Technology Innovation Worth the Investment

Niraj Patel, Founding Partner of Witmer Partners LLC, sees a lot of opportunity from IT perspective, despite the sagging economy. New products are developed due to pressure to innovate and cut costs. CIOs must step cautiously as the technology industry consolidates, but innovative companies are worth more of a look now, he said. Innovations in retail, open source and mobile technology are looking attractive to financial investors and venture capitalists. Key indicator is how much value the new products are bringing to the customer. eWeek Editor at Large Eric Lundquist spoke with Patel at the MIT Sloan CIO Summit recently.