Making the Most of Containers, Microservices, and Cloud-Native Computing Strategies

Author: David Ishmael, VP, Intelligent Operations (iOps) Two major transformational cloud-native orchestration and monitoring technologies of the modern era are Kubernetes and Prometheus. But, how can your business take advantage of them? Start here. Containers, such as Docker, have emerged over the last eight years as a de facto standard for building portable applications that […]

Email Security 101

By Ben Collar | Trace3 Security Solutions Principal Engineer Why it’s smart to invest in email security tools, applications, and training for business data protection. If you’re reading this blog, chances are you have an email address. You likely have more than one—a personal email and a work email. You receive information via email from […]

Define Network and Infrastructure Security to Protect Critical Business Assets

By Megan Guth and Kevin Jacobs Sound network and infrastructure security solutions are vital to the daily operation of your business. They protect data confidentiality and integrity while ensuring resource availability to meet customer demands and expectations. What Is Network and Infrastructure Security? Network and infrastructure security refers to the protection of all elements within […]

Trace3 Architect Spotlight – Principal Solutions Architect Jeff Stone, Doing More with Less

Brought to you by “If I can make my client’s life better, I’m happy,” Trace3 Principal Solutions Architect, Jeff Stone shared. “I get to learn something every day. And, fortunately in this field, even the failures are learning opportunities.” Jeff joined Trace3 10 years ago. His career with the company is built from a solid […]

The Positive Impact and Cumulative Power of Annual Cyber Security Training

Online threats are a reality for any size business, corporate entity, or nonprofit organization. Even the strongest security defenses and authentication programs require a second level of support—ensuring timely decisions are made at the moment from the people who use them. October is Cyber Security Awareness Month, which makes it a great time to double-check […]

Network Operations Center and Reducing Risks

Up-to-date operating systems, frequent and scheduled patches, and 24/7 monitoring can help mitigate the risks of system failure and increase efficiency. Technology empowers our businesses to execute client-focused projects, deliver new and differentiated services, and grow revenues. We understand the speed at which a company can operate directly translates to the value it produces. Therefore, […]

Security and the Rise of the Remote Workforce

Author: Bryan Kissinger, PhD., Trace3 Vice President, CISO – Security Solutions Leader Strong security applications, policies, and procedures can mitigate risks for businesses that rely on an increasingly remote workforce. Remote working poses unique cybersecurity challenges for organizations. Phishing schemes, weak passwords, unencrypted file sharing, unsecured home wi-fi, print from anywhere technology, and network-connected personal […]

Trace3 Cloud Evangelist Reviews Beta Exam

On July 15, 2021, Microsoft officially released the AZ-700 exam (beta) for Designing and Implementing Azure Networking Solutions. Derek Smith, Trace3 Cloud Evangelist, had an opportunity to take the test. Here’s a glimpse at his process, overall experience, and tips for exam success. Pre-Skills for Success For many, beta exams can be a little daunting […]

An Interview with Julie Chickillo, CISO at Guild Education

In the Trace3 Technology Triumphs blog series, we share the accomplishments of our clients and those who are forces driving value to their businesses through technology. As security threats become more sophisticated, implementing modern security practices for Cloud, DevSecOps, and Automation is now a minimum requirement for any engineering-focused organization that fully embraces cloud native […]

Keys to Understanding How a Ransomware Attack Could Affect Your Organization

Today’s discussion of ransomware attacks quickly became intimidating for the business world. As news headlines now read phrases like, “ransomware gangs create cybercrime cartels,” and we see more information about small businesses, even school districts, falling under attack, it’s easy to think that a ransomware attack is inevitably in your future. While experts at Trace3 […]

The Digitization of Industry

Industrial transformation and day-to-day operations increasingly rely on sound operational technology (OT).

Farm Credit Mid-America: Success in the Shifts of a Global Pandemic

In the Trace3 blog Technology Triumphs series, we share about the accomplishments of our clients and those who are the forces driving value to their businesses through technology – Because at Trace3, all possibilities live in technology.

The 4-1-1 on the Threat of Modern Ransomware Attacks

The already colossal menace of ransomware is now on its way to becoming the biggest complication for businesses on the internet. As of late, it’s been in more headlines than ever, and the White House has even sent communications to business leaders and corporate executives urging them to take actions that protect against the threat. […]

Power Your AWS Cloud Migration with Trace3 Muscle

Migrate your company’s most critical workloads into AWS with confidence using Trace3’s proven delivery capabilities. Trace3 has a long history of providing leading-edge AWS cloud services, and we are proud to announce that we have achieved the AWS Migration Competency. This competency confirms Trace3’s extensive experience and capability with migrating critical customer applications into AWS. […]

Dell Has Seen the Future of Storage

By: Jeff Couzens, VP, Market Strategy and Communications   We recently had the chance to check in with Dell and they’ve seen the future of storage. They call it PowerStore.  — Managing data has become something of a paradox for many organizations. That’s about to change. There isn’t a single infrastructure that can synthesize the vast complexities of data […]

The Five Common Pitfalls that Prevent Successful AI Integrations Across Organizations

By: Matt Fornito, Head of AI, Trace3 

As we continue to see the Healthcare and Financial Services industries advance in artificial intelligence (AI), many other verticals are beginning to follow suit. But like any digitally transformative journey, the AI Maturity Journey requires a deep understanding of your current hardware, software, data, talent, and workflows to know what is necessary to be successful.  

