CIO Enterprise Newsletter
 
NEWSLETTERS
 

CIO.com updates, insights and advice on technology, management and your career.

 CIO BlackBerry News and Tips
 CIO Research and Analysis
 CIO Microsoft
 CIO Insider
 
 
 
LEADERSHIP
 
CIO Executive Programs
The Leader in Face-to-Face Education for Senior Executives

Offering regional and national programs, CIO (and CSO) events bring together some of the most respected names and thought leaders in information technology and security. Presented by CIOs and other senior level executives, these invitation-only programs offer timely topics and strong networking. Learn More »

 
CIO Executive Council
A Peer-Advisory Service and Professional Association for CIOs

Public Council Teleconference: Application Rationalization — Hidden Costs and Smart Decisions

November 17 at 11:00 am US/Eastern (GMT-5)

Join Honorio Padrón, of The Hackett Group, who will share the drivers for companies to tackle application rationalization and the results of research that define the hidden cost of complexity. Additionally, we will discuss key decision milestones—to start or not, holding the course steady and fulfilling expectations.

Virtual Desktop Cost-Benefit Analysis — Michael Jacobs, Catlin Group

The analysis contained in this presentation measures the cost of everything from the machines and licenses to the infrastructure for virtual vs. traditional desktop environments.

Honor your best senior team members - Apply for the CIO Ones to Watch Award

Get well-earned public recognition for your top up-and-coming team members, your IT organization and your enterprise. Award winners will be announced, publicized and feted in May 2010, great timing to help attract new IT recruits to your company.

More / Register »

Learn more about the CIO Executive Council »



 
 
RESOURCE CENTER
 
 
 

Book Review: Could Customers Be Your Best Innovators?

Many dotcom-era business plans based on “virtual community” crashed and burned. But some companies today have discovered that online communities ...

 

October 15, 2006CIO

Many dotcom-era business plans based on “virtual community” crashed and burned. But some companies today have discovered that online communities for customers not only provide business value but also become a critical component of their customer relations, R&D and marketing efforts. That’s one key piece of consultant Patricia Seybold’s new book, Outside Innovation, which posits that companies need to engage customers in more innovative ways to help redesign products, improve processes and test business models.

The author of Customers.com and The Customer Revolution goes into great detail—using dozens of case studies from heavyweights such as Staples and Kraft, and lesser-knowns such as Koko Fitness—to get executives to wake up to her main point: The traditional company-customer relationship (“We develop products for our customers”) has flipped, and those who ignore this reality do so at their own peril.

This line of thinking requires a level of openness simply not found in many enterprises today—a faith that customers’ passion for your products and services will translate into revolutionary product developments and efficiency for you. In a sense, it’s R&D on the cheap.

Seybold’s examples are noteworthy for their innovations and financial returns.

Of course, companies can’t handpick customers, especially ones who want to strut their stuff for the company, so it’ll take a lot of work to vet the good from the bad, hammer out the relationship details and find suitable rewards for customers’ efforts. Much more work, it seems, than many firms are willing to put forth, Seybold says.

© 2009 CXO Media Inc.
 
 
Loading...
 
WHITE PAPERS

Infrastructures for Innovation

Read this exclusive research report from Qwest Communications and CIO on advanced communications infrastructures and their role in your organization's success.
 

eBook: Enterprise Management Flyover

A sample of the selected articles in this eBook provide insight on ensuring web service quality for SOA.
 

White Paper: Innovation and IT

Download this paper for further results and guidance in making wise IT investments that lead to innovation success.
 

What Every CIO Needs to Know About Search

Read this white paper before developing your enterprise search strategy.
 

Service Level Reporting and Communication

Service level reporting is the most visible output and often the most time-consuming activity in SLM.
 

Informatica Platform and Integration Competency Centers

Forrester used its total economic impact methodology to interview seven companies that have standardized their data integration practices.
 

WEBCASTS

The Innovation Quotient

Hear how even in tough times, smart investments in telecom and network services pay off.
 

IT Consolidation Made Easy

The Primary IT Initiative for Reducing Costs
 

Taking a Seat at the Executive Table: The Reality of Virtualization

This year, for the first time, the number of virtual machines is on track to exceed the number of physical machines...
 

Who Are the Data Center Leaders?

Today's data center is still very much a heterogeneous environment. Gabriel Consulting recently surveyed over 250 d...
 

SharePoint - Unchecked growth of content is unsustainable - now what?

Recent research has confirmed that it has become critical for IT leaders to reclaim authority over the SharePoint c...
 

Unleashing the Power of Customer Data

To hear how companies use feedback from their clients to develop business strategy, watch our video.
 

Resource Alerts

Get instant email notifications by topic when white papers, webcasts, and case studies are added to our library.

 
FEATURED SPONSORS
 
 
 
SPONSORED LINKS
 

Webcast: Unleashing the Power of Customer Data

Disciplined Autonomy: Resolving the Tension Between Flexibility and Control

Enterprise Capture: Your Onramp to Business Process Automation

Cloud Computing--What is its Potential Value for Your Company?

Seven Design Requirements for Web 2.0 Threat Protection

How Consumerization of IT Will Make Your Business More Productive

How does a software company save big with Green IT?

Translate business strategy into IT strategy and obtain maximum benefits.

eBook: How Can You Make Your People Productive Anywhere?

Mind the Talent Gap: Global Survey on IT and HR trends and challenges

"Enterprise-Proven" is the Prerequisite for Enterprise SaaS Portal Solutions

Join us at the US-Brazil IT-BPO Summit, on November 10th in New York.

Unified Communications: Thoughts, Strategies and Predictions. Join the discussion

Read the RSA report: Security for Business Innovation

Webcast: Looking to the Cloud for Email and Collaboration Services

64-page prescriptive guide to security, compliance, and IT operations.

Keep your IT expertise up to date. Join the Intel Premier IT Professionals.

A new fleet of PCs with a total ROI in 10 months. Find your ROI.

eZine: A Roadmap to Reducing IT Complexity

Reduce risk, gain agility. See how Progress can help your business.

Virtualization Technology as a Business Solution

eZine: A Roadmap to Reducing IT Complexity

World-class trading technology solutions from NYSE Technologies.

If You're Paying for Telecom, You're Paying Too Much. Contact Asentinel Today.

Trade-In your old printer and save up to $1,000 plus free recycling!

Learn How Web Site Performance Impacts Shopper Behavior

Build a Foundation for Unified Communications

Removing the Barriers to IT Governance: How On-Demand Software Changes the Game

Should Your Email Live In The Cloud? A Comparative Cost Analysis

Learn about the growing threat of insider data theft.

Adobe® LiveCycle® solutions for business process automation

10 Ways Excel Drives More Value from Your SAP Investment

The Key to Proving and Improving the Value of IT to the Company

Unleash the Power of Java with Oracle JRockit Real Time

Taking the Service Desk to the Next Level

See how AT&T can help protect your network.

Top Five CIO Challenges

Streamline IT Costs. Boost Performance with WAN Optimization.

Want to know how you can maximize employee productivity?

Build your 1st app FREE with Force.com

TDWI checklist helps define data readiness for analytics. Download report.

Increase UPS efficiency without sacrificing protection.

A Clear View Toward Virtualization

Virtualization Technology as a Business Solution

The rules of infrastructure management just changed.

A Clear View Toward Virtualization

Interactive Q&A helps you discover key ways to maximize IT assets.

Ready to virtualize tier one applications? Check your virtualization maturity.

Think you can't afford a Cisco Switch? Cisco Catalyst Switches are now more affordable.

Five minute business analytics assessment. Immediate results.