Business Software Challenges and Predictions, with Lisa Morgan

In the final episode of 2025 we welcome Lisa Morgan, writer for InformationWeek. Software is more essential than ever and the rules around using it keep getting messier. Lisa brings her expert insight to the software challenges business leaders are facing now. 

Craig and Lisa discuss how to deal with the friction that bubbles up during software audits and why misalignment between IT, procurement, legal, and business leaders turns small issues into larger crises.

Lisa gives her predictions for 2026 including what new technologies may be in our future. For example, she explains the potential impact of quantum computing innovations.

If you're a technology leader and looking for news on current trends and emerging technologies, follow Lisa on LinkedIn: https://linked.com/in/lisamorgan.

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Thanks for tuning into The World's Greatest (Licensing) Podcast this year. We will see you in 2026!

Transcript

Welcome And Guest Background

SPEAKER_00 0:05

Hello, everybody. This is Craig Duranti, host of the world's greatest licensing podcast. And welcome to the show. And today we are joined by prolific writer for Information Week, Lisa Morgan. Lisa, welcome uh to the show. Thank you very much for joining us. Thanks for having me, Craig.

SPEAKER_03 0:25

It's a pleasure.

SPEAKER_00 0:27

Lisa, I love um, I love these conversations with folks who uh who do a lot of writing and and sort of see trends in the industry. But I was looking through your LinkedIn profile and you had at one point my dream job. So I was hoping we just talk about that for like two minutes. You were a radio show host. So that sounds like the best job ever. And why would you ever stop being a first of all? How do you get that job? And how did you find it? Is it as glamorous as I as I think of it?

SPEAKER_03 0:58

The answer is no. I mean, you know, uh, but uh no, it was a lot of fun because uh I I uh my favorite one was innovation and ingenuity, and really I was talking to people in all different kinds of professions about some of the innovations that they had done. Uh one guy was a photographer, he hadn't been, he just uh walked in basically to the bar and resigned. He's the first person that ever resigned in his state. Wow. He just gave up his license. I, you know, uh I don't know anyone else who would do that. And he became a photographer and uh, you know, one that was really capturing, you know, the tragedy of Katrina and what that meant to everybody. And so uh, you know, and he has a different way of looking at the world. And I saw him at a conference, and so, you know, I did what you guys do is, you know, if I find somebody I think is interesting, I, you know, I'd invite him onto the show. And and uh we had a lot of really good discussions, you know, about what's happening with startups back in the day and uh where technology is going and you know, funding problems or you know, not as you know, the the depending on what we're talking about, funding is either really hot or really cold. So anyway, it was a lot of fun. So it and it's nice, you know, it's it's nice because people tend to recognize you and they see your face, but uh I'm not gonna have the problem the actor from the chosen has, and you know, they're gonna run up to me and hug me and call me Jesus.

Audience Recognition And Industry Writing

SPEAKER_00 2:30

So listen, I went to a conference of a couple of months ago. Oracle has their open world or cloud world, they call it now. Yeah, and I was walking through the the vast halls, you know, through all the booths and everything, and I had two people pull me aside and are like, hey, you're that guy who does that Oracle podcast, or you're the guy who always talks about. So I was shocked. I was like, I didn't think anybody I sometimes I feel like we just sort of talk into the nether. And wow, there are people who listen sometimes, which is amazing.

SPEAKER_03 3:04

Absolutely.

SPEAKER_00 3:05

That was amazing. Well, um, you know, as I mentioned um at the very beginning, uh, you do uh some writing for Information Week. And I think that's that's literally how we found you, Ed on our team, uh, was digging around. And and I don't think this was Information Week, but he came across an article that you had written like in 2016, how to deal with a licensed software audit. Yes. I don't know if you remember writing that article. It was so long ago.

SPEAKER_03 3:32

Actually, I forgot the articles as soon as I file them because I'm on to the next one.

SPEAKER_00 3:38

That uh it was like me taking an exam. I would cram for the exam and then I forgot everything I learned in that course, I think.