The Boom of Data, The Power of Scale

By: John Lukavsky, Engagement Architect, Trace3

In 2016 after about four decades of global Internet use, a trillion gigabytes of collective data officially became the first Zettabyte and launched a new era of storage. In four short years, and one pandemic later, the Zettabyte is no longer the largest approved standard size of storage. This is because a Zettabyte takes only days to create enough data to fill— about six if we were to look at the number of Zettabytes expected this year. According to the International Data Corporation (IDC) in 2020 alone, the Global DataSphere is likely to hit 59 Zettabytes, and by 2025 they are projecting the amount of global data will grow to 175 Zettabytes, of which will be unstructured data.

Five Steps to Ensuring a Successful Identity and Access Management Solution Deployment

By: Tony Naples, Director IAM, Trace3 

After endless cost-benefit meetings, business case rewrites and months of organizational readiness activities, your identity and access management (IAM) project is funded, has a staff and a start date.  You did everything possible from an organizational readiness perspective to prepare and ensure conditions were set to achieve maximum value. Now you are ready to deploy the solution and following these five steps can help your organization have a successful project launch.

Five Steps to Help You Prepare for a Successful Identity and Access Management Solution Deployment

As acceleration of the Internet of Things (IoT) and mobile computing continues at an incredible pace, organizations of all sizes are shifting away from traditional notions of perimeter security to an identity-based security approach. As businesses evaluate identity and access management (IAM) products to assist with implementing this approach, the desire to achieve the benefits often quickly overshadows their organization’s readiness to implement an IAM solution to achieve those benefits.

Three Steps to Building a Successful Identity and Access Management Program

By: Tony Naples, Director IAM, Trace3

Most organizations implement an IAM solution to strengthen their security posture and make the process of managing system access more efficient and cost effective. Determining which business processes are ripe for enhancement or elimination, what processes can be automated, and what new business capabilities can be deployed to take advantage of the IAM solution’s functions and features will create tangible value and visible wins.

Making an Impact with Artificial Intelligence

By: Matt Fornito, Head of Artificial Intelligence, Trace3 

Artificial Intelligence is present in our day-to-day lives and it’s expanding rapidly across enterprises. From Siri to self-driving cars to Netflix’s recommender system, AI is everywhere (heck it’s probably a prize in your cereal box). However, that’s the AI we see and interact with as consumers, known by most citizens for their AI capabilities. But what about the thousands of use cases that are less renowned but integral to organizations? How can organizations — how can your organization transform into leveraging AI? More importantly, what is necessary to not only have AI but to identify and successfully make a large-scale impact?

The Future of Work

By John Filitz, Trace3, Senior Research Analyst

The 2020 operating environment has been upended by the COVID-19 pandemic. There have been reports declaring the advent of a fully remote working world. Some pundits have even made bold proclamations of death for the office.[i] This has been followed by some of the leading employers in Silicon Valley declaring permanence to a fully remote operating model. [ii]  For most enterprises however, the certainty of remote work versus the office is not an either or. What is starting to emerge is the adoption of a hybrid workspace operating model.

Pillars of Zero Trust: Efficacy of Micro-Segmentation

By John P. Blessing, Trace3, Research Principal

The Zero Trust security mantra is to trust nothing of your Workforce (people), Workplace (devices), and Workloads (applications/data); then watch everything and constantly check and verify changes that occur.

It can be simplified into two simple statements:

Trust Nothing by Default [1]
Trust is not Permanent [2]

Micro-segmentation in enterprise networks is an essential part of successfully deploying a Zero Trust security strategy.  The path from the perimeter network (north-south) and the internal connection of devices and applications (east-west) are all suspected to have bad actor activity. Continuous monitoring of the segments for normal activity reveals the actions that shouldn’t happen, such as the scanning process of a breached system.

Trace3 Innovation Summit: A Three-Day Virtual Leadership & Technology Conference

Trace3’s newly-minted Virtual Innovation Summit, scheduled for August 18-20, will feature fresh ideas, innovative trends, and cutting-edge technologies from industry thought leaders. We are taking advantage of a new virtual platform to leverage digital transformation and create meaningful experiences for our clients and partners.

Digital Innovation: Artificial Intelligence Strategy to Success

By: Matt Fornito, Head of Artificial Intelligence, Trace3 

Artificial Intelligence. We hear the term in the media, the news, and in casual conversations. Continuous bombardments with the promise of AI leaves many people pondering, “What is real AI?”, “Are companies actually utilizing AI today?”, and “What happens if we don’t implement AI?” Moreover, beyond the decision of pursuing AI or not – hint: you should – is an equally important question, what is our current level of AI maturity and what is our goal level?

A Change in Temperature: Thermal Imaging Technologies

As we partially emerge from the pandemic lockdown and cautiously reopen physical offices, business leaders are looking to ensure their employees and families are protected from exposure to COVID-19.  

When deciding when and how to re-open, decisions made by business leaders play an integral role in supporting employee and public health. The right technology can help maintain increased health and safety guidelines, including daily temperature screenings. Thermal imaging technology has come into the spotlight as an essential tool in facilitating these screenings while serving as part of an overall pandemic business strategy. 

