Stephen Epstein, Chief Marketing Officer at Avistar Communications - Interview

Stephen Epstein, Chief Marketing Officer, of unified visual communications industry innovation company Avistar Communications Corporation, was kind enough to take the time to answer a few questions about his company's groundbreaking study of visual communications trends the rapidly growing field of desktop videoconferencing.

Stephen Epstein describes the reasons for companies using videoconferencing and shared some of the advantages and disadvantages of the system. He also gazed into the crystal ball and shared some of his thoughts on the future of videoconferencing and of communications in general.

Thanks to Stephen Epstein for his time, and for his informative and comprehensive answers.

Thanks as well to Norman Birnbach of Birbach Communications, Inc., and his team, for their assistance in facilitating this interview.

What was the background to this groundbreaking study of visual communications trends?

Stephen Epstein: Each year, as part of our marketing efforts, we look at market conditions to help us focus our efforts. For the last two years, in the spirit of the social media age we live in, in which it is important to share perspective and insight, we've issued some of our insight regarding the more mainstream part of the visual communications market.

Briefly, how does videoconferencing fit in as a unified communications tool?

Stephen Epstein: Technology has given us a number of different ways to communicate � email, instant messaging (IM), and audio or phone and video. Many of those communication methods have been available as standalone services. Leading Unified Communications (UC) systems like Microsoft OCS and Lync and IBM Lotus Sametime integrate different communications services into one solution so that you can IM with someone you're talking to via videoconferencing without having to open a new window. The next step, we believe, is to integrate communications into key points of the business process, known as communications-embedded business processes or CEBP.

Is videoconferencing growing in prominence to the point of being everywhere?

Stephen Epstein: Absolutely. Videoconferencing has captured people's imaginations since AT&T unveiled the videophone at the 1964 World's Fair, and again a few years later on "Star Trek." But the technology wasn't there. It is now, and thanks to free consumer video chat services like Skype and FaceTime, videoconferencing is available everywhere.

Is interoperability becoming an issue for creating bridge standards to use different systems together?

Stephen Epstein: We see interoperability � the ability for technology to work across different systems, platforms, etc. � as being a big issue. The reason is partly due to the technology: closed systems have fewer issues and work better, and partly due to a business decision that bets that companies can sell more when customers are locked into one platform and can't buy a low-cost generic alternative. So current UC systems have been built as proprietary systems to limit connections to other systems. The problem is that people need to connect to people at other companies, who may be using a different platform.

To put this in context, imagine you're a Verizon customer and that the only way you can connect to an AT&T customer is to buy a separate phone and service plan and now you need to call a Comcast customer. The industry had addressed this before, and will again need to tackle the interoperability issue. The alternative � focusing customers to develop ways to bridge standards, media processing and signaling at their own cost � is unacceptable.

Is there a trend toward companies having to bridge standards at their own cost, or is that potential for added cost disappearing as a barrier to using visual solutions?

Stephen Epstein: Companies need to communicate. They need their employees to collaborate, even if they're in different locations, and that is more often the case these days. They need to develop relationships with customers and manage vender relationships. Right now, companies have to either figure out an acceptable compromise or determine a way to bridge the standards themselves. Ultimately, the UC developers will need to find a solution to the interoperability issue. However, because the Avistar C3� solutions are interoperable, we're not finding that a barrier for customer adoption. Companies want videoconferencing solutions that can work across different systems.



Stephen Epstein (photo left)

Many business people think of videoconferencing from their own offices. Do you see an increase of mobile videoconferencing from anywhere?

Stephen Epstein: Absolutely, videoconferencing has moved from the conference room to the desktop, and from the desktop to the laptop and from the laptop to smartphones and tablets, thanks to the multitude of tablet devices hitting the market and the further roll-out of 4G networks. What we expect to see is the influence of consumer videoconferencing on businesses, as employees who use mobile videoconferencing in their personal lives push for the same capability at work. Videoconferencing has emerged as a must-have solution for business people at offices or on the go, as it provides smart, ubiquitous visual communications � anywhere, anytime, anyplace.

Is there a movement to thinner and less bulky hardware for videoconferencing?

Stephen Epstein: Absolutely. At the consumer level the just-announced iPad2 will be thinner and lighter and contain a front-facing camera for videoconference calls. At the business level, we�re seeing continued adoption of Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI), which entails delivering a thin client � which may be not much more than a screen and a keyboard with access to all the data and applications hosted on a remote server. This movement will continue to gain momentum as businesses work to control costs while delivering software tools that employees need to do their jobs effectively.

