Latest News from Cloud Ventures

New white paper: BYOD – Bring Your Own Doctor

Tue, 16 Apr 2013 18:06:46 EDT

The headline theme for our next seminar is ‘BYOD – Bring Your Own Doctor’. UPDATE: I am also presenting on this topic at the upcoming 13th annual eHealth Summit – Read more. Mobile Big Data Cloud Computing This will focus on the overall best practices for Mobile Big Data Cloud Computing, in particular focusing in on [...]

Cloud Readiness Assessment – Planning your Cloud TEI (Total Economic Impact)

Tue, 16 Apr 2013 18:05:07 EDT

Our objective here at the Canada Cloud Network is to build a local forum for innovating global Cloud best practices. For example over here at Sheepdog our goal is to build one of Canada’s premier brands for expert Cloud consulting. Central to this is development of the ‘Cloud Readiness Assessment’, a standardized process for helping [...]

Forrester Total Economic Impact of a single Identity Infrastructure for employees, customers and partners.

Sun, 07 Apr 2013 09:25:57 EDT

Recently Google commissioned Forrester Research to identify the TEI (Total Economic Impact) of moving to Google Apps, polling around 600 mid-sized firms about their collaboration plans. Download the report here: The Google Apps TEI Report from Forrester Research, used to to plan the ROI of moving from a legacy messaging and collaboration platform to Google Apps. This [...]

Google Compute enters the IaaS market

Sat, 06 Apr 2013 11:07:10 EDT

Although there are a number of suppliers in the Cloud market, most accept and note the primary dominance of Amazon, and the distinctions in scale of the Cloud that they operate. The Cloud providers market is like McDonalds – S, M, L and Super-size! So while there are announcements all the time about hosting providers [...]

Digital Postcards – Social Selling with Linkedin and Google Apps

Thu, 04 Apr 2013 07:00:14 EDT

A popular social media topic that is a great focus area for small businesses and other folks in sales is ‘Social Selling’ – This refers to using social media sites like Linkedin to help with your lead generation prospecting and other sales activities. For example this article How Social Sellers Build Their Pipeline with Linkedin [...]

BYOD – Bring Your Own Doctor

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 21:51:41 EDT

The headline theme for our next seminar is ‘BYOD’ – Bring Your Own Doctor. In this March 4th article The Smartphone Will See You Now, the Canadian magazine McLeans reported on the work of the E-Health futurist Eric Topol. Topol describes the growing trend of patients using their own smartphones and e-health apps to self-assess [...]

Integrated “App to App Synergy” is key to Cloud ROI and enterprise social media strategy

Thu, 28 Mar 2013 07:00:46 EDT

The Forrester report ‘Total Impact of Google Apps‘ provides a framework for identifying the ROI from switching from a legacy mail and collaboration platform to Google Apps. Surveying 200+ organizations with over 1,000 employees, Forrester identified the main business benefits required to build an ROI framework for moving to a Cloud-based service, which essentially broke [...]

MaaS Implements Small Data and Enables Personal Clouds

Fri, 22 Mar 2013 09:00:00 EDT

MaaS (Model as a Service) sets a new concept to order and classify data modeling design and deployment to the Cloud. MaaS changes the way to move data to the Cloud because allows to define data taxonomy, size and contents. Starting from data model design, MaaS might guide the DaaS (Database as a Service) lifecycle, providing data granularity and duty rules: as a consequence, MaaS implements the new concept of Small Data. In fact, Small Data answers to the need of controlling “on-premise” data dimension and granularity. Anyway, Small Data is not data volume limitation. Small Data affords data modeling full configuration and provides 2 main advantages: data model scale and data ownership that provide assigned data deployment and, finally, data deletion in the Cloud.

Big Data PaaS – Reference Architecture for Big Data Cloud Computing

Thu, 21 Mar 2013 05:30:00 EDT

Our next seminar is scheduled for April 24th in New York City, with a headline theme of Big Data Cloud Computing. Specifically the agenda will be how to build a Big Data PaaS – Platform as a Service. This combines the NIST Cloud model for the middleware stack with the corporate agenda to master the [...]

Webinar: Going Google Enterprise

Thu, 14 Mar 2013 16:08:28 EDT

Join my Sheepdog colleagues for a webinar on Thursday, March 21st at 12pm EST – Going Google Enterprise. Register here With a customer case study from Joe AbiDaoud, CIO for Hudbay Minerals, this webinar session will provide a comprehensive introduction to the Google+ Apps suite and how your enterprise can leverage their transformational capability. Related [...]

