I’m frequently asked what it’s like to make an announcement at IBM. I’m also frequently told (by analysts):

Why doesn’t IBM just do x,y,z?

Why did IBM do x,y,z?

Who is the person that does x,y,z?

Company a,b and c can do this, why can’t you?

If IBM would spend some of it’s money doing x,y,z instead of stock buybacks, buying this or that, it would make more sense.

So it is when working at a larger company, things are different, especially in a communications function. It’s like working in the military, the congress or the UN sometimes.

IBM is a Big Company

Well, d’uh. But I had to establish the premise for drawing analogies. With big comes a different set of issues. When I worked at a small company years back, many times I made the decision to do what was needed for press, analysts or marketing campaigns.  If I needed money, I just went to see my buddies in accounting that I likely had lunch with and bingo, it was done.  Not so in a biggie company.

Coordinating communications across multiple disciplines, to different constituencies and from different area’s of the company and still seem congruent at the end of the day is also sometimes a feat. When it works, it is a charm, when it doesn’t…you wonder if we all work for the same company. Not only do you have message issues can conflict, you have executive issues…..and conflict.

There are times when the messages are actually competing with another brand or division. Co-opitiion lets you partner with your competitors and when you announce a joint project, it can upset the applecart internally. Oracle competes with our middleware, yet is a services partner. SAP uses our database technology to compete with Oracle, but again competes with our middleware stack. Microsoft is shipped with some of our servers, yet we are all about Open Source and Linux.

To make an announcement, hold an analyst day or any other form of communication, it calls for multiple revisions, making it hard to stay on track.

Working in the Congress

This is when it’s like congress. You have a bill (set of messages) and it covers many states (brands, divisions, groups) which you have to get it passed (make the announcement). There are constant negotiations, earmarks, pork where everyone has to get their message in. In case you didn’t already know, clear and concise messaging is effective, multiple and conflicting messages are not. It is up to the Comms team to keep it on track. Then you have a speaker of the house (executive) that is making the announcement, including the press secretary (announcement team) who field additional questions and clean up.

Then there are the times when we are doing say, acquisitions. We are sworn to secrecy (NDA’s), are given our marching orders (messaging) have a commander (executive in charge of the project) and are basically told when, where and how things are going down. Now drop and give me 20 push ups. This at times can actually be easier as the butt-in-ski’s from various groups don’t get to put in their 2 cents to slow things to the speed of a glacier. But to watch a big company work with the efficiency of an aircraft carrier, I’ve seen throngs of people get organized and get into action in literally minutes….. and it is some of the most effective work in the shortest amount of time you’ll see at a big company.

The UN
Then there are the communications times that remind me of raising teenagers, like nailing jello to a tree. It’s not clear who’s in charge, who’s announcing what and/or why. But we HAVE to get back to TPTB to report progress. I’m sitting back the whole time watching this train wreck waiting to happen. These announcements usually get swept under the rug or butchered if anyone finds out about them. It’s like working at the UN, people posturing about their product or announcement, but getting nothing done and and having no power to enforce anything….
How to get it to work
The net of it is coordination. A/R has to work with P/R, with the executives, with the analysts, with the press, with the WORLD to get the messaging correct and approved, The whole time the internal team has to notify everyone so that when a customer calls, we actually know what to say. All the affected product groups need to be communicated to and worked with. Timing has to be worked out because if you haven’t noticed, we pretty much announce something every day. It’s hard not to step on someone else’s toes, especially if you are communicating to the same mediums. We have to space out the announcements, and getting priority for yours is like going to court and negotiating a plea bargain. Which announcement is more important to the company? Well, what day is it.

The internal negotiations of such machinations is a skill in itself. You learn political, social, communication and flexibility skills in addition to your job. It is very difficult to make such a big company work together effectively, something that we do better than most, but still have a ways to go sometimes.

So when you ask us, why don’t you just do x, y or z, it’s because were going through the alphabet doing a,b and c,,,,plus some hieroglyphics to get it right, not because we aren’t listening to you. When you ask us who takes care of the revalvitating capitulators and I don’t know, it’s because we’re big and a lot of people do a lot of jobs. Oh yes, and since IBM stands for I’ve been moved, people change jobs and who did it last year is rarely an indicator of who’s doing it now.

It’s a good thing I can blog, the only boss I have to run that by is me.

Maybe.

I had a conversation recently with one of the major firms recently who asked me why I did what I do on my blog. Being transparent, I told them my motives, my objectives and my expectations. Let me stop and say that I fully expect them to be reading this post. I’ve been asked to present blogging as a best practice for analyst relations to a group of my peers. I do believe that it is a best practice as I accomplish many things through blogging (I’ll concede that competitive eating is pretty much motive-less, except for the spectacle of it). Mostly I was taken back that anyone would care a hoot about what I write, but I seemed to have mis-judged the audience. I know why I do what I do, but it seems that others are interested and the firm I spoke to thinks it could help the greater A/R community.