Pillars of Zero Trust: Zero Trust Networking

By John Filitz, Trace3, Senior Research Analyst

Enterprise IT trends for cloud adoption are accelerating. Synergy Research reports a 37 percent increase in cloud infrastructure spend for Q1 2020 compared to the same period last year.[1] The significant surge in remote working as a result of the pandemic also has resulted in demand spiking for Software Defined-Wide Area Networking (SD-WAN) solutions. A recent report (2020) indicates 92 percent of respondents are currently evaluating SD-WAN adoptions.[2]

SQL Server to Snowflake Use Case: Demonstrating SSIS Ingest & Transformations – Part 2

By: Puneet Lakhanpal, Sr. Data Architect

In Part 2 of this Use Case, we go into the details of how the existing SQL statements were reutilized with minimal change to perform transformations in Snowflake. As you will learn, there are several ways this transformation architecture could be enhanced, such as integrating secrets with Azure Key Vault. This article focuses on how we avoided re-writing SQL server stored procedure scripts into Snowflake’s native JavaScript code and achieved blazing transformation performance—not just technically—but also in a way that allowed the customer to keep their existing ETL investments. We did this by enhancing their existing code base in both SSIS ingest and transformations, which is discussed in-depth in the article.

SQL Server to Snowflake Use Case: Demonstrating SSIS Ingest and Transformations – Part 1

By: Puneet Lakhanpal, Sr. Data Architect
In the growing world of digital innovation many enterprises are looking to evolve from modern data warehousing to modern data platforms in order to onboard all their data into a single platform. This allows them to create a data marketplace where they can monetize business insights to internal and external partners.

Pillars of Zero Trust: Multi-Factor Authentication

Zero Trust cyber security is a response to the dissolving network perimeter. Authenticating end-user identity via Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) solutions is one of the cornerstones of a Zero Trust cyber security strategy and is also an essential element to prevent unauthorized user access.

Fast and Cheap VPN’s are a Hacker’s Dream

By: Bryan Kissinger, Trace3 VP, CISO The COVID-19 pandemic has changed the way our world functions, forcing us into a new normal at home and at work. A growing list of companies including Twitter, Google, and Facebook have transitioned their employees to work-from-home indefinitely, while in-person conferences and events have either been cancelled, postponed, or […]

AI is Critical in Rapidly Uncovering Answers about COVID19

By: Matt Fornito, Trace3 Head of Artificial Intelligence

Artificial Intelligence is helping fight the COVID-19 pandemic in a variety of ways, from epidemiologists using AI models to predict the spread of contagion, to Netflix anticipating our homebound entertainment needs. While we can appreciate recommendations for Tiger King versus Ozark, there is no doubt that identifying a cure for COVID-19 is top-of-mind for us all. Providing medical researchers access to AI infrastructure is critical to finding answers for complex scientific questions about the virus and how it affects our bodies.

Innovation Room: Forging a New Normal

By Aaron Shaver, Ph.D., CISSP, Trace3 Field CTO

The initial shockwave of the pandemic has passed but many sequential waves remain with additional opportunities and challenges. IT leaders can prepare for these to minimize the downside of these waves, maximize the opportunity to leap ahead and forge a new-normal.

Innovation Room: A Look at Three Different Types of Organizations & How They Are Responding

By Aaron Shaver, Ph.D., CISSP, Trace3 Field CTO

Industries have responded to the initial shock of the crisis and begun to adjust business strategies to new ways of managing demand fluctuations and disrupted workforces. Progressive IT leaders look at new ways to accelerate strategic digital transformation initiatives as a means to differentiate their company in a new-normal business environment. Accurate assessment of the long-term impacts, and a focus on disruptive technologies and initiatives, will ensure future business growth.

Innovation Room: Strategic Refocus for Tomorrow

By Aaron Shaver, Ph.D., CISSP, Trace3 Field CTO

In the last blog we looked at how the COVID-19 crisis has affected industries based on consumer demand and workforce disruption; the subsequent impacts to IT budgets and the need for new, high-velocity strategies and tactics for IT leadership. Through many recent client interviews, we drill into the activities of IT organizations and identify successful adaptations to address changing IT priorities. Now that we are moving through the initial reaction and shock of the crisis, finding mid and long-term solutions is the focus.

Innovation Room: The Velocity of Digital Adoption

By Aaron Shaver, Ph.D., CISSP, Trace3 Field CTO

Not all industries have been uniformly impacted by the COVID-19 crisis. This disproportionate impact is due to consumer demand and workforce disruption. Distinct trends emerge, which have a direct impact on IT budgets, and necessitate specific strategic responses from IT leadership.

Innovation Room: Managing Through Crisis

by Aaron Shaver, Ph.D., CISSP, Trace3 Field CTO, and Mark Campbell, Chief Innovation Officer IT leaders are searching for a “new normal” in their personal and professional lives; adapting to change and finding practical strategies to deal with disruptive challenges. Technology, business, financial and political landscapes are in crisis. Personal lives are thrown into chaos […]

Gateway Attacks – the Rise of 3rd Party Script Vulnerabilities

by Brad Bussie, Trace3 Brad Bussie is an award-winning sixteen-year veteran of the information security industry. He is an author, security strategist, and industry thought leader. He holds an undergraduate degree in information systems security and an MBA in technology management. Brad possesses premier certifications from multiple vendors, including the CISSP from ISC2. He has […]

How Trace3 Accelerated JFrog Artifactory’s AWS Deployment

by Darren Boyd, Trace3 Trace3 is a consulting organization that helps enterprises move to the public cloud and build out their hybrid enterprise IT environment. JFrog Artifactory is an enterprise-grade universal artifact repository manager that hosts all of an organization’s binaries. JFrog Artifactory can be either a self-managed solution hosted in the user’s on-premises infrastructure, […]

Is Your Security Strategy Comprehensive?