Software Audits And IT-Business Alignment

SPEAKER_03 3:46

Well, I'm gonna say I forget it really, because I'm talking to people all the time. You know, our our audience is really CIOs and uh those in IT, right, who are trying to get things right. And also, we also appeal to business people who are trying to learn more about technology. Because as you know, you know, IT and business were on separate tracks for many, many years. And now, especially with digital transformation, that's really when it started, they're inextricably linked now. And so you really need to work together. And the lack of that is really causing huge problems.

SPEAKER_00 4:21

Well, it's funny that you bring up uh that point because that's you know, we are sort of at the intersection of at least um licensing problems and contractual problems that our clients have with their vendors, and it could be on-prem or it could be SaaS, but you know, all centers around audits, which um ultimately are, you know, contractual disputes from one party says you're using too much, and the other party usually says no, we're not, and they fight about it. Uh, but one of the things that I see all the time is when we're brought into these, the the conflicts at sometimes in companies between their IT department and their procurement department and the business leaders. And, you know, we're sort of thrust into this and we're trying to bring people together. Like, no, you you do have to, it's not that person's fault. It's not that person's fault. This is this problem is by design, and and we sort of need to come together. And those companies where they have better alignment, I think they have fewer problems, you know, at least in the license audit space, right? And and I just um I'm I'm thinking that's true because those are the people we don't hear from because they're not getting audited, because they they are oh yeah. Mm-hmm.

Visibility Gaps And Compliance Priorities

SPEAKER_03 5:32

Mm-hmm. Well, and it is a real problem because um if you're not working together, you're just you're inviting legal problems, you're inviting fines, you're inviting all kinds of bad stuff. And the problem is that a lot of these IT leaders literally don't have the visibility they need into the assets that they have. Yes. And it's and you know, it's a it's a real problem. And some of them are saying, well, yes, I have like observability software, right? For apps. I mean, they have observability and monitoring for just about anything you can think of in the tech stack these days. Uh, but they're still, you know, there's still holes and they're dangerous, they're very dangerous. Uh, and you you have to prioritize this. And you've got people walking around saying, well, it's not about compliance, it's about governance. And, you know, to some extent, that's true. I mean, you you, you know, you have to have a bigger plan, and and compliance is part of that. But you can't just throw out compliance, you really need to prioritize it, uh, especially, especially with the big big vendors like Oracle, because hey, you know, I mean, they do go after people that are abusing their licenses. And, you know, uh, take Romini Street, for example. I mean, that's a bad example, but you know, they provide support and whatnot. But uh they've they've have faced constant, right? Constant and that was all about software licensing.

SPEAKER_00 7:02

Yes, it was. I mean, I was at um, listen, I spent many years at Oracle, left in, you know, 16 years. I left in 2011. So I've I saw both sides of that battle with Rimini Street, you know, being at Oracle when that whole thing started. And um, you know, I saw SAP get dragged into it with Tomorrow Now, and uh, you know, somehow, you know, firms like Spinnaker and uh and support revolution smaller, you know, they've they've sort of skirted the wrath of Oracle. Uh, but even Oracle and Rimini Street, they've sort of settled their complaints to each other.

SPEAKER_03 7:39

Well, it's been well, it's been a decade, right? Yeah so at least, yeah. So it's been a journey for all of them. Oh, absolutely. Absolutely.

Vendor Tactics And Audit Pressures

SPEAKER_00 7:50

What um, you know, when we when we think about so for for 12 years, I this company, we just focused on Oracle. And the last couple of years we've we've moved beyond them to help with disputes. And and one of the things that I've seen is um, you know, companies, if you're a large company, you're working with a hundred, maybe two hundred technology vendors. There's nothing out if you're a CIO, you have there is no tool to measure and identify 200 different companies' products. And I think what you said is really important, you know, focus on the big ones, you know, focus on the Oracle, the Microsoft. If you've got a handle on those, you you can deal with the small ones. But uh, even the small ones, like we see companies like Anaconda this this year and last year. Boy, they jumped up and started auditing the heck out of people, uh, sending. I mean, it went right to legal. Like our clients were just, I got this letter from legal at this company called Anaconda. I don't know who the hell they are. So we're like, we know who they are.

