Why 2020 could be the year of “Edge as a Service” (EaaS)

19 Sunday Jan 2020

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cloud, EaaS, Edge computing, healthcare, IoT

Bringing compute resources to the edge implies efforts in reducing the amount of data that needs to be sent up to the cloud. For many data-intensive applications such as video surveillance, natural speech recognition and health related monitoring, the need to process data as close to the source as possible can be important for both efficiency and security.

The major pitfall with edge computing, as it is now, is not a lack of data available but the lack of understanding in how, where and when to use it. Enterprises are starting to really understand that sometimes data has more value staying close to where it is, rather than centrally collecting it.

So why does certain data need to stay at the edge?

1. It’s big. Bandwidth issues exist: networks need to be kept clear of large volumes of data needing to be sent up into the cloud.

2. It’s timely. Speed of reaction is important: having low latency low allows rapid response as the data is processed where it sits. Imagine the reaction time necessary on the brakes of a self-driving car, for example.

3. It’s valuable. Security and privacy concerns that are alleviated (mostly) by keeping data processing as local to the data source as possible thus eliminating massive amounts of potentially hackable personal data from being stored in the cloud.

What is the power of data in a smart structure? Trust in data is now essential to effective digital transformation. Single verifiable source of truth is critical to sharing and collaboration using data sets. We are not getting into a blockchain discussion here, but it is imperative that data can be reliably sourced. Leaving it where it is, as a single source which can be both dynamic and real-time, is important.

I believe that data-driven implementations of Edge as a service (EaaS) will be important this year, especially in mission critical production activities, which could be oil and gas, machine assisted surgery in healthcare or any activity where immediate data inputs affect automation-assisted performance.

When the “C” in CRM stands for Citizen: My POV on the Optevia acquisition by IBM

19 Saturday Mar 2016

Posted by afairchild in Uncategorized

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Tags

cloud, CRM, IBM, Optevia, SaaS

When government (local, regional, federal or national) provides public sector services for its citizens, they should have a responsibility to provide them in a professional, timely manner. That’s not an easily scalable activity when dealing with thousands of citizen cases, often with limited resources. However the aim is to deliver consistently positive experiences to your citizens or constituents. And using external providers who may be better resourced or with a more rationalized core competency in this area can be beneficial to all involved. In my consulting for regional government, I find that they actually work even harder than federal government to find ways to engage their constituents, given how important the revenue stream is for them to be prosperous. Therefore a cloud-based CRM system is an excellent fit for a resource constrained yet innovative regional public service authority.

Which is why I was pleased to see that IBM announced Friday that they had acquired Optevia, a privately owned Software as a service (SaaS) systems integrator specializing in Microsoft Dynamics CRM solutions for public sector organizations. Optevia will join IBM Global Business Services and help meet the increasing client demand for CRM SaaS solutions within the public sector. Optevia’s main focus on UK health, housing, and emergency services, along with their role in both local and central government service provisioning, puts their services smack in the centre of the citizen’s world. Building solutions based on a foundation of Microsoft Dynamics CRM, Optevia has worked with governments from the local to central level, public service agencies, and more.

The acquisition of a Microsoft Dynamics CRM integrator highlights that IBM is interested in industry sector solutions, and is not adverse to that solution being based on another SaaS platform.

Why this is valuable for both IBM and Optevia is:

For IBM: IBM gains Optevia’s expertise, experience, and agility in the public sector CRM SaaS space, plus the benefit of their wide-ranging existing client relationships.
For Optevia: Optevia gains access to IBM’s technical skills plus its reach and range, as IBM said that the Optevia solutions will be scaled across other areas worldwide.

Details of the acquisition were not disclosed. Optevia was founded in 2001.