Newsletter Time - February Issue Out

If you don’t know that I have a monthly newsletter, this post may be timely. The current edition of JAA’s Communications and Collaboration Review is out now, and subscribing is real easy - here’s the link.

Aside from being a digest of my industry activity and thought leadership, I also produce a podcast with colleague Chris Fine - Watch This Space. The podcast is exclusive to subscribers for a couple of weeks, and the screenshot below will give you an idea of what our latest episode is about. So, if you just need to hear it now - as well as follow along with real-time transcription - that may be the best reason yet to subscribe.

Witz End Podcast - JAA Profile, Music, History and More

The stars lined up for me to do a podcast with Rich Williams and Millie Allen for their Witz End podcast. Was great to be interviewed for a change, and once we got past the tell-us-about-being-an-analyst part, we had some fun. They quizzed me about music and Canadian history, and there was even some impromptu piano playing. Not your everyday podcast, but it keeps things interesting, and if you want to check it out, here’s the link. Ok -back to work now.

Future of Work Expo Preview - Feb. 12-14

Before you know it, ITExpo will be here - well, there, in Ft. Lauderdale. This is prime time for TMCnet, and I’m happy to be participating again, mainly as Chair for the Future of Work sub-event. Last year, I was co-Chair, and the program has largely filled out, so it’s time to talk it up. I hope you can join us, and to help you make that decision, I’ve got two links to pass on.

1. Event agenda - it’s still filling out, but this should give you a good idea of what to expect in our sessions

2. Q&A about FoW - both the event and broader trends - I’m interviewed here by TMCnet’s Rich Tehrani

January Writing Roundup

Another month, and another round of new writing on the usual mix of topics. I was busier last month with podcasts and client work, and should have richer update on the writing front for this month.

Project Voice - the Future is in Chattanooga, BCStrategies, Jan. 30

Speech Tech 2020 - More About Innovation than Disruption, No Jitter, Jan. 28

How Does AI for Meetings Improve Collaboration?, TechTarget, Jan. 27

Why Digital Transformation Needs to be Customer-Driven, Toolbox.com, Jan. 16

3 Benefits of UC for Small Business, TechTarget, Jan. 16

2020 Outlook: The State of Collaboration, Toolbox.com, Jan. 15

How Collaboration Impacts the Workplace Experience, Toolbox.com, Jan. 7

Project Voice Redux - Our Video Podcast with Bradley Metrock

Well, it’s taken some time, but this finally posted late last night, and I wanted to add this to my Project Voice coverage before the week/month is out. Earlier this week, I posted my takeaways of the event, and before that, I had some shorter blog posts and social media updates. There will be video clips coming from our SIPtones gig there, but those aren’t quite ready yet.

Prior to the conference, the event founder, Bradley Metrock invited me to guest on his long-running This Week In Voice podcast - one of his many ventures to track the latest in voice technology. Joining us were my colleagues-in-arms, Rick Hathaway and Steve Leaden. Not only are we all SCTC members, but we’re the core of the SIPtones. Fellow bandmate/SCTC member Chuck Vondra was invited as well, but couldn’t make the call.

The video podcast runs about 50 minutes, and was supposed to serve as a preview of the event, as I was leading a panel session about AI voice in the enterprise, with my SCTC colleagues up there as well. Equally important, Bradley wanted to use it as a vehicle to introduce us to the Project Voice community, not just as industry experts, but also wearing our fun hats as the house band for the event.

If you’re still feeling the Project Voice buzz, then, you’ll really enjoy this, so it’s just a click away, here, or just click on the player below. Hope you like it!

Next Stops - Go West - Avaya, Then Cisco

Got travel for back-to-back events this coming week. Every now and then, events overlap, so I’m doing my best to attend major events for Avaya and Cisco. Starting Sunday, I fly to Phoenix for Avaya Engage, which caters mainly to partners and consultants. It’s not really for analysts, but I have good reasons to be there, and it will be a great window to take in their 2020 “All In” go-to-market messaging.

On Tuesday, I depart Phoenix for San Jose for a twofer Cisco event - both their Collaboration Analyst Summit and Contact Center Deep Dive. We’ll be getting roadmap updates on both lines of business, so it’s going to be an intense series of sessions.

Considering these are two of the biggest players in both collaboration and contact center, I expect to return home next Friday jazzed about what these companies are doing for 2020. It will be a firehose week for sure of information, so I’ll be taking lots of notes. Blog updates will come as time allows, and same for my social channels. I’m not hard to find on Linkedin, and my Twitter handle is @arnoldjon.

My Enterprise Connect Talk on Enterprise Speech - 2 Previews - Article and Podcast

Well, the multimedia stars lined up this time around, so I have two previews to share here. Enterprise Connect is about two months out - but it already feels near - and I’ll be doing another iteration of my update on speech technology in the enterprise on Day 1 - Monday, March 30, bright and early at 8 am.

To get a better sense of what I’ll be talking about - and why you might want to attend - my preview post is running now on No Jitter. You’ll also find details there about the location of my talk, along with a special link to save $400 off your registration fee.

