Ideaca To Become Hitachi Solutions Canada!

Same people, same values, different name

On December 2, 2013, Ideaca was officially acquired by Hitachi Solutions and will become “Hitachi Solutions Canada.” As Hitachi Solutions Canada, we look forward to providing our customers with a wider array of proven industry solutions and access to global resources.

"Ideaca is extremely pleased to join a global brand with the outstanding caliber of Hitachi Solutions,” said Muneer Hirji, newly appointed president of Hitachi Solutions Canada.

“We look forward to integrating our experience and strengthening our synergies to bring great industry-focused solutions to both regionally-focused and multinational companies throughout Canada. With its long history of technology excellence, industry leadership and employee-driven culture, Hitachi Solutions will make a great home for our employees.”

Our name may be changing, but our people and our values will stay the same!

Click here to read more.

How Technology Changes Us: Canada In 10 Years

Post written by Niaz T., Senior Solution Architect / SAP BW Consultant at Ideaca. Read more about SAP HANA on her blog: Discover In-memory Technology.

The theme of the Ideaca Blogging Network for the month of August is a very interesting subject. Certainly, technology changes the way we do things on a daily basis. Not only in Canada, but also globally. There could be some specific cases in Canada, such as Green technology to combat climate change. However, most of the technology changes impact us globally, specially in more advanced countries.

The first thing that it comes to my mind is technology will enable us to convert Zettaflood (10 to the 21st bits, or a thousand exabytes) of data in to meaningful information which we are very dependent. Like it or not, business intelligence already has an increasingly important part of our life. The challenge will be how to deal with the explosion of data coming from all types of gadgets and smart technologies because value-based intelligent information helps us to get things faster, better and easier. The speed of rising adoption of cloud, mobile, real-time applications and social technologies and exponential data growth is a big challenge of staying current.

How technology solves this challenge? Some of the biggest improvements have been around networking. We will be able to move more data faster from many sources and applications to where is needed. We won’t have any restriction in terms of capacity, scalability and processing speed. Organizations will be able to leverage the three “V’s”, volume, variety and velocity, of data to augment the value of data for their decision making. Powerful in-memory technology such as SAP HANA enable us to design complex predicative and preventative models for all type of data from structured and unstructured like audio and video files. Next generation of data visualization and intelligent reporting tools empower users to slice and dice information any way it is demanded. We will be able to tell stories with data by connecting millions of data points to get a bigger picture. Big data will change our world and it will blow our mind by providing us tons of opportunities. It will make our word smaller and we will be all connected.

I believe in the next 10 years, another significant change will be human and machines interaction. It seems that human interaction, communication and relationships will be more efficient, faster and stronger through smart technologies. Also, we will be able to have better understanding of machine behaviors and machines will have a better understanding of ours. Ideally humans and machines will work alongside each other and hopefully not replacing human with machines. Although there are ongoing developments and opportunities to replace human with machines, it’s required to consider all potentials dangers and associated risks.

Personally, I’m very excited to see how technology will enable us to access information easily, increase our potential and creativity, improve our lifestyle and promise of longevity, and improve communication and social networking. On the other hand, I believe we need to keep things in balance with respect to human identity and our social behavior. For example, neuroscientists are concerned about how modern technology is making us not use our brains to their full potentials. Based on the evidence, loneliness and depression is increasing and people are less happy in modern society. It’s been observed that the newer generation—equipped with all kinds of smart technology—is less effective in terms of communication skills and human interaction.

The bottom line is we use technology to change the world to suit us better. The important thing is to control it so it doesn’t destroy human intelligence and social interaction. For instance, it would be great to get a relaxing massage after a long day by a smart robot that has already taken care of the house chores. However, nothing will replace a nice face to face conversation with your favorite person or a warm friendly hug to someone you care about. I don’t think we could ever replace our human connection with human-robot connection.

Want a career not a "job"?!

In 2012 Ideaca ranked at #17 on Great Place to Work Canada. Want a "Great Place to Work"? Want to learn about the perks of being an Ideacan? Check out our extended version of our company video which features what it's like to work here!



Visit our careers page for more details!

Follow @Ideaca

Ideaca's Company Video

Ideaca is proud to be launching our first ever company overview video! Designed with clients, prospects, and employees in mind, we have built something that truely reflects what Ideaca is all about...
 