Blogging should be about transparency, but as I’ve noted before, I hate to lose. I clearly use my blog to speak to analysts as I learned well that the R in A/R doesn’t stand for reports. Yes, I write that often, so that phrase is brought to you by the department of redundancy department, but I digress. Back to hating to lose, I find that blogging gives me an additional line of communications with analysts, which I’d need to disclose to all, and it gives me a one up on the competition. I even have relationships with analysts through the blog that I don’t work day to day with.

It became clear in the conversation that I’m not going to worry about it that much as the discussion quickly came to the point that blogging is passion, you either are going to do it or your not. Most that do it are like the people at the gym after New Years. Here today, back at the buffet line tomorrow.

It also became clear to me who I felt were better bloggers than I, which I would point out in such a presentation, should I get asked to actually do it. But a lot comes down to whether I would discuss it or would I hold the keys to the safe of A/R tactics.

Maybe I just have delusions of adequacy?

My guess, I’d probably do it if asked to as if we can make our profession better, why not? And to answer the question is a blog influential to analyst relations, for me the answer is definitively yes…..both reading and writing.

I think the iPhone is a really cool tech tool.  My doctor even told me it changed how he runs his business because he switched.  I love my iPod and I hate Sprint, so it’s a no brainer for me.

So why am I so happy about products like the Nokia N95  and the new iPhone killer from Dell? Competition baby.

It’s no secret that I love capitalism.  Why, because it drives down the price and drives up the features, functions and quality.  It makes everyone get better and the ultimate winner is me, the consumer.

One thing I’m hoping for is the 3G and/or some IP capability.  In the spirit of better products, this will help us divorce ourselves from the service handcuffs that the cellphone companies strangle provide us with.  We should be tied to the phone and it’s capabilities, not the carrier.

So I normally am not a Dell fan, but in the spirit of capitalism, please bring this out before Christmas.  I know that the next two revsions (maybe even more) are already functioning in the Apple labs, so turn up the heat and get it out!

There is something about this time of year. All of the major Analyst firms have or just completed events, and IBM and other vendors are doing the same. Within IBM, each division is hosting their own events (Hardware, Software, SMB and so forth), so add a couple there.

This brings up some questions and complexities. How can you get to all the events if you are an analyst? How can you get to all the analyst events if you are a vendor? Are they all really necessary? What if they were held in Second life or virtual knowing that video conferencing isn’t going to work on this scale?

I’m not going to answer every question, but they are relevant to ask. Time is not just a commodity, it is valuable, and in some cases a currency. Travel is a royal PITA these days and it’s making one ask is it really worth it? Let’s talk about these things.

IBM Events

Multiple IBM events are easy to manage if you are a specialized analyst. Cover your area. Hardware analysts need not go to Software events (oh yes they will want to soon!!!!) and so forth. Smaller or generalist analysts need to cover all of IBM for their company. Is it possible to make all the events? Can you stomach that many days of IBM speak?

Well, yes it is necessary in some respects. We give direct access to the executives running the show and influencing the industry. No in other respects. We event the snot out of the industry and sometimes all you have to do is wait for the next one. Homework is key here. Getting to the right event is important. I’ll give a hint to analysts, if you have a good relationship with your A/R person, you can decide this together. With their own events happening, not all analysts can come to our events as they have to do theirs…Enough of the analyst perspective.

From our perspective it is also tough. Many times you have to support your executive at similar and related events. For me, we’ve recently had STG, VC, SMB and our own event. All related, but different in terms of support. How do you not say the same thing over and over again, but differently and still be meaningful? We also must be conscious of the audience and topic so as to speak correctly and directly to it.

What about things we can’t control? For example, what if our message is a competing message to another division or group? For example, we partner and compete with Oracle, SAP and other companies. Those are friends to one group and foes to another. How many copies of Windows do you think our server division sells, along with our own? It’s easy if you are a one product or a one industry company, not an option for IBM. With complexity comes, well…complexity.

Analyst events

Last week was Forrester Groundswell, Gartner Symposium and upcoming is the IDC Software Alliance Leadership Council. One can’t be in two places at once, so what’s the priority? When our executives go to an analyst conference and speak to analysts, what will we have to say just days later at our conference with the same analyst? Go to what you can, and have time for.

How much is too much

I think we (Analyst relations and Analyst companies) are in the throws of trying to figure this question out. It was a good model that got overplayed I think. Meeting often is good, but can you meet yourself to a point of saturation? Time must pass for strategy and execution to play out or be re-developed. Personally, I think we need to reduce, combine or space out our events a bit more.

