Q&A with Six IT Rock Stars
3 Questions For Leonard Kleinrock
By Gary Anthes
The creator of the basic principles of packet switching, the foundation of the Internet, warns IT managers not to bet on only one broadband technology in 2007.

Leonard Kleinrock
Which IT story took you by surprise in 2006, and why? By far the largest surprise was the $1.65 billion acquisition of YouTube by Google. Perhaps it should not have been all that surprising, since most every time we have enabled the masses to communicate and express themselves without constraints, we have seen a huge groundswell of participation and creativity, which typically leads to commercial success of the activity.
What will be the biggest IT story of the new year? I expect to see huge growth in phone-screen applications. We will continue to see surprising growth in the multibillion-dollar apps, including video and image downloads, sports, gaming and gambling. In addition, the surprise I forecast will be the emergence of powerful location-aware applications for the nomad and his or her mobile device.
What one piece of advice would you offer the IT manager going into 2007? Enable your users with broadband mobile access and applications, but don't bet on only one broadband technology such as 4G or WiMax. There are a number that will be offered, and it will be dangerous to bet on the winner in that group.
3 Questions For Charles Feld
By Thomas Hoffman
The former CIO at Burlington Northern Santa Fe and Delta Air Lines sees a bright 2007, where CIOs and CXOs fuse together to create 21st-century companies.

Charles Feld
Which IT story took you by surprise in 2006 and why? The thing that surprised me was the rapid change in the way people are rushing to modernize their businesses. I was thinking this would occur in '07 or '08, but it began in '05 and '06.
What surprises are in store for IT users in 2007? The biggest issue for them is going to be the flip side of what we just talked about. Very few organizations are in a position of implementing business modernization in the time frame that customers want it. People have had their foot on the brakes for so long, and it's not going to happen in one budget cycle or one calendar year to transform this. It's going to take companies years to get their businesses modernized, to move work around [regionally] and extend their supply chains. Most IT organizations are going to get caught in not having that loving feeling again because they won't be able to respond quick enough [to business demands].
What will be the biggest IT story of the new year? The thing that we've been fighting for the 40 years I've been in the business. There's been a huge gap between business owners and IT in terms of knowledge, passion, etc. That gap is narrowly closing in companies where CIOs and the rest of the CXOs really come together in a shared vision of what needs to happen. It's going to happen in more than one in 10 companies; it's starting to happen now. I'm very optimistic that more and more stories will be told about how they're fused together to create a 21st-century company.
Warren Bennis
Additional Resources



Learn the important issues you must consider before starting your next mobility initiative. Get your mobility white paper from IDC now, compliments of Sybase.
White Papers & Webcasts
Oracle Accelerate - Not Just Smart but Timely
Download Now!
Data in Action: Making the Planet Smarter
Register Now
The Workday User Experience Video
Watch Workday's Creative Director, Scott Lietzke, discuss the business-centered design philosophy at Workday.
Rapid Implementation: The New Age of ERP
Download Now!
Business Process Framework Demo
Learn about Configurable Business Processes and Calculated Fields. Watch Now!
Manager Experience Demo
Go beyond self-service solutions to perform more effectively. Watch Now.
Faster, Cheaper and Easier to Maintain
Can you afford not to upgrade your servers to today's advanced, energy-efficient technologies?
Manjit Singh,CIO, Chiquita Brands - Video
View this video now.

