Cloud Computing isn't new - there were some of us doing it 15 years ago, reckoned Eric Schmidt, executive chairman of Google on the final day of Dreamforce.
Talking about work that was done at Sun back in 1997 on what was then called the network computer, Schmidt said:
“We were right 15 years ago, we just had to wait for the technology to catch up.”
Talking about innovation, Schmidt said that technological evolution went in four distinct phases: connectivity. connection/publishing, applications and now social/personal. This evolution has caused many of the sceptics of Cloud Computing not only to revise their thinking but also to race to play catch up with the pioneers in the space:
“Many people doubted that the Cloud Computing apps model would work…you talk about real time. Now it's going to be real time…It’s hard for incumbents to move to new, faster model…The lesson to be learned over and over again in tech is that it moves. If you don't move to it very quickly, it's very hard to get back into the space. ”
So how do both new firms and the legacy incumbents make their mark in what is rapidly becoming a crowded market? Schmidt had a pragmatic view:
“Just think of a way to release a new version of your software every day, without bricking it. Once you've mastered that, do it globally. Once you've done all of that, you've got a world-class software development organisation. The tools are good enough now that you can operate that way. ”
And keep it simple, he urged:
“Engineers trying to solve technical problems have little experience of what consumer wants. As a computer scientist, I love that complexity. I didn't understand that other people wouldn't love that complexity. ”
Older firms can reinvent themselves to compete in the new Cloud paradigm, he enthused:
“You've got to take the current company and get it there. Figure out how to lead it into this new platform. Apple proves that if you organise around the consumer, the rest of it will follow. Try and figure out how to solve the consumer problem and then the revenue will show up. What [CEO] Steve [Jobs] has done in Apple is certainly the best CEO performance in the world in 50 years and maybe 100 years, because not only did he do this once, he did it twice. ”
Now the success of firms like Facebook and its CEO Mark Zuckerberg will lead to a new generation of innovation and entrepreneurial innovators:
“They will change the world. What I'm most excited about is what the next generation of entrepreneurs can do on top of these Cloud platforms. What I do know is that the next generation of these leaders will be something involving mobile, local, social. ”
Great ICT leaders all had great technical skills, great business vision, and tremendous drive, he suggested, citing Zuckerberg as the latest example:
“There will be one after him, just as there was one after my contemporaries.”
Inevitably talk turned to Google of which Schmidt admitted:
"I went to Google not understanding very much about Google but I liked the people…Life is short, work with people you like… ”
tags for Dreamforce: technology catches up with Cloud Computing, says Google's Schmidt.