SPEAKER_03 8:50

So oh dear.

SPEAKER_00 8:54

Um, but they're getting very, you know, the this the the software and SaaS vendors, and just from your article from I think again, I think it was 2016. I was like, wow, you know, change some of the names, but this behavior is exactly the same as it was before. And and here we are 10 years later.

SPEAKER_03 9:12

It's a real problem. And I mean, and the software, as you well know, the software licenses themselves have become more complex. So you can't just think that what you're getting this year is what you got last year contractually, right? Changes have been. And if you're not paying attention, that can backfire big time.

SPEAKER_00 9:32

Um, I thought cloud was gonna fix all this, and we were just gonna have everything's gonna be easy and fungible, and you can ramp up and down, but I guess that hasn't happened the way people were hoping.

SPEAKER_03 9:41

And secure too, right?

SPEAKER_00 9:42

And secure, yes.

SPEAKER_03 9:44

Yes, inherently secure. Well, yes, and in fact, it's interesting because as you know, I mean, a lot of companies have moved lots of workload and data over to the cloud, right? They're repatriating some of that data now. So that's another thing to think about because you know, the dependencies, right? You have dependencies also between some of these applications because they're sharing data.

SPEAKER_02 10:07

Right.

SPEAKER_03 10:07

Do you understand what that's about? Should they have access to that data? You know, it's another question, you know.

SPEAKER_00 10:16

You you bring up an interesting, you know, repatriation is something that you know I've heard people uh talk to me about, you know, or our clients, you know, they're oh, we were on that cloud, we were on this cloud, and now we're bringing it back in-house. Um, but when I when I talk about that, people say, ah, that's not really happening. That's a myth. Repatriation isn't really happening. I'm like, I kind of think it is. I mean, we're not doing it, like we're we're already patriated. We don't have to repatriate, but you're right. Yeah, I think I think it's really happening because too many CIOs bring it up to me for it to be sort of uh uh not not real. I mean, so are people talking, so they must be talking to you about it too. Are they asking you like how do we do this or what are the issues or are other people doing it? Like what what's the is it security? Is that the big driver? Or is it cost?

Cloud Misconceptions And Repatriation

SPEAKER_03 11:04

Security is particularly, yeah. If you're if you regulate, first of all, if you regulate, you've got a whole set of rules. But you know, with PII and with all of the uh regulation that's been popping up everywhere, that's you know, that's a real issue. And see, that's something that, you know, 10 years ago, I mean, personal information has always been valuable, but these days, I mean, what you can do with it, you add a gentic AI with all this data and stuff, it gets pretty scary. So you need to really have your compliance and your governance uh nailed. If if you're an enterprise CEO, you absolutely have to prioritize that. And you have to work, as we were talking about, across departments to do it. And if they're not, they're not gonna succeed. And quite frankly, uh another thing that I think is, you know, from listening to people is that they don't really know how to deal with it. It's kind of like the messy garage. So I'll tell you what, we're not gonna worry about it for now. We'll worry about it later. And the monitor comes, right? And now we have to deal with it all of a sudden, and we're not ready. We're not doing any audits internally. So if they come along and do an audit, right, what are they gonna find? Because that's money in the bank to them, right? They don't want to lose money, that's why they're going after you.

