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Tom Petrocelli Publishes Groundbreaking Report Defining Serverless Computing

On December 10th, 2018, Tom Petrocelli published the Market Guide for Serverless Computing entitled “Serverless Computing Provides New Solutions to Modern Problems” in conjunction with KubeCon + CloudNativeCon North America 2018.

This report was written in response to massive market confusion regarding the current definition of serverless computing and the categories of options that software, platform, and infrastructure architects can use to initiate serverless computing projects.

“Serverless can best be thought of as any computer system that abstracts the infrastructure for the developer, employs an event-driven model, and only consumes resources when needed.”

Tom Petrocelli, Research Fellow, Amalgam Insights

In this report, Petrocelli provides a definition of serverless computing, provides five key use cases for serverless computing, explores the economics of serverless computing, and provides 14 representative enterprise-grade solutions across open source projects, cloud services, and on-premises commercial products.

Amalgam Insights’ Market Guides provide an unbiased, third-party perspective for explaining new technology and service capabilities based on our decades of expert experience, briefings with leading technology vendors, and discussions with Early Adopter organizations.

To download the report, which will be available at no cost throughout the duration of KubeCon + CloudNativeCon North America 2018, please download at the following link: https://amalgaminsights.com/product/market-guide-serverless-computing-provides-new-solutions-to-modern-problems

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Allego’s Point-in-Time Video Feedback Trains People Skills in the Sales Brain: A Market Milestone

 In a recently published Market Milestone, Todd Maddox, Ph.D., Learning Scientist and Research Fellow for Amalgam Insights, evaluated Allego’s Point-in-Time Video Feedback offering from a learning science perspective—the marriage of psychology and brain science. This involves evaluating the offering to determine whether it engages psychological processes and learning systems in the brain effectively. Amalgam’s overall evaluation is that Allego’s Point-in-Time Video Feedback offering is highly effective.

Allego’s Point-in-Time Video Feedback offering allows feedback to be inserted and embedded throughout the sales professionals’ videotaped pitch. This feedback can be targeted and specific to some aspect of the pitch at that point-in-time. From a learning science perspective, the sales professional can visualize themselves and “relive” the experience giving the pitch and can receive corrective feedback on the fly. This simulates real-time, interactive feedback and is much more effective at engaging the appropriate people skills brain regions than receiving feedback at the end of the pitch. It is also scalable, which is a serious challenge for truly interactive offerings.

For more information, read the full Market Milestone at https://www.allego.com/resources/amalgam-insights-market-milestone-video-feedback/.

 

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Autumnal Tech Advice from Amalgam Insights

Amalgam Insights has been busy the past month in exploring a variety of trends across IT subscriptions, DevOps, Brain Science, and Data Science. In case you’ve missed it, check out our seasonal newsletter and get educated on the key trends that are augmenting our use of technology including:

  • For IT budget and spend management, traditional asset and spend management approaches are falling short
  • Artificial Intelligence (AI) is being treated as a ubiquitous technology
  • Open Source is now a foundation for enterprise IT
  • Learning and Development suffers from the challenge of taking on cognitive bias.

Catch up with Amalgam Insights’ analysts at work this Fall and find out how to:

And to subscribe to our newsletter, please sign up here.

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Tom Petrocelli Provides Context for IBM’s Acquisition of Red Hat

In light of yesterday’s announcement that IBM is planning to acquire Red Hat for $34 billion, we’d like to share with you some of our recent coverage and mentions of Red Hat to provide context for this gargantuan acquisition. In February, DevOps Research Fellow Tom Petrocelli explained how Red Hat’s purchase of CoreOS was transformative for…

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Why Skillsoft’s Digital Transformation Portfolio Effectively Drives Digital Readiness: A Market Milestone

 In a recently published Market Milestone, Todd Maddox, Ph.D., Learning Scientist and Research Fellow for Amalgam Insights, evaluated Skillsoft’s industry-first Digital Transformation Portfolio from a learning science perspective—the marriage of psychology and brain science. This involves evaluating the portfolio’s content and delivery to determine whether it engages psychological processes and learning systems in the brain effectively. It does. Amalgam’s overall evaluation is that Skillsoft’s Digital Transformation Portfolio is highly effective.

