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Federal Tech Podcast: Listen and learn how successful companies get federal contracts
Connect to John Gilroy on LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-gilroy/ Want to listen to other episodes? www.Federaltechpodcast.com According to Forrester, 48% of organizations have more than one hundred tools in a typical toolchain. How many are not being used? How many duplicates are there? How many can remove abilities in other tools? When you deal with a company, they are getting paid to focus on their solution and ignore others. When you deal with a reseller, they have biases, respond to changes quickly, and understand the complexities of vendors in “swim lanes,” which can include competitors. Today, we sit down with Sam O'Daniel, the President and CEO of TVAR. The conversation ranged from selection of the correct tool to procurement and licensing models. For example, in a recent interview, Scott Rose from NIST talked about modern technology that may include IPv6. The sad news is that it prevents scanning address blocks because it cannot scan all the addresses that IPv6 covers. TVAR collaborates with numerous vendors and is familiar with the strengths and weaknesses of each. Additionally, he understands which vendors work well together and respects the concept of their “swim lanes” in the context of federal technology. A typical federal leader cannot spend five hours a day keeping up with modern technology; resellers must maintain updated knowledge, which they can provide federal agencies with a perspective that few have. The conversation also addresses the challenges of procurement and the need for tool consolidation to minimize government waste.
The future of manufacturing is increasingly digital, collaborative, and intelligent. This was the clear message at Hexagon's recent ‘The Future of Shop Floor' event, held in partnership with Mills CNC at their Technology Campus. The event demonstrated how artificial intelligence, cloud-based platforms, and data-driven insights transform traditional manufacturing operations, resulting in measurable improvements in productivity and profitability. Opening the event by introducing Nexus, the company's cloud-based platform designed to tackle the collaboration crisis in manufacturing, Jason Walker, Hexagon's VP of General Manufacturing, stated: “An independent Forrester report we commissioned, surveyed around 500 manufacturers from small, medium, and large-sized organisations worldwide and 97% across all those different kinds of organisations, agreed that collaboration is the key challenge that manufacturers face.” Nexus addresses this challenge through comprehensive connectivity. “Nexus is fundamentally about connectivity. It's about joining all these different tools together within a specific function, across different functions, departments, sites, and organisations,” Walker explained. “Nexus connects to third-party tools as well, even if they are competitors of Hexagon, it builds workflows to encourage collaboration between engineers.” The platform's design philosophy emphasises integration rather than disruption. “Nexus is designed to meet you where you are. If you've got a process, a tool, or a particular place where you store your data today, Nexus won't disrupt any of that. Just join the dots to encourage and enable collaborations,” Walker emphasised. The Pro Plan Revolution Stephen Graham, Executive Vice President and General Manager for Nexus at Hexagon, revealed Pro Plan AI's impressive performance metrics during its pilot phase. For readers unfamiliar with Hexagon's Pro Plan AI suite, see the January 2025 issue of MTD magazine. “We've got ten customers engaged in a formal piloting programme at the moment, and the feedback has been stunning,” Graham announced. “Even at this early Beta Test stage, we can demonstrate something like a 70 to 75% improvement in productivity. A task that may have taken a couple of days could take just a few minutes using this powerful tool.” Pro Plan AI's approach differs fundamentally from that of existing automation tools. “There are tools out there attempting to automate CAM programming, but they're either trying to identify features in a CAD model using a rules-based system, or we've seen people trying to use generative AI,” Graham explained. “Our machine learning approach is looking through the history of programs, figuring out how you program, and replicating that based on the new geometry.” The tool's knowledge capture capabilities will address critical workforce challenges. “Pro Plan AI captures tribal knowledge. When it's first installed, it learns how users program CNC machines. It will program in the style of what it sees in the organisation's history,” Graham noted. Discussing one of the early test customers, Graham adds: “This feature proved particularly valuable in a North American pilot. The company has a relatively new programmer in his early 20s who joined the company two or three months ago. Once he started working with Pro Plan AI, he suddenly contributed programmes directly to the shop floor that were on par with anything from any of the guys who have been there programming for 20 or 30 years. This not only speeds up programming times, but also demonstrates how it is closing the ‘skills gap'.” Pro Plan AI also enables new business capabilities. “You can programme a machine in a few seconds, then for a given part, you can programme every single machine on the shop floor. You can program every machine on the shop floor for every combination of tools; you can then use that to interact with your production planning systems. You can also use it to create much more accurate quotations before starting a job in the first place,” Graham explained. The improvement in quoting accuracy addresses a fundamental business challenge. “One of the big ones we heard from customers is regarding quoting. Quite a lot of guesswork goes into quoting, because nobody's got the time to do the proper engineering work to find out how long it takes. With Pro Plan AI, even if it's not 100% accurate, you get a pretty good idea of how long it will be on a particular machine,” Graham revealed. Transforming Quote-to-Cash Processes Hexagon recognises that efficient and accurate quoting is essential for business success—and this is one reason why ‘Paperless Parts' has been added to the portfolio. A strategic partnership that delivers measurable business transformation for manufacturers, Jason Walker provided an extensive analysis: “Paperless Parts is Boston-based, and they are primarily in the US for now, although we are just in the process of helping them expand internationally.” The platform addresses critical inefficiencies in manufacturing's front-end processes through comprehensive automation of the quoting workflow. The quoting challenge directly impacts manufacturers' competitiveness. “I have asked a couple of customers exactly how long it took to get a quote out of the door before you implemented Paperless Parts. And on average, they would say about a week. So, you get an RFQ on Monday, you might only get to it by the end of the week,” Walker detailed. “The problem is that another manufacturer is getting their quote back quicker. They're probably going to win the work, because most of the OEMs just want to fulfil their order.” Paperless Parts delivers dramatic improvements in turnaround times that directly impact business outcomes. “With Paperless Parts, most manufacturers are doing turnaround within 24, sometimes 48 hours. So that's the difference,” Walker noted. The business impact extends far beyond speed enhancements: “One customer that is already reducing quote time from a week to 24 hours claims to be already winning 25% more work.” The platform's functionality includes comprehensive quote management capabilities that eliminate traditional bottlenecks. “It's an interesting space because it focuses solely on quoting, but the platform also allows for internal collaboration at a large company, which you might need when compiling a quote. You might need the engineer's input on ‘Can we manufacture this?' So the platform itself enables that real-time collaboration,” Walker explained. This collaborative approach ensures that technical feasibility is assessed during the quoting process rather than after the work is won. Automation features remove the burdens of manual data entry that have traditionally hindered quote generation. “It configures everything for you and automates the quoting setup process; it syncs back with your ERP system. Many customers will be using Excel spreadsheets or their ERP, but mostly the ERP's quoting functionality is like an Excel spreadsheet. You still have to put everything in manually. So that's where Paperless Parts is automating much of that,” Walker detailed. The integration capabilities extend throughout the manufacturing workflow. “Engineers have all that information, from the design to the integrations with our CAM software and then into Paperless Parts,” Walker explained. This smooth data flow eliminates multiple manual handoffs that traditionally delay quote generation and introduce errors. “Not only is it allowing businesses to get quotes out quicker, but it's reducing the burden. A lot of the time, it's the owner or the manager who's doing the quotes, because it's such a crucial process. You don't want to be under-quoting. This is buying them their time back,” Walker observed. This liberation of time enables leadership to focus on strategic business development rather than administrative tasks. The European expansion is proceeding with pilot customers demonstrating similar transformative results. “We've been in partnership since the beginning of last year, but we focused primarily on the US last year. There will be a European launch later in the year. At the moment, we're finding a few pilot customers,” Walker confirmed. “Early European feedback mirrors US success, it's completely transformative to the way that they were doing things before.” Innovation and Strategic Partnership Tony Dale, CEO of Mills CNC, offered insights into the strategic partnership with Hexagon as well as the company's forthcoming product innovations. Tony Dale says: “Our strengths are that we are an independently owned business, which makes us agile and allows us to respond to customers' requests.” The company's inventory management reflects its customer-focused approach. “We've got about 80 machines here now, but we've normally got around 200 machines in stock. So, the availability of machines is key for customers these days; nobody wants to wait. So that agility and stock holding enables us to support customers when they need that technology for that new contract,” Dale explained. “The relationship with Hexagon is effective. It enables us to provide a solution to the end user, not only supplying the machine tool but also programming it, reverse engineering it, and inspecting components, all of which contribute to our automation for end-to-end production,” Dale explained. Looking ahead, Mills has significant product launches planned. “Key focuses for us this year are launching two brand new models. We'll be holding an event later in October. We've got the DNX 2100 entry-level multi-tasking machine, and it's quite a big launch for us because we're seeing how customers want to leave tools set up on the machines to reduce setup and changeover times,” Dale announced. The DNX 2100 addresses specific market evolution. “If you can quickly change your jaws and programme, with your tools already set up in that carousel, this is faster than traditional block tools on a turret. We already do 5-axis mill/turn machines, but this is more entry level for customers upgrading from a traditional turret lathe to get into the realms of multitasking,” Dale explained. Dale linked the new machine to broader industry trends that Hexagon is also tackling: “With the skill shortages of engineers these days, we're finding that this is a growing part of our business offering.” The second major launch involves an evolution of existing technology. “We also have the second generation of the DVF 5000, which will launch simultaneously. It is a high-speed, high-accuracy 5-axis machine,” Dale noted. We will publish the second instalment of this event in the September issue of MTD Magazine. It will highlight the new Datanomics production monitoring suite and provide an update on the success of Hexagon's Benchmarking tool, a year after we first discussed the tool at MACH 2024.
This week, our host, Ian Truscott, and Principal Analyst at Cleantech Insiders, Jeff Clark, return to the topic of budget benchmarking, sharing six hits from six industry reports. Yes, SIX, completely ignoring the editorial policy of 5 f'in' things. The six highlights they discuss: Marketing budgets are in decline (or are they?) Comparing apples with apples Expectations management Martech is down, paid media up Data & analytics is marketing's biggest challenge The mandatory mention of AI As always, we welcome your feedback. If you have a suggestion for a topic that's hot for you that we should discuss, please get in touch using the links below. Enjoy! — The Links The people: Ian Truscott on LinkedIn and Bluesky Jeff Clark on LinkedIn Mentioned this week: Gartner: Marketing Budgets: How Much Should Your Team Spend in 2024 | Gartner The CMO Survey: Spring 2025 - The CMO Survey with Deloitte, Duke Fuqua School of Business, AMA Insight Partners: Insight's SaaS Marketing Spend Benchmarks Norwest: B2B Sales & Marketing Benchmark Report LinkedIn - 2024 - The B2B Marketing Organization of Tomorrow (page 29 discusses budget) Forrester blog post referring to their 2025 budget planning guide. European Leaders: Align Budget Planning To Accelerate Performance In 2025 Jeff's firm - Cleantech Insiders Ian's new firm - Velocity B Rockstar CMO: The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM. Track List: Stienski & Mass Media - We'll be right back Cyndi Lauper - Money Changes Everything (1983) You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
No swing-offs necessary on a #WouldYouRatherWednesday edition of GCR but lots to discuss. We'll talk about some of the highlights of the All-Star Game. Our friend Drew Forrester (DrewsMorningDish.com) joins us at the top of the show. At the bottom of Hour 1, Orioles first round pick Ike Irish and his father Jeff-a former Blue Jays minor leaguer-will join us to discuss their emotions after being selected by Baltimore. Early in Hour 2, the godfather of Maryland MMA-Ground Control's John Rallo joins us before Show Your Soft Side's "Softie Homecoming" tomorrow night. And at the bottom of Hour 2, we'll catch up with former Maryland star Juju Reese (St. Frances) who is in Las Vegas playing in the Summer League with the Lakers.
