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In this episode of the IT Manager Podcast - I talk with Ryan Storgaard, Chief Software + Services Officer at Microsoft Canada. When Ryan worked on my team, he was very passionate about ISVs and Internet based services. Because of his background and current role, I thought he would be perfect to explore a trend on everyone’s mind these days that goes by a couple of different names: Cloud Computing, SaaS – Software As A Service, Services Oriented Architecture, Private Clouds – all to name a few.
Ryan and I talk about common questions Technical Professionals have been asking about the impact of Cloud Based Services will have on their roles and their companies. Believe it or not, like IT trends from the past – "cloud computing" is one of those technologies you are probably using every day already and you didn’t even know it.
In this episode of the IT Manager Podcast - I talk with Anthony Bartolo, Applications Specialist with Rogers Business Solutions and Greg Milligan, Canadian Mobility Solutions Manager. Anthony and Greg share their view of the mobile marketplace and how mobile devices have become accessible to individuals and businesses of all sizes.
The ability to have synchronized access to your email, contacts and calendar is the minimum bar for entry when considering devices for your organization. We go in depth by discussing how to introduce the right mobile devices into your environment and what factors you should consider when provisioning, helping to secure securing and managing these devices. We also explore how mobile devices straddle the line between work time and personal time while not encroaching on your work life balance.
In this episode of the IT Manager Podcast - I pack up the portable recorder and take it with me to the local Coffee Shop. I indulge in some caffeine and meet up with Microsoft Canada's Chief Security Advisor (Bruce Cowper) and the Vice President of Identity Management Services at Avaleris (Hugh Lindley). I invited them to meet with me to discuss Security for IT Managers who may not have a dedicated security officer on staff and who more than likely wears multiple hats.
We have a frank conversation on the state of IT Security for the small to midsized business and how security has evolved to be part of everyone's role. We go through their top three things IT Managers should consider if they are looking to improve their security posture without breaking the bank. Bruce and Hugh share some great resources for getting connected to other likeminded security professionals to get your questions answered and stay abreast of what's up in the security front. Go grab a cup of coffee, sit back and enjoy this episode.
In this episode of the IT Manager Podcast - I talk with the General Manager of a BC based Hosting Company called RackForce. Randal Robinson talks about their switch from dedicated hardware servers in 2003 to a more efficient resource distribution solution using a mixed Virtualization environment on hundreds of hosts running thousands of guests in their datacenter.
Randal discusses virtualization in such a way that it is very approachable and goes beyond it being used as a simple catchphrase. He goes through their transition to using virtualization, identifies challenges they had managing multiple virtualization providers and how they resolved provisioning issues. Randal closes with some important insight and recommendations for how you can effectively use virtualization in your environment, regardless of your overall size - from the small business to the enterprise.
In this episode of the IT Manager Podcast - I talk with the VP of Business Information Systems at the Certified General Accountants Association of Canada. Gabriel Vitus has taken his department through a strategic review and has transformed it into an equal partner with the other business units.
Gabriel talks about what the environment was like when the IT department was viewed as a black box and new project requests were single line descriptions. After the transformation, business leaders for all departments work together with the project management office to create a synchronized business project plan that is evaluated and prioritized by the leadership council. Gabriel closes with some important insight and recommendations for how you can start your own transformation within your organization.
In this episode of the IT Manager Podcast - we've stitched together 4 interviews we recorded at the Montreal International Gaming Summit in late November. Microsoft Canada used MIGS as a launch vehicle for High Performance Computing in Canada.
In this “interview on the road” style show - we get an update on the use of HPC in the Gaming industry and talk about how it can be used to help speed up the increasingly complex game development pipeline. This episode isn't just about technology - we also take the time to talk with Ubisoft Montreal about their approach to managing a team of developers and artists who created the long awaited FarCry 2 game title.
In this episode I talk with Greg Patchev (IT Manager from Gerrie Electric) and Andy Papadopoulos (president of Legendcorp) on how they came about deploying a Microsoft based Unified Communications solution to replace an end of life PBX system for 17 offices. At first they were only looking for a collaboration / presence solution, but they soon discovered that Office Communication Server 2007 met most of their needs without having to introduce more complexity to their IT environment by going with one of the typical VoIP PBX vendor solutions. Now that they are fully deployed, they are already positioning themselves to take advantage of Office Communications Server 2007 R2 due out later this year.
