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Business Strategy for Software Executives |
September 19, 2005 |
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Consolidation? What Consolidation?Software industry insiders present their views on the long-anticipated Oracle-Siebel deal: what it means to product innovation, the CRM space, the health of the software industry — and whether it was a good deal in the first place.By M.R. Rangaswami, Sand Hill Group Finally. The Oracle-Siebel deal is done and the industry can stop speculating about it. Interestingly however, the deal seems to have woken some observers from a deep sleep. Consolidation has been going on for years. The latest deals - specifically Oracle's aggressive buys - have simply made the trend front page news. But broader awareness of big software mergers is important in and of itself. The sense that young companies cannot make a go of it alone any longer, that they must find a "Big Brother" to take them under their wing, dampens enthusiasm of many software executives and investors. This is the wrong reaction. I would argue that innovation and opportunity continue to drive the software industry today - even in the face of these megadeals.
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Clues to Recognizing a Great SalespersonThe software sales process has changed dramatically. Polished presentations and smooth talking are no longer the hallmarks of a great rep. Jeff Thull of Prime Resource Group presents five characteristics that indicate a true consultative salesperson in the new SandHill.com Blog, Best Practices: Sales & Marketing. Overcoming the "Nasty Nine" Software Adoption RisksPhillip Lay of TCG Advisors advises software vendors to deal with their customers’ adoption risks head on. Rather than convince new clients that adopting a the product will be risk-free, vendors who understand and directly address the nine most common adoption risks stand to increase both sales and customer satisfaction. Read Lay’s analysis on SandHill.com. Share your insight on the software business. Email editor@sandhill.com with your submissions to the SandHill.com Blog. Poll: Acquisition Integration Quagmire?With six acquisitions in the past two years, will Oracle ever be able
to truly integrate its product offerings? Last week, SandHill.com visitors gave their opinions on whether IT
organizations at their client sites are growing. New Report on Software’s "New Opportunities"The executive report from the Enterprise 2005 conference is now available at the conference site. Authored in partnership with McKinsey & Company, the document presents insight from speakers and surveys on the conference theme, "New Opportunities." For more in-depth analysis of e2005 conference proceedings, read the SandHill.com Blog with posts from a variety of conference-goers. More at SandHill.com:Oracle hints at ‘lifetime support.’ Adaptive Planning receives $5 million. Read Forbes’
opinion of the best software takeover targets. More execs
depart Microsoft. Send us your feedback on this newsletter and the SandHill.com site. Parting Thought"Anybody can jump a motorcycle. The trouble begins when you try
to land it." Courtesy of Malcolm Kusher, The Kushner Group |
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