By: Chris Conley, Trace3 ATG Regional Lead Network security is only as good as your strategy. But how do you know if your strategy is sufficient? The SANS Institute defines Network Security as: “The process of taking physical and software preventative measures to protect the underlying networking infrastructure from unauthorized access, misuse, malfunction, modification, destruction, […]

The Overlooked Aspects of IoT Security and What to Do About it

By: Troy Cogburn, Senior Research Engineer &  John Filitz, Research Analyst The adoption of Internet of things (IoT) is continuing to rise and is estimated to reach 50 Billion Devices by 2020. With this comes a great concern of how to make sure we keep all these connected devices secure. The Mirai Botnet attack was […]

Cost, Cyber Risk and Compliance are Defining the Future of Cloud

by John Filitz, Trace3 Research Analyst   Cloud computing is fast becoming a ubiquitous element of enterprise computing. In the short term, the global cloud market is projected to grow at a robust rate of 18% annually, increasing the overall market from $270 billion (2018) to over $620 billion by 2023. This spike in demand […]

Hashicorp’s Terraform: The Benefits of Infrastructure as Code

By John Wellen, Trace3 Principal Engineer   There are many benefits of deploying an Infrastructure as Code Platform with Hashicorp’s Terraform Infrastructure as Code Solution.  These benefits can be categorized into the areas of Collaboration, Automation, and Scale.  Terraform is an excellent tool to utilize in your organizations cloud deployments for quickly deploying standard cloud […]

Why IT Leaders Should Consider Cisco Umbrella

By William Kuczmera, Trace3 Solution Architect Relating to most, if not all, the common complaints that come in from customers comes easy to me. I have been the Network Admin who was promised the moon and stars only to be significantly disappointed when the new solution was rolled out. I have been the Delivery Engineer […]

Is Deep Learning in Medical Imaging Coming to Real Life?

By Jayeeta Ghosh, Trace3 – Senior Data Scientist Deep Learning is sweeping across many industries with applications in all realms of life. Deep learning (also known as deep structured learning or hierarchical learning) is part of a broader family of machine learning methods based on artificial neural networks where learning can be supervised, semi-supervised or unsupervised. Healthcare is certainly not shying away from Deep […]

Takeaways from Cisco Live 2019 – An Engineer’s Perspective

By David Law, Trace3 Practice Architect – Software Defined Infrastructure Can you say intent-based networks three times fast? DNAC, DNAC, DNAC… If it wasn’t apparent by now, CiscoLive! 2019’s main theme was all about DNA Center (DNAC), as evidenced by the opening keynote by Chuck Robbins and David Goeckler, Cisco clearly is betting big on […]

27-Factor Assessments Lead to Success with DevOps

By Marc Hornbeek, Trace3 Principal Consultant – DevOps October 2019 will mark the 10th anniversary of the first DevOpsDays where “DevOps”, as a word, began to catch on.  In the world of Information Technology 10 years is a long time and it is quite evident based on the amount of change that has transpired since […]

Highlights from Evolve 2019

Last month, over 1,000 guests flocked to Las Vegas to attend the Evolve Conference, Trace3’s annual 2-day celebration of business and technology. The days were filled with incredible presentations and workshops from business luminaries, Trace3 leaders, customers and partners. Evenings were spent in conversation and networking, closing with our Outlier Award dinner, honoring excellence and […]

Birds of a Different Feather

By Marat Oyvetsky – PMP, ITILv3, CSP, CSM | Program Director | Trace3 | Post originally appeared on Project Management Institute www.pmi.org   Here’s how to streamline and unify executive reporting when leading different types of projects Keeping leadership in the loop on multiple projects is easier when the projects have a lot in common. When initiatives share similar […]

An Intent-Based Future: Forecasting the Emergence of IBN

by Sam Fangman, Trace3 Research Analyst Popularized by Gartner in 2017, the term ‘Intent-Based Networking’ (IBN) bounced around the IT community ever since. In its infancy, IBN was more of a broad concept, with the specifics of how to enact the vision still in flux. While there was consensus IBN would be central to the […]

Security Spring-Cleaning: Assess & Evaluate for Security Success – Part II

Welcome to Spring and welcome to Part II on ‘Security Spring-Cleaning: Assess & Evaluate for Security Success’ our guide to refreshing old cybersecurity processes with new and better security practices. The National Cyber Security Alliance agrees that springtime is an ideal time to review your existing security posture.  “By conducting a digital spring cleaning and […]

Counting Down to Trace3 Evolve Conference 2019

Today’s Reality – Disrupt or Be Disrupted. The 2016 Evolve Technology & Leadership conference, found Steve Wozniak (The Woz) presenting on the main stage challenging the audience to find a CDO – Chief Disruption Officer.  He said, “Give them space and a healthy budget to tinker and innovate. And maybe one or two of their […]

Security Spring-Cleaning: Assess & Evaluate for Security Success – Part I

Despite nationwide snowstorms, blizzards and wind-chill alerts, spring has sprung.  We’ve changed our clocks, outlined our March Madness brackets and are gearing up for our annual spring cleaning. For many, that process involves washing windows, clearing out closets and de-cluttering cabinets.  But for Trace3’s IT security experts, it means helping our clients achieve the best […]

