Joseph C. Panettieri

When NetWorld+Interop pulls into Atlanta this week, thousands of attendees will search the show for signs of an economic upturn. It may not be a pleasant trip. The economic slowdown has derailed dozens of networking companies in recent months. 3Com (4,200 layoffs), Cisco Systems (8,500), Lucent Technologies (40,000) and Nortel Networks (30,000) all have slashed […]

The movie “Fargo,” set in the sleepy town of Fargo, N.D., nearly made a killing at the box office. Now, Microsoft hopes to make a killing of its own in the same town. Toward that end, Microsoft earlier this year acquired Great Plains Software, a CRM software specialist located in Fargo, for $1.1 billion. The […]

You think the economy has a lot of bumps, twists and turns? Try riding a roller coaster continually—for an hour. Thats what the thrill seekers at Expanets agreed to do, in order for us to capture the eye-popping image on this issues cover. Solutions providers, vendors and PR pros can learn a lot from Expanets, […]

Many financial pundits are trying to predict when the high-tech market will recover. In my mind, only one date really matters: May 8, 2002. On or around that day, Cisco Systems will announce results for fiscal Q3 2002. My preoccupation with that distant date is easily explained. Youll recall that Cisco announced its first-ever quarterly […]

At a time when even EMC is cutting staff, many pundits say storage experts no longer enjoy job security. Heres our take on the job market: Where The Money Is From consulting firms to startup storage service providers (SSPs), many companies are hunting for seasoned talent who understand storage-area networks and technologies like Fibre Channel. […]

Corporate travel budgets are an endangered species these days. But if youve got the funds, NetWorld+ Interop remains a great event for solutions providers. For those heading to the Atlanta show (Sept. 9-14), Smart Partners staff offers the following travel guide. Lodging: Staff opinions run wild here. Many members of the Smart team strongly recommend […]

Rauline Ochs, VP of worldwide partner initiatives at BEA Systems, knows how to keep a promise. Last August, she vowed to line up 27 global allies and to train 4,000 consultants to support BEAs software. Nearly a year later, BEA has largely hit those goals. Her Game Plan Ochs alliance group quickly recruited and trained […]

Redesigning a magazine is a lot like producing a movie sequel: You have to build on the original story line, while adding new wrinkles that will keep eager audiences coming back for more. I believe weve achieved that with the new Smart Partner. Our redesign, which debuts in this issue, presented us with four key […]

Michael Capellas wants to open his wallet. He just isnt sure what to buy. As CEO of Compaq, Capellas is scouring the market for potential consulting acquisitions. In recent interviews with multiple media outlets, Capellas has indicated that Compaq is interested in consulting firms that service the telecommunications sector and retail brokerages. Capellas has yet […]

No news was good news for our Partner Index during most of May. But an extended industry rally finally reversed itself last week, when EMC announced staff cuts and Sun Microsystems issued an earnings warning that spooked investors. The double whammy pulled our index down nearly 7 percent for the week ended Wednesday, May 30. […]

Mergers and acquisitions can be tempting during a high-tech slump, but remember one thing: Theres rarely a successful “merger of equals.” Take the case of Alcatel. The French networking giant walked away from the negotiation table last week when Lucent Technologies insisted on a merger of equals. That is, Lucent wanted equal representation on Alcatels […]

Drew Major may have lost his magic touch. When I spoke with the father of NetWare earlier this year, Major was very upbeat about his new assignment as CTO of Volera, a Novell spin-off. But Voleras caching business hasnt taken off, and questions are surfacing about the companys viability. With roughly $2 million in quarterly […]