Daily Soap Opera Spoilers by Soap Dirt (GH, Y&R, B&B, and DOOL)
Click to Subscribe: https://bit.ly/Youtube-Subscribe-SoapDirt Bold and the Beautiful 2-week spoilers for July 14-25, 2025 see Bill Spencer (Don Diamont) is facing a backlash for the shooting incident involving Liam Spencer (Scott Clifton) and Steffy Forrester (Jacqueline MacInnes Wood). Poppy Nozawa (Romy Park) and Finn (Tanner Novlan) are blamed for Luna Nozawa's (Lisa Yamada) actions. Deacon Sharpe (Sean Kanan) and Sheila Carter (Kimberlin Brown) are mourning Luna, while Bill faces guilt over Liam's inoperable tumor. Meanwhile, Brooke Logan (Katherine Kelly Lang) and Nick Marone (Jack Wagner) reignite their romance as Luna's death unfolds, which is likely to cause friction with Ridge Forrester (Thorsten Kaye) and Taylor Hayes (Rebecca Budig) on the CBS soap opera. B&B spoilers see Bill takes unconscious Liam from the hospital, leaving Steffy and Hope Logan (Annika Noelle) in shock. As Steffy returns to work at Forrester Creations, Brooke, Taylor, and Ridge agree they need to support Steffy and Hope during this difficult time. In the following week, Bill arranges for Liam to receive experimental cancer treatment at a private clinic, under the care of Dr. Grace Buckingham (Diamond White). Spoilers for Bold and the Beautiful see the Forrester team prepares for an upcoming trip to Italy, with Ridge, Brooke, and Nick on the list. The return of Daphne Rose (Murielle Hilaire) to LA could complicate things for Hope's engagement to Carter Walton (Lawrence Saint-Victor) the weeks of 7/14-7/25, 2025. The Soap Dirt podcast made the Top 100 List for Apple Podcast's Entertainment News Category. Visit our Bold and the Beautiful section of Soap Dirt: https://soapdirt.com/category/bold-and-the-beautiful/ Listen to our Podcasts: https://soapdirt.podbean.com/ Check out our always up-to-date Bold and the Beautiful Spoilers page at: https://soapdirt.com/bold-and-the-beautiful-spoilers/ Check Out our Social Media... Twitter: https://twitter.com/SoapDirtTV Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SoapDirt Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/soapdirt/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@soapdirt Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/soapdirt/
Daily Soap Opera Spoilers by Soap Dirt (GH, Y&R, B&B, and DOOL)
Click to Subscribe: https://bit.ly/Youtube-Subscribe-SoapDirt The Bold and the Beautiful predictions indicate that the storylines this week revolve around Steffy Forrester (Jacqueline MacInnes Wood), Hope Logan (Annika Noelle), and Bill Spencer (Don Diamont). B&B predictions hint that Steffy and Hope express their anger over Bill's actions, Sheila Carter's (Kimberlin Brown) memorial plans for Luna Nozawa, the mystery around Luna's alleged death, Donna Logan (Jennifer Gareis) confronting Taylor Hayes (Rebecca Budig), and an unexpected change in Steffy's stance towards Sheila. General Hospital spoilers show that Steffy and Hope are mad at Bill Spencer after he snatches an unconscious Liam Spencer (Scott Clifton) from the hospital post-surgery. Despite the tension, it seems that Bill might be doing what's best for Liam in his current state. Sheila Carter then plans a memorial for Luna Nozawa, with Deacon Sharpe (Sean Kanan) and Finn (Tanner Novlan) grieving alongside her. Meanwhile, Li Finnegan (Naomi Matsuda) might be hiding Luna, leading to speculation that Luna might not be dead after all. GH spoilers also reveal that Donna Logan is likely to stir things up by confronting Taylor Hayes over her engagement to Ridge Forrester (Thorsten Kaye). Donna might assert that Ridge belongs with Brooke Logan (Katherine Kelly Lang), creating tension in the Forrester mansion. Lastly, after Sheila saves Steffy's life, there is a chance that Steffy might allow Finn to have some contact with his biological mother, despite her previous strict ban. Soap Dirt is the most subscribed to Youtube soap opera channel. Visit our Bold and the Beautiful section of Soap Dirt: https://soapdirt.com/category/bold-and-the-beautiful/ Listen to our Podcasts: https://soapdirt.podbean.com/ And Check out our always up-to-date Bold and the Beautiful Spoilers page at: https://soapdirt.com/bold-and-the-beautiful-spoilers/ Check Out our Social Media... Twitter: https://twitter.com/SoapDirtTV Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SoapDirt Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/soapdirt/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@soapdirt Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/soapdirt/
Renegade Thinkers Unite: #2 Podcast for CMOs & B2B Marketers
You can't game the Gartner system. You can't fast-track a Forrester mention. But you can show up prepared, relevant, and consistent. Analyst Relations is the slowest move on the board and the one that defines how your company is positioned on calls, in rooms, and across the category. To trace the full arc of this relationship, Drew is joined by Dan Lowden (Blackbird.AI), Lorie Coulombe (Equity Shift), and Lynn Tornabene (Anteriad). These are marketing leaders who've built analyst trust from scratch, played the long game, and seen the ripple effects hit pipeline, brand, and board-level confidence. They've turned AR into an amplifier, and they're here to show you how to do the same. In this episode: Dan on building analyst trust without budget through clear positioning and repeat engagement Lorie on prepping spokespeople and leading briefings with relevance over polish Lynn on aligning teams and delivering consistent, high-value analyst touchpoints Plus: What analysts want from a briefing Why your first 20 minutes set the tone The biggest mistake CMOs still make in prep How to turn analyst feedback into team clarity Tune in to learn how consistent, credible AR earns analyst trust and long-term traction in the market. For full show notes and transcripts, visit https://renegademarketing.com/podcasts/ To learn more about CMO Huddles, visit https://cmohuddles.com/
Daily Soap Opera Spoilers by Soap Dirt (GH, Y&R, B&B, and DOOL)
Click to Subscribe: https://bit.ly/Youtube-Subscribe-SoapDirt Bold and the Beautiful spoilers for July 14-18, 2025 see both Liam Spencer (Scott Clifton) and Luna Nozawa (Lisa Yamada) are shot, with Finn (Tanner Novlan) prioritizing Liam over his own daughter, Luna. The following day, Bridget Forrester (Ashley Jones), Li Finnegan (Naomi Matsuda), and Paris Buckingham (Diamond White) are all involved in operating on the gunshot victims. As Luna's condition worsens, Bill is devastated by the news on the CBS soap opera. B&B spoilers see Bill is confronted with the hard truth about his son, Liam's cancer. The situation worsens when Luna succumbs to her injuries, leaving Finn and the entire Forrester family in mourning. Liam, however, survives his surgery but falls into a coma. Bill deals with a huge amount of guilt, burdened by the knowledge that he played a significant role in the tragic events that unfolded. Steffy and Hope Logan (Annika Noelle) are increasingly worried about Liam's condition, while Li finds herself at odds with her sister, Poppy Nozawa (Romy Park), over Luna's death. Spoilers for Bold and Beautiful see the fallout from Luna's shooting will have far-reaching effects, changing the dynamics among the characters. As the week concludes, the focus shifts to Brooke Logan (Katherine Kelly Lang) and her romance with Nick Marone (Jack Wagner), and Ridge Forrester's (Thorsten Kaye) engagement with Taylor Hayes (Rebecca Budig). The Soap Dirt podcast made the Top 100 List for Apple Podcast's Entertainment News Category. Visit our Bold and the Beautiful section of Soap Dirt: https://soapdirt.com/category/bold-and-the-beautiful/ Listen to our Podcasts: https://soapdirt.podbean.com/ Check out our always up-to-date Bold and the Beautiful Spoilers page at: https://soapdirt.com/bold-and-the-beautiful-spoilers/ Check Out our Social Media... Twitter: https://twitter.com/SoapDirtTV Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/SoapDirt Pinterest: https://www.pinterest.com/soapdirt/ TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@soapdirt Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/soapdirt/
In this episode of Supply Chain Now, hosts Scott Luton and Tevon Taylor chat with Lori Boyer, Head of Content Marketing at EasyPost and host of Unboxing Logistics, to discuss what's ahead for Peak Season 2025, and why it may be the most unpredictable one yet.They explore the key challenges brands are facing, from rising shipping costs and tariffs to shaky consumer confidence and outdated systems. Lori shares findings from EasyPost's latest research, offering practical ways retailers can build flexibility into their operations and stay ahead of volatility. You'll hear why microsurges are reshaping peak season, and why diversifying your carrier mix could make all the difference. For supply chain pros, brand leaders, and operators heading into the busiest time of year, this episode is packed with takeaways you can actually use to stay agile and win peak season, and not just survive it.Jump into the conversation:(00:00) Intro (01:51) Special guest introduction: Lori Boyer (02:39) Unboxing Logistics and EasyPost (07:18) Challenges in the supply chain industry (11:21) External pressures on brands (19:34) Consumer confidence and spending trends (25:52) The rise of microsurges (29:20) Importance of communication and data (33:13) Carrier landscape shifts (39:22) Overcoming legacy systems for peak successResources:Connect with Lori Boyer: https://www.linkedin.com/in/loribboyer/ Learn more about EasyPost: https://www.easypost.com/ Check out Unboxing Logistics: https://www.easypost.com/podcast 5 Ways to Win Peak 2025 with Easy Post: https://bit.ly/3IgVFrbAre you ready for Peak Season? Episode with Forrester: https://bit.ly/4ljviiIConnect with Scott Luton: https://www.linkedin.com/in/scottwindonluton/Connect with Tevon Taylor: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tevontaylor/overlay/contact-info/ Learn more about Supply Chain Now: https://supplychainnow.com Watch and listen to more Supply Chain Now episodes here: https://supplychainnow.com/program/supply-chain-now Subscribe to Supply Chain Now on your favorite platform: https://supplychainnow.com/join Work with us! Download Supply Chain Now's NEW Media Kit: https://bit.ly/3XH6OVkWEBINAR- Transforming Operations: Flowers Foods Unveils Its Digital Supply Chain Revolution:
Before a power crew rolls out to check a transformer, sensors on the grid have often already flagged the problem. Before your smart dishwasher starts its cycle, it might wait for off-peak energy rates. And in the world of autonomous vehicles, lightweight systems constantly scan road conditions before a decision ever reaches the car's central processor.These aren't the heroes of their respective systems. They're the scouts, the context-builders: automated agents that make the entire operation more efficient, timely, and scalable.Cybersecurity is beginning to follow the same path.In an era of relentless digital noise and limited human capacity, AI agents are being deployed to look first, think fast, and flag what matters before security teams ever engage. But these aren't the cartoonish “AI firefighters” some might suggest. They're logical engines operating at scale: pruning data, enriching signals, simulating outcomes, and preparing workflows with precision."AI agents are redefining how security teams operate, especially when time and talent are limited," says Kumar Saurabh, CEO of AirMDR. "These agents do more than filter noise. They interpret signals, build context, and prepare response actions before a human ever gets involved."This shift from reactive firefighting to proactive triage is happening across cybersecurity domains. In detection, AI agents monitor user behavior and flag anomalies in real time, often initiating mitigation actions like isolating compromised devices before escalation is needed. In prevention, they simulate attacker behaviors and pressure-test systems, flagging unseen vulnerabilities and attack paths. In response, they compile investigation-ready case files that allow human analysts to jump straight into action."Low-latency, on-device AI agents can operate closer to the data source, better enabling anomaly detection, threat triaging, and mitigation in milliseconds," explains Shomron Jacob, Head of Applied Machine Learning and Platform at Iterate.ai. "This not only accelerates response but also frees up human analysts to focus on complex, high-impact investigations."Fred Wilmot, Co-Founder and CEO of Detecteam, points out that agentic systems are advancing limited expertise by amplifying professionals in multiple ways. "Large foundation models are driving faster response, greater context and more continuous optimization in places like SOC process and tools, threat hunting, detection engineering and threat intelligence operationalization," Wilmot explains. "We're seeing the dawn of a new way to understand data, behavior and process, while optimizing how we ask the question efficiently, confirm the answer is correct and improve the next answer from the data interaction our agents just had."Still, real-world challenges persist. Costs for tokens and computing power can quickly outstrip the immediate benefit of agentic approaches at scale. Organizations leaning on smaller, customized models may see greater returns but must invest in AI engineering practices to truly realize this advantage. "Companies have to get comfortable with the time and energy required to produce incremental gains," Wilmot adds, "but the incentive to innovate from zero to one in minutes should outweigh the cost of standing still."Analysts at Forrester have noted that while the buzz around so-called agentic AI is real, these systems are only as effective as the context and guardrails they operate within. The power of agentic systems lies in how well they stay grounded in real data, well-defined scopes, and human oversight. ¹ ²While approaches differ, the business case is clear. AI agents can reduce toil, speed up analysis, and extend the reach of small teams. As Saurabh observes, AI agents that handle triage and enrichment in minutes can significantly reduce investigation times and allow analysts to focus on the incidents that truly require human judgment.As organizations wrestle with a growing attack surface and shrinking response windows, the real value of AI agents might not lie in what they replace, but in what they prepare. Rob Allen, Chief Product Officer at ThreatLocker, points out, "AI can help you detect faster. But Zero Trust stops malware before it ever runs. It's not about guessing smarter; it's about not having to guess at all." While AI speeds detection and response, attackers are also using AI to evade defenses, making it vital to pair smart automation with architectures that deny threats by default and only allow what's explicitly needed.These agents are the eyes ahead, the hands that set the table, and increasingly the reason why the real work can begin faster and smarter than ever before.References1. Forrester. (2024, February 8). Cybersecurity's latest buzzword has arrived: What agentic AI is — and isn't. Forrester Blogs. https://www.forrester.com/blogs/cybersecuritys-latest-buzzword-has-arrived-what-agentic-ai-is-and-isnt/ (cc: Allie Mellen and Rowan Curran)2. Forrester. (2024, March 13). The battle for grounding has begun. Forrester Blogs. https://www.forrester.com/blogs/the-battle-for-grounding-has-begun/ (cc: Ted Schadler)________This story represents the results of an interactive collaboration between Human Cognition and Artificial Intelligence.Enjoy, think, share with others, and subscribe to "The Future of Cybersecurity" newsletter on LinkedIn.Sincerely, Sean Martin and TAPE3________Sean Martin is a life-long musician and the host of the Music Evolves Podcast; a career technologist, cybersecurity professional, and host of the Redefining CyberSecurity Podcast; and is also the co-host of both the Random and Unscripted Podcast and On Location Event Coverage Podcast. These shows are all part of ITSPmagazine—which he co-founded with his good friend Marco Ciappelli, to explore and discuss topics at The Intersection of Technology, Cybersecurity, and Society.™️Want to connect with Sean and Marco On Location at an event or conference near you? See where they will be next: https://www.itspmagazine.com/on-locationTo learn more about Sean, visit his personal website.