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If you have not listened to The IT Manager Podcast recently – or if you have never listened in before, you should take a moment to have a listen to this show. It’s the first episode where we’ve refreshed the format and updated the production elements. It’s only 30 minutes long and this episodes topic is about reducing your data management complexity with SQL Server. Our previous episode focused on how organizations are finding the information they are looking for in the mountain of data they have amassed over the years. This episode focuses on tools used to manage data and one organization’s strategic decision to use SQL Server to standardize on a toolset in order to reduce complexity in their data environment. Listen in to hear Erin Elofson (Product Manager for SQL Server for Microsoft Canada) Rekha Jethva (City of Mississauga) and Rob Shillinger (Systemgroup) talk about the benefits and journey of moving to a single data platform, as well as lessons learned along the way.
Organizations of all sizes have been amassing data for years from growing numbers of sources, resulting in exponential data growth and information overload for their employees. Until recently, the ability for individuals to query the data was restricted to Database Administrators and their structured queries. With the advent of Enterprise Search and collaborative tools like Microsoft® Office SharePoint® Server 2007, users now have the potential to make better informed business decisions from the tools they use every day using internet style common language queries. In this episode, Rick Claus, IT manager Podcast host, talks with Jeff Kent (Chief Technology Officer, Cineplex Entertainment LP), Riyaz Lalani (Corporate Account Executive, Wolfbridge TSS), Alireza Aliabadi (SharePoint Lead, Wolfbridge TSS) and Wanda Yu (SharePoint Product Manager, Microsoft Canada Co.) about how Cineplex Entertainment brought internet styled search to their users by implementing enterprise search technologies in Microsoft® Office SharePoint® Server 2007. You’ll find out how search has been integrated into Cineplex Entertainment’s environment, how the project was championed and expanded to other areas and what sorts of data has been included in delegated search queries.
Learn more about our guests’ expertise:
On May 24, 2008, a number of IT professionals came together to explore environmentally conscious and economically sound technology solutions at the Energize IT event in Toronto. Our podcast series host, Ruth Morton, was on hand to discuss subjects ranging from ‘The first steps towards developing a Green IT Environment’ to ‘Helping to reduce data centre usage and energy costs’ with today’s Green IT experts.
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Learn more about Green IT at the Microsoft Environment siteLearn more about our guests’ expertise:
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Watch the interview with Loïc Calvez
Watch the interview with Kevin McCully
Get product information on Windows Server 2008
Learn more about Windows Server 2008 and the IT environment
Learn more about the launch of Windows Server 2008
Learn more about SaaS:
Learn more about Microsoft’s vision for 'Software-plus-Services':
On February 27, 2008, Microsoft launched Windows Server 2008, SQL Server 2008 and Visual Studio 2008 at the ‘Heroes Happen Here’ event in Toronto. The event gave attendees the opportunity to participate in Launch & Technical readiness events, workshops and Q&A sessions with development teams and software experts. Our podcast host, Ruth Morton recorded interviews with Microsoft Product Managers, key employees and Microsoft customers, who discussed everything from virtualization to security to reliability.
High performance computing solutions are making steady inroads into the mainstream. For example, Great Northern Way Campus needed technology that could deliver more computer power and streamline server management, and be integrated into the desktop or workstation environment so students in the Master’s of Digital Media Program could render state of the art animations. This month, Mark Lange (Great Northern Way Campus), Anthony Brown (Seven Group) and Nik Garkusha (Microsoft Canada) will join Ruth Morton to discuss the affordability of high performance computing technology and how one school’s Digital Media students are using this technology to fuel their creative work.
This month, Darin Travis (Microsoft Canada) and Wilson Chan (Durham District School Board) talk with special guest host Rick Claus, an IT Pro advisor with Microsoft Canada, about using MDOP to accelerate and simplify desktop deployments, and about creating a dynamic infrastructure by turning software into centrally managed services.
