Michael Osterman: Lotusphere leaves an impression or two

January 29 2008

Mike Osterman was at Lotusphere and I didn't so much as get to shake his hand.  Then again, there were a lot of analysts at Lotusphere, including some surprising ones that I would have enjoyed speaking with if they had asked for time on my interview schedule................ anyway, Mike sums up his experience like this:

One of the more important overall impressions I came away with, however, is that IBM Lotus really seems to be getting traction in terms of how people think about the company. A couple of years ago, one could have made a somewhat arguable case that the company was in defensive mode, attempting to convince people why they should not migrate to another platform. Today, the impression is clearly one of being on the offense and providing a number of very innovative offerings focused heavily on greater collaborative capabilities and a significant move downmarket into the SMB space.
This is a huge point and is why I felt differently leaving Orlando this year versus many of the prior years.  There was no emotional, time-wasting, gut-wrenching defensive adventure.  Nor should there have been.  I used to go to Lotusphere hoping to get through the week without a crisis, or coming out with the good news outweighing the bad news.  In both 2007 and 2008, that mentality has no longer been needed.  Lotusphere is a conference, with news, information, learning, knowledge, creativity, and a little bit of fun.  And while some have tried to figure out why certain bits of information were left off, or why the lawyers got so many disclosures on the slides, or whether the food was as good as prior years, the story coming out of 2008 is that Lotus is a leading brand within IBM,and is expanding in ways that will create new markets, new competitive advantage, and new opportunities.  It's great to see an outside perspective (and there are many others) validate that perspective.

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Ed Brill | Highland Park, IL USA Category:  Lotusphere2008  Add/View Comments [8]

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  1. 1  Gavin Bollard http://dominogavin.blogspot.com/ | 1/29/2008 4:51:14 PM

    I've often thought that IBM/Lotus should be feeding Michael Osterman with a bit more info since he covers all types/brands of messaging. Glad to hear he was at LotusSphere.

  1. 2  Brian Vincent  | 1/29/2008 7:45:27 PM

    Its nice to see Lotus/IBM growing and better aligning its products. Forward movement is good.

  1. 3  Mike Lazar  | 1/29/2008 8:44:00 PM

    Ed -- I was very surprised to meet one analyst there. I had a long chat with her. It was quite interesting to meet her and see her come to the 'Sphere.

  1. 4  Nathan T. Freeman http://nathan.lotus911.com | 1/29/2008 10:12:44 PM

    @3 - Surely that was everyone's favorite "what's her PhD in again? And where's it from?" analyst!

    C'mon, Ed.... you know the real reason the last two 'spheres have been so good. It's 'cause I'M THERE! :-P

  1. 5  Konstantin Lessle  | 1/30/2008 6:22:14 AM

    Dear Mr. Brill,

    it would be a wise move to support Mr. Osterman as much as you can. His publications and newsletters are widely read and have quite some influence on the messaging community. And, judging from the tone of his mails, he's a friendly, polite and intelligent person with a lot of insight into the market.

    Kind regards from Germany,

    Konstantin Lessle

  1. 6  Ed Brill http://www.edbrill.com | 1/30/2008 6:51:54 AM

    @1 / @5 - we are in complete agreeement.

    @3 I'll find you online...it ought to be interesting.

  1. 7  Karl-Henry Martinsson  | 1/31/2008 11:55:28 AM

    Talking about Lotusphere and the (enthusiastic) community that promote Lotus products out there, share information through their blogs, and add value overall to the Lotus brand, do you have any comments to this: { Link } and { Link } ?

  1. 8  Ed Brill http://www.edbrill.com | 1/31/2008 1:42:49 PM

    @7 I can't even begin to explain it.