Before a power crew rolls out to check a transformer, sensors on the grid have often already flagged the problem. Before your smart dishwasher starts its cycle, it might wait for off-peak energy rates. And in the world of autonomous vehicles, lightweight systems constantly scan road conditions before a decision ever reaches the car's central processor.These aren't the heroes of their respective systems. They're the scouts, the context-builders: automated agents that make the entire operation more efficient, timely, and scalable.Cybersecurity is beginning to follow the same path.In an era of relentless digital noise and limited human capacity, AI agents are being deployed to look first, think fast, and flag what matters before security teams ever engage. But these aren't the cartoonish “AI firefighters” some might suggest. They're logical engines operating at scale: pruning data, enriching signals, simulating outcomes, and preparing workflows with precision."AI agents are redefining how security teams operate, especially when time and talent are limited," says Kumar Saurabh, CEO of AirMDR. "These agents do more than filter noise. They interpret signals, build context, and prepare response actions before a human ever gets involved."This shift from reactive firefighting to proactive triage is happening across cybersecurity domains. In detection, AI agents monitor user behavior and flag anomalies in real time, often initiating mitigation actions like isolating compromised devices before escalation is needed. In prevention, they simulate attacker behaviors and pressure-test systems, flagging unseen vulnerabilities and attack paths. In response, they compile investigation-ready case files that allow human analysts to jump straight into action."Low-latency, on-device AI agents can operate closer to the data source, better enabling anomaly detection, threat triaging, and mitigation in milliseconds," explains Shomron Jacob, Head of Applied Machine Learning and Platform at Iterate.ai. "This not only accelerates response but also frees up human analysts to focus on complex, high-impact investigations."Fred Wilmot, Co-Founder and CEO of Detecteam, points out that agentic systems are advancing limited expertise by amplifying professionals in multiple ways. "Large foundation models are driving faster response, greater context and more continuous optimization in places like SOC process and tools, threat hunting, detection engineering and threat intelligence operationalization," Wilmot explains. "We're seeing the dawn of a new way to understand data, behavior and process, while optimizing how we ask the question efficiently, confirm the answer is correct and improve the next answer from the data interaction our agents just had."Still, real-world challenges persist. Costs for tokens and computing power can quickly outstrip the immediate benefit of agentic approaches at scale. Organizations leaning on smaller, customized models may see greater returns but must invest in AI engineering practices to truly realize this advantage. "Companies have to get comfortable with the time and energy required to produce incremental gains," Wilmot adds, "but the incentive to innovate from zero to one in minutes should outweigh the cost of standing still."Analysts at Forrester have noted that while the buzz around so-called agentic AI is real, these systems are only as effective as the context and guardrails they operate within. The power of agentic systems lies in how well they stay grounded in real data, well-defined scopes, and human oversight. ¹ ²While approaches differ, the business case is clear. AI agents can reduce toil, speed up analysis, and extend the reach of small teams. As Saurabh observes, AI agents that handle triage and enrichment in minutes can significantly reduce investigation times and allow analysts to focus on the incidents that truly require human judgment.As organizations wrestle with a growing attack surface and shrinking response windows, the real value of AI agents might not lie in what they replace, but in what they prepare. Rob Allen, Chief Product Officer at ThreatLocker, points out, "AI can help you detect faster. But Zero Trust stops malware before it ever runs. It's not about guessing smarter; it's about not having to guess at all." While AI speeds detection and response, attackers are also using AI to evade defenses, making it vital to pair smart automation with architectures that deny threats by default and only allow what's explicitly needed.These agents are the eyes ahead, the hands that set the table, and increasingly the reason why the real work can begin faster and smarter than ever before.References1. Forrester. (2024, February 8). Cybersecurity's latest buzzword has arrived: What agentic AI is — and isn't. Forrester Blogs. https://www.forrester.com/blogs/cybersecuritys-latest-buzzword-has-arrived-what-agentic-ai-is-and-isnt/ (cc: Allie Mellen and Rowan Curran)2. Forrester. (2024, March 13). The battle for grounding has begun. Forrester Blogs. https://www.forrester.com/blogs/the-battle-for-grounding-has-begun/ (cc: Ted Schadler)________This story represents the results of an interactive collaboration between Human Cognition and Artificial Intelligence.Enjoy, think, share with others, and subscribe to "The Future of Cybersecurity" newsletter on LinkedIn.Sincerely, Sean Martin and TAPE3________Sean Martin is a life-long musician and the host of the Music Evolves Podcast; a career technologist, cybersecurity professional, and host of the Redefining CyberSecurity Podcast; and is also the co-host of both the Random and Unscripted Podcast and On Location Event Coverage Podcast. These shows are all part of ITSPmagazine—which he co-founded with his good friend Marco Ciappelli, to explore and discuss topics at The Intersection of Technology, Cybersecurity, and Society.™️Want to connect with Sean and Marco On Location at an event or conference near you? See where they will be next: https://www.itspmagazine.com/on-locationTo learn more about Sean, visit his personal website.
If your brand can't hold a consumer's focus for eight seconds, what makes you think you deserve nine? We are here at Forrester CX in Nashville, TN and hearing all about the latest insights and ideas for brands to create better experiences for their customers. Agility isn't speed for speed's sake; it's the discipline of staying useful while everything—and everyone—spins. In an era when consumers swipe away in milliseconds, an agile brand has to win attention before the next notification does. Today we're unpacking how to win and retain the distracted consumer with Kelsey Chickering, Principal Analyst at Forrester. About Kelsey Chickering Kelsey is a principal analyst at Forrester, focused on media as it relates to marketing strategy. She brings strategic thinking grounded in a deep understanding of the media and advertising ecosystem to clients. Her research uncovers best practices, emerging trends, and critical shifts in consumer behavior that impact how brands should behave in an ever-evolving media landscape. Her consumer-first thinking is underpinned by a communications planning backbone, emphasizing the interplay between media touchpoints across the consumer journey that work together to drive growth for B2C marketing executives. Resources Forrester: https://www.forrester.com https://www.forrester.com Catch the future of e-commerce at eTail Boston, August 11-14, 2025. Register now: https://bit.ly/etailboston and use code PARTNER20 for 20% off for retailers and brands Don't Miss MAICON 2025, October 14-16 in Cleveland - the event bringing together the brights minds and leading voices in AI. Use Code AGILE150 for $150 off registration. Go here to register: https://bit.ly/agile150" Connect with Greg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregkihlstromDon't miss a thing: get the latest episodes, sign up for our newsletter and more: https://www.theagilebrand.show Check out The Agile Brand Guide website with articles, insights, and Martechipedia, the wiki for marketing technology: https://www.agilebrandguide.com The Agile Brand is produced by Missing Link—a Latina-owned strategy-driven, creatively fueled production co-op. From ideation to creation, they craft human connections through intelligent, engaging and informative content. https://www.missinglink.company
Revs. John Stephens and Matt Russell sit down with renowned child psychologist Dr. Michelle Forrester in a timely and practical podcast episode. Dr. Forrester will share guidance to help your children (and you) process their feelings, answer difficult questions, and nurture resilience and comfort during challenging times. Chapelwood.org/Resources
If your brand can't hold a consumer's focus for eight seconds, what makes you think you deserve nine? We are here at Forrester CX in Nashville, TN and hearing all about the latest insights and ideas for brands to create better experiences for their customers. Agility isn't speed for speed's sake; it's the discipline of staying useful while everything—and everyone—spins. In an era when consumers swipe away in milliseconds, an agile brand has to win attention before the next notification does. Today we're unpacking how to win and retain the distracted consumer with Kelsey Chickering, Principal Analyst at Forrester. About Kelsey Chickering Kelsey is a principal analyst at Forrester, focused on media as it relates to marketing strategy. She brings strategic thinking grounded in a deep understanding of the media and advertising ecosystem to clients. Her research uncovers best practices, emerging trends, and critical shifts in consumer behavior that impact how brands should behave in an ever-evolving media landscape. Her consumer-first thinking is underpinned by a communications planning backbone, emphasizing the interplay between media touchpoints across the consumer journey that work together to drive growth for B2C marketing executives. Resources Forrester: https://www.forrester.com https://www.forrester.com Catch the future of e-commerce at eTail Boston, August 11-14, 2025. Register now: https://bit.ly/etailboston and use code PARTNER20 for 20% off for retailers and brands Don't Miss MAICON 2025, October 14-16 in Cleveland - the event bringing together the brights minds and leading voices in AI. Use Code AGILE150 for $150 off registration. Go here to register: https://bit.ly/agile150" Connect with Greg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregkihlstromDon't miss a thing: get the latest episodes, sign up for our newsletter and more: https://www.theagilebrand.show Check out The Agile Brand Guide website with articles, insights, and Martechipedia, the wiki for marketing technology: https://www.agilebrandguide.com The Agile Brand is produced by Missing Link—a Latina-owned strategy-driven, creatively fueled production co-op. From ideation to creation, they craft human connections through intelligent, engaging and informative content. https://www.missinglink.company
In this episode of Tech Talks Daily, I speak with Syed Zaeem Hosain, Founder and Chief Evangelist at Aeris. This conversation comes at a critical moment. Deloitte's 2024 Cyber Threat Trends Report reported a 400 percent surge in IoT malware attacks across industries. Forrester has gone further, warning that a major IoT breach could disrupt a large class of devices by 2025. With the stakes higher than ever, Aziz shares his vision for protecting a hyperconnected world. We explore the growing risks in sectors like healthcare, energy and transportation, where compromised devices could have serious real-world impact. Aziz explains why IoT security can no longer be treated as an afterthought and how Aeris is tackling the problem with AI-powered solutions like IoT Watchtower, designed to detect and respond to threats at scale. He also addresses the shifting regulatory landscape, from the EU's NIS2 Directive to the upcoming Cyber Resilience Act. These frameworks are beginning to push organisations toward stronger protections and greater accountability. But are they moving fast enough? My guest outlines where he believes the future of IoT security is heading and what enterprises need to do now to avoid being caught off guard. From embedded AI to next-generation cellular infrastructure, this is a conversation that connects the dots between innovation, risk and responsibility. So how prepared is your organisation for the coming wave of IoT threats? Are we securing what matters most, or sleepwalking into a preventable crisis? Let me know what you think. Is IoT security finally getting the attention it deserves, or are we still too focused on convenience over caution? Join the conversation and share your thoughts. Check out the Internet of Things for Business book.
We are here at Forrester CX in Nashville, TN and hearing all about the latest insights and ideas for brands to create better experiences for their customers. If your AI roadmap doesn't include your customer, is it really a roadmap—or just a bridge to nowhere? Agility requires remembering who pays the bills: the customer. When shiny new tech shows up, it's tempting to sprint after it—often leaving the actual human in our dust. Today we're talking about staying customer-first in the race to adopt agentic AI. To help me dig in, please welcome Stephanie Liu, Senior Analyst at Forrester. Stephanie—welcome to the show! About Stephanie Liu Steph focuses on the intersection of marketing and privacy. She guides clients on how to strike a delicate balance between privacy, trust, and consumer expectations, all while navigating a rapidly shifting data deprecation landscape that spans consumers' privacy-protecting behaviors, regulation, tech limitations, and walled gardens. She examines topics like zero-party data, preference centers, data clean rooms, the customer data ecosystem, and how to deliver experiences that are personalized without being creepy. Steph has been quoted in publications such as the New York Times, CNBC, The Markup, Marketplace, and AdWeek; her work has featured in AdExchanger, Forbes, and elsewhere. Resources Forrester: https://www.forrester.com https://www.forrester.com Catch the future of e-commerce at eTail Boston, August 11-14, 2025. Register now: https://bit.ly/etailboston and use code PARTNER20 for 20% off for retailers and brands Don't Miss MAICON 2025, October 14-16 in Cleveland - the event bringing together the brights minds and leading voices in AI. Use Code AGILE150 for $150 off registration. Go here to register: https://bit.ly/agile150" Connect with Greg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregkihlstromDon't miss a thing: get the latest episodes, sign up for our newsletter and more: https://www.theagilebrand.show Check out The Agile Brand Guide website with articles, insights, and Martechipedia, the wiki for marketing technology: https://www.agilebrandguide.com The Agile Brand is produced by Missing Link—a Latina-owned strategy-driven, creatively fueled production co-op. From ideation to creation, they craft human connections through intelligent, engaging and informative content. https://www.missinglink.company
It's a #WouldYouRatherWednesday edition of Glenn Clark Radio and we welcome back Grant DeVivo, who's in for Griffin Bass. We'll discuss a rough night for the Birds against Jacob deGrom and tonight's rubber match against Nathan Eovaldi. In Hour 1, Jerry Coleman (Bmore Baseball Podcast) joins us to discuss Wimbledon and the burden he is in Grant's life. At the top of Hour 2, Jonathan Mayo (MLB Network/MLB Pipeline) joins us to discuss their new Top 100 prospects list with just one Oriole, Samuel Basallo. Near the end of Hour 2, MASN's Ben McDonald checks in to discuss "Joo-lye" baseball, Trevor Rogers' turnaround and why he wouldn't trade Dean Kremer. To wrap the show, Drew Forrester (DrewsMorningDish.com/105.7 The Fan) checks in to discuss...whatever might be on his mind.