How are the trends in videoconferencing affecting corporate networks?

Stephen Epstein: The big issue is bandwidth management. As demand and usage surge, companies will face pressure to provide increased videoconferencing services. The challenge will be to how to accommodate the demand for videoconferencing while ensuring that critical business applications, that also require bandwidth, are not adversely affected in a battle of the bandwidth. Companies will need to select communications solutions that provide robust bandwidth management, call admission control, user policy support, threshold and utilization modeling, in addition to extensive report and forecasting capabilities.

What was the most surprising result arising from the study?

Stephen Epstein: The impact that consumer technology is playing on enterprise software is really surprising. It used to be that software was developed to serve businesses and then expanded into the consumer market. These days, the look-and-feel of consumer software serves as a template for business software. And, of course, while Avistar has been developing videoconference technology for 16 years, free consumer services have really moved the market forward in a short time.

What is the future of videoconferencing?

Stephen Epstein: Convergence will be seen with videoconferencing popping up as a function in non-traditional devices, such as smart whiteboards and a variety of new and innovative devices, so that people can communicate and collaborate regardless of device, location and/or network capacity. A lot of videoconference solutions are still based on a hardware model of traditional telephony. But the future will require all-software solutions because of their cost-efficiency and high quality. For example, Avistar�s all-software approach lowers procurement and deployment costs by as much as 200%.

What sort of visual solutions will businesses large and small be seeking this year?

Stephen Epstein: Businesses will feel pressure from their employees for the ability to conduct videoconferencing at work. But companies have different requirements from consumers. Smart businesses will evaluate business-class solutions that provide high quality video and audio � because that's what customers expect. They'll need bandwidth management tools and security that aren't available with the free services. And they need the ability to place ad-hoc multiparty calls and the ability to share documents on each employee�s computer screen.

What is next for Stephen Epstein and Avistar in 2011?

Stephen Epstein: There's a tremendous amount of interest in videoconferencing. I think as an industry, we've finally reached the tipping point, and that's very exciting. We're looking forward to working with our customers, technology partners like IBM, Tandberg (now part of Cisco), Polycom, Logitech and LifeSize, and resellers and distributors to continue to push videoconferencing forward. Once people get used to it, they really like videoconferencing, and see for themselves that it's a big improvement over audio phone calls. It's a great time to be in the industry.

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Stephen Epstein, Chief Marketing Officer, joined Avistar Communications Corporation in January 2008 and is responsible for the company�s marketing, product and account management functions. Prior to Avistar he was Vice President, Head of Product Management at Mantas, Inc., where he was responsible for global product strategy, managing product requirements, defining go to market plans and marketing strategy, while continually evaluating the financial services market in order to provide a clear and decisive direction for Mantas� business.

Prior to joining Mantas, Stephen Epstein was Head of Product & Business Development at Bang Networks where he spearheaded product and business development efforts, focusing on delivering real-time information distribution products. Prior to that he held senior-level management and product development positions including Head of Global Foreign Exchange Sales Technology and Group CTO at Deutsche Bank.

Tags: Avistar Communications Corporation, Stephen Epstein, desktop videoconferencing, business interviews.

Norman Birnbach: Media Trends 2011 - Interview

Public relations and media expert Norman Birnbach, President of Birnbach Communications, Inc., was kind enough to take the time to discuss media trends in 201i. He describes what is happening with radio, television, newspapers, magazines, and online media. He also shares a few surprising trends that will be appearing in 2010 as well. Norman also blogs at the popular and highly regarded public relations blog PR Back Talk.

Thanks to Norman Birnbach for his time, and for his intriguing forecasts in the fascinating field of media.

What was the background to your creating this annual series of public relations predictions?

When we started Birnbach Communications a decade ago, we realized there was a missing element from a few clients' marketing plans. They did a great job in capturing key issues from within the company but needed the context of the world outside -- that is, the trends and issues that were being covered by the media. We began issuing an annual list of predictions to help our clients more effectively understand and engage on topics of interest for traditional and now social media.

How successful were the forecasts you made for 2010?

