Lessons from the Intel Software Strategy Summit.
Significantly, the principle goal of the Software Strategy Summit is to provide feedback to Intel on the drivers, the applications and the roadmaps. I spent a few days together with industry luminaries from McKesson (Healthcare applications), Oracle, IBM and Amdocs.Interestingly, there were no mobile operators and no operating systems people.
Intel, to their credit, organized an outstanding program of team-building, workshops, roadmap presentations and had the well-spoken astronaut – James Lovell, Jr – the commander of Apollo XIII who had actor Tom Hanks play him in the Ron Howard film – speak about teamwork and crisis management. Add to that the outstanding venue and frequent breaks and you have a program for collaboration and heated discussion.
I attended the cellular and handheld track where I was able to discuss the trends and their implications for users, operators and the entire value chain. Needless to say, VoIP is a high priority application for the enterprise user. This fundamental was validated by several Intel marketing and other folks. Without discussing Intel's roadmap here (I did sign a Non-Disclosure Agreement), my enthusiasm for things to do with mobile VoIP, particularly for enterprise users is even greater than before I came.
A retreat with stimulating companions, focused commentary, framework for thoughtful debate and freedom from value-chain distractions (my customer's in the room, so I will cow-tow to them), created a great environment for dialog and discourse. I was able to make my recommendations that would facilitate innovation. I was so happy to have been invited.
