Surviving Technology Extinction: Mobile, Cloud and SaaS Are the IT Asteroids of our Day

Jeff Haynie who is the CEO and co-founder of Appcelerator recently put together a great post with Re/code called Surviving Technology Extinction. It is a great read. Like so many things in life, one can view challenges as obstacles or opportunities. The changing IT landscape is no different. I have made the case before that we are in the middle of a complete rebuild of the IT stack from infrastructure to applications. Its the reason I have written other posts such as my thoughts on Openstack and applications like GuideSpark.

Jeff references a good article from the NYT about how consumers should deal with the complexity of IT choices today and many of the lessons can be applied to the enterprise. I am so impressed with many of the senior IT executives I meet today because the embrace the idea of empowering users and are leading their companies into the next generation of IT services. I completely agree with the strategy to avoid extinction – although it is easier to state in the abstract without any constraints. Regardless, its a great framework and place to start.

Embrace the user

CIOs must recognize the huge productivity gains of providing employees with apps that truly help them perform their jobs better — those that are simple, complete and conform to their lifestyle versus the other way around.

Favor ecosystems over features

The best modern solutions find themselves at the center of a broad, diverse ecosystem as well — composed of groups like developers, as well as software and services companies

Expect openness

Vendors for whom openness is a part of the DNA offer customers more than just lowered risk of lock-in. There is also the ubiquity of skilled resources, as well as the likelihood of a broader ecosystem. Openness and ecosystems go hand in hand.

When it comes to the enterprise, it’s not about just surviving “technology extinction.” There’s a very real opportunity to thrive in these times of uncertainty, simply by embracing the opportunity while competitors dither.

I couldn’t agree more. This is such a powerful force in IT right now. I am counting on some large incumbent vendor’s products going extinct. This creates enormous opportunity for start ups.

Just like the changes that took place on Earth 65 million years ago and resulted in the extinction of the dinosaurs, those same changes also gave rise to an environment where mammals could thrive. Mobile, cloud and SaaS are the IT asteroids of our day.