We would love to hear what you think...leave us a comment!

Follow @Ideaca

Ideaca Dynamics AX Tips and Tricks - Turning off unwanted functionality in AX 2012

Ideaca's AX experts provide answers to common AX 2012 questions, helping you leverage your Microsoft Dynamics AX investment. This video helps users learn how to turn off unwanted functionality in AX 2012. For more information or to contact us, visit www.ideaca.com

Follow @Ideaca

Creativity in Leadership

 

Creativity is the individual way in which our mind generates our views, ideas, style…or any other facet of the imagination. Through this comes expression which is the product of creativity and exists in many forms… one of which is leadership.

Being a leader is an immeasurable opportunity for growth.  You are being given the chance to influence and be influenced, learn as well as teach, and guide in your own unique way.  Of course there are some basic guidelines, but each individual will bring their own flare to leading a team to a successful finale.  What you choose to do and say will inevitably create an experience for everyone on the team, including yourself, and give you the capacity to profoundly shape a project and the people who are a part of it.  Your creative abilities may come as new strategies to tackling a tight schedule, your technical understanding, or sheer ability to make people feel important.  Wherever your inherent virtues lie, being put into a lead role will assure they have the chance to develop and shine.

It’s important to have a foundation to build upon, so consider these points the canvas for your creative endeavor:

Be confident  -  You must believe if you want others to believe in you. Carry yourself in a manner that exhibits strength, encourages excitement, and gives a sense of stability.  The way you step forward as a leader permeates the air around you, and has a profound effect on how people see you.  Their belief in your ability to guide instills confidence in them as well, and inspires great performance.  In the midst of this exchange of recognition is the creation of trust, which in the aspect of a project will go a long way.

Know your team - Just as you have your own way of being in the world, so do your team members and recognizing the exceptional qualities that each team member brings to the table will tremendously further your ability to attain success.  Pinpointing a person’s strengths in the beginning will allow you a broader insight down the road into delegating appropriately to utilize the team’s greatest powers when and where they are needed.  In doing this you are aligning with efficiency by pushing forward peoples talents. It gives people a sense of purpose when they know they are essential and why, it drives ambition and productivity and a sense of self. This is a great form of expression.

Know where you are headed – Visualize the end result, or final product.  Know in your mind that you will achieve the best final result possible and exceed expectations and how it will look when you’re there. If you can imagine it, you can make it and this is a force to be reckoned with.  Every project is susceptible to encountering obstacles along the way, but having a vision will help you navigate around roadblocks thus maintaining a clear path to success.

Keep in touch – Communication is vastly key to so much in life and especially in a collaborative situation.  The ebb and flow of a project is directly associated with straight up talking to and amongst one another.  The individual components that each team member is responsible for will amalgamate to form the final, tangible result and in order for that to happen there needs to be a streamline of conversation.  It is vital to not only deliver project updates to the team but to exchange thoughts and ideas. In doing so you are creating an environment of constant awareness of the state of the project as well as combining the team’s brainpower to solution any challenges that may arise. Not to mention it unifies the group socially, which can create an immensely dynamic team when they are called to duty.

When you consider these concepts and ignite them with a passion to do great work and do it with your own style, you can come through the other side having not only delivered an intended product, but having done it with the rare qualities only you possess.  Your character and personality make you a leader unlike any other seen before, or that will be seen.  It is the chance for you to leave a mark that will impact others in a positive way, and hopefully make a difference in some way…somehow.  Because once the project is over what people have left (besides a fantastic new…….[insert your project delivery here]) is the memory of how it came together and the people who made it happen.

- Joelle Thrasher, Portals & Collaboration Consultant

Follow @Ideaca

Ideaca Sustainment: Our Commitment to Quality

Get More from your Technology Investments

One of the greatest differentiators of Ideaca from our competitors is our ability and willingness to support your software throughout its lifetime. While other consultant firms might come in, deliver, and go, Ideaca stands by our work and will work with you for years.

Make no mistake, our delivery teams are second to none - and we strive to do the best work possible - but large software is very complex. Moreover, your business will change over the years and that’s where Ideaca Sustainment can help you.