The digital transformation is fundamentally altering the modern workplace and is requiring companies to modify organizational structures, create new roles and develop new skill sets. This transformation affects every aspect of skill learning from “what” we need to know, “how” we need to behave, and the “feel” or awareness that we need to be effective in ever-changing digitally-driven corporate settings. Skills associated with the “what”, “how”, and “feel” are each mediated by a distinct learning system in the brain. Thus, digital readiness requires content construction and delivery that effectively engages each of these systems. Skillsoft’s Digital Transformation Portfolio meets this challenge and is poised to continue to meet this challenge as new and exciting digital technologies transform the workplace.

For more information, read the full Market Milestone.

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Now Available: Infrastructure as Code: Managing Hybrid, Multi-cloud Infrastructure at Scale

Research Fellow Tom Petrocelli recently recorded an on-demand BrightTALK webinar on Infrastructure as Code (IaC): a key trend for any company seeking to manage infrastructure at scale.

Petrocelli has previously covered this topic in additional research including

This webinar is a short introduction designed for IT professionals who are exploring Infrastructure as Code especially focusing on SysOps, managers (from mid-level to C-Suite), and system architects. As modern IT systems become more diverse and complex, managing them, especially at scale can become very difficult. Infrastructure as Code presents a new way of thinking about infrastructure management that alleviates many of these challenges.

This webinar discusses:

Please register or log into your Free Amalgam Insights Community account to read more.
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Amalgam Insights Issues Vendor SmartList™ of Software Solutions That Help Build Better Leadership Brains

BOSTON, September 11, 2018 — A new report from industry analyst firm Amalgam Insights cites nine leaders in software solutions designed to effectively train the hard skills, people skills, and situational awareness of leadership.

The Vendor SmartList™, authored by Amalgam Insights Research Fellow Todd Maddox, Ph.D., takes on added significance given the increasing number of news reports about inappropriate conduct by corporate leaders or the lack of trained behavioral skills among a company’s employees.
“Companies must continuously educate their workers, top to bottom, about the ‘what,’ ‘how,’ and ‘feel’ of effective leadership by leveraging brain science to ensure that their behavior doesn’t land them in trouble,” Maddox says. “The companies in our report have succeeded in mapping these systems to the leadership processes needed in today’s business environment.”

Maddox lists nine companies as leaders, with comments about each company’s strength:
• CrossKnowledge: “Path to Performance uses digital solutions that can combine with facilitator training and a dedicated dashboard to provide effective leadership training paths.”
• Development Dimensions International: “DDI uses a broad range of online and offline solutions, tools for practice and simulation, and ‘what if’ scenarios to train leadership skills that meet tomorrow’s business challenges.”
• Fuse Universal: “(Its) use of science and analytics help clients build content that reflects their company DNA, vision and brand.”
• Grovo: “Its use of microlearning content and training programs that power modern learning and improve business outcomes.”
• Learning Technologies Group: “Its broad portfolio of providers, combined with its emphasis on rich scenario-based training and the importance of business outcomes.”
• Rehearsal: “The use of video role-play training that helps leaders improve their people skills through practice, coaching and collaboration.”
• Skillsoft: “Its combination of content and delivery tools that effectively train hard skills, people skills and situational awareness in leadership.”
• TalentQuest: “The use of personality and behavioral science to empower leaders to better manage, coach and develop their people.”
• Valamis: “Its use of technology and data science to build a system for each client that delivers learning aligned with the client’s business goals.”

Maddox cautions, however, that companies deploying any of the systems listed above, or others, must be prepared to do so on an ongoing basis. “One-off training does not work,” he notes.

The report is available for download at https://amalgaminsights.com/product/vendor-smartlist-2018s-best-leadership-training.

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Webinar On Demand: Optimizing Leadership Training and Development by Leveraging Learning Science

On September 6, 2018, Amalgam Insights Learning Scientist Research Fellow, Todd Maddox, Ph.D. presented a webinar focused on “The What, How, and Feel of Leadership Brain Training”.

By attending this talk, you can bring back to your organization a better understanding of how psychology and brain science can be leveraged to provide a roadmap for successfully training leaders and managers at all levels. In this era of digital transformation, where organizations rely increasingly on cross-functional and deeply collaborative teams, leadership is becoming more distributed and employees are taking on leadership roles much earlier in their careers.