Security Reviews And Vendor Risk

SPEAKER_00 12:29

And we have um, you know, I I know from our standpoint, you know, we're obviously trying to sell our services to to large organizations all around the world, and the number, amount, and sort of depth of the security reviews that our clients want to do of us and the guarantees, and it's exponentially more difficult to get through the contracting phase with large organizations. And I understand why. I'm not disputing and saying it's unnecessary, but they they are at least their procurement teams are asking a lot of questions to the point where we have said to some clients, uh, just like if you're that worried, don't like we don't want that data. Like they're more worried about them sending us stuff they shouldn't send, I think, than us um doing something bad with that data. It's like, guys, if you really like I have no access to your anything you send, like I the only access I have is what you send to me. So don't send it. Like if you're worried about whatever, yeah, then please don't send it to me. And it's almost like they want their vendors to be like this insurance policy. Like, we don't have control over what we send you. So we're just gonna send it to you and then just make sure you don't screw it up. And it's it's kind of this bizarre. Like, we've had some clients where we're like, you know what, we'll just come on site. Like we will literally come on site, we will do all our work in your facility so that none of your data, and that's highly regulated industries, defense, you know, things like that. And and sometimes that's that's what you have to do now. Like it's it's so locked down that they've stopped business in in some areas or or stopped getting, which opens them up to problems. Like, I can't help you now. So that vendor's gonna screw you, and just telling you what's going to happen. So uh there's that balancing act between sort of the the check boxes on your security um vendor onboarding list, and then you know what the business needs, you know, and back to IT versus the business. And and even in the procurement, we see some of that that conflict where the businesses are like, just get them on, we need their help, we need their help. And then they've outsourced the security protocol vendor management to some other firm, and they just have to go through their checklist. So we're we're seeing it as well.

SPEAKER_03 14:43

Another thing that's happening, as you probably know, is that enterprise customers really are they're expecting more from their vendors, and the relationships are really important between the two. Uh because if you're a really large company, right, your licensing is gonna be a lot different from ask me. Uh it just is. And uh for one thing, you've got probably got negotiating power, right? So what are you gonna do? And but still, I mean, you still have the same, it doesn't matter what kind of license you have, you still have the same fundamental problems. Right. So uh, but you do need to work close with your vendors because you want to know, you know, what is the roadmap? Where are they going? You know, they've been providing that for a while, but you wanna you wanna know what they can do for you. And increasingly it it they want to do it, but they're only gonna do so much, it depends on you know, how much are you paying them to do this?

SPEAKER_00 15:44

It always comes down to that, right? It always comes down. What's the bottom line?

SPEAKER_03 15:49

Unless you might be an acquisition target, you know? Yes, unless then they might go the extra mile if they said, Well, you know, let's let's see about these guys, because they do, you know, they uh these large companies want to keep an ear to the ground on innovation because they're so large, they're buying innovation, right? I mean, they're innovating on their own, but unlike a startup, they're not all about innovation, they're about maintenance, so they're about a lot of other things.

Vendor Relationships And Negotiation Power

Broadcom, Lock-In, And Exit Strategies

SPEAKER_00 16:16

So you know, one of the the big firms we've seen over the last few years with acquisitions is Broadcom, right? And we sort of bought um VMware, for example. And uh we have one client, uh, we're in the process of uh starting that engagement, and their whole initiative is to eliminate their use of Broadcom. They're like, we're done, we're done with these guys, we're done. You know, these products work really well, but um, and we've identified 87 products that they have from Broadcom across all the acquisitions that they've done. And they're like, I mean, that was literally the first part of this project is like, we don't even know what Broadcom products are in our environment. So help us identify them, and now we need a strategy to move off of them, right? So, what will replace this product? What will replace that product? So, you know, it's a three-year process that they have. And I think it was their last uh sort of negotiation with Broadcom that they finally uh said to themselves, we're done. Now we've seen that for years on the Oracle side where people are and but they hardly ever get away from Oracle. Uh I'll see, we'll see if if you know it's it's you know, Broadcom, I believe, is pushing their customers as hard as they can up until the breaking point, and then they pull back a little bit. It's like, okay, we can't push them that hard where they leave, but we want to just and it's again a typical when you're locked into a vendor, and when I say locked in, you know, where it will take a multi-year hundred million dollar project to get rid of them. Um, you can do a lot of things to your customers that that they might not be happy with before they walk away from you. Absolutely. So, what are the trends that you're seeing uh for 2026? And I'm gonna guess, I'm gonna go out on a limb here and say AI is part of that. I'm gonna guess.

SPEAKER_03 18:18

Well, yes, and it's it's interesting because the latest story that I wrote is about uh how IT transformation is gonna look in 2026, right?