We are here at Forrester CX in Nashville, TN and hearing all about the latest insights and ideas for brands to create better experiences for their customers. If your AI roadmap doesn't include your customer, is it really a roadmap—or just a bridge to nowhere? Agility requires remembering who pays the bills: the customer. When shiny new tech shows up, it's tempting to sprint after it—often leaving the actual human in our dust. Today we're talking about staying customer-first in the race to adopt agentic AI. To help me dig in, please welcome Stephanie Liu, Senior Analyst at Forrester. Stephanie—welcome to the show! About Stephanie Liu Steph focuses on the intersection of marketing and privacy. She guides clients on how to strike a delicate balance between privacy, trust, and consumer expectations, all while navigating a rapidly shifting data deprecation landscape that spans consumers' privacy-protecting behaviors, regulation, tech limitations, and walled gardens. She examines topics like zero-party data, preference centers, data clean rooms, the customer data ecosystem, and how to deliver experiences that are personalized without being creepy. Steph has been quoted in publications such as the New York Times, CNBC, The Markup, Marketplace, and AdWeek; her work has featured in AdExchanger, Forbes, and elsewhere. Resources Forrester: https://www.forrester.com https://www.forrester.com Catch the future of e-commerce at eTail Boston, August 11-14, 2025. Register now: https://bit.ly/etailboston and use code PARTNER20 for 20% off for retailers and brands Don't Miss MAICON 2025, October 14-16 in Cleveland - the event bringing together the brights minds and leading voices in AI. Use Code AGILE150 for $150 off registration. Go here to register: https://bit.ly/agile150" Connect with Greg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregkihlstromDon't miss a thing: get the latest episodes, sign up for our newsletter and more: https://www.theagilebrand.show Check out The Agile Brand Guide website with articles, insights, and Martechipedia, the wiki for marketing technology: https://www.agilebrandguide.com The Agile Brand is produced by Missing Link—a Latina-owned strategy-driven, creatively fueled production co-op. From ideation to creation, they craft human connections through intelligent, engaging and informative content. https://www.missinglink.company
Does your AI-based interface talk to customers the way a real person would or is it tech for tech's sake? We are here at Forrester CX in Nashville, TN and hearing all about the latest insights and ideas for brands to create better experiences for their customers. Agility is less about bolting on new features just because the tech is available and more about making tomorrow's experiences feel intuitive and natural to the end customer using them. Today we're diving into designing for the future of experiences with AJ Joplin, Senior Analyst at Forrester. About AJ Joplin AJ is the lead analyst for Forrester's research on experience design (XD), design organizations, and design leadership. Helping XD and customer experience (CX) leaders develop and deliver on research-based strategy is AJ's professional passion. She has observed that the most effective organizations combine clear purpose with the right people and leverage systems to clarify decision-making, prioritization, and workflows. AJ also has years of workshop facilitation experience in human-centered design and design thinking. Using her professional coaching skills, AJ bring clients through ambiguity and into alignment on what matters and what's next. Resources Forrester: https://www.forrester.com https://www.forrester.com Catch the future of e-commerce at eTail Boston, August 11-14, 2025. Register now: https://bit.ly/etailboston and use code PARTNER20 for 20% off for retailers and brandsDon't Miss MAICON 2025, October 14-16 in Cleveland - the event bringing together the brights minds and leading voices in AI. Use Code AGILE150 for $150 off registration. Go here to register: https://bit.ly/agile150" Connect with Greg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregkihlstromDon't miss a thing: get the latest episodes, sign up for our newsletter and more: https://www.theagilebrand.show Check out The Agile Brand Guide website with articles, insights, and Martechipedia, the wiki for marketing technology: https://www.agilebrandguide.com The Agile Brand is produced by Missing Link—a Latina-owned strategy-driven, creatively fueled production co-op. From ideation to creation, they craft human connections through intelligent, engaging and informative content. https://www.missinglink.company
Does your AI-based interface talk to customers the way a real person would or is it tech for tech's sake? We are here at Forrester CX in Nashville, TN and hearing all about the latest insights and ideas for brands to create better experiences for their customers. Agility is less about bolting on new features just because the tech is available and more about making tomorrow's experiences feel intuitive and natural to the end customer using them. Today we're diving into designing for the future of experiences with AJ Joplin, Senior Analyst at Forrester. About AJ Joplin AJ is the lead analyst for Forrester's research on experience design (XD), design organizations, and design leadership. Helping XD and customer experience (CX) leaders develop and deliver on research-based strategy is AJ's professional passion. She has observed that the most effective organizations combine clear purpose with the right people and leverage systems to clarify decision-making, prioritization, and workflows. AJ also has years of workshop facilitation experience in human-centered design and design thinking. Using her professional coaching skills, AJ bring clients through ambiguity and into alignment on what matters and what's next. Resources Forrester: https://www.forrester.com https://www.forrester.com Catch the future of e-commerce at eTail Boston, August 11-14, 2025. Register now: https://bit.ly/etailboston and use code PARTNER20 for 20% off for retailers and brandsDon't Miss MAICON 2025, October 14-16 in Cleveland - the event bringing together the brights minds and leading voices in AI. Use Code AGILE150 for $150 off registration. Go here to register: https://bit.ly/agile150" Connect with Greg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregkihlstromDon't miss a thing: get the latest episodes, sign up for our newsletter and more: https://www.theagilebrand.show Check out The Agile Brand Guide website with articles, insights, and Martechipedia, the wiki for marketing technology: https://www.agilebrandguide.com The Agile Brand is produced by Missing Link—a Latina-owned strategy-driven, creatively fueled production co-op. From ideation to creation, they craft human connections through intelligent, engaging and informative content. https://www.missinglink.company
If AI can amplify every employee's reach ten-fold, how ready is your organization to harness that network effect? We are here at Forrester CX in Nashville, TN and hearing all about the latest insights and ideas for brands to create better experiences for their customers. Agility isn't about adding more tech; it's about multiplying human impact. Today we're exploring the network effect of AI and how it helps employees create powerful experiences with Jay Pattisall, VP & Principal Analyst at Forrester. About Jay Pattisall Jay's research focuses on marketing services (creative, media, digital, in-house agencies); AI marketing (applications of generative and predictive AI to media and content); and genAI for visual content technologies. Jay helps CMOs and business leaders make sense of the complex and ever-changing marketing services landscape as it embraces AI and automation technologies as part of media management, creative services, and the future of agencies. Resources Forrester: https://www.forrester.com https://www.forrester.com Catch the future of e-commerce at eTail Boston, August 11-14, 2025. Register now: https://bit.ly/etailboston and use code PARTNER20 for 20% off for retailers and brands. Don't Miss MAICON 2025, October 14-16 in Cleveland - the event bringing together the brights minds and leading voices in AI. Use Code AGILE150 for $150 off registration. Go here to register: https://bit.ly/agile150" Connect with Greg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/gregkihlstromDon't miss a thing: get the latest episodes, sign up for our newsletter and more: https://www.theagilebrand.show Check out The Agile Brand Guide website with articles, insights, and Martechipedia, the wiki for marketing technology: https://www.agilebrandguide.com The Agile Brand is produced by Missing Link—a Latina-owned strategy-driven, creatively fueled production co-op. From ideation to creation, they craft human connections through intelligent, engaging and informative content. https://www.missinglink.company
From pickleball to nuclear energy, this week's episode covers a lot of ground. Listen in as Forrester analysts put three recent business headlines into context for sales, marketing, and technology leaders.
A woman's search for her father—a pilot who disappeared during a mission in Vietnam—collides with the fight over what we owe those who never returned from war. From the producers of "White Hats," "America's Girls," and "Tom Brown's Body," and hosted by Texas Monthly writer Josh Alvarez, "The Final Flight of Captain Forrester" is out now.Texas Monthly Audio subscribers get early access to the show, plus bonus episodes and more subscriber-only audio. Visit texasmonthly.com/audio to learn more.
In this episode, Mandy Logan, Summer Craze Fowler, Jason Albuquerque, and Jeff Pollard of Forrester discuss the challenges and strategies for CISOs in navigating volatility in the security landscape. They emphasize the importance of building relationships within the organization, particularly with the CFO, to manage budgets effectively. The conversation also covers the significance of communicating security needs in terms of compliance and customer requirements, maximizing budget through flex spending, and the role of automation and AI in enhancing security operations. Additionally, they highlight the need for effective data management to reduce costs and improve efficiency. In pre-recorded interviews from RSAC, learn the following! With the power of zero trust and AI, Zscaler help organizations strengthen and automate IT and security, reduce costs, and minimize complexity. Zscaler helps reduce the attack surface, block threats via full TLS inspection, and eliminate lateral threat movement. This segment is sponsored by Zscaler. Visit https://securityweekly.com/zscalerrsac to learn more about them! The modern workspace, increasingly reliant on cloud-based applications, browser-first access, and AI integration, faces significant security challenges that outpace the capabilities of traditional tools. Legacy solutions, including VPNs and even early ZTNA implementations, are proving vulnerable to sophisticated attacks leading to data breaches and operational disruptions. The fundamental shift in how we work demands a new approach, one that closes the gaps left by the platform approach. We need the ability to 'trust nothing and click on anything with zero risk.' We need to take zero trust beyond the network that we operate and control. Future of Browser Security Webinar with Google: https://www.menlosecurity.com/resources/2025-prediction-the-future-of-browser-security-lessons-from-the-pioneers Browser security report: https://www.menlosecurity.com/resources/state-of-browser-security-report Global Cyber Gangs report: https://www.menlosecurity.com/resources/global-cyber-gangs-supported-and-sheltered-by-state-sponsors-and-getting-smarter-every-day-report Everywhere Access White Paper: https://www.menlosecurity.com/resources/everywhere-access-the-zero-trust-revolution-for-hybrid-work-white-paper This segment is sponsored by Menlo Security. Visit https://securityweekly.com/menlorsac to learn more about them! Visit https://www.securityweekly.com/bsw for all the latest episodes! Show Notes: https://securityweekly.com/bsw-401
This week, our host, Ian Truscott, and Principal Analyst at Cleantech Insiders, Jeff Clark, dive into budget benchmarks as Ian picks Jeff's brain about his experience doing this for enterprise clients at Forrester. They discuss Jeff's 5 tips: Why is benchmarking important? Don't confuse a peer set with your competitive landscape Comparing apples with apples - STARS model Understand what the benchmark considers to be marketing budget Determine the timeframe to align with benchmarks and goals As always, we welcome your feedback. If you have a suggestion for a topic that's hot for you that we should discuss, please get in touch using the links below. Enjoy! — The Links The people: Ian Truscott on LinkedIn and Bluesky Jeff Clark on LinkedIn Mentioned this week: The CMO Survey Jeff's firm - Cleantech Insiders Ian's new firm - Velocity B Rockstar CMO: The Beat Newsletter that we send every Monday Rockstar CMO on the web, Twitter, and LinkedIn Previous episodes and all the show notes: Rockstar CMO FM. Track List: Stienski & Mass Media - We'll be right back Cee Lo Green - Forget You (2010) You can listen to this on all good podcast platforms, like Apple, Amazon, and Spotify. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
In this episode, Mandy Logan, Summer Craze Fowler, Jason Albuquerque, and Jeff Pollard of Forrester discuss the challenges and strategies for CISOs in navigating volatility in the security landscape. They emphasize the importance of building relationships within the organization, particularly with the CFO, to manage budgets effectively. The conversation also covers the significance of communicating security needs in terms of compliance and customer requirements, maximizing budget through flex spending, and the role of automation and AI in enhancing security operations. Additionally, they highlight the need for effective data management to reduce costs and improve efficiency. In pre-recorded interviews from RSAC, learn the following! With the power of zero trust and AI, Zscaler help organizations strengthen and automate IT and security, reduce costs, and minimize complexity. Zscaler helps reduce the attack surface, block threats via full TLS inspection, and eliminate lateral threat movement. This segment is sponsored by Zscaler. Visit https://securityweekly.com/zscalerrsac to learn more about them! The modern workspace, increasingly reliant on cloud-based applications, browser-first access, and AI integration, faces significant security challenges that outpace the capabilities of traditional tools. Legacy solutions, including VPNs and even early ZTNA implementations, are proving vulnerable to sophisticated attacks leading to data breaches and operational disruptions. The fundamental shift in how we work demands a new approach, one that closes the gaps left by the platform approach. We need the ability to 'trust nothing and click on anything with zero risk.' We need to take zero trust beyond the network that we operate and control. Future of Browser Security Webinar with Google: https://www.menlosecurity.com/resources/2025-prediction-the-future-of-browser-security-lessons-from-the-pioneers Browser security report: https://www.menlosecurity.com/resources/state-of-browser-security-report Global Cyber Gangs report: https://www.menlosecurity.com/resources/global-cyber-gangs-supported-and-sheltered-by-state-sponsors-and-getting-smarter-every-day-report Everywhere Access White Paper: https://www.menlosecurity.com/resources/everywhere-access-the-zero-trust-revolution-for-hybrid-work-white-paper This segment is sponsored by Menlo Security. Visit https://securityweekly.com/menlorsac to learn more about them! Visit https://www.securityweekly.com/bsw for all the latest episodes! Show Notes: https://securityweekly.com/bsw-401
Welcome into a Would You Rather Wednesday edition of Glenn Clark Radio, plenty to cover on the program after another Orioles loss in a game in which there was no chance they could win, then felt like they had to win, and lost anyway. We'll dive into all as we head into a rubber match with Texas and Jacob DeGrom on the mound vs Brandon Young… Plus, we'll dive into the NFL's collusion case, Lamar Jackson and EDC's involvement and everything else coming out from it. It is a Wednesday, so that means Drew Forrester will be here in studio with us as we talk O's, a little NBA with the Draft tonight and a new NBA Finals champ since Drew was last here, and we'll of course play some Would You Rather. At 11am, we'll dive into the NFL collusion case with Mike Florio of ProFootballTalk after exposing all the collusion between owners, namely surrounding QB contracts, like DeShaun Watson, Kyler Murray, Lamar Jackson and lots more. At 11:30am, we are going to switch back to baseball with the great Buck Showalter who saw the Orioles up close Sunday in New York after being on the call!
In this episode, Mandy Logan, Summer Craze Fowler, Jason Albuquerque, and Jeff Pollard of Forrester discuss the challenges and strategies for CISOs in navigating volatility in the security landscape. They emphasize the importance of building relationships within the organization, particularly with the CFO, to manage budgets effectively. The conversation also covers the significance of communicating security needs in terms of compliance and customer requirements, maximizing budget through flex spending, and the role of automation and AI in enhancing security operations. Additionally, they highlight the need for effective data management to reduce costs and improve efficiency. In pre-recorded interviews from RSAC, learn the following! With the power of zero trust and AI, Zscaler help organizations strengthen and automate IT and security, reduce costs, and minimize complexity. Zscaler helps reduce the attack surface, block threats via full TLS inspection, and eliminate lateral threat movement. This segment is sponsored by Zscaler. Visit https://securityweekly.com/zscalerrsac to learn more about them! The modern workspace, increasingly reliant on cloud-based applications, browser-first access, and AI integration, faces significant security challenges that outpace the capabilities of traditional tools. Legacy solutions, including VPNs and even early ZTNA implementations, are proving vulnerable to sophisticated attacks leading to data breaches and operational disruptions. The fundamental shift in how we work demands a new approach, one that closes the gaps left by the platform approach. We need the ability to 'trust nothing and click on anything with zero risk.' We need to take zero trust beyond the network that we operate and control. Future of Browser Security Webinar with Google: https://www.menlosecurity.com/resources/2025-prediction-the-future-of-browser-security-lessons-from-the-pioneers Browser security report: https://www.menlosecurity.com/resources/state-of-browser-security-report Global Cyber Gangs report: https://www.menlosecurity.com/resources/global-cyber-gangs-supported-and-sheltered-by-state-sponsors-and-getting-smarter-every-day-report Everywhere Access White Paper: https://www.menlosecurity.com/resources/everywhere-access-the-zero-trust-revolution-for-hybrid-work-white-paper This segment is sponsored by Menlo Security. Visit https://securityweekly.com/menlorsac to learn more about them! Show Notes: https://securityweekly.com/bsw-401
In this episode, we delve into the complex and ongoing journey of digital transformation in banking with two leading voices in the field: Don Free, formerly a lead analyst at Gartner, and Jost Hoppermann, formerly a lead analyst at Forrester. Now operating as independent experts at Angry Rabbit, Don and Jost bring candid insights into how digital transformation is unfolding across banking tiers and global regions. They explore why transformation cannot be treated as a one-off initiative but must instead become a core part of a bank's operating model. A central theme is composability; both its potential and its pitfalls. Jost explains why composable architecture often fails to live up to expectations, citing architectural complexity and poor integration as common stumbling blocks. Together they highlight recurring mistakes made by banks on the digital journey, from ‘honeymoon trust' in vendors, to superficial ‘core cloning', to inadequate data governance. They argue for a more adaptive, evolutionary approach that blends strategic planning with flexible, modular architecture. The conversation is a timely reminder that digital transformation is not a destination. It is an ongoing, adaptive process essential for keeping pace with technological shifts and regulatory change.
