From: Freeform Dynamics
Sent: 9th March 2012
To: Freeform Dynamics
Subject: Community Research Roundup - March 2012
Welcome to the March 2012 edition of the Freeform Dynamics 'Community Research Roundup'.
The following reports/papers have been added to our website and are now available for free download:
Keeping Score in the Public Sector
The performance management and information access reality
In the current economic climate, public sector organisations are under increasing pressure to improve their performance and demonstrate that they are doing so, while simultaneously providing citizens and businesses with better access to information. We look at how well they are doing with this based on feedback from 118 respondents during a recent online survey.
Download link: http://www.freeformdynamics.com/fullarticle.asp?aid=1455
Storage Through the Looking Glass
An alternative business-centric view
Our aim in this paper is to help you take a much needed step away from the detail and create some perspective. We reframe the storage discussion from one of technology operations to business enablement. So, if you are interested in raising the profile of the information storage discipline in your organisation, and making compelling business cases for investment in better tools and technology while showing cost savings to the business, then this is a paper for you.
Download link: http://www.freeformdynamics.com/fullarticle.asp?aid=1448
The Business of Elecronic Data Storage
A non-technical guide for executives
Storage and retrieval of electronic data is now an integral and critical part of operations in any modern business, and the volumes that must be handled are growing dramatically and relentlessly. The data retention requirements arising from regulation and compliance are adding further to the challenge. Against this background, if your IT guys have not already requested additional investment in facilities to help store, secure and protect information more efficiently and effectively, then it's only a matter of time. This short primer is designed to provide you with insights that will help you appraise such requests and make decisions on an objective business basis.
Download link: http://www.freeformdynamics.com/fullarticle.asp?aid=1447
Information Management in financial services
Data deluge, data desert or both?
Making sure that the right information is available at the right time to the right people is more important than ever in today's volatile economic and political environment. But how are financial services firms doing in actually living up to the ideal? And what can they do to improve?
Download link: http://www.freeformdynamics.com/fullarticle.asp?aid=1431
SaaS based Email and Office Productivity Tools
A critical look at the promise and practicality for SMBs
Much has been made in the media about the Software as a Service (SaaS) options challenging the traditional dominance of desktop office tools and the back-end systems that drive them. Indeed, a number of suppliers are promising to take away a lot of the pain and complexity, if only you move everything over to them – lock, stock and barrel. But why might you want to do this? And is the SaaS option really right for everyone?
Download link: http://www.freeformdynamics.com/fullarticle.asp?aid=1430
Interested in more?
The above are just some examples of recent reports. You can browse our full library of research here:
http://www.freeformdynamics.com/researchanalysis.asp?searchFor=[REPORTS]
We also encourage you to check out our 2-3 page ‘Inside Track’ research notes and some of the many opinion pieces written by our analyst team for media partners such as The Register, Computing, CIO Online, Silicon, IT-Director, SmallBizPod and others. Here are some links to a selection of recent material that may be of interest:
Recent ‘Inside Track’ research notes
It's a question of scale
http://www.freeformdynamics.com/fullarticle.asp?aid=1457
The theory and practice of creating a more joined up enterprise
http://www.freeformdynamics.com/fullarticle.asp?aid=1428
Recent analyst opinion pieces
Understanding desktop virtualisation
Dale Vile, originally published on Global Knowledge
http://www.freeformdynamics.com/fullarticle.asp?aid=1452
Information management: technology investment pays off
Martha Bennett, originally published on CIO
http://www.freeformdynamics.com/fullarticle.asp?aid=1449
Martha Bennett, originally published on Computer Weekly
hhttp://www.freeformdynamics.com/fullarticle.asp?aid=1456
User Virtualisation - Moving beyond device-centric computing
Tony Lock, originally published on CRN
http://www.freeformdynamics.com/fullarticle.asp?aid=1453
Seven enablers of effective disaster recovery for SME's
Tony Lock, originally published on Computer Weekly
http://www.freeformdynamics.com/fullarticle.asp?aid=1441
Getting to grips with SMB resilience
Andrew Buss, originally published on CRN
http://www.freeformdynamics.com/fullarticle.asp?aid=1443
Intelligent cacheing for optimised storage
Andrew Buss, originally published on SNS UK
http://www.freeformdynamics.com/fullarticle.asp?aid=1283
Please visit www.freeformdynamics.com for more research notes, articles and blogs.
You can also find us here on 
In the meantime, we hope the above is of interest. We try to keep everything we do practical, useful and grounded in the real world view we maintain from our continuous primary research activities. In this spirit, we are always interested in receiving feedback, whether you agree with our analysis or not. So, if you’d like to tell us what you think, send an email to analysts@freeformdynamics.com.
Best regards
Linsey Berry
Publications Manager
(on behalf of the Freeform Dynamics research team)
publications@freeformdynamics.com