Businesses today are facing new hurdles when it comes to keeping their customers' personal and financial information secure. Managing a variety of technology tools can be time consuming and complex, so businesses are investing a significant portion of their IT budgets in software that can help them keep track of the security tools they have in place. Help is on the way. Ruth Morton, Rick Omar Kazi (Compugen) and Bruce Cowper (Microsoft Canada) discuss new Canadian IT security survey results and how innovations in the soon-to-be launched server technology from Microsoft will help make it easier for businesses to manage security.
A survey of users attending a recent ComputerWorld BI Perspectives Conference indicated that many firms are still seeking ways to convince users to adopt Business Intelligence (BI) tools and processes ¾ tools designed to extract insight from large volumes of data in order to measure how a business is performing against certain strategic goals. Unfortunately, IT managers still face difficulties convincing users that BI tools are beneficial, and convincing corporate executives that this technology can offer a significant return on investment.
In order to help organizations strengthen BI adoption across their businesses, Ruth Morton, Ed Raffin (National Money Mart), Paul Barter (T4G) and Ryan Dochuk (Microsoft Canada) discuss common pitfalls of using BI for performance management and how National Money Mart is avoiding them and using BI for its planning department.
Unified Communications is changing the technology landscape and the roles of IT staff and telecommunications managers are beginning to overlap. As a result, many IT managers find themselves at a crossroads: How should IT Pros evolve their technology infrastructure? Should they be investing in the network or in the software? Ruth Morton talks with Vicki Mains (CNIB) Tony Rybczynski (Nortel) and Erin Elofson (Microsoft Canada) about the new role of the IT Pro and opportunities for software-powered telecom solutions.
Case Studies:
Videos:
Websites:
Find all the Unified Communications you need, including articles, white papers, downloads and trials, at http://www.microsoft.ca/uc
Today, Canadian organizations look to their IT managers to provide them with the technology tools that make finding information easier, improve security and simplify how people work together, all while reducing the cost of computing. In order to help achieve these goals, more and more businesses are adopting Windows Vista. Ruth Morton talks with Rob Geller, Windows Client Product Manager (Microsoft Canada), and Warren Shiau, Senior Associate (The Strategic Council), about common deployment myths of Windows Vista, various available tools and the best practices to ensure smooth deployment.
Find out how to activate DDPS and other similar SA Benefits at http://go.microsoft.com/?linkid=7790695
The User Community Group page is located at http://go.microsoft.com/?linkid=7790694
Find the CIPS resources at www.cips.ca
BruceCowper
Dale Hall
BobRoudebush
Melvin Goodyear
Many organizations rely on tape backup and manual processes as the main components of their disaster recovery plans. These offer good protection – but can only restore data to the point of the last backup. Unlike tape backup and manual processes, virtualization solutions can continuously capture server activity and replicate data in one or more target servers at local or off-site recovery locations. In this episode, Ruth Morton talks to Bruce Cowper and Dale Hall (Microsoft Canada), Bob Roudebush (Double-Take Software), and Melvin Goodyear (Newfoundland Power), about how virtualization can be used for advanced disaster recovery, business continuity planning, and managing remote offices.
Exposed to an increasing variety of software and online services, end users have come to expect much more than functionality from software. In response, developers and software companies are focusing more attention on user experience in the application development lifecycle. Ruth Morton talks to Danny Riddell, Executive Vice President, Creative, at San Francisco-based design firm Metaliq Inc., and Paul Laberge, a partner development evangelist with Microsoft Canada, about the designer’s role in helping to create the next generation of compelling and engaging software applications.
Until recently, High Performance Computing was associated solely with enormous supercomputers that filled entire rooms and that only government agencies and elite research organizations could afford. But thanks to rapid advances in HPC cluster technology, HPC is no longer just for academic research and government applications. This month Ruth Morton (Senior Technology Advisor, Microsoft Canada) discusses commercial uses of HPC technology with Glenn Bontje (Business Development Manager for High Performance Computing, HP Canada) and Nik Garkusha (Platform Strategy Manager, Microsoft Canada).
