Joseph C. Panettieri

Want to find shelter from the chilly economic slowdown? Follow Candles lead. Get on the road and identify good companies that would make great strategic allies—fast. Candle, a systems-management veteran, is branching out into e-biz analysis tools and other Web-related offerings to drive growth. Vice chairman Robert J. LaBants No. 1 priority is to develop […]

A cooling economy is the perfect time to put your competitors on ice. Sure, CFOs are watching every penny this year. But savvy IT managers are pushing forward with cost-effective business projects. Just ask the folks at DirecTV. The satellite TV giant is working with Agency. com to overhaul its Web site. The new site, […]

WorldCom is betting that it can lose Sprint but still win the data race. Indeed, WorldComs recent $3 billion acquisition of Intermedia Communications includes controlling interest in Digex—a fast-growing provider of Internet data centers. WorldCom had hoped to acquire Sprint and its wireless services, but federal regulators blocked that deal last year. Digex will figure […]

Breaking up a company is like streaking: You have to show the world everything youve got in order to increase shareholder value. But if you dont have much to strut, you could wind up embarrassing your business. Just ask Cabletron Systems, which is working overtime to gradually divide itself into four independent companies: Aprisma Management […]

Peek inside Asera Technologies doors, and youll find a very, very tiny clone of Oracle. The Silicon Valley startup is a merry band of Oracle veterans. Company president Rohit DeSouza formerly was group VP for B2B exchanges at Oracle. Aseras other Oracle alumni include: > VP and CTO Anil Nori, formerly an Oracle8 architect > […]

Maybe Oracle CEO Larry Ellison should have eaten his young. Indeed, many of Oracles former managers are growing up, moving on and building software companies of their own. Thats not so bad, until you consider the cruel twist: Some of Ellisons former lieutenants are waging a turf war with Oracle. Of course, Oracle certainly isnt […]

Think its tough to survive in the Australian Outback? Try keeping your company healthy during the IT spending slowdown. In recent days, many high-tech companies have issued chilly financial forecasts for Q1. But not everyone is in a deep freeze. Computer Associates, EMC, IBM, Oracle and Siebel Systems all announced strong financial results in recent […]

Just like other retired executives, former Cabletron chairman and CEO Craig Benson is heading to the golf course. But in this case, he owns the course—and all of the nifty gadgets on it. Sources say Benson is building a plush, fully networked golf course and country club in his home state of New Hampshire. The […]

C-bridge Internet Solutions swallowed some of its pride last week, along with a bitter pill in the form of staff layoffs. The Web integrator is dismissing 100 employees, or 14 percent of its workforce, because of a slowdown in the e-consulting market. The layoffs are somewhat of an about-face for C-bridge. The Boston-based consulting firm […]

When reformed hacker Justin Petersen sends me e-mail, I tend to get a little nervous. Youll recall that Petersen worked as an FBI informant in the early 1990s, went underground as a fugitive, hacked a bank and stole more than $100,000—electronically. Justin and I have a pretty good working relationship. He recounts his hacking days […]