Using the Cloud as Innovation Platform

May 25, 2011

The Innovator’s Dilemma: Q&A with John Schloff of Pitney Bowes

When confronted by transformative disruptive technology such as Cloud, how can companies identify opportunities to leverage technology to create new business value? This interview presents highlights of how Pitney Bowes used the Cloud as a platform to create competitive advantage, launch Volly.com, and drive new revenue streams.

By Bill McNee and Mike West, Saugatuck Technology

As part of Saugatuck Technology’s ongoing “Executive Insights” research program, we recently talked with John Schloff, VP Global Strategy at Pitney Bowes about how an industry leader such as Pitney Bowes embraces disruptive technology to create, innovate, and extend a major business brand in the Cloud.

As Schloff explains, this has included evolving some of its current offerings, as well as creating new Cloud-native solutions that exploit its inherent value capabilities. In particular, Schloff highlights some of the planning and key decision making around the launch of Volly.com, a new digital mail communications platform that it is launching that empowers consumers to receive, view, organize, and manage bills, statements, direct marketing, catalogs, coupons and other content.

More importantly, this interview provides a window into the transformative impact that the Cloud is having on all traditional business brands, not only in helping them lower costs and for internal process improvement, but also as an important platform that is helping them create competitive advantage and drive new revenue streams.

SAP SAPPHIRE Now: Key Takeaways

Kamesh Pemmaraju of Sand Hill discusses his impressions from attending SAP’s recent SAPPHIRE Now, including the conference’s three main themes (in-memory computing/HANA, mobility, and cloud) as well as SAP’s SME-friendly face offering in this post to the SandHill.com blog, Leaders in the Cloud.

In case you missed it last week, Kamesh also shares his impressions from attending Saugatuck Technology's invitation-only inaugural Cloud Business Summit in this post.

Venture Funding: A Look at the Growth of Marketing Automation

Lauren Carlson of Software Advice discusses new entrants to the marketing automation market and shares her analysis of why VCs are investing in this market in this post to the SandHill.com blog, Software 2020: Success Strategies for the Next Decade.

Executing a BI CoE (BI Shared Services or BI Competency Center)

Shirish Netke at Saama and Ravi Kalakota at Alvarez & Marsal explain how to set up a business intelligence Competency Center in this post to the Sandhill.com blog, Best Practices: Operations. The blog post is loaded with checklists and links to information on worldwide data privacy laws.

Did You Know?

There are three elements of frictionless software sales and seven major benefits. Read the OpSource point of view on how to eliminate barriers in selling to Generation SaaS.

Optimize Content Marketing by Facilitating the Buyer’s Journey

Tom Pisello of Alinean discusses the fact that fewer than 50 percent of more than 1,100 surveyed B2B content marketers believe their efforts are effective and discusses a strategy for improving ROI in this post to the Sandhill.com blog, Best Practices: Software Marketing.

It is Alive! The Death of E-mail has been Severely Exaggerated

Auren Hoffman of Rapleaf discusses why the e-mail service provider space is growing despite the hype around social media in this post to SandHill.com blog, Predictions for 2011.

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Quote of the Week

“California is a terrible place to do a startup. There is an I-hate-business environment out here. ...Until we get some personal responsibility from politicians, we can't escape the regulatory climate. ...Profits are the best thing that can happen to mankind. In countries that understand marketing, even the poor are better off. Right now it's death by a trillion regulations. Go global.”

- Scott McNealy, Sun Microsystems co-founder

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