Bible StudyDon't just take our word for it . . . take His! We would encourage you to spend time examining the following Scriptures that shaped this sermon: Mark 12:28-34, Col 3:23-25, Rom 12:1, 1 Pet 2:9.Sermon NotesI. Introduction: Restoring What's BrokenIllustration: Restoring furniture — sometimes better than new.Recap of the series:Week 1 – Creation: Work is good. (Listen here)Week 2 – Fall: Work is broken by sin. (Listen here)Week 3 – Redemption: Jesus is making all things new — including our work.II. Big Biblical Truth – Revelation 21:5“Behold, I am making all things new.”Not “all new things” — but “all things new.”Present tense: Jesus is doing this now.Redemption includes more than souls — it includes work.III. Three Ways to Integrate Faith and Work1. Do Good WorkChristian work should be excellent, honest, dependable.Colossians 3:23–24 — Work for the Lord, not just for people.Keep growing in skill, creativity, and integrity.Guardrail: Excellence ≠ perfectionism or workaholism.2. Serve Others Through Your WorkWork connects us to others; we meet real needs.Luther: God provides through everyday vocations (farmers, bakers…).Purpose matters: Chick-fil-A example — work as a positive influence.You can serve others through your work, even if your workplace doesn't.3. Worship Through Your WorkWe are a priesthood of believers (1 Peter 2:9).Romans 12:1 — Offer your bodies (and work) as a living sacrifice.Visual: Imagine lifting your work up to God each day in worship.“Lord, I offer my work to You…”Sermon ApplicationDiscussion Questions:Do you feel "called" to your job? Why or why not? What makes a job a calling?What's the difference between Jesus making all new things vs. all things new? Why is that distinction important for work?What makes for good work in a Christian perspective?Describe a time when you were the most satisfied in your work. What contributed to this satisfaction?If your work is not perfect, can you still lift it up to the Lord as an act of worship?Questions?Do you have a question about today's sermon? Email Randy Forrester ().
Supermetrics, the leading Marketing Intelligence Platform, has announced the acquisition of Relay42, a leading, real-time Customer Data Platform, for an undisclosed amount. Supermetrics has rapidly grown its Irish operations since opening its Dublin office in 2021, now employing 40 team members, including key leadership roles in sales & marketing, finance and HR and boasting Irish customers such as Glanbia, Kingspan and Permanent TSB. With this acquisition, it becomes the only Marketing Intelligence Platform to unify data integration, analysis and activation into a composable, marketer-friendly platform. By combining Supermetrics' powerful marketing intelligence capabilities with Relay42's real-time personalisation technology, marketers can now connect insights with action more easily than ever. Together, the companies will deliver the industry's first end-to-end marketing intelligence platform - one that connects data performance, customer behaviour, and revenue outcomes in a single, intelligent system. According to Forrester, Marketers globally are set to continue increasing their spend in marketing technology at 13% annually over the coming years, with the segment expecting to reach $215bn in annual value by 2027. As part of Supermetrics' strategy to broaden beyond its existing core data pipeline capabilities into agentic AI. customer data platform and analytics capabilities, it is positioned well to be able to realise considerable growth with this segment over the coming years. "Supermetrics is the pioneer of the evolving Marketing Intelligence category, with more than 200,000 businesses already leveraging our technology," said Anssi Rusi, CEO of Supermetrics. "We firmly believe that Marketing Intelligence can only truly deliver on its promise if it seamlessly combines data analysis with action. With this acquisition, we're delivering on that promise, combining real-time data with AI decisioning and cross-channel optimisation. We're creating a platform that empowers marketers to unify their marketing performance and 1st party customer data into a single view, and use it to dynamically engage customers with the right message at every touchpoint." Founded in 2011, Relay42's enterprise-grade Customer Data Platform unifies customer data and enables audience building, targeting and personalised experiences across digital and offline channels, including email, web, apps, and programmatic advertising. "We built Relay42 to help businesses turn siloed customer data into optimised customer journeys that drive business growth," said Relay42 CEO Christiaan van der Waal. "Now, as part of Supermetrics, we can democratise the power of the Relay42 platform to the 1000s of businesses globally that already use Supermetrics, and augment Relay42 with Supermetrics' rich set of data integrations spanning performance marketing, e-commerce, CRM and 1st party data. Together, we'll deliver on our shared vision to enable businesses of all sizes to leverage the power of real-time journey orchestration to create smarter, more relevant customer experiences." Supermetrics and Relay42 customers will see integrated capabilities roll out in the coming months, including new AI Agent-driven workflows that further automate data analysis, decisioning and activation. See more stories here.
Sam sits down with Iain Forrester to talk about his lifelong fascination with the history of the game, and in particular hickory golf. Iain is the 5th generation of a golfing family, who having learnt the game and becoming a professional in the UK, moved to The Netherlands at Hoenshuis Golf & Country Club where he is the resident professional. Iain has a staggering collection of golf books and hickory clubs, a frequent contributor to British golf collectors society journal 'Through The Green', and the official archivist the PGA of Holland. He is also a masterful hickory player, and one of the biggest distributors and club fitters in Europe and UK. He can be contacted on X on @ForresterInfo or his website here. If you've enjoyed this episode, please leave us a review on Apple Podcasts or Spotify!You can follow us along below @cookiejargolf Instagram / Facebook / Twitter / YouTube / Website
It's a Would You Rather Wednesday here on GCR as we dive into the Orioles after a 5-1 road win in Tampa last night, we'll talk all about the birds actually getting some hits with runners in scoring position and see if they can keep the momentum going with Trevor Rogers on the mound tonight. We'll touch on the hockey as the Florida Panthers make themselves back-to-back Stanley Cup Final Champs in dominant fashion over the Oilers in game 6 last night. At 10:30am, we will have a chance to meet a member of the USMNT who was also born in Baltimore, Alex Freeman, who made his first USMNT this Summer and played all 90' in team USA's 5-0 win over Trinidad & Tobago in game 1 of the Gold Cup Sunday night. At 10:45am, we are going to switch gears to talk lacrosse with a Maryland legend, Jared Bernhardt, who is now a member of the Denver Outlaws, we'll talk all about his return to lacrosse after a stint in the NFL, the PLL coming to Homewood Field this weekend and much more. Then in the second hour, we expect our good buddy Drew Forrester to be here as we talk NBA Finals, US Open, Stanley Cup Final, Orioles, Ravens, Would You Rather and so much more!
Bible StudyDon't just take our word for it . . . take His! We would encourage you to spend time examining the following Scriptures that shaped this sermon: .Sermon NotesI. The Fall and the Corruption of Work (Genesis 3)Sin enters through Adam and Eve's disobedience.Consequences: shame, hiding from God, broken partnership.Work is cursed:Pain in childbirth and relational struggle.Toil and frustration in labor (thorns, thistles, broken systems).Humanity tried to do life apart from God — the result is broken work.II. Three Pitfalls That Distort Work1. Individualism – Caring Too Much About Ourselves in WorkLuke 12: The rich fool stores wealth and speaks only to himself.God is absent from his plans and gratitude.Diagnostic questions:Is God your reference point?Do you use work to serve others?2. Idleness – Caring Too Little About the Work Itself2 Thessalonians 3: warning against laziness and not working.Broader definition of work: includes unpaid, volunteer, home-based.Matthew 25: Parable of the talents — don't bury your gifts.Idleness can stem from fear, not just laziness.3. Idolatry – Caring Too Much About WorkWork becomes identity or self-worth.Examples: over-identifying with parenting, business success, or ministry.Signs of idolatry:Can't stop working.Refusal to rest or Sabbath.Reminder of 6+1 rhythm of work and rest from creation.III. The Way Forward: The Cross and the SpiritThe Cross: Where we bring our sin and receive forgiveness.The Spirit: Empowerment for change and restored partnership with God.Through the Spirit, we can:Reject the lies of individualism, idleness, and idolatry.Embrace a God-centered, Spirit-empowered vision for work.Sermon ApplicationDiscussion Questions:What is one way you experience the distortion of work on a regular basis?To which of the pitfalls of work are you most susceptible?If you don't like your job, can you still honor God in it? How?If someone's work is raising kids, what might sabbath look like?Additional ResourcesThe Gospel at Work by Sebastian Traeger and Greg GilbertQuestions?Do you have a question about today's sermon? Email Randy Forrester ().
Welcome into a Would You Rather Wednesday of Glenn Clark Radio, Orioles fall to the Tigers last night and fall back to 13 games under .500, we'll talk all about it, what the O's are doing at the trade deadline and plenty more. It's a Wednesday so our buddy Drew Forrester of DrewsMorningDish.com will be hanging out in studio as we'll talk US Open, maybe some US Soccer, NBA Finals, Stanley Cup Final and whatever else is on Forrester's mind as long as he's with us. At 11:40am, we're going to head out to Green Bay to catch up with former NFL Running Back Ahman Green, who now hosts the Bleav in Packers podcast, as we talk Jaire Alexander and what he could bring to Baltimore if the Ravens end up signing him. Plus, we'll play Would You Rather Wednesday as we do each and every week, brought to you by Glory Days Grill…
Picture this: You're a medical professional on a routine work trip when suddenly you're playing a real-life game of survival that makes Bear Grylls look like a weekend camper. Meet Tiffany Slaton, the dialysis tech from Georgia who accidentally became the Sierra Nevada's most badass temporary resident. What started as just another day at the office turned into a 24-day masterclass in "how to not die in the mountains." Tiffany didn't just survive—she MacGyvered her way through multiple blizzards, turned her medical training into wilderness wizardry, and basically gave Mother Nature a run for her money while rescue teams played the world's most stressful game of hide-and-seek. This isn't your typical "lost hiker gets found" story. This is about a woman who stared down hypothermia, outsmarted starvation, and somehow kept her sanity while trapped in America's most unforgiving mountain range. Spoiler alert: the mountains blinked first. Episode Timeline 00:00 - Sponsor: Case Knives 00:30 - Welcome and podcast introduction 00:54 - The Sierra Nevada: America's deadliest mountain range 03:33 - Meet Tiffany Slaton: from Georgia to the mountains 06:48 - The catastrophic fall that changed everything 10:44 - Survival tactics: how medical training saved her life 14:03 - When the mind becomes your greatest enemy 19:48 - Sponsor: Rough Greens pet nutrition 20:56 - Understanding the Sierra Nevada's deadly reputation 22:01 - Weathering nature's worst: surviving multiple blizzards 23:03 - Permaculture knowledge becomes survival gold 23:52 - The breaking point: physical and mental limits tested 28:19 - The final storm and miraculous rescue 32:06 - Recovery, reflection, and lessons learned Email us! thecruxsurvival@gmail.com Instagram https://www.instagram.com/thecruxpodcast/ Get schooled by Julie in outdoor wilderness medicine! https://www.headwatersfieldmedicine.com/ References and Sources Primary News Sources: ABC News. "Woman found alive after being missing 3 weeks in California mountains speaks out." May 16, 2025. https://abcnews.go.com/US/woman-found-alive-after-missing-3-weeks-california/story?id=121888546 Forrester, Megan. "Woman found alive after being missing 3 weeks in California mountains speaks out." ABC News, May 16, 2025. Sundel, Jenna. "Who Is Tiffany Slaton? Woman Vanished Two Weeks Ago on 'Bucket List' Trip." Newsweek, May 8, 2025. https://www.newsweek.com/who-tiffany-slaton-woman-vanished-two-weeks-ago-bucket-list-trip-2069686 "Missing woman was 'miraculously' found in California's mountains. Then came the chorus of skeptics." MSN/Los Angeles Times, 2025. https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/us/missing-woman-was-miraculously-found-in-californias-mountains-then-came-the-chorus-of-skeptics/ar-AA1FhYVx?ocid=BingNewsSerp Gariano, Francesca. "How a missing hiker survived for 3 weeks in the California wilderness." Today.com, May 2025. https://www.today.com/news/news/missing-hiker-california-tiffany-slaton-found-alive-rcna207456 Lavietes, Matt. "'Dad, I'm alive': Missing camper found after surviving weeks in the California mountains." NBC News, May 15, 2025. Cull, Ian. "Missing hiker survived for weeks in California wilderness by foraging and drinking melted snow." NBC Bay Area, May 16, 2025. Bridge, Liv. "Woman, 27, found alive after 3 weeks missing in mountains details how she survived." UNILAD, May 20, 2025. Kaonga, Gerrard. "70-year-old hiker found alive after 5 days lost in the wilderness details how he survived." UNILAD, July 26, 2024. Sierra Nevada Geographic and Geological Sources: "Sierra Nevada." Wikipedia. Accessed 2025. Heap, Cole. "Natural Hazards of the Sierra Nevada." LibreTexts Geology of California, 2025. "Dangers on the Trail." Backpack the Sierra (High Sierra Topix), 2023. Search and Rescue Statistics: "Gone Missing In The National Parks." National Parks Traveler, November 2018. "Missing Persons Statistics." California Department of Justice, Office of the Attorney General, January 29, 2025. "How many people have disappeared in America's National Parks." StrangeOutdoors.com, November 23, 2024.
Bible StudyDon't just take our word for it . . . take His! We would encourage you to spend time examining the following Scriptures that shaped this sermon: .Sermon Notes“How can anyone remain interested in a religion which seems to have no concern with nine-tenths of his life?” — Dorothy Sayers1. God Is a Worker – And We Are Made in His ImageThe Bible opens with God working—creating the world (Genesis 1:1–2:2).As God's image bearers, we too are designed for creative, fruitful work.Work is not an afterthought or consequence of sin—it's part of our identity.2. God Made a World That Needs WorkGod created a good, but unfinished world—full of potential.Humans are commissioned to “fill the earth and subdue it” (Genesis 1:28).We are called to develop culture, build communities, and steward creation.3. Work Has Inherent DignityWork existed before the fall—it is not a curse but a gift.All kinds of work (paid, unpaid, creative, routine) matter to God.Meaningful work is vital to human flourishing and reflects God's character.Sermon ApplicationDiscussion Questions:Describe your attitude towards your work (whether paid or unpaid, inside or outside the home). Are you positive? Negative? Motivated? Bored? Delighted? Frustrated?Can a hobby be considered work according to Genesis 1-2? Why or why not?Is it easy for you to connect your faith to your work? In what ways might knowing God's original design for work from Gen 1-2 help strengthen that connection?Why is work important for human dignity?Additional Resources by Timothy Keller by Vern PoythressQuestions?Do you have a question about today's sermon? Email Randy Forrester ().Audio & VideoYou can listen to the sermon by using the player below or via the St Andrew's Sermon Podcast on and .
