For those who missed it, Cisco recently released two next generation video phones called the 8845 and 8865.  The phones are richer in features than their 8900 and 9900 predecessors, and while nothing has been officially announced, the writing is on the wall that these new endpoints will phase out both the 8900 and 9900 in the […]

“Without a solid foundation, you’ll have trouble creating anything of value.” – Erika Oppeheimer. Plan When it comes to the technology, Unified Communications is built on a computer network infrastructure and like a house, a solid foundation that has been well planned is critical to the success. Improve When planning your UC system, one for […]

End user complaints and general experience issues are many times seen as lowest level IT support function. Most organizations when asked “who is responsible for this?” reply “I am not sure” or “it’s another team’s responsibility”. Usually, if it’s an end user issue that is directed to anyone but the infrastructure team (cuz they are […]

This June, SMP recruited both avid cyclists and beginners to ride and fundraise in support of two events that aim to improve health and longevity in our region. The Tour de Cure aims to stop diabetes and raise critical funds for education, advocacy and research through the American Diabetes Association. SMP riders participated in the […]

The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn, and relearn. -Alvin Toffler Over the past 3 years I have begun to see a shift in the way customers are planning, selecting and deploying technology capabilities to their users. The range of choice […]

John McAdam, Outgoing CEO of F5 Networks Some time in the past year, at an F5 event, I was listening to John McAdam’s view on the disappearing data center. He said that it’s all going to the cloud, which will drastically shape the way we design IT infrastructures from now on. It’s a little funny […]

SMP enjoyed two fun endurance events this past week.  On Thursday, May 21st SMP Albany participated in the CDPHP Workforce Team Challenge for the first time.  Nearly 8,500 runners and walkers participated in the event.  Six employees form the SMP Albany office represented at this 3.5 mile corporate road race.  Fostering team spirit, the group […]

It is event season at SMP!  As we enter spring time, we have a full line up of endurance events on the schedule through the fall.  These events offer much more than a chance to be active.  It is an opportunity for us to mingle with and jog beside colleagues outside of the office and […]

After a few days of meetings revolving around architecture, I figured this blog post would be fitting. It is an everyday conversation that normally ends up with the words “Architecture Matters” coming out of my mouth. It is all too common for people to want to leverage the newest IT shiny gadget. After all, most […]

When thinking about the huge technological shift that is in front of us I can only think of one word that sums it up nicely: Evolution.  At the very core definition, evolution is the gradual development or advancement of something from simple to more complex or better which hopefully, results in benefit(s).   Complexity, in our […]