive bookshelves feature Karl Von Clauswitz's On War among the management tomes? But with the help of Atomic Toys' Z-Tanks, you can leave theoretical warfare in the boardroom and mount your own tiny Battle of the Bulge. So shake the dust off your Sun Tzu and play paperclip Patton with these miniature remote-controlled tanks. A self-contained recharging system keeps this infinitesimal artillery ready to defend your desktop against the march of tiny Rommels. Score a direct hit with the infrared cannon to disable your opponent, and you'll have a new war story to share at the water cooler. Go to www.atomictoys.com for more info.