We hit most of our predictions, including our major prediction that last year would be the year of online subscriptions. Very soon afterwards, publishers like the New York Times, Hulu.com, Boston Globe, the Times of London and others began announcing that they would be establishing online subscription access to their content. We were right that print journalism would see a better year � true, 10 papers shut down in 2010, but that's a drop in the bucket compared to the 109 that shut down in 2009.

We were right that the iPad would be one of the biggest stories of the year � which in hindsight was not a risky prediction; but at the time, there was a lot of skepticism about why people would need and buy iPads � plus a lot of people mocked the name, iPad. We did predict a battle between Android vs. the iPhone but did not expect that Android would outsell the iPhone. We predicted the media would focus on corporate battles like Google vs. Apple vs. Microsoft and EMC vs. HP vs. Oracle. We were right about Google vs. Apple, but we did not anticipate Oracle vs. SAP or Cisco vs. H-P. Overall, I'd give us an A/A-.

Social media use and rules are evolving very rapidly. Will this trend continue or even accelerate in 2011?

What's startling is how quickly people have adjusted to social media, now the #1 activity on the Web. It took radio 38 years to reach 50 million users, TV just 13 years. Yet it took Facebook less than nine months to add 100 million users. The platforms and the rules will continue to change rapidly. So much of that change is driven by new functionality and some by evolving business models. Take Twitter, for instance. An entire ecosystem of companies have popped up to offer services that Twitter didn't deliver at first, but as Twitter has evolved, it's added some of those features, That's one form of rapid evolution. This rapid change can be overwhelming, but it also presents an opportunity for companies that are social media newbies to jump in, and catch up quickly. After all, many companies are still taking social media baby steps.

How will the corporate use of social media be judged for success in 2011?

Companies will be judged on several criteria, including the quality of their social media engagement, their frequency and use of multimedia elements. Assuming the quality is there, it will be important for companies to post on a regular basis � not just once a month. The fact is that people assume a company has gone out of business or is in a downward spiral if it hasn't issued a release or otherwise updated its website in a matter of months. But in 2011, people will now assume your organization has gone out of business or that you have left your job if you haven't posted or updated your blog or status in a month. To keep brands and images relevant, social media content needs to be a consistent drumbeat, rather than an occasional dribble of information.

Are the reports of the death of the traditional press release still premature?

I recently moderated a panel on social media and public relations, and some of the panelists, who were either reporters or bloggers, gleefully declared that the press release was dead. I respectfully think they're wrong. Now news embargoes may be dead, but the press release continues to serve a purpose. There are other ways to communicate the news � such as making an announcement via Twitter or Facebook. However, press releases can still provide value and be effective in 2011, if only by enabling organizations to post fresh evidence of corporate activity and providing search engine optimization (SEO) opportunities.



Norman Birnbach (photo left)

Will traditional media find its footing from which to operate effectively?

Yes. This year, traditional media will move to stable, if fragile, footing. The worst may be behind them, based on the reduced number of traditional newspapers and magazines that have either shut down or shifted to an online-only business model in 2010 as compared to the prior two years. But the old ways of doing business won't survive the "new normal." Even with a recovery, media properties will never again see revenue at the 2007 pre-recession levels -- unless they innovate and find more ways to generate revenue aside from traditional ad sales. That means finding a way to charge for online content on the revenue side. That also means fewer staff and resources, perpetual deadlines and multichannel content.

Will we see more live real time integrated and interactive multimedia events in 2011?

They won't replace what we used to call "TV shows" in 2011, but we will see more of these events. But that's because we may not be watching on a TV. The cable channel Bravo already actively elicits people to post comments about its shows while the programs are airing � and they're seeing a strong response, more enthusiastic connections and interactions, which is something advertisers like. You won't be limited to just voting for a contestant on a reality show; you can also comment on everything about the show. Hate Ryan Seacrest? Now you can let everyone know. The difference is that in 2010, you had to comment on Twitter or Facebook. In 2011, you'll be able to comment next to the action, and be able to interact with others on one screen as opposed to watching your TV and typing away on your computer.

Are there any changes in the fashionable words and jargon that you expect to happen in 2011?