Second life is not the answer, personal touch is.
I wish I could report that Second Life would be the panacea for this issue, but it is not. Sure it would cut down on travel, but the second word in A/R is relations. We need the interaction, but we need the right amount. A good event gives you plenty to discuss and transmit your strategy, interact with the pundits who evaluate the industry and tighten relationships…but the 64 thousand dollar question is how much is too much?

Here is a synopsis of the announcement from TheNewsMarket.com:

IBM has launched its Lotus Notes and Lotus Domino 8 software applications for businesses. The two software systems function by integrating e-mail, instant messaging and office productivity applications. Lotus Notes 8 and Domino 8 arrives - IBM’s new collaboration software, now available - is designed to help users spend less time managing email and more time on real collaboration. New features include enhanced e-mail that can gather and review e-mail threads more easily, enable users to view their collaboration history with specific individuals, and retrieve certain messages sent to the wrong person. The systems also feature integrated office productivity tools, composite applications, support for activity-centric computing, and Really Simple Syndication (RSS) and Atom feeds. The Lotus Notes and Lotus Domino 8 software systems are currently available by electronic means only, and are expected to be released for physical distribution Sept. 21.

Heres why I care the most - You can CALL BACK EMAIL YOU DIDN’T MEAN OR WANT TO SEND!!!

I, along with most people who use email have sent something they would have liked or died to have back. It was either embarrassing, sent to the wrong person or groups, or perhaps it was sent in a fit of email road rage and you’ve since cooled down.

I could have used this years ago. This perhaps is the most innovative email feature I’ve heard of, because were human.

This should send the rats scurrying around the room late at night at the email vendors.

BusinessWeek asks this question.

I’ll give the answer, yes….maybe.

There is the outside chance that SAP can emerge the golden knight and save it’s image, but this tactic is like politics. If you read the article, it does seem that SAP did some dirty work and appears guilty. I’ve learned to wait before passing judgement, especially when there are lawyers involved as you never get the whole truth from them up front…..or sometimes ever.

The politics angle is like a PR stunt. It doesn’t really matter whether SAP is judged guilty or not by the court of law. They have been judged guilty in the court of perception where everyone now at least questions did they do it.

Here’s how it’s done. One candidate stands up and says something like, “My opponent molests collies” (line from Animal House, I have nothing against collies). The opponent now has to move off of his stump and his messaging is derailed while he does damage control. This is a tactic employed by virtually all politicians, put your opponant on the defensive and he has to deal with a potential non issue and commences a cycle of wheel spinning rather than campaigning on their message. Dirty, but effective, ask any presidential loser in the last few elections.

So Oracle has accused SAP of molesting collies for the next 2-5 years and can bring it up in front of all their customers.It makes me wonder why SAP? Obviously, Oracle and SAP have it in for each other. You don’t fire your cannons at someone you don’t care about or think can’t hurt you. These guys are it together because they have the same customers or pool of money in mind. I’m just glad it wasn’t us this go around.

So Michael Dell is going to take over Dell…well, well, well.

Steve Jobs turned Apple around twice, once with the Mac and once with the iPod. Let’s not forget NeXT computers and Pixar which are quite innovative. Whiiiiiiiiiiiiiich brings me to the point. To turn a company around, or take it to the next step, innovation is a key as is customer service and perception.

Before I go off, I admire what Michael Dell has accomplished, the epitome of the American Dream..Let me also give Dell credit for innovation in supply chain management. They managed to squeeze every last drop of blood from that turnip. End of story. No R&D, sucking off of others, then driving the cost down. I get capitalism and cost savings. I’m a consumer and want the best price, but as it usually goes, something suffers for this. In this case, innovation and customer service are the victims. The stories are endless about customer no-service at Dell. Innovation? crickets sounding here.

Dell is in good shape financially, although the stock has taken a beating and the margins run razor thin, gambler thin in my book. This is ok until there is either a technology shift or a customer attitude shift, both of which come into play here albeit customer opinion would be the one I fixed first if I was Dell.Enter Steve Jobs. In the spirit of avoiding any ad hominem editorial here, he can be egotistic, but at least he’s backed it up. I know he didn’t invent the iPod personally, but he could have killed it and he certainly was behind promoting it. I feel like I’m handcuffed when using iTunes because of DRM, but financially, it’s a money printing machine. When the Mac was brought out, it and not Gates was the birth of Windows and the graphic interface. The point is, he was able to change directions and he pulled Apple out of the doldrums when it needed it.

