All You Need To Know About Chatbots For Business

The Conversational Business - How Chatbots Will Reshape Digital Experiences

e-Book by Susan Etlinger from Altimeter, a Prophet Company

For this report, Altimeter interviewed 24 enterprise companies, technology innovators, and other experts to gauge the potential risks and opportunities of conversational interfaces.
The interviewed industry leaders identify use cases, design principles, and strategic implications for customer experience, business models, brand strategy, and innovation.
The main focus of this report, is to help business leaders better understand the implications of conversational interfaces so they can make informed decisions about how to leverage this technology. More important, however, is for businesses to look ahead at the
real opportunity: to develop from transactional to conversational relationships, express their brand voice, and become a trusted, indispensable ally to customers.

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Brand New Research about Tech Trends 2016

Innovating in the Digital Era - Report by Deloitte University Press 

"In a business climate driven by powerful digital forces, disruption, and rapid-fire innovation, every company is now a technology company. Whereas technology was traditionally confined largely to operations and execution, its digital expression now informs all aspects of business, from ideation to delivery. We witness daily how it drives product design, upends venerable business models, and rewires competition...
The theme of this year’s report is innovating in the digital era, which is inspired by the opportunities today’s CIOs—across industries, geographies, and company sizes—have to shape tomorrow for every corner of their organizations by transforming “business as usual.” These leaders are in a rare position to imagine a future, and then harness innovation to build it responsibly from the realities of today...

Tech Trends features perspectives from client executives, industry and academic luminaries, and our global network of Deloitte professionals, all exploring major trends that are helping organizations innovate in the digital era. We also examine the roadmaps and investment priorities of start-ups, venture capitalists, and leading technology vendors...
Over the next 18–24 months, the only constant may be the specter of constant change. Amid this turmoil, organizations that can confidently and purposefully harness technology trends will find great opportunities to refocus, to revitalize, or even to inspire. Think beyond incremental adoption patterns. Look not only for ways to do familiar things differently, but also to do fundamentally
different things. Launch new processes, products, and services, and seek out new ways to compete. No matter what the scope, the time for you to act is now. Build tomorrow, starting today."

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The Internet of Things - Cool Presentation by Vala Afshar

The Internet of Things (IoT) is simply a concept wherein machines and everyday objects are connected via the Internet. Within the IoT, devices are controlled and monitored remotely and usually wirelessly. IDC predicts that the IoT will include 212 billion things globally by the end of 2020. That sounds like a big number, but for context, in 2014 there are over 10 quadrillion ants on the planet.

Although ants are not yet members of the IoT, Wifi-connected bees are now in development to help with pollination. MIT is working on smart sand that will be able to move and duplicate 3D objects, and Harvard has already developed 1000-robot swarms. Throw in smart dust motes and IDC's 212 billion IoT device estimate begins to look conservative.

The benefits, based solely on products that exist today, let alone the unimagined combinations of emerging capabilities, are tremendous. More than ever the smartphone has become the remote control for life. Data is available at your fingertips on everything imaginable. But there are a number of challenges and disruptions ahead. These challenges include technical issues, business issues, requirements for new and evolving skill sets, legal and legislative difficulties, and social complexities.

See The Presentation:

Internet of Things from Vala Afshar

Vala Afshar is the Chief Marketing Officer for Extreme Networks and Huffington Post and InformationWeek blogger.  He is the author of "The Pursuit of Social Business Excellence".

DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION - A Must Read Report by Altimeter Group

"In an era of “DIGITAL DARWINISM” where technology, society, and business models rapidly evolve, customer experience is often elusive."

The research details what digital transformation is, how companies are embracing change, and the challenges and opportunities that emerge throughout the process. Through a series of interviews with digital strategists and executives at some of the world’s leading brands, The report explores the role of new customer behaviour and disruptive technology in influencing how organizations evolve. The findings represent important trends and goals in digital transformation that benefit all businesses seeking to adapt to digital markets in meaningful ways.

Altimeter Group set out to learn how digital technologies are impacting customer behavior and how businesses are responding to these changes. We learned about the human side of business transformation, the catalysts for heading on a new journey, the challenges these companies face, and the benefits they are starting to realize.

AUTHOR: BRIAN SOLIS, PRINCIPAL ANALYST
Brian Solis (@briansolis) is a principal analyst at Altimeter Group. He is also an award-winning author, prominent blogger, and keynote speaker. Solis works with enterprise organizations and technology vendors to research the state and direction of markets, competitors, and customer behavior. Through the use of proven frameworks and best practices, Solis analyzes trends, opportunities, capabilities, and areas for improvement to align new media initiatives with business priorities.

EDITOR: CHARLENE LI, FOUNDER, ANALYST
Charlene Li (@charleneli) is Founder of Altimeter Group and the author of the New York Times bestseller, "Open Leadership". Formerly, Li was Vice President and Principal Analyst at Forrester Research and a Consultant with Monitor Group.

CONTRIBUTING AUTHOR: JAIMY SZYMANSKI, SENIOR RESEARCHER
Jaimy Szymanski (@jaimy_marie) is a Senior Researcher with Altimeter Group. Her research interests lie in social TV, gamification, digital influence, and consumer mobile.

Altimeter is a research and consulting firm that helps companies understand and act on disruption. In addition to publishing research, Altimeter Group analysts speak and provide strategy consulting on trends in digital transformation, social business, data disruption and content marketing strategy.

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The Big Idea: Creating Shared Value

Michael E. Porter is a leading authority on competitive strategy, the competitiveness and economic development of nations, states, and regions, and the application of competitive principles to social problems such as health care, the environment, and corporate responsibility; Generally recognized as the father of the modern strategy field, as has been identified in a variety of rankings and surveys as the world’s most influential thinker on management and competitiveness.He is the Bishop William Lawrence University Professor, based at Harvard Business School. His last visionary concept is about Creating Shared Value (developed together with Mark Kramer)
More info: Boris Domain & Harvard Kennedy School

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