How to Master Linkedin, Salesforce.com AND Google+

Wed, 13 Mar 2013 09:15:00 EDT

For any modern entrepreneur I`d suggest the sweet spot of Cloud applications you should master is the holy trinity of these three killer apps – Linkedin, Salesforce.com and Google+ Apps. In short these cater for the end-to-end requirements of a sales operation, so you can begin selling and closing deals. Establishing successful sales teams is [...]

Bringing Google+ To Work

Tue, 12 Mar 2013 17:28:56 EDT

It’s often said that BYOD – Bring Your Own Device, is part of a broader trend of “Consumerization”. In short staff are increasingly bringing their own home technologies into work, such as their smartphone, and using them for work purposes. It’s a blended experience where they also continue to use it for personal use too, [...]

Big Data Analytics for E-Health, via Google PaaS

Sun, 10 Mar 2013 13:00:00 EDT

Recently I’ve been lucky to meet with the CTO’s of two important Canadian public sector organizations, Canada Health Infoway and the Province of Ontario. Indeed Dennis Giokas kindly presented on Cloud Computing in Healthcare at our recent seminar in Toronto. This presentation was about the recent CHI Cloud white paper, which is quite visionary in its [...]

IBM To Make Its Cloud Services and Software Based on Open Standards

Tue, 05 Mar 2013 05:02:08 EST

Las Vegas, 4 March 2013: IBM (NYSE: IBM) today announced that its cloud services and software will be based on an open cloud architecture. This move will ensure innovation in cloud computing is not hampered by locking businesses into proprietary islands of unsecured and difficult-to-manage offerings. Without industry-wide open standards for cloud computing, businesses will not be able to fully [...]

Kantara Initiative Call for participation: Cloud Identity and Security Best Practices Work Group

Mon, 04 Mar 2013 12:49:51 EST

Kantara Initiative is pleased to announce the formation of the Cloud Identity and Security Best Practices (CloudIDSec WG). Find out below how to join this exciting new group! The core purpose of the CloudIDSec WG is to identify the overlap between the field of Cloud Computing and the Kantara federated identity programs, with a view to defining: * How [...]

UberConference Announces Google Apps Reseller Program

Thu, 28 Feb 2013 03:54:33 EST

SAN FRANCISCO, February 26, 2013 — Firespotter Labs today announced the UberConference Google Apps Reseller Program. UberConference is a next generation audio conferencing service with a unique, visual interface. UberConference’s new channel partner program will be launching with Premier Enterprise Google Apps resellers SADA Systems, Dito, Sheepdog, Ltech and Agosto as its principal partners. “Partnering [...]

Always On Canadian Cloud Computing

Wed, 27 Feb 2013 15:29:18 EST

Our next Canada Cloud Seminar is now scheduled. On March 13th, at the downtown Toronto Business Development Centre, we will introduce ‘Always On Cloud Computing’. Keynote speakers will include Craig McLellan, previously the CTO for Hosting.com and author of the best practice program the ‘Always On Framework’. Read more and register here.

Slides available for E-Health disruptive business models seminar

Wed, 27 Feb 2013 14:58:21 EST

Courtesy of the Centre for Global EHealth Innovation we held our first CCN seminar last week, entitled Cloud Computing and disruptive business models for E-Health. The seminar focused on the disruptive and transformational impact new technologies like Cloud Computing and Open Data will bring to Healthcare, and the commercialization opportunities this presents for entrepreneurs. This followed [...]

Open Data – Let’s get EXCITE`d about E-Health Innovation

Tue, 19 Feb 2013 18:41:52 EST

Our first CCN Seminar is this week on Thursday, 21st, being held at the Global Centre for E-Health Innovation. Register here: Disruptive Business Models for E-Health. As the name suggests the headline theme of the session is to consider the potential impact of Cloud Computing on the traditional E-Health delivery model, and how it may [...]

Kantara Cloud UMA: The Three S’s of Distributed Authorization

Tue, 19 Feb 2013 18:39:54 EST

Another Canadian Cloud startup to highlight is Cloudiosphere. Their COO Liam Lynch has just posted up this in-depth article on the ‘Zero Trust Identity Model’ described a few blogs back. Another recommended piece to go along with this is Eve Maler presentation on The Three S’s Of Distributed Authorization: Safe, Simple, Scalable. Some slides on this will be [...]