Daniel Clewlow is joined by Shaun Forrester from Loomis UK. They discuss new research carried out by Loomis UK regarding physical money. Despite the UK's ongoing shift towards digital payments, a significant portion of the population continues to value and rely on cash. This new research reveals that nearly 8 in 10 Brits believe all UK businesses should be legally required to accept cash and over 3 in 5 Brits oppose a fully cashless society. https://www.loomis.com/en
Dive into the future of enterprise data with the latest episode of Tech-Driven Business. Mustansir Saifuddin welcomes Shawn Brown, of SAP, for Part 1 of an in-depth exploration of the SAP Business Data Cloud (BDC). If you're navigating the complexities of data management and analytics within the SAP ecosystem, this episode is unmissable. Shawn breaks down the fundamental 'why' behind BDC, revealing how it's engineered to drastically reduce data preparation time, cut costs, and empower businesses to make faster, more accurate decisions. Tune in to understand how you can your team can take advantage of all that BDC offers to SAP customers looking to unlock true value from their data. With over two decades of experience in SAP solutions, Shawn Brown currently serves as Senior Director for SAP's Center of Excellence. Known for expertly identifying customer needs, Mr. Brown excels in presenting tailored solutions involving Business Technology Platform, Business Data Cloud, S4HANA, and Business AI. A proven leader in demand generation and partner relationship management, Mr. Brown has successfully driven initiatives that enhance customer experience and streamline cloud solution adoption. Renowned as a thought leader and strategist, Mr. Brown frequently shares insights with CIOs and business influencers, fostering strong, trust-based relationships across multiple industries. Connect with Us: LinkedIn: Shawn Brown: Mustansir Saifuddin: Innovative Solution Partners X: @Mmsaifuddin YouTube or learn more about our sponsor Innovative Solution Partners to schedule a free consultation. Episode Transcript [00:00:00] Mustansir Saifuddin: Welcome to Tech- Driven Business, brought to you by Innovative Solution Partners. I'm honored to have Sean Brown of SAP join me to kick off an essential two part series to unpack a topic that's on every SAP user's mind. The Business Data Cloud or BDC. If you're looking to understand how BDC can transform your data landscape and drive real business value, you are in the right place. [00:00:32] . [00:00:32] Welcome to Tech- Driven Business, Shawn. How are you? [00:00:35] Shawn Brown: I am good. I'm good. Things are going well, staying busy. [00:00:38] Mustansir Saifuddin: That's awesome. That's awesome. So glad to have you on our show and I'm really excited for the topic that we are going to discuss today. You ready for it? [00:00:47] Shawn Brown: I am. I'm excited as well. [00:00:51] Mustansir Saifuddin: Yeah, so I, I know we had talked in the past a couple of times and right now , the hot topic everybody's talking about from SAP and in general is the whole idea, the concept, and now the actual product called Business Data Cloud and what it really means for SAP customers. I like to use this time to dig deeper into this conversation and have a better understanding of exactly what this brings, what kind of landscapes that are changing with this new product, and to expect, you know, if you're a customer interested into, in going forward with BDC. [00:01:28] Shawn Brown: -. [00:01:28] Sure. That sounds great. Yeah. [00:01:32] Mustansir Saifuddin: Awesome. Okay. So I think every time we, we have this new products, right? And SAP is really good about and talk, people talk about rebranding and all that. Let's talk about the why of why should SAP customers adopt BDC. What is different about BDC that SAP customers should be asking that question. [00:01:53] Why? [00:01:55] Shawn Brown: Yeah, this is, this is my favorite question to start. Anything in the space that is outside of packaged solutions, you know ERP, HR Supply Chain and, and the capabilities we have in those areas because the why is something that it, it should be the driver for everything. Right? And, and for BDC, I would say the first thing we wanna talk about is it's a, it's a new product. [00:02:24] But it's an evolution of everything that we've been doing for years. It's, it's capabilities that our customers already know about. And it's taking all of the capabilities that we have offered over the time that we've been, been in the data and analytics space. And it's the, I call it a next generation, right? [00:02:45] It's the next generation of what was. And so when we get into the why. I would say the first thing that we really gotta say is, is the reason for BDC is it is to short circuit the amount of time it takes to prepare from data to finally analytics and planning and all the steps in between, where we're often times organizations see it as this, this wheel that. [00:03:15] They start with the data that's in the source system. They're gonna extract a, transform it loaded profile it, catalog it you know, press governance on it. Maybe make it in, you know, in a marketplace setting. Organize it so that it can be easily digestible, create some standard analytics, and then now we can actually start analyzing it. [00:03:34] And the why is really about reducing the amount of time it takes to go around that whole wheel of, Data all the way around to analytics and planning and reduce the amount of prep time and increase the amount of analysis time. Because if we think about how much time a person gets to analyze the [00:04:00] data, let's say for example, and this is a, this is actually a number that is, has been verified with numerous customers and with, the analyst firms like Gartner and Forrester and TDWI is that it takes as much as 70% or more of the actual workload and investment to go from data to analytics. That's not, so that means the analytics is just 30% or less of the time. So if we think about how much each question costs. You have to add in all of that cost that even deliver up the analytical or, or deliver up the, the data in a way that it can be analyzed. [00:04:45] So BDCs goal is to shrink that time of preparation and actual delivery of data for the analyst purpose or for the AI purpose, or for any application purpose. Shrink it as much as possible so that, the questions that are asked are cheaper, and essentially we can ask more questions. We don't have to continue to reformat the data, deliver the data in a new way to get to the final answers that we're trying to seek. [00:05:20] So I would say savings and costs. Savings and money. More data, more, more analysis time. That's the why for BDC. [00:05:31] Mustansir Saifuddin: Yeah, it totally makes sense. I think one of the things that while you're talking about this that stuck out for me was, we always talk about time value, right? And, especially when it comes to analytics, It's such a critical part of any organization's path forward and the numbers that you're just sharing from Gartner and other resources, [00:05:51] where if the majority of the time is gone into the data collection, the data refinement, all that, there's no time left or a very minimal time for your analytics part, which makes it really difficult for organizations to make quick decisions. So I think what I'm hearing from you, the why: the time value becomes very important in this case. [00:06:13] Shawn Brown: Correct. Absolutely. [00:06:16] Mustansir Saifuddin: That's good because that kind of takes me into this conversation, like, Hey, benefits. When you have that, why understood, what are some of the benefits that BDC will provide to SAP customers who want to go on the journey? Because benefits is really the reason why it will make sense for them to move forward. [00:06:33] Shawn Brown: For sure, for sure. And this is the one that's always interesting for organizations because they're focused so much on the actual preparation of the data that oftentimes the benefits that they can glean from all of that effort are, are fleeting, so they look at the, the overall effort and they go, oh yeah, there's, there's a lot here that is really based on, on how much it took to get here. [00:07:01] And the faster we can deliver the capabilities for analysis purposes for any AI purposes, the faster we can make decisions. The faster we can adjust based on those decisions. And so when you think about the speed at which organizations operate, to be able to answer those questions faster is probably the number one benefit that you can get. [00:07:27] And then you also get into accuracy. What, what questions are we asking? And if we don't have to go through this rigorous effort of moving data from all of these source systems and joining it all back together, and then building all that business context. Data integrity, is that a, a concern? It is for most organizations, they're concerned about what this looks like at its end state. [00:07:57] And the other thing that still [00:08:00] exists in the world of business, especially in the analytics space, is the typical spread marked problem. Where people just take the data that they're looking for, they extract it out of whatever solution it's been delivered to them. Maybe it's cheap cloud storage on flat files, or maybe it's been all dumped into an ODS, an operational data store, and then they're accessing the data as they like. [00:08:26] If they don't understand the details of the data and the relationships that occur with the data, and they don't have the original business context that the data came from in its source system, then if they do extract it to whatever they like, then somebody can walk into a meeting with one version of the truth and another can walk in with another version of the truth. [00:08:48] They all can believe that they're accurate. They all can argue over why their version of truth is correct and the others is not. So the confidence in the data is the other thing. We take away a lot of those concerns, because when you have it coming from those source systems and the preparation of that data has been provided in this case by SAP, for SAP systems, at a minimum, you're going to have much more confidence that the data [00:09:17] is delivered to you in a way that respects all of the integrity that it came from. That the accuracy of the data is as accurate as it was entered into the business application upon which it was the source. So the speed of delivery, the accuracy of the data. These are, these are major advantages that you get with regards to using BDC versus [00:09:43] the, the older school, I'll call it older school 'cause I'm an old guy. The old days of Bill Inman and star schemas and relational database systems that we created. These massive data warehouses. It's an older school thought, and it was one that was born outta this idea that we had to get the data from those source systems because we couldn't query the source systems at runtime. [00:10:06] All those things contribute to, to today where we're curating the data for you. It's been curated by SAP from all SAP systems, so if you have any questions about the quality of the data, in that case, you then you should have questions about the quality of your data in its source. there's a bigger issue, so speed of delivery, accuracy of data. [00:10:32] Those are probably my, my two top benefits that customers are going to get out of this. [00:10:38] Mustansir Saifuddin: Absolutely. That makes total sense. I think one of the things that really stuck out for me was the whole concept of end-to-end governance . Does BDC do a better job? And how, is that integrated to this whole BDC realm of the different pieces that makes up BDC? How is data governance and security working within those parameters? [00:11:03] Shawn Brown: Yeah. So in BDC, you're getting role level security on all the data. At that point then you're asking questions like, where do I, how do my users access the data? What are they allowed to see? What are they not allowed to see? All those capabilities can be integrated into BDC. You, you can deliver all of those capabilities directly within BDC. [00:11:27] You start off by setting up some broader, who's the, who's the group? What systems are they accessing? So if I'm in finance and I'm looking at finance data, I probably have access to let's say S/4HANA as the backend system that is storing all this data. All the users within the finance team that have access to S/4HANA can have access to that space of data. [00:11:55] And I use that word space because this is a concept that, again, there's nothing [00:12:00] new. We've invited these concepts into our thinking a while ago, and now it's just another generation of what we're doing here. So that idea of a space is I can include the data that is necessary for a line of business hr, finance, supply chain, and that's what they can see. [00:12:20] And if I need to, all of the rest of the data is accessible through BDC. It's just a question of whether I want to provide the rights to access those other data sets to another line of business, for example. So if I said I wanted to join let's say expense information that's in Concur with employee information, that's in success factors, I can easily join those data sets [00:12:48] bring in forward, from one space to another. And decide at a row level and column level, what individual data set I need to join across groups or individuals, if you will. [00:13:06] Mustansir Saifuddin: I think that's super good because that's where a lot of the questions come in. You know, every time you do move your data from one environment to another environment that you need to have your own new set of governance and security and, it can be role level security or whatever else you wanna do, [00:13:21] you have to kind of redefine that. It seems like it's all built into the BDC portfolio. You're leveraging your source system objects and then be able to apply the same rules that you may have built in. [00:13:37] Shawn Brown: Yeah, the, the analogy I always liked was it's kind of like, and I don't know if they're really like this. I mean, maybe there are not. I just remember old movies that you'd have these Japanese styled homes and they were like, the walls that were almost paper thin, that you could, you almost felt like you could just push your hand right through the wall and just grab something that was in the other room. [00:13:57] I liken it a bit like that in terms of spaces. The spaces are separated in that way with a, a level of access that is very simple to provide when necessary, but distinctly in separate spaces, separate areas, so that that's the benefit. That's the simplicity of being able to access data from any LOB or any third party for that matter. [00:14:23] If you wanted to access that third party data in BDC to any other data that's in BDC as well, whether it's finance, hr, supply chain, whatever it may be, warehouse inventory, whatever it may be. [00:14:38] Mustansir Saifuddin: Totally. Now, since we talked about the benefits, let's look into the details. Like what steps are involved if someone wants to take on this journey and move to SAP BDC? [00:14:53] Shawn Brown: Much of that begins with where are they right now? Let's take a few different scenarios? if a customer is, let's say, already using some SAP solutions, I would say, let's go with the most rudimentary that has been around for a while now for SAP. Let's talk about, they're using HANA Enterprise. [00:15:09] They've, they've been taking a lot of data from their SAP systems and dropping it into HANA Enterprise on-prem. This is a natural next step to that on-premise approach where you said, all right, I, I don't necessarily wanna be in the position of housing systems like this myself and my own data centers. [00:15:28] I want to put them into the cloud. This is a simple transition , to take the data from a HANA Enterprise, drop it into BDC and start using that data in essentially what would be a component of BDC, Datasphere. But it's built on HANA Cloud. And HANA Cloud is built on the same technology that HANA Enterprise is built on that in terms of its capabilities, what it can do. [00:15:52] It's a natural transition for that case if you're talking about a customer that's already using let's say another old product from [00:16:00] SAP, BW. Right. BW has been a really challenging one for a lot of organizations because they've had such value and such benefit by using BW to access data in SAP with those BW extractors. [00:16:14] And in many cases, they've built a lot of and invested a lot in BW in the framework itself. Creating their own objects, creating their own cubes, creating asos, DSOs and so forth, depending on what versions of BW you're on. Not necessarily wanting to just abandon that investment. There's another great example of is, once you're, once you're at least BW 7.5 and above, we make it very simple for you to go ahead and take all of that in BW investment and move it directly into BDC in its format, in its same format as a BW environment. [00:16:54] BW for HANA, same thing, move it right into BDC, it would be in a cloud-based environment that way as well. And essentially all of those connections back to the source systems still persist. When we talk about how do we take advantage of the investments you have, that's where you say, all right, well, I can access them through the BDC framework in [00:17:16] BW that is now part of BDC and use it for whatever purpose I leave it in BW in that case, or I can start taking those particular assets that I have in BW and using the data product generator that is now part of BW embedded in BDC, I can then change those assets in BW to data products. Which is the lowest level form of data that we have in BDC, and in this case, just for those that may be listening and wondering, am I copying the data? [00:17:51] Yes . And we can come to this in a minute as to why you're copying the data, but we are copying the data from its source system, and we would be copying the data from BW as well, where we wanted to make it a data product in BDC. And we can talk about why that is in a minute. 