Queuing – This is always topical in discussions with retail clients, and something on which everyone has an opinion. Check out this WSJ article on queuing and the various strategies retailers are using during the 2011 Christmas season to make the consumers’ wait more entertaining, faster, and productive – or at least enhance that perception. I prefer a single to multiple queue myself.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052970204770404577082933921432686.html

Related articles

• Lo-Q wins contract for Legoland queuing system (independent.co.uk)

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k3Nfh9bl0Z8&w=560&h=315]
http://mashable.com/2012/01/09/nokia-lumia-900-lte/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n8eqhSl2otk&feature=player_embedded#!

• A fundamental shift has been taking place in retail – power is shifting from the retailer to the consumer through the use of technology. However, retailers are working hard to maintain, and even grow, market share. Customer satisfaction is a main focal point. Now, there are multiple touch points to reach the consumer (through personalized promotions, mobile websites and social sites like Facebook).
• Although e-commerce is posting huge comps (YOY) versus their brick and mortar counterparts, mobile devices are not driving the sales. Size of screen and limitations on mobile content are some of the primary challenges. When shopping for a fashionable dress from Elie Tahari, or the latest in technology on a site like Amazon.com, the typical cell phone screen just doesn’t cut it. Not surprising, in a “statistically insignificant” but real poll taken of my students (who are Gen Z “trendsetters”) only 8.3% actually use their smartphones to shop.
• Social is becoming a powerful player in the retail space. According to a global survey by IBM, up to 84% of consumers rely on their social networks when researching new products. When buying online, shoppers coming from a social network convert at 2x the rate of other non-social network channels.

More to come.

Top 10 Financial Services Cyber Security Trends for 2012:
1.The exponential growth of mobile devices drives an exponential growth in security risks. Every new smart phone, tablet or other mobile device, opens another window for a cyber attack, as each creates another vulnerable access point to networks.
2.Increased C-suite targeting. Senior executives are no longer invisible online. Firms should assume that hackers already have a complete profile of their executive suite and the junior staff members who have access to them.
3.Growing use of social media will contribute to personal cyber threats. A profile or comment on a social media platform – even by the CEO’s son or sister — can help hackers build an information portfolio that could be used for a future attack.
4.Your company is already infected, and you’ll have to learn to live with it – under control. Security should remain a priority, but today’s risks and threats are so widespread that it will become impossible to have complete protection – the focus of cyber security tactics increasingly must be to analyze, detect and expunge threats inside your system.
5.Everything physical can be digital. The written notes on a piece of paper, the report binder and even the pictures on the wall can be copied in digital format and gleaned for the tools to allow a hacktivist-type of security violation, and increasingly this will be a problem.
6.More firms will use cloud computing. The significant cost savings and efficiencies of cloud computing are compelling companies to migrate to the cloud. A well designed architecture and operational security planning will enable organizations to effectively manage the risks of cloud computing.
7.Global systemic risk will include cyber risk. As banks and investment firms continue on the path to globalization, they will become increasingly inter-connected. A security breach at one firm can create negative ripple effects that greatly impact systemic risk in financial markets.
8.Zero-day malware (malicious software) and organized attacks will continue to increase. Like a vicious, insidious virus that mutates, the tools of cyber criminals adapt and change constantly, rendering the latest defenses useless. Firms need to be prepared to adapt quickly as well to zero-day malware and the tactics of organized crime and foreign adversaries that are increasingly used today.
9.Insider threats are real. The accidental insider breach will continue to be the primary source of compromise for the Advanced Persistent Threat (APT) and other attacks. Organizations need to focus on security awareness training and internal monitoring to detect intentional and accidental insider access.
10.Increased regulatory scrutiny. Recently, the Securities and Exchange Commission introduced guidelines that require companies to report incidents that result, or could possibly result in, cyber theft or a risk of compromised data considered material.

Further information at http://www.boozallen.com/media-center/press-releases/48399320/cyber-top-ten-2012

However, today there is a variety of ways in which cloud solutions providers i.e. vendors, resellers and Managed Service Providers (MSPs), can near-guarantee data security and among the most sophisticated near-guarantee of security is encryption. This is a simple yet effective process that will put many customers’ minds at rest, and is therefore a powerful tool for the channel.

Before data leaves the end user’s datacentre it is encrypted at the source and it stays so while it gets transmitted to the cloud, essentially the data is encrypted at rest and in flight to ensure the data remains secure, where it also remains encrypted. Therefore, anyone trying to intercept this data while it is being transferred would only capture encrypted files; access to confidential content is hence not possible.

In order to access data in its un-encrypted form, it needs to be unlocked and the only key resides with the customer, ensuring that the stored version of the data is as safe and secure in the MSP’s datacentre as if it was in-house. Depending on the required level of security, keys can have between eight and 32 digits. So far, so secure.

