LAS VEGAS — Managing the often “bewildering complexity” of an enterprise’s information technology environment requires a holistic approach, the CEO and president of CA Inc. told attendees at the start of the annual CA World conference here.
“What’s needed is an approach that recognizes the world is getting more networked, distributed and global all the time,” said John Swainson in his keynote opening the six-day event.
The conference, whose theme this year is ‘innovation in the real world’, will focus on how technology can unify and simplify the management of complex IT infrastructures, an approach that CA has dubbed enterprise information technology management (EITM).
Contributing factors to the complex IT environment, said Swainson, can be multiple PC vendors, server and storage suppliers, applications management and security providers, for instance.
Further adding to the fray are constant innovations, he said, such as faster and more extensive networks, pervasive use of virtualization, service-oriented architecture (SOA), open standards, and enhancements to software and hardware functionality.
“We face a future in which each new innovation threatens to deliver diminishing returns because each adds a new level of complexity.”
Therefore, the industry needs to do more to address this “enormous complexity” that has been created, he said – ironically, by the industry itself. “It [needs to be] a modular, integrated approach built around a common view of the services that IT is delivering to businesses.”
CA’s vision for EITM, said Swainson, embraces effective IT governance, better management and superior security. These three areas are generally not what developers have in mind when creating an application, he said.
The keynote also included a synopsis of the company’s accomplishments since the last CA World conference 18 months ago. Six key priorities were announced at the 2005 event against which “tremendous progress” has been made, Swainson said, although additional work is required.
CA has since strengthened customer relationships – its key priority – by increasing the number of client-focused account directors to almost 800, and introducing industry verticals to entertain customized technology management solutions. “Everything needs to begin and end with your customers,” he said.
It has more than doubled its market reach by way of business partners, and expanded relationships with strategic partners. “This means more highly-trained experts to help clients with implementation,” said Swainson.
The company has focused on market leadership and making investments that grow the business.
CA has aligned its teams – sales, marketing, development – into cross-functional groups for the common purpose of evaluating business process and ultimately transforming how IT is managed.
The company has built an internal infrastructure to support future growth, for example, replacing financial systems with an enterprise resource planning environment.
Finally, CA has rebuilt company culture to “create a performance-based culture [rooted] in integrity, accountability, teamwork and innovation.”
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