2019 Trends in the Data Center

by  Troy Cogburn, Senior Research Engineer, Trace3 The data center is dead…or so claimed experts as recently as two years ago, crowning the cloud champion and king of the modern IT environment. However, these prognostications haven’t proven completely true. While cloud providers have certainly enjoyed great success, data centers also remain key to many environments. […]

Security Breach – Is Your Company at Risk

Ponemon Institute’s 2018 Cost of a Data Breach report puts the cost of the average data breach to US companies at about $7.91 million (U.S. dollars).   Looking ahead, cybercriminals will steal an estimated 33 billion records in 2023, up from 12 billion records in 2018, according to a 2018 study from Juniper Research. As consumers, […]

The Importance of Security Expertise & Broad Qualifications

Companies of all sizes are outsourcing to qualified and certified security experts in response to cybersecurity threats and challenges.  With eight decades of combined IT security expertise, our dedicated team works to identify and address risks early, deploy IT resources efficiently, and protect the environment and data prudently. We apply the industry’s most forward-thinking solutions […]

The Business of IT: Cost Center or Revenue Generator?

“The global managed services market was valued at USD 155.91 billion in 2017, and is expected to reach USD 296.38 by 2023, witnessing a CAGR of 11.32% during the forecast period, 2018-2023.”[1] Long the go-to scapegoat for budget overruns, is it time for the marketing team to happily hand the cost-center baton to their IT […]

The Time Has Come for a New Type of Database

Exploring the emergence of the Time-Series Database by Sam Fangman, Trace3 Research Analyst   Long a mainstay of data management, numerous advances over the past decade have pushed database technology toward exciting new realms. Optimized solutions now utilize a variety of hardware platforms to store and analyze data in different ways, with in-memory and graph […]

9 Pillars of Continuous Security Best Practices

by Marc Hornbeek and Imran Chaudhari Without proper consideration given to security best practices, the continuous delivery of software changes facilitated by DevOps is risky. On the other hand, DevOps provides an opportunity to reduce security risks if security is integrated into the continuous delivery pipeline according to best practices This blog enumerates best practices […]

Employee Education: An Important Cyber-Security Antidote

“Employees are a company’s greatest asset – they’re your competitive advantage.” Anne M. Mulcahy According to Verizon’s 2018 Data Breach Investigations Report, which analyzes security incidents, again reported that humans continue to be a weak link that led to many of the compromises.  That means your employees represent a significant risk when you consider ‘phishing” […]

Mining Your Path Through Dark Data

By Sam Fangman, Trace3 Research Analyst Over half of our data today is not being used. Can emerging tech help bridge the gap? According to a recent report, 85% of today’s data is not used. While a third is due to redundant, obsolete, or trivial data, 52% of all data is considered ‘dark data’, or […]

Why an Internal Cybersecurity Team Isn’t Enough to Keep You Safe

The number of cybersecurity breaches is on the rise in the Unites States with 668 data breaches reported for H1 2018 exposing over 22 Million records according to Statista.  And  total costs are up 6.4% over the previous year to $3.86 million per IBM/Ponemon Study.  Criminals are becoming more persistent and inventive, adding new methods […]

Three Ways to Leverage the Expansion of IOT

For such a complex and multifaceted spectrum of technologies, “Internet of things” is truly an underwhelming term for an overwhelming trend. What exactly is it? At its most basic level, the Internet of Things (or IoT) is the idea of the Internet connecting devices that are switched on. Think: cell phones, smart TVs, and wireless […]

Nine Pillars of Containers Best Practices

By Marc Hornbeek and Eric Glasser, Trace3 While it is true you can easily “containerize” nearly any software quite quickly, this alone will not realize the benefits of an effective container deployment.   Those that are serious about containers will do well to learn from others.  This blog enumerates nine pillars of best practices for containers. […]

How Data Intelligence Impacts Polling Data

It’s the fall season of an even-numbered year, and those of us in the United States know what that means: election time. In 2018, we’re facing the much-anticipated Midterm Elections. These elections typically see smaller voter turnout and media coverage, although, ironically, one vote has greater impact in smaller elections. Where will the votes go? […]

Trace3 @ Microsoft Ignite 2018 – Key Takeaways

by Chris Nicholas | Principal Cloud Solutions Architect – Azure | Cloud Solutions Group Well I’m ignited. Or re-ignited. The wealth and breadth of ‘what’s new’ announcements at Ignite 2018 in Orlando has been astonishing. Let’s get to the good stuff shall we? Here is a breakdown of some of my favorite news, but not […]

Innovative Outliers You May Not Be Familiar With

At Trace3 we value strong leadership that inspires, innovates, and facilitates great work. That’s why we embrace working with game-changing CIOs supporting their day-to-day business requirements and celebrate them during our annual Evolve Tech Conference. Great leaders come from multiple industries, backgrounds, and areas of expertise and apply thoughtful strategies that transcend technology and time […]

Moving Infrastructure, Applications, and Data Without Interrupting Services

When migrating applications from an old system to a new one, CIOs know that the physical move is not the most daunting task. Getting the entire team, both business and technical, aligned and up to speed is where success for the project is made. The CIO needs to be the first team member committed to […]

Profile of a Trace3 Elite Engineer: Kevin Donahoe

Some would contend predicting the future can be a purely right brain exercise. With the proper amount of imagination, anyone can dream up a scenario, throw it in play, and hope for the best. However, when you add in access to historical patterns and relevant data, that prediction can cross into left brain territory, with […]