Safeguards can be applied at various levels to ensure the security of customers’ data from cradle to grave including encryption key escrow management capability. This allows for an additional security provision to be put in place should a customer lose or forget their encryption key. Measures of security (or lack thereof) will often be a deal breaker so any reseller or cloud service provider looking for that extra element of differentiation should certainly look into having as many of these security measures in their portfolios. Amongst the most important factors is to ensure that the underlying technology vendor has a third-party certification of the encryption elements in its products, like a governmental body. It is not enough that a vendor claims their product is secure and it incorporates some form of cryptology. The real question is whether anyone has actually verified that the encryption was implemented properly so it cannot be defeated. This is the comfort level that a recognised third-party certification provides.

In the cloud data centre itself, the security of the data is protected even from datacentre operations staff due to its encrypted format. Cloud operations personnel do not have unauthorised access to the decryption key, meaning that customers should feel safe in the knowledge that their data is visible only to them. Building a level of trust such as this is “key” (excuse the pun) when establishing channel relationships, as trusted resellers are the ones to whom happy customers will return, and will be recommended to others.

It is details such as this that give good relationships the advantage; in order to provide the best possible service it is necessary to understand the technology being utilised and leverage it to each customer’s advantage. Thus, fears about the security of data in the cloud should be greatly reduced. Customers who feel happy with the level of security, support and flexibility provided are the ones with whom relationships will flourish.

Why? Poor design (obviously) and the fact that my waist is not quite what it used to be. Like it or not, I’m gradually expanding…

I read an interesting article today that was titled “Getting Rid of Data — Why is it so hard” and for some reason found some parallel in what’s happened with my jeans…

The article is about Information Governance and how important it is to have good processes and policies in place so that you know with confidence what data needs to be retained and what data can be disposed of — stopping the burgeoning, un-wielding growth of data (or my waist as I continue to try to draw some sort of parallel…)

Some of my previous blogs have been talking about the Tsunami of data from social media — Supersized data that is both difficult to make sense of and expensive to retain.

It’s easy to understand why doing a bit of data spring clearing can clear out some space and enable you to carry on cramming stuff into what ever storage is currently available (my jeans again) just in case you need it some time in the future.

However… More than ever, technologies are changing and evolving as data continues to grow and grow.

Disks are cheap and with the adoption of “big data” solutions such as Hadoop and our own search engine based technology CXAIR, size is less and less of an issue.

When I started in IT back in 1987, I was working on mainframe systems written in Cobol and IDMSX. I was working on hospital Patient Administration Systems where due to limitations in hardware we were always extremely careful of data storage and retention. We used to hold current data and historic data for about 3 months before it was archived off to tape and microfiche.

These days we can slap it on disk and keep it there virtually indefinitely. With all of the laws around compliance and transparency, keeping your data available is a good and comforting thing.

The only issue is when you do need access to some old data, how do you find it?

If it’s stored in an old legacy database, then expect to have to get IT on the case and wait for hours for the data to come back.

If it’s stored in something like a search engine then users can search around perform ad—hoc queries and analysis across the data themselves and get results back in seconds.

Times are changing and the way we store access and retain data is going through a technical revolution at the moment.

Data Governance is important but so is the ability to keep hold of data for historical analysis and that “just in case, ad-hoc” requirement that bites you on the backside as soon as you’ve deleted or made the data less accessible.

So what choices do I have?

Get rid of some of the excess (go on a diet) or buy some bigger (more scalable) and more appropriately designed (latest technology) jeans.

Time to get the credit card out…

Thu, 17/11/2011 – 11:12 — Richard Lewis

This week Advertising Age published a white paper on women and technology, the result of a partnership with JWT. Research conducted for the report found that one in five American women uses a smartphone when shopping, primarily to connect with her social circle. Women predominantly seek out opinions from friends and family, much more so than men: 73% call family or friends to get their opinions (vs. 59% for men), and 40% take photos of products and solicit responses through e-mail or social networks (32% for men). Brands need to find ways to help customers tap into the social graph at the point of purchase, when women seek trusted recommendations. They can also create messages that will drive women to share, and they should leverage social networks to spread the word about exclusive merchandise and sales.

These findings and more are featured in “Always-On Women,” a white paper that examines women’s tech attitudes and behaviors, breaking them down by device (mobile phone, PC, tablet), and explores marketing opportunities and strategies for reaching women via digital platforms. The report is based on a quantitative study in the U.S. conducted using SONAR™, JWT’s proprietary online research tool. Click here to download the report from the Ad Age website. Go to page 18 to find JWT’s Action Steps for Marketers.

first spotted on www.jwtintelligence.com