Commercial Applications of HPC Technology
IT security is a top priority for Canadian businesses, yet still we hear frequent reports of significant security breaches. In the second Podcast episode on IT security a panel of experts including Bruce Cowper (Microsoft Canada), Rob Labbé (Application Consulting and Engineering, Microsoft Canada) and Brian Bourne (CMS Consulting) discuss the top reasons security policies fail, and how Defense in Depth security planning can help avoid IT security pitfalls. Discussion topics include application layer security, “defense in depth” security planning and incident response planning.
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JohnKrikke
Canadian businesses rely on their IT departments to keep employees, customers and partners connected. The demand for reliability has never been higher; anything less than 100% uptime can not only be frustrating for users but costly as well. In this episode Warren Shiau, analyst with the Strategic Counsel, discusses the evolution of IT reliability over the past decade. He is joined by Jeffrey Neven (Homestead Christian Care) and John Krikke (Krikke Computer Services), who discuss how the creation of a more reliable IT environment helped Homestead Christian Care lower its technology costs.
Related Resources
Case Study:
Homestead Christian Care Case StudyAdditional reliability case studies at microsoft.com featuring the London Stock Exchange, Barnes & Noble and more
Get the Facts on Windows and LinuxKrikke Computer Services
Join the discussion
The immense quantity and variety of servers, hardware, e-mail systems, databases and mobile devices that comprise today’s corporate networks can make network management a challenging proposition. In this episode Derick Wong from Microsoft Canada and Jeff Kent from Cineplex Entertainment will discuss the evolution of network management and how Cineplex Entertainment overcame some of their IT challenges by centralizing their network management environment.
The Curtain Rises on a New IT Infrastructure for Major Theatre Operator (Cineplex Entertainment)
Infrastructure Optimization at Microsoft – Technical Solution Brief
Microsoft System Center
System Center Operations Manager 2007
Microsoft Systems Management Server
Microsoft Forefront Security Products
Security threats are constantly changing and evolving. As we get better at protection, the hackers, virus makers and other malicious individuals are continually exploring new ways to get through our defenses. In this episode Stephen Ibaraki, National Vice-President of the Canadian Information Processing Society and Bruce Cowper, Security Lead at Microsoft Canada Co. discuss the top security trends/threats that IT professionals need to anticipate in 2007 – and tips on how to develop strategies to help meet them.
Vancouver City Savings Credit Union (Vancity)
Deloitte & Touche global security survey (PDF)
Microsoft Canada IT Security Centre
Toronto Area Security Klatch
Microsoft Security Newsletter
Canadian Information Processing Society (CIPS)
BryanRushe
EvanZaleschuk
With the explosion of e-mail, instant messaging, and mobile phone technology, the way Canadians work has changed dramatically. Businesses now have to deal with information overload and underload – the inability to access the right information when it is needed. Featuring Bill Buxton (Microsoft Research), Bryan Rusche (Microsoft Canada Co.) and Evan Zaleschuk (Director, MTS Allstream Collaboration Suite, MTS Allstream), who will discuss how the convergence of communications contributes to the evolution of Canadians’ work styles.
Allstream breaks new communications ground with Microsoft Real Time Collaboration
Microsoft Unified Communications (information and demos)
An Overview of Microsoft Exchange Server 2007
Exchange Server 2007 Unified Messaging
GregMathieu
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From simplifying disaster and recovery planning to server consolidation, virtual technologies are emerging as one of the most effective ways for customers to make their IT operations more dynamic. Featuring Rodney Buike (Microsoft Canada Co.) and Greg Mathieu (Business Information Group) who discuss the role virtualization can play in making IT systems more dynamic and outline the top four virtualization scenarios and how they can help you manage existing business resources. Find out how Business Information Group used virtual server technology for server consolidation and disaster recovery, helping to save the company $30,000.
Microsoft Virtual Server 2005 R2
Business Information Group
Run IT on a Virtual Hard Disk
Microsoft Virtualization Roadmap
Disclaimer: The views and opinions expressed in the podcasts do not necessarily reflect those of Microsoft.
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