Complementing that, I was interviewed by No Jitter’s Beth Schultz for her podcast series No Jitter On Air. The episode was published today, and is titled Talking Up Speech Tech for the Enterprise - here’s the link to give that a listen.

Best of Enterprise Connect Award Program - Are You In?

Got a timely shout-out to share about Enterprise Connect 2020, which is a bit later than usual - at the end of March - but in its usual habitat of Orlando.

The main thing is to draw your attention to this awards program. So, if you don’t know about it, this could be a great opportunity for your company to get some industry-based recognition. There are four categories, plus an overall “best of” award, and formal details are here.

Also, No Jitter’s Beth Schultz has a good post about it here, which also lists the four judges who will be evaluating the entries, and am happy to say that I’m one of them.

Entries close Friday, January 31, so if you’re on the fence, there’s not much time left.

Speaking of time, I should mention that early bird pricing for the conference end this Friday - January 24 - and if you want to save $400, you can use this link to register.

My schedule for Enterprise Connect is filling up, and aside from this judging role, I’ll be doing one of the very first talks during the conference, at 8am on Monday, March 30. My session will be another update on the state of enterprise speech technology, and all the details are here.

You’ll be hearing more about that in the coming weeks, and this morning, in fact, I’m recording a podcast with Beth Schultz as a preview for my talk, so watch for that soon. That will be complemented by a writeup I’ll be doing for my next No Jitter post, which should run early next week.

Project Voice - First Take

Last week, I attended the Project Voice event down in Chattanooga, Tennessee, and both were first-time experiences for me. Bradley Metrock is the driving force behind all this, and we recently became fast friends, not just because of my focus on voice, but also both being life-long piano players. If you know me well, you’ll know where this is going, and I’ll get to that.

I’ve had some mitigating circumstances that kept me from posting here until now - so I’m not going to do a day-by-day recap at this point - but I have something better. Earlier today, Bradley posted his own review of the event, and that will do the job for now - here’s the link if you want to read it. On that note - no pun intended - thanks Bradley for mentioning our SIPtones performance during the event!

To keep that vibe going, I’m sharing a few photos below, and please watch for three more things coming soon:

1. I’ll have my own writeup coming next week on BCStrategies

2. Prior to the event, I was a guest on Bradley’s This Week in Voice video podcast, along with Rick Hathaway, Steve Leaden and Chuck Vondra. We wore both our hats as a way to introduce ourselves to the Project Voice community - first as SCTC members previewing our panel session on conversational AI trends in the enterprise; as well as our SIPtones hats, and the kind of music we would be playing at the event. The podcast hasn’t been posted yet, but I’ll update that for sure.

3. Video highlights from our SIPtones gig from the event are being compiled now, and I’ll share some of that shortly on the My Music section of my website. If you can’t wait to see/hear us, check that section out any time, as I’ve posted video and photos there from our other gigs. Need a band for your next event?

Below: Bradley Metrock, Amazon’s Jeff Blankenburg, Dr. Sandhya Pruthi, Mayo Clinic - my photos

Below: panel I moderated with my SCTC/SIPtones colleagues, another panel I moderated on voice tech trends in the enterprise, and the SIPtones on stage. Photos are from others, used with permission.

2020 Collaboration Preview - Our BCStrategies Podcast

Last week, I posted about our BCStrategies 2019 in-review podcast for the collaboration space, and we’ve followed that up now with our 2020 outlook. As always, there’s no shortage of perspectives, and we had 13 analysts and consultants share their views on what the year ahead holds.

I don’t think you’ll find a richer set of perspectives in one place anywhere else, so this podcast will be time well-spent ( as would be our 2019 review podcast). It’s running now on our portal, and here’s the link to give it a listen.

Newsletter Time - January Issue Now Published

Well, technically, I’m now in my second decade of publishing my monthly newsletter - JAA’s Communications and Collaboration Review - but that’s an easy claim to make at this point in time. Anyhow, if you’re a subscriber, you should have received your issue via email by now - and if you missed it, we do a second mail-out about two weeks later.

In terms of new content, the main feature is our latest Watch This Space podcast - “What’s Ahead for 2020 - AI and CX” - which is a follow-on to last month’s 2019 look-back podcast. If you want to check out the podcast sooner than later - as well as review the rest of what’s in the newsletter - just sign up here to subscribe, and you’ll have it in no time. Otherwise, just hang on for two weeks, when it will be added to the podcast archive here on my website.

Project Voice - One Week Away - Conversational AI and SIPtones

Just a quick shout-out for Project Voice, which technically starts next Monday in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

Will be my first time there, and am definitely looking forward to it - not just as a speaker/moderator, but also to play again with the SIPtones.

Details are here in a recent blog post, including how to get a 20% discount on registration.

UPDATE - since then, I’ve been added to a 2nd session, which I’ll be moderating - Voice and the Enterprise - Wednesday at 3:45.

All the details are on the event website - and, if you register, you’ll get the daily e-letter update. The SIPtones were mentioned in today’s edition, so the buzz is building. We’ll be rehearsing all day Tuesday, and performing in three different settings on Wednesday, so we’ll be busy! I’ll be doing both my panels that day, so I’ll be going non-stop then. Wouldn’t want it any other way.