'cause it's a shift. It, it's a bit of a shift in terms of what we've talked about in the past with regards to a whole play the data where it lies, federate versus materialize [00:18:18] that data in, what was Datasphere, which is now part of BDC. That idea of moving those assets from BW into BDC as data products, over time allows us to decommission those, those deployments of BW. So that's the benefit is, we now have a path for BW customers to migrate to BDC, [00:18:45] not give up those assets that they've created and leveraged for so many years in BDC, and then over time decommission BW altogether. Or, if you're really interested and you really like using BW, keep it. That's the other benefit of moving a BW 7.5 environment to BDC is, you're gonna get three more years of mainstream maintenance. [00:19:09] And for example, for BW/4HANA, we're pushing that end of life date all the way out to 2040. That's a long time that you can hold onto that BW environment if that's what you choose to do. But the benefit of BDC is that we're going to give you the mechanism to actually migrate it over and then as your backend systems, particularly like S4 changes, [00:19:31] you're gonna need to change a lot of what you're doing from a BW extraction anyway. Don't do it in BW anymore. Do it in BDC. Now, those are some of the SAP scenarios, but some of the ones that I get as well are, we already have a strategy with our SAP data. We're pulling it into S3 buckets. [00:19:55] Azure Data Factory, Snowflake , all of these third [00:20:00] party extraction destinations and why would I go ahead and use BDC in that case? And the reality is, you have to ask yourself this question where we started in the first place. How much time and energy are you spending going from data all the way around that wheel to analytics? [00:20:20] If you're like the typical organization and it's north of 70%, 80%, 90% as a CIO, I heard last week talking about this, 90% of their time is spent just moving data to get it prepared for analysis. How much do you want to continue to do that? And nobody likes to be looked at as a cost center. Everybody likes to be seen as somebody that is providing value to the organization. [00:20:50] If you're part of an organization and you are seen as a cost center, because the amount of energy it takes to get the data from where it sits to where it needs to be is exorbitant, nine tenths maybe of the overall cost of asking those questions. That's not a great place to be. If you can shrink that as much as possible, then you can actually live up to some of those things that everybody would like to say. [00:21:19] Like, data is the new gold, data is the new oil. The value of data is, is immeasurable. We can do so much with our business because of the data. We could be a data-driven organization. All of these things can become possible, but not so easy when nine tenths or eight tenths of the cost, it's just getting the data where it needs to be. [00:21:44] That's the big thing that needs to be focused on as it relates to some of these ideas that let's go ahead and do the, what I still call old school extract, transform, load, model, profile, catalog govern and, create all of the overhead that is necessary to actually deliver those analytics back to the organization. [00:22:07] And if, you're in a part of your organization where you think it's good enough for me to just extract all the data and drop it over here and let the business go have fun, that's another one where you're not providing additional value to the organization. [00:22:19] What the business community really wants is they want curated data that is business context aware, that is in a position to help them answer questions out of the box, push button. An actual software as a service. That's what we've got with BDC. So this idea that of you've already got a strategy in place, [00:22:44] it might be working right now because you did a ton of work to get you where you are. But here's the kicker. It's probably all going to change, maybe not next year, but maybe two years or three years, maybe the next time you do some major upgrade and we've become more efficient in terms of how we store the data in the business applications, or, [00:23:12] any of the other business applications that you use, they change their underlying architecture in how they are actually storing the data in those source systems. Guess what just changed with your data strategy? Potentially everything. And we have customers that this has happened to them. Where I've walked into a huge SAP customer and I had a conversation with him where I said, we're gonna go ahead, and this is before we had two separate entities of BDC and BTP. And I walked into this session with the customer and said, here's what we're gonna do. [00:23:43] We're gonna go ahead and tell you everything that we can do in the space of data and analytics and everything within the platform space. And the customer said, I don't think we really need to hear about your data and analytics strategy, because we're pretty well set on that. And I said, I want to talk to you about all these things and I need to talk to you [00:24:00] about this one as well. [00:24:01] This one's not negotiable. I need whoever's responsible for data and analytics to be in the room to discuss this. And that person did arrive and that person pretty much felt like they had everything figured out. They didn't wanna, engage in the conversation at all. Pretty much arms crossed throughout most of the most of the meeting. [00:24:19] And we finally got to a point where they said, all right, I can see that there's some benefits, you know, to how this works. But I'll tell you, they were on ECC on HANA. And so fast forward six months and they're negotiating the RISE opportunity with S4/HANA in a private cloud and RISE, and they now realize that everything needs to be changed. [00:24:50] It's good that we had this conversation with them about how you can access the SAP data through, at the time, Datasphere, which is now Business Data Cloud, because they now understand that for them to be able to get access to the data in the way they want, the fastest way they want, and for the fact that we're curating all that data for them, and then providing them out of the box insights with our insight apps. [00:25:14] This is pretty much a no brainer in their part. They knew that they had to explore it, and they knew they had to explore it for the SAP centric question, but also for the non SAP centric question where they want to pull smaller data sets to non SAP capabilities because we are gonna curate those scenarios through data products that will allow them to pull that data into those non SAP scenarios. [00:25:40] So this, these are some of the big plays, we've got that existing SAP solutions, we've got that non SAP centric approach. And then, ultimately, if you haven't got to the point that you're deciding what you're going to do or you haven't don't have a very mature data strategy, maybe you're a growing company, at some point you're going to need to go ahead and start asking those data and analytics questions. [00:26:05] Just know that it's very expensive, as I've said before, to move the data from one place to another, place it there, do all of those things that we've talked about in the past, and then deliver analytics, just pull it out of the box. The last comment I'll make is "that pull it out of the box" sometimes that's not as useful as we think it is. [00:26:25] If I said, you have to dig a hole, it's 10 feet deep and you started from ground level, you have 10 feet to dig. But if I gave you something that got you 50% of the way, I dug five feet for you, I dug six feet for you, would you rather just dig five more feet or four more feet, or would you just rather start from ground level and dig 10 feet on your own? [00:26:48] That's the value that we were trying to demonstrate through BDC. [00:26:53] Mustansir Saifuddin: Good explanation. And I think it is really clear that a lot of times conversations come up about SAP customers talking about their on-prem, their legacy systems and how they will benefit from BDC, but your examples went beyond HANA Enterprise to other non SAP solutions where customers have already been on the journey and they don't see the value at least at this point. [00:27:20] But, after seeing the example you use, it's very logical for them to start thinking in those terms. Also saying, Hey, I simplify my landscape? Still get , if not same, at least, the value that whatever else that BDC brings to the table, like the whole AI capability, all of that can be leveraged by adopting this platform. On a personal note how do you stay on top of, you know, this changing technology world, and business at the same time. How you keep up with all this? [00:27:58] Shawn Brown: Yeah, as you [00:28:00] might imagine in the space of SAP, oftentimes it's hard enough just staying on top of all of the different options we have and different things that we have in terms of technology. So one of the ways that I like to keep up in, in the SAP space is called the BTP Talk podcast, which is a pretty good one. [00:28:18] It actually goes to a number of different you know, platform and data analytics related scenarios. Data skeptics is another pretty good podcast that I get a kick out of. There's another one I'm trying to think of that I use from time to time as well. [00:28:32] Analytics Power Hour. That's it. Yeah, the Analytics Power Hour is another good one. And, I've been paying attention to Tech-Driven Business as well too, so I like this one too. But, you know, the thing that I've been finding too is that, these days, things move so quickly and we think we know where we're going and then something comes along and, and change makes us change direction again. [00:28:53] And AI has probably been the biggest driver to that. The thing that I would say that that it's probably most interesting in terms of how I've changed how I operate is I actually ask AI to provide resources for me on particular topics. For example mid early last year there was a lot of talk about vector engines and knowledge graphs. [00:29:14] And the easiest thing I found to really kind of get a little bit more, versed on the topics was AI itself. I started asking for resources and, and I'll use for example, ChatGPT in some cases I like using Grok as well. From time to time they seem to provide a little bit different types of approaches and levels of interaction. [00:29:35] I kinda like how, grok will ask me follow up questions, which is pretty neat as well. But that's a great way to learn about topics that you are wanting to become more versed in or learning where the resources are to find those topics. So those, those are some of the things that I like to use. [00:29:58] Mustansir Saifuddin: Great list of ideas to kind of keep up with the changing, I mean, just everywhere around us. taking from AI to just carries to anything else. A lot of conversations going on so many different directions. How do you even keep up with them? So I'd like your suggestions, and I know we've talked about a lot of different things today. What is the one thing or one takeaway that you want to leave our listeners with? [00:30:24] Shawn Brown: Hmm, probably in, in the audience of that are responsible for data and analytics. If you're a CDAO, or an analyst or somebody that's responsible for enterprise wide analytics: I would focus on two things because these two things are probably the most important to the people that you serve, your business community. [00:30:50] Point number one is, they want analytics quickly. They want to be able to ask questions quickly. They don't wanna wait. They don't want to say this report, these data sets that you've provided me, they look really interesting, but I'd like to add this and this and this, and when can I have that? [00:31:12] If you can't say you can have that now, then you're taking too long. The other point is. We need to stop being looked at as a cost center. We need to stop being looked at as a place that is a necessary evil. We gotta ask questions of the system. We've gotta extract data everywhere and put it in someplace that we can start answering questions or even not even doing to the extent of actually providing the analytics out of the box. [00:31:40] Instead, we're just providing data sets for people to access. We need to be able to offer real value to the business community. Those are the ones that are footing the bill. Those are the ones that are actually paying for everything. So we need to be in a position to deliver it very quickly, [00:32:00] and it needs to not be expensive, and it needs to be accurate. [00:32:06] Mustansir Saifuddin: Absolutely [00:32:07] Shawn Brown: Those are the elements I think are the key takeaways. That's really the foundation of what we're doing with Business Data Cloud. That's the whole purpose behind it. [00:32:16] Mustansir Saifuddin: Absolutely great advice and a great way to sum up the session. It's been a great conversation. There's so much to gain from this product and, and direction, that SAP's taking. I'd like to thank you very much for joining us today in our show, and look forward to having further detailed conversation with you. [00:32:36] Shawn Brown: Thanks, I appreciate your time as well. [00:32:39] Mustansir Saifuddin: Thanks for listening to Tech-Driven Business, brought to you by Innovative Solution Partners. We have covered the critical why behind BDC, the immense time and cost savings it promises, and the tangible benefits like enhanced speed and accuracy for SAP customers. Sean's key takeaway? Focus on delivering analytics quickly to your business community and strive to offer real accurate value moving away from being seen as just a cost center. [00:33:15] . We would love to hear from you. Continue the conversation by connecting with me on LinkedIn or X. Learn more about Innovative Solution Partners and schedule a free consultation by visiting isolutionpartners.com. Never miss a podcast by subscribing to our YouTube channel. Information is in the show notes.
