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Despite the buzz over voice/data convergence, key developments in data
communications and information technology often remain innocent of voice.
Granted, if we were to dwell on such things as unified messaging, LAN
telephony, and voice over IP, we might imagine that voice/data convergence
suggested some sort of parity between voice and data. But then, if we were
to review the literature on virtual private networks, employee
relationship management, or enterprise resource planning, we might
conclude that voice was neglected, with data contentedly pursuing its own
course.
How do we explain this discrepancy? We might start by acknowledging
that convergence is relatively advanced in at least one sense:
increasingly, voice and data may share the same infrastructure. However,
convergence seems less advanced in terms of voice and data actually
interacting, whether they happen to share the same infrastructure or
reside on different infrastructures. In other words, voice and data
sometimes resemble distinct groups sharing a lunchroom. Many of us who
think back to our high school days will remember seeing the
"jocks" sitting at their own table, and the "nerds" at
theirs.
Fortunately, the divisions remaining between voice and data are nowhere
near as persistent as the divisions between jocks and nerds. Already, it
is possible to cite examples of how voice may interact with data -- that
is, applications in which data events trigger or are triggered by voice
events. One such example is unified communications, a refinement of
unified messaging that introduces media translation, which may involve
technologies such as speech recognition and text-to-speech to pass
messages from e-mail to voice, or vice versa, potentially abstracting
message content from message medium.
Another example of voice/data interactivity is customer relationship
management, which multiplies communications channels while maintaining the
same mediating intelligence across all the available channels. Thus, the
accumulation and exploitation of customer information and the
implementation and refinement of corporate policies remain consistent --
whether the customer interacts with the corporation by phone, e-mail,
chat, or any other means.
Additional examples keep appearing: wireless data, voice portals, and
even (eventually) voice-capable virtual private networks. At this point,
however, we might note that some examples of voice/data interactivity --
specifically, applications that impose severe quality of service demands
-- will only gradually enjoy wide deployment. On the other hand, some
applications may enjoy relatively quick deployment, particularly
applications in which voice may extend the reach or broaden the appeal of
data, without unduly encumbering the data infrastructure.
THE DISTINCTION
So, to recap, we may want to distinguish between IT applications in which
convergence is almost taken for granted, and IT applications in which
convergence is hardly evident at all. What then? Well, then we might want
to cast our eyes about, scanning for hints that the distinction between
convergence-savvy IT and convergence-innocent IT may blur and even
(eventually) disappear.
One place to look is within the realm of consumer-oriented
applications. Often, the consumer realm is where applications of new
technologies are first proposed. Or, at the least, the consumer realm is
where hype over new technologies is least restrained. So, while consumer
applications of new technologies often generate the most hype, at least
initially, the hype soon fades, and then serious attention turns to
applications that actually make money, such as corporate applications.
We've seen this trend repeatedly. We've seen new gizmos come along,
generate excitement among technology enthusiasts and hobbyists, and then
win over the serious world of business, after an initial period in which
business expressed indifference or even disdain for the innovation.
Examples include the PC, the Internet, voice over IP, and now mobile
communications.
Initially, the PC was a tool for mavericks, impatient souls who chafed
against the limitations and the power politics of the mainframe. And the
Internet was originally something of an academic lounge. And voice over IP
was a sort of ham radio, a way for naughty techies to avoid paying
long-distance bills. But now all of these innovations have been embraced
by mainstream business and mainstream IT and, in some cases, mainstream
carriers and service providers.
Nowadays, the PC is as common as the stapler or the tape dispenser on
the desktop. The Internet is inspiring a plethora of e-business and
e-commerce initiatives. And voice over IP is infiltrating corporate
enterprise networks, at the LAN and WAN levels, as well as the public
infrastructure, in many cases capping investments in circuit-switched
facilities.
And now, what about convergence, mobile-style? To date, most mobile
voice/data applications have emphasized the consumer side of things. For
example, innovations such as wireless application protocol (WAP) and voice
portals have emphasized local weather forecasts, stock quotes, and sports
updates. Oh, and lest I forget, gambling opportunities and the insights of
psychics. Oh, and notifications about the proximity of fast food
restaurants (as though anyone were ever in any doubt that fast food could
be had somewhere nearby).