Why do we call ourselves “Sustainment”? It’s because we don’t just do support calls. We have a full complement of subject matter experts who can help you - even with your most complex problems. But it goes far beyond simply fixing problems that arise. We also do business process consultations, training sessions, and “best practices” knowledge transfer. We also do proactive health checks and we can customize your software as your company grows.

This is our long-term competitive edge. We have the enduring ability to keep your complex systems relevant and fully operational. If you don’t already have a Sustainment agreement with us, and would like more information, please don’t hesitate to contact us. Coffee’s on us! 

Visit us online at: http://www.ideaca.com/solutions/support.aspx

Or give us a call directly at: 1-866-816-4332

-  Ideaca Sustainment Team

Follow @Ideaca

Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference 2012: Toronto

Last week, the City of Toronto was flooded with more than 16, 000 people representing Microsoft Partners from all over the world! Partners from coast to coast took  part in the biggest ever Microsoft Worldwide Partner Conference (WPC). 
WPC travels the globe to take place in a new city every year giving Microsoft Partners a chance to discover the latest technology and trends to come in the year ahead. It also provides a valuable forum to gain industry knowledge, and learn new strategies to ensure Microsoft Partners, like Ideaca, can continuously deliver the highest standards of care and information to our customers.


This year, the conference was held in Toronto at the Metro Convention Centre and the Air Canada Centre. The conference was said to bring in the most traffic throughout the GTA that Toronto has ever seen for a conference, and even brought in a whooping $500 million to the City of Toronto! 

Each day Ideacans experienced  dozens of sessions and key note speakers that helped us to learn new strategies and product knowledge. There were even a few ground-breaking announcements, such as a demonstration shown on Kinnect that scanned a person to virtually produce them in 3D, then their 3D image was printed out into a 3D mold!  Truly a thing to see!  We also spotted new laptops that can convert into a tablet; which will be beneficial to all those stubborn people who cannot part without their keyboards. There was also a great deal of hype around the new Windows 8 phone and operating system that is sure to make many smartphone and Windows 7 users change their mind about what they currently have. Windows CMO and CFO Tami Reller announced at the conference that the new Windows 8 operating system will be launch in 231 markets worldwide, starting in October 2012.

The 5-day conference kicked off with a stunning performance by Cirque du Soleil and wrapped up Thursday night with a packed concert by the Grammy Award winning band Train. What a week! Ideaca is proud to have been apart of it and we look forward to sharing our new learning with our customers in the year to come.

Were you at WPC this year? What was your favourite part?
 

Follow @Ideaca

How Will Auto Manufacturers Respond to Environmental Regulations?

Automotive manufacturers feel immense pressure from environmental groups who continue to emphasise on the need to instil emission reduction targets as part of their long term growth strategies. For manufacturers, it appears that the biggest challenge is to gain a picture of the entire scope of their business to see where reductions in emissions can be made and how they can look to re-purpose their existing resources in order to reduce emissions further.

Since automotive manufacturers operate in an industry impacted heavily by environmental regulations, they must look into innovative ways to brighten their environmental record. Some manufacturers may investigate the development of alternative powered vehicles; some may investigate ways to reduce operational costs in the development of an auto-mobile; and others may consider a unique strategy that looks to capture the best aspects of both of the aforementioned strategies.

 

An Aberdeen article entitled ERP in Automotive Suppliers seems to indicate that auto manufacturers should consider the implementation of an ERP platform since it is responsive to their changing business landscape. An ERP solution is designed to offer manufacturers a single view into all of their IT systems, delivering the control and insight that they would need to effectively reduce their carbon footprint. According to Aberdeen, the benefits achieved through the use of ERP include a reduction in operational, administrative, and inventory costs; a reduction in waste; and increased profits and revenue.

Click here now to review the Aberdeen article for further insight!
 

Follow @Ideaca

2012 Canadian BI Maturity Results from IDC

Next week, Ideaca will once again be travelling across the country to bring IT Directors, CIOs and the like, all together for another one of our National Executive Series Events!

Presenters Richard Hines from Ideaca in the West, and Brian Lee from Ideaca in the East, will be bringing you the latest results in Canadian BI Maturity Research. Be the first in line to benchmark your company against the Canadian landscape.

Canadian companies from coast to coast participated in a survey conducted by IDC designed to extract information on where organizations sit currently, and how they should move forward on the BI Maturity model.