Personal Cloud EMR – Matching Google Cloud ID to Cloud End Points

Tue, 19 Feb 2013 18:38:43 EST

For our upcoming seminar, a key theme will be “Matching Google Cloud ID to Cloud End Points” – By this I mean a focus on two different technology areas discussed on this blog, notably Google Cloud Identity and also Google Cloud End Points. We’re very lucky to be hosting Mark Lapasa as the presenter on [...]

Podcast interview – A spotlight on home-grown Canadian Cloud providers

Tue, 19 Feb 2013 18:37:07 EST

Last week I interviewed with Tema Frank, publisher of the Frank Online Marketing guide. You can listen to the podcast here, for a quick and general introduction to the business value of Cloud Computing for small businesses in Canada. In particular I emphasized the fit of local Canadian options for Canadian SMEs, as service and [...]

Google App Innovation for Healthcare – An Introduction to Google Cloud End Points

Tue, 19 Feb 2013 18:35:48 EST

A headline theme for our upcoming seminar next week is ‘Google Apps for Healthcare’. It’s free to attend – Sign up here. Take Two Apps and Call Me in the Morning Our keynote speaker is Dennis Giokas, author of the recent Cloud Computing strategy document from Canada Health Infoway. One of the key messages of this [...]

Google Cloud Identity – A Zero Trust Architecture for Patient Privacy at Web Scale

Mon, 11 Feb 2013 21:21:01 EST

Our first CCN Meet Up is scheduled for next week 21st, where the TGH Centre for Global E-Health Innovation is kindly hosting Disruptive Business Models for E-Health. Having recently joined Sheepdog, one of Canada’s leading Google Cloud consulting partners, I will be presenting on the role of Google Cloud services in this scenario, and specifically [...]

Pros and Cons of NetSuite as Accounting Software

Mon, 11 Feb 2013 17:34:42 EST

NetSuite is a Cloud-based accounting and ecommerce solution that offers partner collaboration and multilevel support for mid-sized companies. Unlike other solutions, which can require multiple records and database support for each process, NetSuite increases business efficiency by offering sales, accounting, shipping and billing functionality from the same base records. Some functionality offered in the NetSuite solution includes revenue recognition, [...]

Getting Real with Ruby: Understanding the Benefits

Mon, 11 Feb 2013 13:30:00 EST

Ruby is an advanced language for many programmers, but it’s a powerful language used to make dynamic interfaces on the web. Dynamic web hosting shouldn’t be taken lightly because security holes still exist. A good cloud web host will offer a safe environment for development while still offering scalability and usability for Ruby programming, testing and deployment. Web applications can grow to several gigabytes. For newer Ruby developers, it’s helpful to have enough storage space for backups, so a backup can be made to support the deployed code changes. Ruby is an interpreted language, but a bug can still mean a lot of time and resources devoted to discovery and fixing. Instead of emergency code reviews, the developer can restore the old version of the application before troubleshooting bugs.

Google Cloud Ventures – Standing on the Shoulders of Giants

Sun, 10 Feb 2013 15:00:00 EST

To best capture the primary value of Cloud Computing I always recommend looking at the scenario of a new entrepreneur launching their online business. The Cloud has made entrepreneurism itself more accessible to more people, lowering the barrier to entry by lowering the costs it takes to launch a new online venture by a magnitude, while simultaneously improving the quality of the apps you can produce, and how quickly you can produce them. Combined with the continuing explosion of online users and how much they grow their daily use of social media, e-commerce etc., this is a massively potent combination.

“Policy as a Service” – Critical for Cloud Deployments

Fri, 08 Feb 2013 07:15:00 EST

The financial ROI of Cloud security and compliance is judged by decision makers in end-user organizations by the same measures as is done for Cloud computing in general, i.e. by how much it cuts up-front capital expenditure and in-house manual maintenance cost. However, manually translating security policy into technical implementation is difficult, expensive, and error-prone [...]

The Evolution of Single Sign-on

Thu, 07 Feb 2013 18:53:00 EST

The concept of single sign-on (SSO) is not a new one, and over the years it has successfully bridged the gap between security and productivity for organizations all over the globe. Allowing users to authenticate once to gain access to enterprise applications improves access security and user productivity by reducing the need for passwords. In the days of mainframes, SSO was used to help maintain productivity and security from inside the protection of firewalls. As organizations moved to custom-built authentication systems in the 1990’s, it became recognized as enterprise SSO (ESSO) and later evolved into browser-based plugin or web-proxy methods known as web access management (WAM). IT’s focus was on integrating applications exclusively within the network perimeter.