SPEAKER_00 18:30

Kind of interesting because tell us about that. How is it going to look in 2026?

2026 IT Transformation And AI Reality

SPEAKER_03 18:35

Well, here's the thing. Um most IT organizations have not actually transformed themselves just yet. I mean, the IT, the IT space has is constantly changing. I mean, as we know, you know, I mean, they used to be in the back office, keep the lights on, just stay away from the rest of us. Thank you very much. Then, you know, as we start converging, right? CIOs want a seat at the table, but get a seat at the table. Now they're becoming more business leaders, right? And that is also facilitating uh some of these relationships that they need to have. But from a tech stack point of view, too, um they're better off, they're better prepared uh to deal with the business and figure out what they need and kind of as joint people, jointly budget, jointly, you know, deploy, jointly, you know, because in deployment isn't just technology, right? It's change management. So you've got to get the right people involved. But um, but yeah, on the technology side, it's funny because I was talking about strategy specifically, and almost every person that I interview started off with AI. And, you know, and so I I got them reoriented finally. But it, you know, AI is on everybody's minds, obviously. Um, we saw what happened with Gen AI, it took off. Now everybody's talking about a gentech AI, although that's more hype than reality in a lot of organizations, right? Because I mean, if you don't have your data house in order, you really do not want to be doing that. In fact, you really you don't want to be trusting your analytics and you don't want to be trusting your AI if your data is bad, right? So um so agentic AI is going to be the big thing still for 2026, I think, from a technology perspective. But that's it's being built into everything, you know, almost every application now has some sort of AI component to it.

SPEAKER_00 20:37

So and that's funny. We have a little firm here, you know, there's you know 20 people at at Palisade. So we're not this huge organization, and but we have vendors that we use to provide, you know, CRM tools for us and um you know websites and emails and all that stuff. It's not like we have servers sitting in Palisade headquarters with all this um with all this information. And oh my gosh, the way they're pushing AI and and to the point where it's like, okay, we're gonna keep the price the same and we're just gonna add in this AI stuff. Uh, but you know, we're gonna we're gonna lower this price and raise this price and we're gonna do it like this. I'm like, yeah, but I don't need that AI. Well, if you don't buy it, your other price goes up. Like it's just classic. So they're not they're not fudging the numbers, the numbers are real, but boy, they are really pushing and giving access to this stuff, whether or not, whether whether you want it or not. And I'm like, I I just for our little company, we are in the early stages of figuring out like how are we going to leverage this? And I think there's a place for it in in in sales and marketing, for us, in in targeting, in terms of you know, who do we want to sell to? Like there's there's a place for this, but some of the work that we do and in as consultants, and and I know that there have been big firms out there who've been busted for using AI and sort of have had to return monies to their clients and things like that. But uh I I don't see this space in in audits, at least from an audit defense, you know, I don't see how we're gonna use AI, but I just it might be right in front of me. I just don't see it yet. It's not for everyone. It's not, I mean, it it's in every tool we use now, you know, it's it's on Word, right? I can hit copilot to rewrite something for me or generate some ideas. And you know, I was on Grok yesterday, you know, posing some market questions and it was sort of giving me the information, but I wasn't using it to make a final decision, that's for sure. It's just some basic information, which then I fact-check and say, Is this real? So I'm like using this AI to fact-check that AI. I'm like, I don't know what's real anymore.

SPEAKER_03 22:44

Yeah, that's true. That's true with the hallucinations. Yeah, uh, can you trust it? That's a big question, and it also brings up a compliance issue, too. What about that data? Yes, should I be using my customer data in WordPress?

Practical AI Use And Data Policies

SPEAKER_00 23:00

We we have a strict corporate policy. Do not put any customer data in any AI tool. And if you have a doubt, call me up. And we're small enough we can do that, you know, call the boss. Uh, but absolutely not. Uh, we do not want our data, we don't want their data uh being used out there. Can you imagine putting a and and I see other companies? They're like, oh, what do we do? We we take all of our clients' contracts and and we use them to do benchmarking so that we can sell that data to other clients. I'm like, isn't like the whole nature of confidentiality that you don't do that? So I think there's just a different level of expectation of privacy and sort of customer data integrity. And again, maybe I'm missing the boat. Maybe I'm too old school that um I'm like, yeah, I'm not doing that. I'm not giving you all my client contracts so that you can, you know, tell me if it's a good discount or not. Like, that's never going to happen. Um, we we keep that internally.