Reflecting on 2019 - Our BCStrategies Podcast

Another month, another year, another decade. 2019 isn’t old-news quite just yet - there was a lot of change to digest, and our latest BCStrategies podcast is a great way to do that. Everyone has something to say, and for this 2019 review segment, we had 13 analysts and consultants share their views.

Before 2020 gets too far along, I hope you give this a listen, and here’s the link for the replay. Jim Burton did a great job moderating, and if you like our perspectives, check back soon for the follow-on segment, our 2020 outlook. We just recorded that yesterday, and it should be posted next week.

December Writing Roundup

My plate was full for the last month of the decade, but this time around, that didn’t include a great deal of writing - at least with my JAA byline. I also do ghostwriting, and worked through five pieces across three clients last month on that front. If you’re not sure of how I can be of service with thought leadership to your company - writing or otherwise - you might be surprised by the range of possibilities shown on my website.

Is Hybrid Cloud a Long-Term UC Deployment Option?, Dec. 26, TechTarget

4 Ways a Cloud Provider Can Become a Trusted Partner, Dec. 16, Toolbox.com

How Digital Transformation Impacts Your Collaboration Plans, Dec. 11, Toolbox. com

IT: Managing Choice, Change, Careers in 2020; Dec. 10, No Jitter

Forests and Trees: Getting Full Business Value with Collaboration, Dec. 10, Toolbox.com

SCTC 2019 Conference: Opportunity There for the Taking, Dec. 5, BCStrategies

Project Voice - My Next Conference (and SIPtones Gig)

This is a new event for me, and aside from taking in sessions and networking, I’ll be wearing two hats. First, I’ll be moderating a panel of consultants on Wednesday at 11:05 - Conversational AI and the Enterprise.

Later that night, the consultants and I will revert to black attire, and do our thing as the SIPtones. How fun is that? Details are here on the event website, and updates will be coming, including a podcast.

Also, to save 20% on your registration, use my personal code - JONARNOLD - here’s the Eventbrite portal to get registered.

IT - Managing Choice, Change and Career - My Latest on No Jitter

As a regular contributor to No Jitter, I get to write about a broad range of topics, and this time around, I wanted to zero-in on some specific themes that came out of the recent SCTC conference in Chicago. Details about all of this are in my latest post, where I try to put myself in the shoes of IT to better understand how they view the challenges posed by changing technology.

It’s definitely not easy, but rather than focusing on the technology, my step-back perspective is about how technology is impacting other challenges that IT needs to manage. There’s lots to explore here, and I’ve tried to keep the scope manageable for a single post. My post is running now on No Jitter, and as always, I’d love to hear your thoughts, and sharing is definitely welcome.

My Next Webinar - Seizing the CCaaS Opportunity, with CoreDial

It’s been a busy time for webinars, and I’ve got a new one coming - Wednesday, Dec. 11 at 2pm ET.

This is another event hosted by Channel Partners Online, with CoreDial being the sponsor. I’ve worked with CoreDial in the past, and hope you’ll join us as we talk about making the case for CCaaS, particularly for MSPs, who are becoming a growing force in cloud communications, especially among SMBs. Details are here, including the registration form.

November Writing Roundup

November was busy on many fronts, and one fallout was an unusually light month for writing. Here are the highlights, and you’ll be able to see more if you’re a subscriber to my newsletter - the December issue will be sent out next day or so.

How UCaaS Brings Value for both IT and End Users, Nov. 19, Toolbox. com

3 Paths to Success with Cloud Communications, Nov. 12, No Jitter

3 Ways UCaaS is an Opportunity for your Business, Nov. 4, Toolbox.com

New JAA Podcast - Convergence of Technology and Real Estate

Subscribers to my newsletter had access to my latest webinar when it went out earlier in the month. That’s a key benefit of being a subscriber, but after a couple of weeks, I share the podcast with a broader audience, and if you’ve checked any of them out, I hope you find them of interest.

Our podcast series is called Watch This Space, and I do them in tandem with long-time colleague Chris Fine. For this edition, we continued exploring the digital workplace theme, this time based on two recent events Chris had attended in this space. One of the interesting ideas we covered was experiential technology, and to find out more, you’ll have to give it a listen.

You can access this in the Current Podcasts archive section of my website, and if you like what we’re doing, you might want to consider signing up for the newsletter.

New BCStrategies Podcast - Ribbon's Research on UC Buying Behaviors

I’m a market researcher by trade, and always being able to review new research about collaboration and the broader view of how new communications technology gets adopted in the workplace. Ribbon has been pretty curious too, and they recently conducted an extensive study on a global basis about buying behaviors around UC and collaboration technologies.

There’s lots to digest, and to help do that, their SVP of Channel Marketing, John Macario, shared the top-level findings with the BCStrategies team. To make things interesting, we had an interactive format, where BC Experts could pose questions to John to delve a bit deeper into the findings. This made for a long session, which we recorded for a podcast, but if this is your cup of tea, you’ll want to take it all in. The podcast runs about an hour - just sayin’ - and it’s been posted now on our portal for listening. I hope you check it out, and as always, sharing and comments are welcome.