I participated in a panel discussion during Corporate Counsel’s Controlling Legal Costs conference last week. A colleague made the point that slashing costs with no holistic or cohesive plan may well do more harm than good. Carol Ann Petren is Executive Vice President and General Counsel for CIGNA, and she went on to point out that aggressive staffing cuts can increase outside counsel fees and expenses or result in higher liability exposure. I could not agree more. Focusing on cost minimization rather than performance optimization is a recipe for disaster. (Read More)
December 9, 2009
July 13, 2009
Cloud Computing is Over-Hyped
Do I think cloud computing will dominate the future of software deployment and information management? No, I think it’s merely a variation on an old theme that last appeared in earnest in the early 80s with the use of “dumb” terminals to access centralized data on larger machines. I see enormous risk in cloud computing that will ultimately prove to outweigh the benefits and convenience of remote data storage. Simply put, the remote centralization of information presents an “all or nothing” proposition in terms of data access and protection. From a legal perspective, there are already significant questions about e-discovery boundaries, ownership, etc. In short, while I think cloud computing will thrive, it won’t significantly alter traditional data storage (proprietary servers, intranets, client/ servers, etc.). The client may become even thinner, but it won’t go weightless.