Webinar: GovCloud – The Digital Agenda

Thu, 07 Feb 2013 13:20:02 EST

Our next webinar is now scheduled, for the 20th March at 11am EST Register here GovCloud and the Digital Agenda The headline theme for this session is to identify and explore the enabling relationship between Cloud Computing and Digital Government programs. This will include a headline review of the European Union initiative in this area. [...]

Enterprise Social – Ensuring Your Sales Team Stays Ahead of the Curve

Mon, 04 Feb 2013 16:36:25 EST

McKinsey provides an excellent insight into how executives should approach the increasingly important world of social media. In Six Social Media Skills Every Executive Needs (requires free registration) they describe how the transformational power of this trend can be harnessed through publishing compelling content for inspiring better team collaboration. We will be profiling this trend in an [...]

Google Enterprise – Getting Things Done, Google style!

Mon, 04 Feb 2013 13:32:10 EST

Last year I posted a blog to the Allstream portal about how tools like Cloud-based Microsoft Outlook services can help you implement personal productivity best practices, like ‘Getting Things Done‘. This type of functionality is also possible with the Google toolset, indeed to be fair this is one way to see how Google outshines the [...]

GovCloud 2.0 – Harnessing Cloud Computing for Digital Government Transformation

Sat, 02 Feb 2013 10:04:46 EST

Recently the USA Government announced a Digital Government strategy. Our new white paper ‘GovCloud 2.0′ describes how Government Cloud Computing can provide an accelerating platform for implementing this policy, covering topics such as: Business Transformation - Harnessing social media and collective intelligence models to reinvent government to be more collaborative. Procurement Frameworks - Cloud procurement [...]

Standard G-Cloud Provider Profile

Thu, 31 Jan 2013 13:48:41 EST

As described in this previous blog, we started the process of collectively building a standardized profile that Cloud Providers can use to describe their services, hosting facilities and other factors that are important to client, so they can make like for like comparisons. We’re very lucky in that my first amateur effort has thankfully been [...]

CanadaCloud.info – A “social directory” for the Canadian Cloud industry

Wed, 30 Jan 2013 17:39:56 EST

We have now launched an industry directory for the Canadian Cloud industry: CanadaCloud.info Our goal is to help customers find local Canadian service options for their Cloud needs, and provide a showcase vehicle for the many smaller providers who are starting out. What I’m attempting with this site is a “Social Directory”. There are no [...]

Help Define a Standardized Cloud Provider Profile

Wed, 30 Jan 2013 08:30:00 EST

As discussed on this thread in one of our Linkedin groups, we are starting the process of building a directory of Cloud Providers and also facilitating competitive assessment of the services they offer. Here’s a quick draft to get the dialogue started, that we`d like to refine with crowd inputs.. Cloud Provider Profile Data Centres [...]

Vaultive and Turnberry Solutions Partner to Enable Secure Migration to the Cloud

Tue, 29 Jan 2013 11:25:00 EST

New York, NY and Blue Bell, PA – Jan. 29, 2013 - Vaultive, a provider of persistent encryption gateways to retain ownership and control of cloud data, and Turnberry Solutions, a Microsoft Managed Partner with a proven track record of architecting, designing and implementing large-scale infrastructure projects, have announced a technology and services partnership. The combination of Turnberry’s capabilities and services in managing [...]

Go Big! Disruptive business models for E-Health

Mon, 28 Jan 2013 06:43:07 EST

We have now confirmed the date and venue for our first CCN Meet Up: Disruptive business models for E-Health 21st Feb Centre for Health Innovation, Toronto General Hospital Our keynote speaker is Dennis Giokas, CTO for Emerging Technologies at Canada Health Infoway. As was reported here Dennis was taken on to lead this focus on [...]

The Smart Cloud: Smart apps, smart agents, smart content

Mon, 28 Jan 2013 06:40:53 EST

In our TRANSFORM e-magazine series we focus on the different needs of different vertical industries, like Government and E-Health for the first two issues, and now the media sector for the third installment. This third issue will be headlined by an interview with the technology leadership team of the Guardian Newspaper in the UK, the [...]

Vaultive Announces availability through the Rackspace® Cloud Tools Marketplace

Mon, 28 Jan 2013 06:26:53 EST

New York, NY –January 22, 2013 — Vaultive, a provider of cloud data encryption solutions designed to maintain the control, security and compliance of data processed by cloud-based services, has joined the Rackspace Cloud Tools program. Vaultive is now included in Rackspace’s comprehensive catalog of innovative, third-party-developed applications that are compatible with The Rackspace Open Cloud. Vaultive’s capabilities that are consistent [...]