SPEAKER_03 23:58

That's well, the latest trend is that oh, the latest trend in shadow IT is shadow AI. What is shadow AI? That would that is me as an employee working for your company, and you know what? I think I'm just gonna ask Chat GPT a few things about this client of mine. Or you know what? We're working we're working on this IP, but I'm just wondering if anyone else is, you know. I mean, right so it doesn't always have to be customer data, it can be, you know, your own IP assets, right? So you have to be really careful. And with things moving as quickly as they are and getting as complex as they are simultaneously, it's really getting to the point where they don't have the manpower in house or they don't have the right expertise in-house. They don't have the relationships in-house to make things happen that should be happening, right? And this is you know, I said, you know, before, it's this talk about complaints, that's serious stuff. And it's not fun. It takes time and uh nobody's happy at the end of it.

Shadow AI And Internal Capability Gaps

SPEAKER_00 25:05

So oh my gosh, now you have me worried. Now I'm like, what are we what's happening? I don't know. What is you know, when if we're sitting here, you know, at the end of December in in 2026, and we're looking back at 2026, are there gonna be what are the big surprises? What are the things that people aren't? Do you have any predictions in terms of I mean everybody's looking at AI, but is there are there any other technologies or trends or things that you're like, this is gonna really come up and and bite people? And um, what are we gonna be surprised about in in 2026? Anything?

SPEAKER_03 25:44

Uh well, I think keep an eye on quantum, obviously, because that's making a lot of progress, and that's gonna be a game changer as well. So I think that's gonna get uh a lot more attention, a lot more progress.

SPEAKER_00 25:57

So I think I understand, well, not that I understand quantum computing, but uh I have a basic concept of an understanding of it. But why don't you tell folks uh, you know, in your words, quantum computing? What what is that? What's coming? What can it be?

Quantum Computing Basics And Impact

SPEAKER_03 26:14

Yeah, okay, so uh quantum computing is different from traditional computing. In that traditional computing, you have a binary system which consists of zeros and ones. And now we're getting into in quantum, we're getting into the laws of physics, right? And so it's like it can be a zero or a one or both. You know, I mean, it's just what is it, you know? And so um one of the things that quantum computing can do, number one, is crunch numbers. It is much more powerful when you get enough qubits, right? You can do things that you can't do with traditional computers. The other thing is that because it's based, you know, on physics, um it is gonna have uh it's gonna have uh a big impact on a lot of different technologies and uh and the qubits, you know, the the usable qubits are growing. And you know, the cooling problems are trying to solve. See, they're trying to solve all these problems that are holding it up, like cooling. You know, you're not gonna have a quantum watch if you know if you need to keep it at what zero degrees Kelvin.

SPEAKER_02 27:22

Right.

SPEAKER_03 27:23

So anyway, but you know, they're they're working to overcome all these problems. So I think you're gonna see a lot of innovation in that area. You know, of course, 6G is gonna come down the pike, but you know, that's kind of an evolution. So, you know, in a lot of the tech stack, it's an evolution, but there are step changes happening in computing and you know, AI, you know.

SPEAKER_00 27:44

So and well, the quantum computing, you know, following that from a distance, um, you know, obviously it's mostly, I mean, it's here, it exists, uh, but in it's not really in practice. Like people, regular companies like us, and you're we're not using quantum computing just yet. Will there be a like so two years ago, three years, whenever it was now, ChatGBT came out, and sort of that's when I think most people sort of discover generative AI. Although if you had been sort of knowledgeable, you knew it was coming and in development. When will people discover quantum? Is that 26? Like, are people gonna like there'll be an application for quantum computing that people will start using, or is that that like other Googles and the Microsoft's and the Metas, and are they the ones who are going to be using quantum computing? We'll just sort of see the benefits and results of it. Like, am I ever going to use it? Yes, I'm kind of old. I'm kind of old.