Welcome into a Would You Rather Wednesday of Glenn Clark Radio, plenty to cover on the program today as the Orioles pick up a late-night win in Seattle to make it four in a row! We'll talk about another stellar Tomoyuki Sugano outing, Colton Cowser's return and lots more, plus the Stanley Cup Final opens up tonight, there's some local golf news and plenty more. It's a Wednesday, so that means Drew Forrester of DrewsMorningDish.com will be in studio hanging out as we talk some O's, a little hockey, some NBA Finals and of course golf as Drew gives us all his best hits per usual. At 10:50am, we will switch gears to in fact talk golf with Catonsville native Nick Barrett who was close to qualifying for the US Open but fell short. Then at 11:40am, we will head out Louisville where the Norfolk Tides are right now to check in with Orioles prospect, OF Dylan Beavers, to talk all about his red-hot start to 2025, playing with Samuel Basallo and much more. Plus, plenty more on a Wednesday edition of GCR…
Ms. Francie is another falconer who's been requested by several folks over the past couple years, and she was another guest I was able to track down at the 2024 NAFA meet and finally get to record with! It was fun hearing her reminisce about a lot of fond memories in her many years in falconry, and hearing her talk about her fondness for helping the younger generations and newcomers to falconry was also inspiring. For those who know Francie, you know she's a fun conversation, but for those who've never met her, you're about to find out! Support at buymeacoffee.com/falconrychroniclesSpecial thanks to the organizations and businesses who've kindly helped support the podcast!The Archives of Falconryhttp://www.falconry.orgMarshall Radio Telemetryhttp://www.marshallradio.comMasters of the Skieshttp://www.mastersoftheskies.orgBaba Yaga Craftshttp://www.instagram.com/babayagagoshawkNorth Mountain Goshawkshttp://www.northmountaingoshawks.comNew Mexico Falconers AssociationArizona Falconers Assocationhttp://www.arizonafalconers.comTexas Hawking Associationhttp://www.texashawking.orgNorth American Falconers Associationhttp://www.n-a-f-a.comFalconry Fundhttp://www.falconryfund.orgPursuit Falconry and Conservation Magazinehttp://pursuitfalconry.co.ukThe Specialist Falconhttp://www.thespecialistfalcon.comCape Falconry Clubhttp://www.capefalconry.co.zaEast Coast Falconshttp://www.eastcoastfalcons.comBlackhawk Falconry Dachshundshttps://www.facebook.com/blackhawkdachshunds
CraftLit - Serialized Classic Literature for Busy Book Lovers
Ep. 686: Cranford | Chapter 8 Book talk begins at 15:54 Lady Glenmire (a real baron's widow!) is in town, and the Cranford ladies can't decide whether to curtsey or completely ignore her—Mrs. Jamieson prefers the latter. --------------------------------------------------------------- 00:00 Episode start 1:55 - MAY RAFFLE - from Rebecca S (Of Book it with Becca) 2:25 - Send your crafty videos: 4:45 - Plum Deluxe Tea-CraftLit's Discount Code! 5:05 - , 5:35 - 8:01 - ELSIE BLOUSE on WEARING HISTORY 8:50 - . Hope that helps! 10:40 - And from Donna Schmidt 13:48-Anya's voice mail BOOK TALK—Re-hash Notes 15:57 - Last week Visiting - RE-LISTEN Pre-hash Notes 17:00 - Your Ladyship. Ended with Cherry Brandy (ha!) And Mrs Jamieson blurting out to everyone she would be hosting her SIL Lady Glenmire soon. 17:50 - shared subscription to newspaper. SOME REALLY CLEVER Austen-like wordplay in today's chapter. A lot of fun! Characters in *Cranford* (Updated for Chs. 6–8) 18:25 - County families—the landed gentry in the county - you know…the only important people in the area :( Miss Pole “I'll think of something to say back to her… tonight…”—nothing changes HA! 18:40 Peerage - prob refers to Burke's Peerage and Baronetage (first pub was 1826!!!) Only 16 Scottish peers were SELECTED to sit in the House of Lords; 19:00 -comparison to Job - God takes everything from him then torments him some more. 20:40 - The Arley's - we learned that Lady Arley shopped at Betty Barker's milliner shop last week and was part of why the shop eventually only served the well-to-do of Cranford ——which lets us know that there WAS a well-to-do set and our ladies are not they! 22:00 - Fourth at pool - another card game 22:45 - Sedulously-Dedication, diligence 22:55 - “thought you might want a description of Mrs Smith, Her being a bride”. B/c often a bride's 1st appearance in society after honeymoon she wore her dress. 23:15 - ***nipped up her petticoats*** - 25:10 - Mr Milliner - introduce him to listeners - ignored back door (GASP) 25:15 - candle lighters as an excise LOL ALSO what's she making them out of?!??? - EXCELLENT WAY TO USE OLD BILLS & LETTERS! Assumption no one will go LOL - Poole's rationalization to go to party
Burnout shouldn't be the price of success, but setting boundaries at work is easier said than done. Tarveen Forrester, who oversees workplace culture at Kickstarter, shares practical strategies for protecting your time and cultivating “sustainable ambition,” so you can crush your goals — without letting them crush you.Want to help shape TED's shows going forward? Fill out our survey! Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
According to research from Forrester, 74% of buyers choose the sales rep who was first to add value and insight. So, how can you deliver a standout experience to win over modern buyers?Shawnna Sumaoang: Hi, and welcome to the Win-Win podcast. I’m your host, Shawnna Sumaoang. Join us as we dive into changing trends in the workplace and how to navigate them successfully. Here to discuss this topic is Jose Sanchez, the product marketing manager at Hexagon. Thanks for joining us. I would love for you to tell us about yourself, your background, and your role. Jose Sanchez: Yes, of course. Thank you so much for having me. This is really great and perfect timing because I’ve been using it even this week. We were at a trade show, so I’ve been using the platform. It’s been great. My background is technical. I did geological engineering. So I was in mining. I was in a consulting firm and then eventually got to be, uh, an engineer for Hexagon, but I always had a little bit of a creative background, creative things happening, floating around. So it did drive me back to want to be more creative, and so a marketing position opened in Hexagon in our division and I went for it and I got it. So it’s been four years now that I’ve been doing product marketing and I think that’s been a really good way to sort of move through different parts of our company. SS: Amazing. Thank you for kind of taking us through that. I’d actually love to double click on that, because you’ve been with Hexagon for almost two decades and you started in that technical role and have transitioned into product marketing. Can you walk us through that journey and how has your background influenced your approach to your go-to-market strategy? JS: Oh yeah, for sure. I think I’m blessed in being able to understand parts of the technical side that maybe the rest of the marketing team doesn’t, and they lean on me quite a lot on that. So yeah, I think that journey and that background made it so that my current role, which is really talking to the product development team, and coming up with go to market strategies and then imparting that information to the rest of the marketing team, the designers, and the videographers, everybody, so that we can get that message out properly. So I think that my background has really influenced the way I do go to market strategies because of the technical side of things. SS: Amazing. And as a product marketer, what are some of the biggest challenges that you’re seeing when it comes to engaging modern buyers throughout the journey and how are you overcoming some of these challenges? JS: That’s a good question. I think the biggest challenge for us in this industry, and it’s probably not unique to our industry, but our sales cycles are really long. There’s relationships that have to get built, sometimes it can take years. And so it requires a lot of listening to our sales people, listening to them to know what they’re using, what’s useful for them and what’s not. So that’s been a huge challenge because sometimes a marketing team can just go off and say, hey, we’re gonna create brochures. We’re gonna create this and this. And not really know whether they’re using it or not. Highspot has been instrumental in that because we were noticing those numbers weren’t looking good. They weren’t sharing things out, they weren’t pitching out, and so we just started having way more conversations with them and that overcame that challenge. We’re in a much better place now where we know what they need. We know what they like and what they don’t like. To build those relationships to be able to sell things. SS: Amazing. And in your opinion, what unique value does an enablement platform offer when it comes to creating and delivering impactful buying experiences? JS: I think it, it goes very much hand in hand with the, the answer for the last question. Having a place where everybody, not just the marketing team, but the sales team and even the product developers can go to and see what’s out there, see what’s being said about their products and how it’s being presented, and then being able to give feedback. That’s incalculable, how amazing that is. Because, you know, before it was SharePoint, it was a folder, or in teams, there’s just channels and you just stick files in there. Nobody has any idea. Whether it’s the newest or the best, or whether it’s good or not. So I think that’s really been an amazing thing for us to be able to use, that it’s not just a repository, I don’t wanna call it a repository, but a place where they can go, a hub, where they can see the latest and know that it’s been qualified and feedback has been given on it. SS: Amazing. And you are actually using Highspot to create some really impressive and interactive experiences, including leveraging digital rooms for trade shows and customer stories. Can you share more about these initiatives? JS: Yeah, no, this is one of the great things that I’ve really enjoyed about working with Highspot is our account managers and we have a biweekly meeting. It’s just a short little meeting where they, we have questions for them, they update us on things. And those meetings have been amazing at finding out, ’cause Highspot is so robust, there’s so much that we. Can use and we don’t even know. So having those conversations, that’s how it came out. We started saying, Hey, we have this huge trade show. We wanna have something interactive on the floor where we can tell stories about how our customers are using our technology. And they suggested digital rooms and they showed it to us. This is, I think still when it had just come out and I thought that sounded perfect. It was an easy interface that was on a touch screen on our floor. Salespeople could walk. Customers over and show them, hey, you’re an underground, minor. Look at this case study. And a video would come up and really, really nice way to interact and then shareable. So that was really just drove it home. You know, you can talk to them, show them and they say, you know, I’m gonna send you this. Here’s your email. And it would go, and it was tracked. So those digital rooms have become something that we’re now using at every trade show. We just used it now in Montreal for one of the big trade shows we were in. And it’s funny because it also opened the door for just. Other Highspot things as well. A lot of, I saw uh, during the week that salespeople were just opening up Highspot on the tablet so they could show them anything. It didn’t just have to be the digital room. They were actually pitching live as if they were on a call or something, but just there on the floor and it was great. It was great to see that. SS: Amazing. What are some of your best practices for creating effective Digital Rooms for your teams to leverage? JS: That theme that I’ve been talking about, about listening to our sales teams is really important for that. They’re the ones that drove what we were telling on that Digital Room, that specific one, and then new ones have come up. So listening to the salespeople and the regional field marketers, we’ve realized, oh. They go to trade shows that are just about underground mining, for example, or just about blasting. And so if we can create a digital room or even teach them to create their own Digital Rooms, that idea has sparked many, many more people wanting to make their own. So we’ve already started making little offshoots of that first one with different flavors. So yeah, that would be my advice. Listen to your salespeople and they could drive exactly the way you need to make things. SS: And speaking about that in rolling out Digital Rooms to your team, I believe you started with your BDR team and are now expanding your focus to your account management team. How are you driving adoption across these teams? JS: Adoption for us has been a challenge from the very beginning. We’re learning at the very beginning what could be done, what couldn’t be done. So we decided to get a little bit more exact with the way we were using Highspot, and that’s what spawned all the, all the new collateral that we’ve created and stored there for them to pitch as well as the Digital Rooms. And so I think starting with our business development managers was just a really obvious way to address something that was needed right away. You know, this is our new business. They’re going out there and trying to grab as many new audiences or even existing customers, but for new technology. So starting with them was great. It was maybe, if you will, a bit more aggressive. A lot of the collateral that we needed, like those Digital Rooms or for right now, we need these conversations to happen. We have now started talking to our account managers as well. We just had a conference of all account managers getting together, I mean our headquarters in Tucson, Arizona, from around the world. And we did started doing the same thing, listening to what they need and what is effective, what’s not for them to communicate with existing customers. So I think that transition and that adoption for the new team, the account managers, as soon as they start also working with their regional business development managers, they realize, oh, okay, I can use this. And then they can take it and use this part. So it’s all connected and I think that adoption’s great. And to be honest, every time I’ve had any sort of enablement where I’m showing. The capabilities of Digital Rooms or Highspot with my team. Just showing them the immediate tracking. You know, that somebody opens the pitch you just sent and you get on your phone, you get a ding, and they love that. As soon as they see that, they’re like, oh my god, that’s amazing. So that I think has also really upped the adoption is people getting excited about it. SS: Amazing. And I love how some of that’s even happening organically now. What impact have you seen so far from leveraging digital rooms to engage your buyers across their journey? And are there any key wins or notable business outcomes you can share? JS: Yes, definitely. Our marketing team has always relied on what we get as feedback from our salespeople, and especially now, that’s the the sort of new strategy we’re taking. So the number of pitches is for us right now, gold is what we look at. If that number starts dropping, we have to see why is that piece not being used? We’re not being pitched, so we’re constantly monitoring. What’s happening as well as just getting verbal feedback or emails. We encourage everyone to give us feedback on pieces. So yeah, I think, uh, the numbers have gone up. The number of pitches have gone up. These digital rooms are going out at every trade show. We made a Spanish version as well that was asked by our LATAM team and I think it’s very obvious when you look at. Before Digital Rooms. We started using it for our big trade show, my expo last September. Before that, the numbers dramatically increased afterwards, so that’s the way we’ve been able to measure that. SS: Amazing. Now, we talked about this at the onset, but with your strong technical background, how do you leverage data and insights to inform and improve the programs that you’re leading? JS: That’s a really good question, especially for our technology and our, our group of suites that we sell specifically because we always talk about data and we always talk about the power of data, being able to help you decide things, making decisions, making changes in your strategy. And so I think for us, talking to our account manager from Highspot, we realized that we can get these reports and it gives us such great insights down to the granular, you know, who’s using what. And that to us is amazing. In our solutions, we do the same thing. We tell our clients that all this data that’s being produced, trucks moving, people driving. Safety operations and planning, everything comes together in a mine and produces data. And if you can grab that data and actually make sense of it and start making decisions based off of it, it’s the best. And we’ve started doing that now with Highspot. We’ve been able to say, this strategy’s not working, let’s move on. Or let’s change it and make it work this way. Or, wow, that one’s really working, we’ve gotta do more of that. So yes, definitely the engineering side of me loves seeing graphs and loves seeing charts that, and not necessarily that always say good things. It’s. Really great when they don’t tell you good things because that’s how you learn. And I think Highspot has that for sure. SS: I love that. Last question for you, Jose. For other product marketing leaders that are looking to improve buyer engagement, especially in this what’s becoming a very digital first world, what is the biggest piece of advice you could give them? JS: Yeah, I think I’ve already mentioned it a couple of times. You probably noticed the theme, but, listening, listening to the people who are using this collateral, who are using these digital rooms or whatever you have in Highspot. And it goes beyond Highspot, of course. It’s your website, anything that you’re creating, videos that you’re posting up on YouTube or wherever you’re doing it, hearing what is effective and what’s not, from the boots on the ground, if you will. They’re the ones who really are gonna be using this stuff. And if they’re not really into it, then you’re not gonna be successful. So that’s my number one piece of advice is listen to them, have conversations with them one-on-one. It really helps. SS: Amazing. Well, Jose, thank you again so much for joining us. I really appreciate it. JS: Of course. Thank you so much for having me. SS: To our audience, thank you for listening to this episode of the Win-Win podcast. Be sure to tune in next time for more insights on how you can maximize enablement success with Highspot.
Karoni and her family gather in Arlington to remember Ron Forrester, surrounded by friends and MIA advocates. For many more American families, the search for answers continues.
Customer experience & customer service are important for long-term success, yet they are not interchangeable. Stacy Sherman and Max Ball, Principal Analyst at Forrester, discuss the differences and leadership best practices so you are doing both right. You'll also hear new trends to be mindful of and plan for, including gig CX, artificial intelligence, chatbots, and other technologies to solve customer needs versus creating pain points. Learn more at Access our FREE Customer Experience Audit Tool: Grow as a CX Professional with our numerous Book time with Stacy through this
Excavations begin in a rice paddy near the village of An Thủy. But after years of digging, Karoni Forrester wonders whether the government has the right spot.Audio subscribers to Texas Monthly can get early access to episodes of the series, plus exclusive interviews and audio. Visit texasmonthly.com/audio to join.
A team of investigators takes up the search for Ron Forrester and pieces together new clues about his last mission.Audio subscribers to Texas Monthly can get early access to episodes of the series, plus exclusive interviews and audio. Visit texasmonthly.com/audio to join.Go to HelloFresh.com/FLIGHT10FM to get 10 Free Meals with a Free Item For Life.
Karoni Forrester grew up looking for her father. Along the way, she found even more MIA families like hers in need of help.Audio subscribers to Texas Monthly can get early access to episodes of the series, plus exclusive interviews and audio.Visit texasmonthly.com/audio to join.Go to HelloFresh.com/FLIGHT10FM to get 10 Free Meals with a Free Item For Life.
In late 1972, U.S. Marine Captain Ron Forrester disappeared on a bombing run into North Vietnam. Back home in Texas, his family could only wait and hope.Audio subscribers to Texas Monthly can get early access to episodes of the series, plus exclusive interviews and audio. Visit texasmonthly.com/audio to join.Go to HelloFresh.com/FLIGHT10FM to get 10 Free Meals with a Free Item For Life.