Answers at the Press of a Button

By David Ishmael – Director IT Operations Analytics at Trace3 Most people already know that Henry Ford founded Ford Motor Company, one of the largest automakers in the world, and revolutionized the auto industry by introducing mass production.  You may not know that Ford lacked a formal education, which was uncommon during the early 1900’s, […]

How Big Business is Harnessing A/I to Improve the Customer Experience

Artificial intelligence is taking over the headlines, and for good reason. New, confusing, and taking the tech world by storm, artificial intelligence is being used within the programming framework of everything from smart homes to robots. The concept of artificial intelligence is simple: machines develop their own intelligence and can “learn” and adapt to newer […]

The Paper Trail – eDiscovery: Where Law Meets Technology

It’s estimated that over 40 million lawsuits are filed every year in the United States.[1] Litigation. A painful and inevitable burden for most businesses. Statistics show that somewhere between 36%-53% of small businesses are involved in at least one litigation in any given year.  And more staggering is that 90% of all businesses are engaged […]

2018 Outlier Award Nominee Profile: Darren Haas

Trace3 had the honor of profiling the most outstanding Outliers in the industry at our Evolve Tech Conference and again on our blog pages. These leaders shine in both B2B and B2C environments, and apply their knowledge and experiences within their own organizations. They’re open to new ideas, decisive in their planning and empower their […]

2018 Outlier Award Nominee Profile: Michael McGibbney

Everyone is chasing after “the secret to success,” but Michael McGibbney has built a career out of it. As the Senior Vice President of Service Delivery and Operations at SAP SuccessFactors, McGibbney works to ensure that SuccessFactors’ clients implement the ideal human capital management system for their organization’s needs, all across the Cloud. SAP SuccessFactors […]

2018 Outlier Award Nominee Profile: Philip Irby

Successful technology leaders are creative, communicative, business-minded and consistently balance the demands of quarter and year-end goals with available digital solutions. They are innovative and thoughtful, they work to bridge the gaps in multifaceted organizations to streamline team communication. They openly hear everyone’s perspectives. And of course, they stay on top of current developments in […]

2018 Outlier Award Nominee Profile: Paul Chapman

We often speak about the value of a transformative cloud computing strategy – one that enables organizations to innovate and scale quickly. One that’s optimized for a company’s specific needs.  And one that ensures companies transition their data with confidence to grab that competitive edge. Enter Paul Chapman – harnessing the power and potential of […]

2018 Outlier Award Nominee Profile: Bryan Kissinger

Bryan Kissinger, PhD, Vice President and Chief Information Security Officer of Banner Health was an impressive member of our list of 2018 Outlier Award nominees. With over 30 hospitals and facilities in six states, Banner Health is a $6B organization generating enormous amounts of sensitive and private data from patients, employees, and systems infrastructure.  As […]

2018 Outlier Award Nominee Profile: Ravi Nekkalapu

An incredible leader and enthusiastic game-changer, Ravi Nekkalapu, Chief Technology Officer and Head of Information Technology at Drive Shack, is this week’s featured 2018 Outlier Award Nominee. For those not yet familiar, Drive Shack is a premier golf entertainment center based in Orlando, Florida catering to all ages and levels of play. But it’s far […]

Can Cloud Based Backup and Recovery Provide Ransomware Protection?

Ransomware is quickly becoming one of the most damaging forms of malware in recent memory. Imagine your file system encrypted and held for ransom, with no guarantee that paying the ransom will provide the necessary means to decrypt and restore the files. You are, after all, dealing with criminals. The question remains, how do you […]

2018 Outlier Award Nominee Profile: Michelle McKenna-Doyle

Michelle R. McKenna-Doyle, Senior Vice President and Chief Information Officer of the National Football League, was one of the esteemed nominees for our coveted 2018 Outlier Award. She is an incredible leader with a versatile skillset empowering her to navigate, innovate and impact one of the most prominent and respected sports organizations with ease. Michelle […]

2018 Outlier Award Nominee Profile: Terry Dembitz

Terry Dembitz was hailed as an Outlier Award Finalist by Trace3 at their annual leadership and technology Evolve conference on May 9, 2018. Terry is a visionary leader who is more than worthy of the prestigious Outlier Award.  She serves as Vice President of Information Technology at Western Digital, which develops innovative, data-driven products that […]

Trace3 is Helping Drive Shack Re-Imagine the Golfing Experience

You’re up earlier than usual this morning but you’re not heading to the office.  Together with friends you’re headed to the golf course.  You’ve gotten in plenty of practice and your bag is prepped with plenty of golf balls, some tees, a ball marker, a ball retriever, and other necessary items.  Six hours later you’re […]

Cloud and the Importance of Security

Everyone wants to be a part of the “next big thing.” From Facebook to iPhones to WiFi, we have seen it all. We’ve witnessed how being first can trump being the best when it comes to success in the digital age, and know that cybersecurity can trump capital when it comes to long-term sustainability. You […]

What to Expect at Trace3 Evolve 2018

Since its inception in 2008, Trace3’s Evolve Conference has become the premiere conference for the tech community to discuss strategy, innovation, and technology. Some of the hottest tech, industry veterans, futurists, and business leaders have shared the Evolve main stage and breakout sessions. Past speakers include Steve Wozniak of Apple, Guy Kawasaki of Canva, Gene […]