Hybrid will be the overused word of the year, followed by mashup and curation. We're seeing that hybrid no longer is relegated to plants or cars. It can mean anything that deploys a two-part solution, like one that offers a cloud-based solution, which stores data offsite, along with a way to store data onsite. On the other hand, mashups can be used to describe anything that combines elements of two different things, like two songs (as on "Glee"), or two kinds of data � such as overlaying crime statistics on top of Google Maps. Meanwhile, as used in 2011, curation does not have anything to do with healing. Curation generally refers to the concept of a website that offers information selected and maintained by an actual human (who might be known as a curator if this were a museum), not by an algorithm. In newspaper circles, this person used to be called "editor" � so curation is a back-to-the-future concept.

What will be some of the big technology stories to watch for in 2011?

The biggest will be the battle between the iPad and the iPad Killers. The media will also look at the impact of tablet computing on the PC market. (Anyone remember netbooks?) The media will look at the success and valuations of Groupon and Twitter and Facebook, and whether and when they will go public. The status of Facebook, its policy towards privacy, and the demise of MySpace. (Last year, it was Twitter's business model � which has yet to be fully answered.) Of course, the media will also cover the state of the media, especially print media, online-only business models and online subscriptions. The media � traditional and online can't help but cover itself.



Which trends that emerged in 2010 will continue or increase in 2011?

Location-based services and behavioral targeting by advertisers and personalization will be important. Online privacy will continue to be important. The continued growth of e-books and e-readers will lead to talk about the inevitability of the demise of paper-based book. (The one exception will be children's books, especially pop-up books � to be known as 3-D books.) The media will continue to focus on the latest smartphones and digital cameras.

What is next for Norman Birnbach in 2011?

As an agency, we'll be offering more and richer social media services, including enhanced advocacy programs. And I'll continue to comment on the state of the media, social media and the communications industry on my blog, PR Back Talk (blog.birnbachcom.com).

Tags: Norman Birnbach, Birnbach Communications, Inc, 2011 Media Trends Report, interviews

Steven J. Pugh: Chief Executive Officer, UNIT4 CODA - Business interview

Steven J. Pugh, FCA, Chief Executive Officer, UNIT4 CODA, Inc., a business unit of UNIT4, the world's leading provider of enterprise resource planning (ERP) and financial management software was kind enough to take the time out from his busy schedule to answer a few questions about his career, his industry, the economy, and the challenges facing business today.

Thanks to Steven J. Pugh for his time, and for his thoughtful and informative responses. Thanks as well to the team at Birnbach Communications for their generous assistance in facilitating this tremendous interview.

These days, it is the exception not the norm to stay at a company for a quarter of a century, let alone serve as its CEO for more than a decade. You�ve seen it all � the booms, the downturns, and everything in between. What is the secret to your staying power?

Steven J. Pugh: It really comes down to really enjoying what I do and there are three reasons for this:

� As CODA evolved over the years, so did my job. Since 2000 I have had same job but against different parent company backdrops.

� Our accounting product set has changed as we migrated to emerging platforms � from minicomputers to client/server to browser-based, etc.

� CODA�s people and culture are outstanding. CODA employees truly listen to customers to understand what they really need, and many of our employees came to CODA from the end-user environment where they had been in the accounting roles for which we provide solutions.

Why did you choose this path -- why UNIT4 CODA and why financial software?

Steven J. Pugh: I come from an accounting background. I was naturally drawn to CODA when I realized that the company was totally focused on solutions to remove all those manual processes that were time-intensive, monotonous and prone to human error.

We�re slowly emerging from The Great Recession � certainly the toughest economic time we have seen in our lifetime. By and large, businesses have clamped down and focused on cost-cutting and their day-to-day operations, but they�ve been at it for more than 18 months now�a long, tough road. In your meetings with customers these days, what do you see happening now that is innovative, smart, etc. that keeps these businesses moving forward?

In general, companies that made hard decisions early on in this downturn have seen margin improvements. They invested very little in the backend of their business over the past two years and focused on revenue-generating activities. But now businesses are ready to make investments in their infrastructure, armed with the knowledge that they can do more with less, and therefore can be selective in getting the best tools for the job.

What can they do now to emerge from this recession with a leg-up on the competition? What are the key lessons learned they should consider?

Steven J. Pugh: Businesses should determine if their backend solutions are really doing the job. If they have an accounting system that is difficult to administer, is causing them real difficulty on a cyclical basis (e.g., closing monthly books), or if they regularly port everything to spreadsheets, they should seriously think about modernizing. A modern efficient financial system is critical to every business.