SPEAKER_03 28:43

Well, still, you're gonna be here for a while. So I would say, I would say absolutely yes, uh, eventually. I mean in some uh in some form. And quite frankly, uh quantum as a service is gonna be a very big deal. That I could say, right? Quantum as a service. Because I don't have to worry about the cooling, right? I don't have to worry about any of the physical properties. I just need my hands on this for my life sciences research or whatever it is.

SPEAKER_01 29:11

Right.

SPEAKER_03 29:11

So it's gonna it's gonna be very interesting. And of course, the scary part is it's supposed to break all encryption that we have available today. And of course, we're working on that. So you're gonna see a lot in cybersecurity around that. So you're gonna see a lot of things starting to form around quantum in 2020.

SPEAKER_00 29:29

People are gonna be writing passwords down on paper again because that's gonna be the only way to keep it secure, and it's gonna change every time. A head of security go away, right? Maybe that's it, right? Pass keys and biometrics and all of that. So I don't even know. I I can't think about that right now.

SPEAKER_03 29:47

A head of security once asked me, he said, Don't you keep your passwords on your phone? I and I looked at him with eyes about this big.

SPEAKER_00 30:04

Uh someone once I asked them where they keep their passwords, and they're like, I write them all down and they they're stuck on a piece of paper to my computer. I was like, Yeah, great. I'm like, how secure is that? He just crap, what are the odds someone's gonna break into my house and look at that piece of paper? And I'm like, fair enough, they're probably very low, but maybe you could like put it in the drawer, like maybe not, put it, attach it to a piece of paper to your monitor. Maybe that's not the most, but I get your point where no one's going to, he goes, it's more likely they're gonna hack my account versus break into my house and and get my computer. So I think this is safer. And I was like, I mean, there's something to be said to that, I get it, but still it doesn't make me feel good. It doesn't make me feel warm and fuzzy.

SPEAKER_03 30:51

I know, I know.

SPEAKER_00 30:53

Um, so um, other than um, and I know we've been we've been talking for a while now, so I I I appreciate your time. And and those folks listening, if you like this podcast, please like and subscribe. Um, what what will you be working on in 2026? Are you are are there more articles to come? Are there more projects? What's what's more articles to come?

Trust, Passwords, And Security Habits

SPEAKER_03 31:15

Yes, yes, yes. Uh and the good news is is that uh I love my editors at Information Week because you know we do a lot of brainstorming together. I come up with ideas, I come up with ideas, and you know, we do these uh stories. And I I pitched all of them for a long time, but we've kind of got a when Tech Target and uh and Informa merged, which they did last year, um they you know kind of took the Tech Target way of doing more assignments, which is totally fine. And my editor is very sharp, and so and I really enjoy working with her. So I cover, I tend to cover IT strategy. And from a business standpoint, I mean, but also from a technology standpoint. Um, but that's really strategy is what I'm about. Um, not so much, you know, what news is coming down the pike or you know, who just, you know, who just became CEO of whatever company. That's not my um what I'm really trying to get to is the issues and trends. I'm really trying to have smart conversations with very smart people, um, and you know, blasting into the offices of people who are, you know, like practice leads at some of the biggest consultancies and stuff and getting their takes on it. It really helps a lot because, you know, some of our readers, not all of our readers come from the huge companies, right? And it all goes it all drips downhill, right? So, I mean, eventually the smaller businesses are going to do what the larger ones are once it gets simplified, right? And cheaper. Right. So yeah.