Why ‘Digital Twins’ are a MUST in 2018

“Twinning!” is often exclaimed by fashionistas who think and dress alike. But the tech crowd? Surprisingly, yes! ‘Digital twins’ are rising in popularity, and for good reason: Gartner named it one of the Top 10 Strategic Technology Trends for this year. The technology will enable organizations to better understand, predict and optimize making digital twins […]

Security First in 2018

Organized crime. Insider intel. Blackmarket rings – These terms sound like they belong in a Hollywood movie or history book, not at work! But unfortunately for CIOs, they are becoming commonplace lingo around the office. We are a quarter of the way into the year and still managing a new swoop of technologies, each with […]

The Role of IoT and Data Generation

If you ask any high profile Chief Information Officer for some buzzwords surrounding our decade’s tech landscape, ‘big data’ and ‘Internet of Things’ (IoT) are likely to come up pretty early in their list. And they live up to the hype – big data and IoT analytics, when done right, can push companies to the […]

3 Trends in the Security Landscape for 2018

Think back to your spending habits in 2017. If you broke your New Year’s Resolution and went online shopping, you were certainly at risk of having your data breached. In fact, you’ve probably been a victim at some point. In October, for instance, 123,000,000 records were found to be accessible from Amazon – that’s almost every household […]

The Growing Role of Artificial Intelligence in Big Data

Big Data is a Big Deal. From IT firms to insurance companies to national security organizations, everything is thinking big. So where does AI come in? In simple terms, data is getting so big that organizations resorting to human management alone will find themselves very quickly out of time and money. Artificial intelligence and big […]

GDPR: Deciphering Some Common Myths

GDPR is a pervasive topic in social media, news outlets, marketing materials, professional conferences, and even vendor marketing materials. Given the complexity of the topic, there’s been some confusion regarding certain items within the regulation. This post will attempt to decipher a few of the more common myths. The General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) was […]

Where Technology Does (and Doesn’t) Belong at a Conference

by Stephanie Hannah Director of Strategic Marketing, Trace3 In the constant evolving world of technology, the opportunities for technology-focused conferences like Evolve are enhancing the overall experience of attendees, which are boundless. How do we leverage the potential of the latest developments in this setting while still prioritizing face-to-face time?  1.  DO provide an Event […]

GDPR: 5 Steps to Achieve Compliance

“Complying with GDPR is not optional. If your organization controls or processes personal data on natural persons in the European Union, GDPR almost certainly applies to you.” RSA 2018 No one likes looming deadlines. You might have a sticky note on your monitor or a reminder on your white board but sometimes it’s easier to […]

Our Take on Forbes 2018 Predictions

On November 9th, 2017, Forbes writer Gil Press released an article containing 10 predictions for Artificial Intelligence, Big Data, and Analytics in 2018. A few months later, we at Trace3 reflect on these with an update on 5 topics presented as well as our own commentary: 25% of enterprises will supplement point-and-click analytics with conversational […]

Cutting Edge Tech Often Requires BYO Instructions

by Justin Ryall, Trace3 Engineering ‘Out-of-the-Box’ – What’s the Ideal? Though the convenience of an out-of-the-box solution sounds ideal, most often, it’s the exception, not the rule. In fact, based on our experience, out-of-the-box products/software can probably meet about 70% of the customer needs – then, the business needs to find a solution to fill […]

2018 Cybersecurity Predictions

Do you ever wonder how security professionals come up with predictions for the coming year? Many of us do massive amounts of research. Others go with a gut feel on where they think the trends are taking us. Rumor has it that some have functional scrying devices. What will 2018 bring us in the way […]

Technology and Your Corporate Giving Strategy

Congratulations! Your company has decided to give back to the community through corporate contributions. In many organizations, the leadership for this role lands on the communications director, but the CIO is not off the hook! Information technology can enhance your corporate giving strategy and provide the resources to make a much bigger impact. Through events, […]

Commentary on the DevOps Market

At its most basic level, technology is about streamlining the exchange and circulation of information. Even Mark Zuckerberg, the founder of Facebook, finds that it boils down to this: “I think the internet is really good in general because it helps people get access to more information.” Why, then, does the digital component of business […]

Technologies You Can’t Ignore in 2018

New Year, New Tech, New You? It’s looking like this will absolutely be the case. A new year means a herd of new technologies hitting both the consumer and business markets. Whilst CIOs should always be keeping an eye out for new hardware, software, and industry trends, the beginning of a new quarter is a […]

Holiday Wish List: Top Initiatives for Enterprises Entering 2018

Around this time of the year, many of us are hurriedly updating our Amazon Wishlists in time for the holidays – because you give a little, you get a little, right? When you’re not deciding what you want under the tree, we recommend creating a work wish list of goals. Unlike your wish list on […]

4 Tips to Control Cloud Costs

For many clients, Cloud costs can sneak up in unexpected ways. Data from different accounts that are not being streamlined? Increase! Unnecessary storage taking up space, putting you just over your subscription bracket? Increase! Forget to close a temporary proof of concept app? Again, your organization will have to foot the bill. Migrating to the […]

What is GDPR? Top 4 things to solve before May 2018

Companies across the globe are preparing to comply with strict new rules regarding protection of personal data belonging to EU citizens. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) is expected to set a new standard for consumer rights with respect to their data. GDPR is focused on privacy-centric requirements, such as mandatory record keeping, the right to be forgotten, […]