Do these consumer-oriented applications have a future? Well, maybe. But
it seems to me that truly useful (and likely to be used) applications
would require elaborate and expensive databases. Consider something as
simple as a traffic alert service. For any such service to recommend
preferred routes through city traffic, you'd need continuously updated
information on traffic throughout the city, perhaps by means of road
sensors or feeds from video cameras. Sounds like a lot of trouble,
especially since drivers just might prefer tuning into local radio for the
insights of a helicopter pilot.
If such consumer-oriented applications of mobile convergence seem
questionable, what then is the future of mobile convergence? To answer
that question, we might take a hint from history, and consider corporate
applications.
EXTENDING EXISTING STRUCTURES
If consumer-oriented mobile convergence seems far-fetched, it's because
consumer applications and services are often predicated on the creation of
a structure -- say, a database structure -- which may then be extended, by
way of mobile voice/data, to consumers. However, this structural challenge
may be less of a problem in the corporate realm. That is, in the corporate
realm, data structures may already be in place, or perhaps already in the
process of being elaborated. If either situation is the case, adding a
voice/data mobility dimension is relatively simple, a case of extending an
existing infrastructure, and enjoying a more or less immediate benefit.
What we're talking about is m-business. With m-business, corporations
have a way to encourage employees to educate themselves about the
corporation and what other employees are doing. Thus, m-business suggests
a way for corporations to seize what is the Holy Grail for any
organization -- the ability for the "left hand to know what the right
hand is doing." The potential for such self-knowledge was well put by
Lew Platt, the former CEO of Hewlett-Packard. According to Platt, "If
HP knew what HP knows, we would be three times as profitable."
But what's so special about mobile (and possibly voice-mediated) access
to data? It happens that mobility complements work habits that are already
evolving all on their own. That is, mobility is already being embraced by
knowledge workers, without any special encouragement from the corporation.
For example, at the recent Opinion Leaders Conference, an event
sponsored by Siemens, presenters cited, with no little surprise, a
statistic dramatizing the popularity of mobility among knowledge workers:
among corporate employees taking advantage of a corporate wireless service
plan, 50 percent of the minutes were attributable to intra-enterprise
calls, that is, calls between employees of the company, who preferred
using their wireless handsets instead of resorting to a desktop phone.
ON CALL, IN THE KNOW
Knowledge workers may take advantage of m-business applications to access
corporate data structures. While doing so, they may actually become better
informed and more productive.
Some m-business applications are fairly obvious. Typically, the more
obvious applications emphasize ways of catering to the knowledge worker.
For example, m-business applications can add another way for knowledge
workers to access information on health or insurance benefits, or
information on investment plans. Such applications may not inspire upward
leaps in productivity, but they do have the virtue of telling valuable,
talented employees that the corporation values their contributions.
Accordingly, such m-business applications may decrease employee turnover.
Of course, this sort of data access -- perhaps by way of a WAP-capable
handset or even a voice portal -- is also part of a general response to
employee expectations about greater flexibility with respect to location,
specifically, the ability to accomplish work without being obliged to
actually be present at the office.
M-business can be more sophisticated as well. For example, m-business
can extend the reach of knowledge management applications. The beauty of
combining m-business with knowledge management is that knowledge
management has already demonstrated it has its own momentum (incidentally,
at the aforementioned Opinion Leaders Conference, which focused on
m-business, Siemens happened to mention its own internal knowledge
management initiative, which it calls ShareNet).
At this point, we might briefly describe knowledge management.
According to the Gartner Group, knowledge management is a discipline that
promotes an integrated and collaborative approach to the creation,
capture, organization, access, and use of an enterprise's information
assets. These assets include documents, databases, spreadsheets, and other
information resources -- but most importantly, knowledge management
includes the uncaptured, tacit expertise, insight, and experience of
individual employees. Further, Gartner projects that ineffectiveness in
knowledge management will be a significant competitive exposure in 30
percent of e-business transformation strategies through 2004.
At present, knowledge management's emphasis on better collaboration and
interchange of expertise and insight naturally emphasizes IP networks such
as intranets. As usual, IP is the ultimate solvent across data
repositories, processing resources, and communications channels.