Dell is approaching the doldrums. They need a new direction, and after having worked with entrepreneurs (and against Dell himself when he was in the gray market space) they are good for the first idea, then need someone else to run the company and come up with the next big idea. They need a Steve Jobs type thinker, or we’ll just get the next speed PC for 2 cents less. That is not an equation for any forward momentum. Look at what HP is doing, their iPod is printers and Dell just tried to undercut that market. Sure it didn’t work out with Rollins (and Vanderslice who was a huge waste of time and money for Dell), but for every one of them, there is a Gerstner just around the corner.

Here’s a hint, do something with multimedia, the living room (not plasma TV’s, technology tying the house together), mobile computing and entertainment. There, is that going out on too much of a limb?

Do something innovative, or hire someone to run the company, think about customers….my bloviating.What do I really expect? Status quo, which is good for HP, Lenovo and the rest of the PC makers.

After I wrote this, David Berlind expanded and expounded on my thoughts, only better.

Update, here is an email from Dell to his employees, further ruining morale and showing the mess it is internally. He is delusional if he thinks this is going to do anything but demotivate his people. The Statesman got it because an irate employee sent it to them. I’ve seen these signs before, there are problems in Austin.

Nuther update: CBS Marketwatch makes the same prediction I do, a day later.  Once in a while, I get something right.

We get judged by any number of standards, from technical platform to earnings per share. Yesterday IBM released it’s earnings for Q4 and full year 2006. A number of other companies who we are compared to also released earnings this week. Here are some clips, you make the comparison.

• The News: IBM’s fourth-quarter net income rose 11% as revenue climbed 7.5%, reflecting a rebound in Big Blue’s services business and continued strength in software.

• The software business was IBM’s strongest performer with revenue growing 14.4% to $5.6 billion. That was up 11% after adjustment for currency. The software group contributed 42% of pretax profits from operations of the business segments. One reason for software growth was IBM’s aggressive acquisition of independent software companies. Mr. Loughridge declined to say how much of the sales growth was organic. IBM spent $4.8 billion on 14 acquisitions last year, 11 of which were software companies.

SAP and Oracle, both partners and competitors announced also.

• Late Thursday, Germany-based SAP (SAP) said in a preliminary review of its quarterly results that software-license sales, a key indicator of future growth, rose 7% to 1.26 billion euros ($1.6 billion), missing consensus expectations by about 100 million euros.
• The slowdown was particularly marked in the U.S., where sales rose just 4% compared to 15% in the year-earlier period. Including the effect of currency fluctuations, sales in the Americas as a whole didn’t rise at all, missing the 20% growth that analysts had been looking for.

• SAP has now revised expectations for software-revenue growth for 2006 to around 11% from an earlier forecast of 15% to 17%. It also said it now expects annual operating margin to increase by 0.6% to 0.7%, compared to previous guidance of a 0.5% to 1% rise for the year.

• The company warned in October that revenue would come in at the low end of forecasts.
  “This was clearly another disappointment from SAP,” Merrill Lynch analysts told clients.
• Oracle Corp. (ORCL) last month that also missed analysts’ expectations. The U.S. firm saw new license sales rise 14% in the second quarter, less than the 15% to 20% range the company had forecast.

The Marvin Gaye themed Blog today.

7 more Windoze security updates today, bringing the total to well over 20 in just the past couple of weeks. I wonder if this happens to Sam, Mark Hurd, Michael Dell…they get paid a whole lot more than me per hour to sit and wait for updates.

Oil - went to $67.50 and it’s approaching a level that it could fall even more. This is good news/bad news right before an election. It was the main problem point in an otherwise good economy. So depending on your stance in the election, your point is either strengthened or weakened. One thing of note is a place in the Gulf of Mexico I’ve been following lately - area 181 that has more oil than we could need for a while. Combine that with the lack of hurricanes, diplomacy in Iran rather than threats to nuke Israel and summer travel being over, prices could go a lot lower. Environmental good news update, I found out that ocean floor oil seepage is far more than any oil spill, and nature has cleaned that up for thousands of years. Also, Katrina didn’t dump any oil into the water, though it did cripple oil production.

HP is under inquiry for board of directors leaks to the press leaks. Too bad, I thought that they were cleaning up the act. This looks more like “he looked at me, she’s on my side of the room, he/she touched me” kid fighting. All companies have issues and infighting, but you have to find a way to not air your dirty laundry. This is PR hell and takes the focus off of the good work they’ve done recently. Customers and analysts have long memories for this nonsense. This is a festering sore that has to be healed or will be a problem for a while.

The launch of Atlantis is on hold for a Fuel Cell problem. We need to keep making progress on our programs, but the reality is the moon mission is not being handled from the ISS.

The opening game for the NFL tomorrow night is the Steelers (fresh off of a Super Bowl Victory) vs. my team the MIAMI DOLPHINS! Ben or no Ben, everyone is picking the Steelers.