Confessions of a CIO – Challenges of Managing Digital Transformation

It’s no secret that anyone with a three-letter acronym as a job title probably holds a lot of influence. Think: CEO, CFO, and, yes, CIO. The best of these leaders are game-changers. They make good decisions quickly. They are constantly learning. They set a positive tone that the rest of the team embraces. They diligently […]

Thanksgiving & Beyond: Black Friday, e-Commerce, and the Growth of Online Purchases

For those of us in the United States, Thanksgiving is fast-approaching, and the following day, Black Friday, is almost as cherished. So much so, in fact, that many Americans consider it to be another holiday of sorts. Black Friday has a fascinating history rooted in social, cultural, and economic global changes, but its evolution is […]

Enterprise Project Implementation: 4 Things to Avoid

“Where do you see yourself in 5 years?” This question always hits where it hurts: off-putting for an individual, but terrifying for an organization. That’s why more teams are implementing enterprise project management (or EPM for jargon-junkies). Enterprise project implementation is a new way to accomplish organization-wide goals effectively while still being detail-oriented within departments. […]

Private, Public or Hybrid – Choosing the Best Cloud Strategy

Whether it be Apple integrating it into customers’ data storage options, or India’s IT businesses taking advantage of a 1.9 billion dollar market, it seems that everyone has their head in the Cloud. With increasing issues surrounding traditional big data storage options, it is easy to see why. On-premise hardware solutions do not account for […]

Let’s Get Real: The Truth about Artificial Intelligence

When was your first time? Was it when you read ‘I Robot’ (1950; a collection of short stories by science fiction writer Isaac Asimov)?  Watching 2001 Space Odyssey (1968; film by Stanley Kubrick). Or was it when you purchased a Roomba vacuum cleaner in 2005, played ‘Middle Earth – Shadow of Modor” in 2014, or […]

Total DevOps is Needed – Plugins are Not Enough

Trace3 was proud to be a Gold Sponsor, exhibitor, trainer of the DevOps Institute leadership certification course, and newest partner of CloudBees at the CloudBees Jenkins World 2017 event in San Francisco August 28-31, 2017.  Jenkins World 2017 attracted 54 sponsors/exhibitors – an 80% increase over 2016. The growth of interest in this event demonstrates […]

A Look Back at VMworld 2017

I will continue to echo everyone else in that the biggest spectacle for this year’s VMworld was vSphere on AWS. There was definitely a lot of interest in how IT could move services into AWS, however I was more impressed on how VMware was able to execute and truly demonstrate how a “cloud” is expected […]

Nothing Less Than Total DevOps Will Guarantee Results

As revealed by a recent survey, only enterprises that implement an “all-in” approach to DevOps achieve the results of best-in-class enterprises seen in the 2017 State of DevOps Report.  Total DevOps approaches DevOps transformations holistically, integrating the full breadth of your DevOps value chain as well as the many stakeholders across your organization that must […]

The Evolution of IT Operations Analytics

IT Operations Analytics (ITOA) is the practice of utilizing data science principles to perform pattern discovery, correlation, anomaly detection, and root cause analysis against data collected from underlying infrastructure and applications. To fully appreciate the value proposition of ITOA, you must go back in time to witness the transformation and evolution of Operations. In the […]

Building a Program to Expand IT Executives’ Business Skills to Take on Larger Roles in Leadership

Attending tradeshows and conferences is a standard practice for business professionals in every industry.  If you are in the technology industry, it seems you could quite honestly find a conference or vendor specific event to attend every week.  If you plan your agenda well prior to any given conference, you most definitely can gather good […]

Trace3 Announces 1st Annual Denver Innovation Award

Trace3, the Transformative IT Authority, presented its 1st Annual Denver Innovation Award at the recent Taste of Innovation event on March 2nd, 2017 in Denver, Colorado.  The award recognizes innovative approaches to solving business problems within the Denver market with considerations around how people, process and technology can be enabled to digitally transform the business. […]

How Continuous Can Integration Be?

by Marc Hornbeek My blog, “7 Pillars of DevOps,” identified seven essential best practices areas that make up successful DevOps. One of the seven pillars is continuous integration (CI). The blog explained that the pillars are not silos, but rather foundations that need to be kept in balance. A well-balanced CI implementation performs integrations that […]

Trace3 Receives Partner of the Year at Cisco Partner Summit

Trace3, the Transformative IT Authority, received the highest honor from Cisco as the U.S. West Partner of the Year. Trace3 was also distinguished as the U.S. West Architectural Excellence Collaboration Partner of the Year for 2016. Cisco announced all the award winners this week during the annual Cisco Partner Summit in San Francisco. “It gives […]

7 Pillars of DevOps: Essential Foundations for Enterprise Success

As indicated by the “2016 State-of-DevOps Report,” multiple compelling enterprise business performance improvements provided by well-built DevOps solutions are driving IT transformations for development and operations across many industries. While some enterprises have implemented DevOps to gain near-term efficiency benefits, DevOps is becoming a competitive essential for all enterprises to implement DevOps. Enterprises that fall […]

Why Emerging Technology is Key to Successful Innovation

Technology has always been a driver of innovation. This is truer now than ever before, with advancements in resource planning and data management making big waves in the business IT world. Research by Mckinsey Insights revealed eight primary attributes present in various high performing business model and product innovations. Here, we’ll review each attribute, its role in innovation, and […]