Accordingly, it is hardly a stretch to imagine attaching communications
interfaces that are not only IP-compatible, but which promote mobile and
even natural (that is, voice mediated) communications. At the least, such
interfaces could facilitate the use of knowledge management resources, if
not the creation of said resources.
Actually, the biggest challenge posed by knowledge management may not
be technical; rather, it may be cultural. Corporations will have to
discourage the hoarding of knowledge by individuals (the old
"knowledge is power" play) if they are to encourage sharing and
cooperation. However, that accomplished, the consequent steps in knowledge
management are relatively straightforward, if technically challenging.
Moreover, in Gartner's checklist of knowledge management technologies,
most of the items, even the first and most challenging item -- mobile or
natural communications interfaces -- could facilitate knowledge
management. The checklist is as follows: 1. Capture and store, 2. Search
and retrieve, 3. Send critical information to individuals or groups, 4.
Structure and navigate, 5. Share and collaborate, 6. Synthesize, 7.
Profile and personalize, 8. Solve or recommend, 9. Integrate with existing
business applications, 10. Maintain.
Not to belabor the point, but it isn't difficult to see how a voice
portal, perhaps with natural language speech recognition, could facilitate
many of these steps. Take, for example, step 2, the search and retrieve
step. Here, a WAP-capable handset or a voice portal could prove
convenient. And consider step 3, that is, the step that involves sending
information to individuals or groups. Here, wireless notification -- to a
pager, PDA, or cell phone -- could be invaluable.
ON OUR WAY
Already, a handful of pioneering vendors are hard at work bridging the gap
between wireless (and even voice-ready) access and sophisticated
m-business applications such as knowledge management. As was clear at the
Siemens Opinion Leaders Conference, all the components are in place, and
the business drivers are clear and compelling.
In addition, we see vendors such as ViaFone (www.viafone.com),
which, with its OneBridge architecture, promises to extend enterprise
applications to all wireless data devices, including WAP phones, PDAs, and
two-way pagers, as well as to standard telephones using voice recognition.
The architecture, not surprisingly, includes a mobile presentation server
(to accommodate speech, WAP, PDA, and pager connectivity). It also
includes a mobile application server, which encompasses application
services (such as session management, security, alerts, personalization,
localization, and synchronization) and integration methods (such as XML,
SQL, HTML, LDAP, CORBA, COM, and IIOP). The integration dimension may
embrace CRM, SCM, ERP, and knowledge management applications.
Other pioneers include ClearComm (www.clearcomminc.com),
which offers IntelliSoft, which claims to leverage natural language speech
technology to facilitate knowledge management. Similar claims have been
expressed by Speechwise Technologies (www.speechwise.com).
Also, Air2Web (www.air2web.com)
recently announced a new version of its Mobile Internet Platform Version
2.0, which is designed to offer secure mobile access to enterprise
applications through a high-availability, scalable wireless transport
infrastructure. Using an XML-based API, Air2Web's platform includes an
Interface Adapters component, which manages Enterprise Application
Connectors built by Air2Web Development Partners that connect leading
enterprise applications in CRM, sales force automation, database, and back
office systems directly to the Mobile Internet Platform.
Finally, Sun (www.sun.com) has
announced the Sun Open Net Environment (Sun ONE), a new generation of
software for open, smart, Web services. The announcement elaborates on
Sun's Service-Driven Network vision and an operational plan for
simplifying the way in which open Web services are created, assembled, and
deployed across and beyond the Internet. In addition, the announcement
encompasses the iPlanet Directory, Web, Application, Portal, Commerce, and
Communication Servers, as well as the integration of knowledge management
capabilities, through iPlanet's recent GrapeVINE acquisition (www.iplanet.com).
So, to conclude: be alert to the potential for extending convergence,
enhancing voice-innocent IT applications, even sophisticated applications
such as knowledge management, while ignoring over-hyped consumer-oriented
examples of voice/data convergence, because the business drivers for
interactivity and collaboration are compelling, as are the justifications
for accommodating very human (and ungainsayable) preferences that
interactivity and collaboration be as natural as possible. As natural as
speech, and as mobile as people themselves.
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To The April 2001 Table Of Contents ]
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