The �cloud� is an area that businesses should look at carefully. The advantage of cloud computing is that businesses don�t have to invest in computer equipment and they can get applications up and running quickly, particularly if IT is overloaded. Since CODA has always been about �best-of-class,� we view cloud computing as a logical extension of that philosophy. Businesses can find cloud apps that suit their needs and pocketbook.



Steven J. Pugh, FCA (photo left)

What is the �new normal�? Are you seeing �What�s old is now new again?� In what ways?

Steven J. Pugh: Early in my career, CFOs would tell me they had �smuggled� in minicomputers because they had a problem that CODA could solve, and they couldn�t get the attention of IT because the department was overloaded. I see this again today � very often people can�t get things done because IT is overloaded with revenue generation and operational projects. For these companies, best-of-class can be their best route.

You talk about accounting for change and the way in which a company responds to change can spell success or failure. With the move over the last decade toward more transparency, with more and more regulatory and compliance issues emerging, c-level execs have had their hands full. What is the particular pain point for CFOs in 2011 that is critical for them to stay on top of � what keeps them up at night?

Steven J. Pugh: CFOs are always at the sharp end of ensuring the company is in compliance, from getting ready for the audit and making sure there are no accounting irregularities. CFOs keep coming back to �How do I know that we are in compliance? How do I know that approved processes are actually being implemented?� We have a software solution that automates repeatable business & financial processes that are subject to compliance rules and regulations, so someone can�t approve expenditures in an unauthorized way, for example. It gives CFOs peace of mind that every document that is entered into the system will comply with company and regulatory requirements and is documented for the auditors.

What industries in particular are you seeing the most need?

Steven J. Pugh: Certainly the financial services sector is under the microscope, particularly the hedge fund industry. Financial services is an area that needs to demonstrate it is compliant, its records are secure, etc. This is a sweet spot for CODA.

Another area where there is great need is in the transport and logistics area, not necessarily due to heightened compliance requirement. They have complex accounting needs that cross borders, multiple currencies, different reporting methods and so on.

A third area is retail in that retail businesses require daily reports on how they are doing. They need to be able to turn on a dime and as a result they demand best-of-class accounting functions.

What trends do you see on the horizon?

Steven J. Pugh: Companies are examining the cloud but many of them don�t see this platform being one they are prepared to commit their business systems to 100%. There is, however, an opportunity to utilize cloud apps and cloud facilities for part of their business, perhaps a new venture they are setting up or a recent acquisition that requires a different IT approach. Hybrid computing could be a good direction for them. There is a lot of marketing hype on cloud, but businesses are slowing gaining confidence that there are cloud applications that do make sense for their business. They can opt to have best-of-class on-premise as well as off.

Another major trend one that is now actively being embraced is the use of social media in the work setting as a tool for better collaboration and communication. In many ways it is table stakes for any viable business. Many applications have chat functions built into them so that teams can collaborate more effectively and this will be seen even in financial accounting products very soon. We have a younger, more tech savvy workforce that is driving adoption of social media in business.

A final trend to watch is �green factor reporting.� This is very much an emerging trend in Europe but it is a little farther out on the horizon in the U.S. People are going to want to know much more about a business� footprint: how far it transports its products and raw materials, how much resource its plants consume and what its overall philosophy about energy consumption and conservation are. In Europe, many large companies and government agencies require answers to these sorts of questions before admitting a company to their list of approved vendors. It is also becoming a growing requirement in European company annual reports.

What�s next for Steve Pugh and for UNIT4 CODA?

Steven J. Pugh: In the short term, CODA is moving into new verticals such as retail, and expanding our existing business. We are staying attuned to our customer base and continuing to look at new techniques and tools like social media and evaluating other services we can build or work with partners both on-premise and in the cloud to help customers work faster, better, cheaper.

Any questions I haven�t asked that you�d like to address?

Steven J. Pugh: Why would a company choose CODA?

We�ve been in business since 1979, in the USA since 1988, and we know Financial Accounting. It is all we do. Big companies that offer financial software don�t have a lock on innovation, domain expertise or being the �safe� choice. Increasingly businesses are selectively choosing best-of-class versus the one-size-fits-all approach of big ERP. Best practice today is a solution that gives companies exactly what they need, not what they don�t need, and at a cost effective price.

Tags: UNIT4 CODA, Inc., Steven J. Pugh, industry forecasts, business interviews.