What’s Next Toronto: Cloud Computing and the Drummond Report

Sun, 20 Jan 2013 17:18:52 EST

Last year we began the process of organizing an event and white paper series entitled ‘Cloud Computing and the Drummond Report’. Due to the volume of preparatory work required to make this a home run we had to put it on the back-burner for a while. This is now complete and we’re re-starting the project, stay [...]

Unified Cloud Communications – Introducing Software Defined Networking

Thu, 17 Jan 2013 14:53:52 EST

Here is the first of our Canada Cloud Roadmap White Papers. Download : Unified Cloud Communications (10-page PDF). This covers a number of exciting topics such as SIP Cloud Services and SDN: Software Defined Networking. These papers are written in response to real-world client procurement projects, most notably those defined in RFPs published to MERX. In [...]

Cloud experts publish best practices guide for E-Health

Tue, 15 Jan 2013 15:31:45 EST

Toronto, Canada – 15th Jan, 2013 – Rackspace, EMC, Vaultive and other Cloud Computing industry experts have helped create a Cloud best practices guide to describe how the technology can be applied to E-Health. Issue 2 of a new ‘TRANSFORM‘ e-magazine from the Cloud Best Practices Network focuses on the recent Cloud adoption strategy published by Canada Health [...]

The Media Cloud – Transformation of news and media

Tue, 15 Jan 2013 13:02:26 EST

Issue one of our e-magazine TRANSFORM focused on Government, Issue two on E-Health. The next installment will look at the media industry and the disruptive effect Cloud will have on media firms such as newspapers, magazines, the entertainment industry, PR firms and more, covering topics such as: Cloud Gaming! Case studies of media firms embracing [...]

Challenges in Virtualization

Tue, 15 Jan 2013 10:00:00 EST

Virtualization has been a boon to enterprise, as it makes IT operations more efficient. Some like its green qualities as virtualization saves on energy consumption, while others appreciate the storage capacity, as well as the data recovery solutions for if disaster strikes. However, the virtual environment is invisible, and with that come more challenges in making sure it runs smoothly. The cloud might be simple to setup, but it becomes more complex over time. In addition, the more machines and data involved, the more difficult it can be to monitor for space, CPU spikes, network security and other indicators.

Gamification Meets The Cloud – Lush Use Memset Cloud To Deliver Gamification Employee Training

Mon, 14 Jan 2013 12:30:25 EST

Guildford, Surrey – 9 January 2013 – Award-winning, British cloud provider, Memset have provided the cloud infrastructure to enable Lush Fresh Handmade Cosmetics to roll out their game-based, interactive, digital staff training programme across Europe. The mobile and online learning game, called Lush Quests, introduces new staff to Lush’s brand and products with challenges and rewards throughout the digital [...]

How Walmart Uses Site Search Technology for ‘Social Commerce’

Sun, 13 Jan 2013 12:32:00 EST

The CCN has now started a Meet Ups group to organize a regular schedule of networking sessions for entrepreneurs and corporate users to learn more about Cloud Computing. The first of these is Efrem Habteselassie, Founder of one of Canada’s most exciting Cloud start-ups, Cloud Search Portal. As the name suggests the venture demonstrates the fundamental value of the Cloud – A hosted version of very powerful software so that you can access it in an on demand, utility manner, harnessing the benefits without having to be troubled with the challenges of installing and managing it all yourself. In this case the powerful software is Search technology, like that of Google, but in this case based on the Microsoft Sharepoint FAST system.

Meet Ups for Canadian Cloud entrepreneurs

Sun, 13 Jan 2013 12:30:55 EST

We have now set up a CCN Meet Ups group, to provide a regular networking forum for those interested in learning more about Cloud Computing in Canada. Our first meet is scheduled for Feb 6th, with a headline theme of ‘Marketing and the Cloud‘. This will look at how businesses of any size can leverage [...]

Transformative Hospital System Plan

Sun, 13 Jan 2013 12:29:01 EST

Hamilton Heath Sciences is looking for consulting work to define a business transformation strategy. MERX RFP: Ref 259244 (Closing date: 18th Jan) They describe a lack of literature available to hospitals to plan business transformation and are looking for consultants to help them define such a planning strategy. Their primary motivation is that HHS had recognized that our [...]

Unified Cloud Communications showcase for Ontario Province

Sun, 13 Jan 2013 12:27:38 EST

We have now started a project to provide a white paper response to this request from the Province of Ontario. They are looking for thought leadership on a range of topics headlined by their WAN (Wide Area Network) strategy, looking for insights on how best practices in this are changing due to Cloud Computing and [...]