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When El Gato heard the consulting arm of PricewaterhouseCoopers was separating from the accounting company and changing its name to Monday, co-workers had to lift the giggling Grimalkin off the floor.
“Monday is a real name, universally understood and easy to remember,” states the hype on www.introducingmonday.com. While most people associate the word “Monday” with dread, the chipper folks at Monday say the word inspires “crispy white shirts and sharpened pencils.”
“Right. Given the economic climate and that most business folks are leery and weary of hip consulting groups named after months and what have you, Id name my consultancy Last Call,” cackled the Kitty. “Its time to think outside the litter box!”
His Hirsuteness heard whispers last week that Loudcloud might quit the services business. A Tabby tattler said the company might try to sell its service contracts to a larger player willing to pay a premium for them. “Maybe then the company will change its name to Soft Precipitation,” mused the Mouser.
The Furballs friend also claimed EMC and management software maker BMC might have chatted about an acquisition or a merger. Although the Kitty doesnt think the storage giant will latch on to the vendor, such talks could indicate BMC might be entertaining offers and might end up in someone elses arms.
Now that Big Blue Lou has pretty much secured a place in history and Sam Palmisano & Co. are left to make the tough decisions, a Katt crony thinks IBM executives might question the value of continuing to host a separate, annual Tivoli user group meeting. “Maybe the fact that analysts werent invited to this years Planet Tivoli event, held recently in Washington, could be interpreted as a clue to the shows future,” said the tipster. “Or it could just be a sign of how people are viewing analysts these days,” laughed the Lynx.
Speaking of D.C., a pal of the Puss claimed theres a movement toward standardizing certification procedures concerning cyber-security and the use of outsourced personnel. Richard Clarke, White House adviser on cyber-security, keeps alluding to federal efforts to promote standards but has avoided offering real details. The tattler assumed the government wouldnt set standards and conduct certifications but would promote a private-sector certification program for IT security companies. The rumor the tattler heard is that federal IT officials might establish a requirement to ensure contractors are certified through such a program.