Editorial Focus And Strategy Trends

SPEAKER_00 32:48

It's the usual maybe the larger ones should do it like the smaller ones. Maybe they should maybe we need to have that go up a little bit. I could tell a lot of large companies how they should be running their businesses and seem to listen to me. Um, maybe that's why I'm in a small company. I don't know. Uh well, we've like I said, we found you a long time ago. You had written an article on um uh how to respond to license audits. And um, you know, if if folks want to, you know, find that, just you know, do a Google search on on Lisa's name and and license audit, and and it'll pop up. And it it's I'm I and we were saying this before earlier, it's like wow, maybe change some of the names of the people. Like those people aren't involved in this anymore, or different firms are now involved. But the the you know, there's so much has changed in technology over the just the last two years, forget the last 12 years. Oh, yeah. That how vendors work with their clients, you know, big tech vendors, and how they sort of I don't want to use the word bully, but how they push and trap and cajole and befriend, and that's all the same. Like nothing has changed with how these and and how you know companies treat their vendors, like nothing has changed. It's it's exactly the same. And and they are so from a technical standpoint, they are so much more dependent on one another uh than they were 10 years ago, and they treat each other exactly the same, which is to me is amazing. So there's a disconnect between how they're connected in a relationship standpoint and how their business and contracting is done and sort of that relationship. So it's just something I think something's got to give. When a tech firm finally figures out how to treat your customers, they're I mean, listen, they've all been taking off the last couple of years, but they're it's not a high bar to be known as a tech vendor who treats your clients well. Like you don't really have to do much. Um, and I think those are the ones that are gonna succeed because some of the technologies are becoming commodities.

Customer Value, Personalization, And AI

SPEAKER_03 34:48

Oh, absolutely. Well, and actually that's what makes the difference is the team that you're working with. I mean, are they helping you reach your goals? Because at the end of the day, what users want, they want value, right? I want you to help me solve a problem and do it faster, whatever that is, you know, or better or whatever it is. There's a reason that I'm buying your software, and that's what I expect out of it. Well, you know, when you have a really good relationship, if you can do this, you know, if you have a really good relationship with a vendor, you can work closer with them. But, you know, um you're it's not just a matter of sales transactions, right? It's the licensing, it's the support, it's everything. So too much of it is on procurement, right? And then licensing, auditing, that sort of thing. When really you need to have more of that. The vendors need to work more hand in glove because in their everyday life, everything is becoming more and more and more personalized. And that's what people inside enterprises want. I want something that I can work with, right? Maybe you're comfortable working with something else. Could be the same application, but I just, you know, I use it differently than you do. Maybe I'm in accounting or, you know, marketing or somewhere else, you know, besides IT uh or whatever it is.

SPEAKER_00 36:12

So well, I see that again, small company uh viewpoint, but we have uh, you know, these SaaS providers that we use, and and I'm like, boy, I really can I use it like this? And like, nope, got to do it this way. And I know they're never gonna change anything for me. I mean, it's I I totally get that. Um, but uh the the more that you know, I've seen the tools that we can use and customize to our needs are the ones that flourish internally in a little company. So I would imagine, you know, as long as the data quality is the same and you've got certain parameters around, you know, how you use this, um, you know, letting people have some individuality in their jobs and roles is uh that that's how you're gonna keep those creative people, right? It's not, you know, can't write everything down on the list and say do it exactly like this. Like they will leave. And and that honestly is what AI is going to take is that that job. Exactly. Exactly. So Lisa, I don't thank you. You were definitely the world's greatest podcast guest today.

SPEAKER_01 37:10

Oh thank you.

SPEAKER_03 37:12

Of all the guests we've had today.

SPEAKER_00 37:14

This is the world, we have the we are the world, we are the world's greatest podcast, and today you are the world's greatest podcast guest. So thank you for that. If folks, um, you mentioned you really like to talk to smart, innovative people. If folks want to reach out to you and and connect with you, what's the best way for them uh to connect with you?

SPEAKER_03 37:31

Oh, find me on LinkedIn. Yeah, find me on LinkedIn and send me a note.

SPEAKER_00 37:37

And that's how we found you, and you were very responsive. So thank you very much for joining us today. You're welcome. Thank you for having me. And thank you, everybody, for joining us. This will be our uh concluding show for 2025. Thank you for a great year, everyone. And we will see you in 2026 on the world's greatest licensing podcast.