Combine this with some of the recent corporate crises (#metoo, unconscious bias, discrimination) and effective leadership training becomes even more important. The overriding aim of this talk is to examine leadership training and development from a learning science perspective—the marriage of psychology and brain science—and to identify procedures that optimize leadership training.

To watch this webinar, view below on the embedded viewer or click through to watch “The What, How, and Feel of Leadership Brain Training”

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Amalgam Insights Releases List of 2018’s Best Enablement Solution Vendors for “Building Better Sales Brains”

Optimized sales training requires three critical aspects; combining effective sales enablement, people skills, and situational awareness

July 31, 2018 08:30 ET | Source: Amalgam Insights

BOSTON, July 31, 2018 — It turns out that the traits common to the best salespeople aren’t necessarily innate; research indicates they can be scientifically coached to be top producers. A new report, issued today from Amalgam Insights, evaluates the technology vendors who are leading the industry in optimizing this kind of training.

Todd Maddox, the most-cited researcher in corporate learning and Learning Science Research Fellow at Amalgam Insights, authored this report. This research uniquely identifies learning science approaches of optimizing sales training, which Maddox says requires a combination of effective sales enablement, people skills, and situational awareness.

The companies recognized in this research are (in alphabetical order): Allego, Brainshark, CrossKnowledge, Gameffective, Highspot, JOYai, Lessonly, Mindtickle, Qstream, myTrailhead, Seismic, and Showpad.

“Companies are continually looking for a competitive edge; leveraging technology to develop a top-tier sales force is a key area for improvement,” Maddox says. “If you want sales enablement and training tools that are highly effective, they must be grounded in learning science – the marriage of psychology and brain science. Many sales teams and sales-focused vendors have access to these tools. What is needed is an effective way to leverage these tools to maximum advantage,” he added.

Maddox’s report notes that successful companies work to map sales processes to three distinct learning systems in the brain:

  • The cognitive skills learning system is about knowing facts (the “what”) and is directly linked to sales enablement;
  • The behavioral skills learning system is about behavior (the “how”) and is directly linked to people skills training; and
  • The emotional learning system, which is about “reading” people and situations (the “feel”) and is directly linked to situational awareness.

“When these three traits are combined, salespeople become far more effective in understanding both the tangible and intangible needs of their customers and can craft and deliver solutions that continually produce solid results for their companies,” Maddox said.

Maddox’s report, “2018’s Best Sales Enablement Solutions for Building Better Sales Brains,” is available for Sales VPs, Directors, and Managers at www.amalgaminsights.com.

About Amalgam Insights:
Amalgam Insights (www.amalgaminsights.com) is a consulting and strategy firm focused on the transformative value of Technology Consumption Management. AI believes that all businesses must fundamentally reimagine their approach to data, design, cognitive augmentation, pricing, and technology usage to remain competitive. AI provides marketing and strategic support to enterprises, vendors, and institutional investors for conducting due diligence in Technology Consumption Management.

For more information:
Hyoun Park
Amalgam Insights
hyoun@amalgaminsights.com
415.754.9686

Steve Friedberg
MMI Communications
steve@mmicomm.com
484.550.2900

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The Adoption Gap in Learning and Development: Brandon Hall Hosts A Podcast with Amalgam Insights’ Todd Maddox

On Thursday July 19, 2018, Brandon Hall Group released a podcast discussion between Amalgam Insights’ Learning Scientist and Research Fellow, Todd Maddox, Ph.D. and Brandon Hall’s COO, Rachel Cooke. The podcast focused on the “adoption gap” in Learning & Development that results when users are presented with a large number of tools and technologies, but little if any guidance on what tool to use when.

Todd and Rachel discuss the importance of leveraging learning science—the marriage of psychology and brain science—to provide best practices for mapping tools onto learning problems in the most effective manner. Todd and Rachel discuss the challenges faced in optimally training hard and people (aka soft) skills.

A replay of the podcast is available for all interested parties at the following link.

If you would be interested in retaining Todd Maddox, the most-cited researcher in corporate learning, for a podcast, webinar, speaking engagement, or workshop, please contact us at sales@amalgaminsights.com