Developed by Fred Reichheld at Bain & Company, the Net Promoter Score (NPS) is a customer loyalty metric that measures customer satisfaction using an index that ranges from -100 to 100. Customers are asked one question – if they’d recommend the company to a friend – and then asked to respond using a scale from zero to 10, with zero being “not likely” and 10 being “extremely likely.” Customers are…
With the rapid pace of innovation continually disrupting business models, and in many cases entire industries, how will online learning keep up to provide the relevant courseware for today’s and tomorrow’s workforce? This will be essential for economic growth and to support a thriving, college-educated workforce that’s equipped with the very latest knowledge, ideas and technology. In the future, I believe that institutions at the forefront of online education will…
The Internet Retailer Conference and Exhibition, held late last month in Chicago, is an annual opportunity to take a pulse on the state of the retail industry. This year’s event, occurring simultaneously with Toys R Us’ final liquidation sales around the country, was infused with increased concern over whether retailing will ever “get back to normal” (it won’t), but also with uncertainty about whether the journey to digital will be…
[This article was co-written by Michael Hickins.] In an industry constantly looking over the horizon for the “next big thing,” quantum computing (QC) is hands-down the winner when it comes to magazine covers and breathless reporting. But, unlike many overhyped technologies, QC already exists – albeit in very limited scope –and it may surpass current computing paradigms by many orders of magnitude for some types of computation. While many researchers…
The #MeToo and #TimesUp movements have certainly raised awareness about sexual harassment and misconduct in the workplace, and along with that awareness, the hopes and expectations that finally some corrective action might be taken to shift the culture of sexism and misogyny. But are employers actually taking concrete action to make their companies safer and more inclusive places for women? A new study released this week from Harvard Business Review…
Companies are increasingly launching digital initiatives to expand or build digital capabilities to deliver business efficiency or top-line revenue growth. And as digital transformation success stories emerge, the trend is gaining steam. To read this article in full, please click here (Insider Story) Source: http://www.cio.com
by John Barnes Oracle’s series of announcements about autonomous database technology – with the first real product being the Autonomous Data Warehouse Cloud launched on March 27 – has been declared a profound revolution, repackaged hype, and everything between. Oracle’s announcement has touched off a vigorous multi-sided debate on the forecast for software autonomy: its definition and financial imperatives, as well as the intertwined hype and truth about its performance…
Every industry assumes a distinctive culture, which in turn influences the kind of IT infrastructure that supports it. Healthcare is no exception. Led by medical professionals, dedicated to patient care and insulated from common market dynamics, healthcare self-consciously stands apart. The impact on IT is a dichotomy: at best, it leads to shared industry knowledge; at worst, to insularity and resistance to change. But external factors – regulation, competition and…
The application overload issue There is an overabundance of communications and collaboration tools available for enterprises. While this pushes innovation in many respects, the avalanche of apps has created productivity and security concerns within organizations. With myriad silo applications being deployed by internal teams and departments, there is a lot of noise created and serious attention management issues emerging. Integration into critical business applications and workflows is also a major…
While it appears that much of the threat caused by Non-Practicing Entities (NPEs), or “patent trolls,” has greatly diminished. There is even a larger existential problem for startups lurking in the background: the threat of being cannibalized by their larger industry partners. And, oftentimes these fledgling companies have no meaningful way to protect themselves. The patent world is still adjusting to recent Supreme Court decisions like Alice and TC Heartland,…