When you’re investing in BI, what research are you falling back on to make your decision? We’ve got all the answers you need to help you make the right ones.

Register NOW to attend a complimentary breakfast session in a city near you to hear the results before they are released to the rest of the country.
 
Follow @Ideaca

Ideaca is proud to sponsor this year's Calgary International Children's Festival

The Calgary International Children's Festival collaborates with like-minded companies to celebrate creativity, education and family. Ideaca has chosen to sponsor the festival this year in order to help the Festival provide an educational experience that improves student's critical thinking skills. Students gain a unique awareness of their place in the world around them. These experiences inspire innovative thinking, which is the driving force of tomorrow's leaders.

"With the help of companies such as Ideaca, we are able to ensure that economic circumstances are not a barrier to a family’s ability to attend Festival performances and workshops,” said David Anderson, Executive Director at the Calgary International Children’s Festival. “Our sponsors help us achieve our goal, which is to bring children and families to an inclusive community event that sparks imagination, inspires creative thought, encourages cultural understanding, and fosters a lifelong passion for the arts.”

“Ideaca is dedicated to improving the health and quality of life of Canadians by investing in our communities,” said Mike Alkier, Managing Partner, Ideaca. “We strive to be strong corporate citizens, and be involved in ways that benefit the regions in which we operate.”

The festival runs from May 22-May 26. We look forward to seeing you there!

Follow @Ideaca

Ideaca named 2011 Top 100 Solution Provider

Last night, at the CDN Top 100 Solution Providers Gala, Ideaca was named #32 for 2011 in the Top 100 in Canada. We have moved up 17 spots from 2010 as last year's ranking of #49!

To be eligible for the CDN Top 100 Solution Providers ranking, companies must meet the following criteria.

• Be registered and conducting business in the country of Canada.
• Source products from a leading distributor in Canada.
• Possess a minimum of one certification or authorization from an IT vendor.
• Ranking is based on total 2011 Canadian revenue - revenue generated in Canada and shipped to a Canadian address. Imputed revenue* is not to be included.
• Revenue will be stated in Canadian currency.
• Complete the online Top 100 Solution Providers application form

To see some of the other companies Ideaca went up against, have a look at the rest of the list here.

Follow @Ideaca

Hang up on the past...dial into mobility NOW!

Last Wednesday evening in Waterloo, Ontario, Ideaca hosted a cocktail event "Mobility...Canada's most overlooked priority & why it is crucial to business success!".

This event focused on the urgent need for Canadian businesses to step up their initiaves in creating a mobile platform for both their employees and for their customers.

Brad Blaskavitch, Sales Director at Ideaca, touched on the many ways a company can develop different mobile strategies to better their customers experience, as well as satisfying the everchanging needs of their employees.

Christa Nesbitt, Sales Director at Ideaca,  also wowed the audience with a few demos showcasing submitting expenses on the go, tracking store productivity and sales in real-time and a virtual tracking program to discover and maintain issues in the field.

If you missed out on this event, it will be hosted again in Fall 2012 in Toronto, Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver. Stay up-to-date for event details in your city!

Follow @Ideaca

SC Magazine Feature Article - Canada's Cloud Opportunity

Gord Smith, Partner at Ideaca, was recently quoted in an SC Magazine feature article called Canada's Cloud Opportunity. 

Although Canada has traditionally been considered a follower in the computing space, there is growing evidence that suggests our cloud computing industry may be different due to rising concerns over privacy and government scrutiny in the United States. 

Gord was quoted in the article stating, "If you operate in the U.S., there's a legal right to have access to that data, and there's a precedent around that. The data is accessible if you operate in the U.S., period."

Could Canada become a new storage haven for international companies fearful about cloud storage in the U.S.? 

Read the full article here.

Follow @Ideaca

Ideaca one of Canada’s top ICT Companies in the 2012 Branham300 Rankings

Ideaca have been listed in the 2012 Branham300 ranking of top Canadian ICT companies.  The Branham300 highlights the top Canadian and Multinational ICT companies operating in Canada, as ranked by revenues. 

“Ideaca managed to weather the difficult economic times by building and maintaining trusted relationships with our customers,” said Mike Alkier, Managing Partner, Ideaca.  “With the market rebound, we were able to grow our organization in 2011 and are poised for continued success in 2012 and beyond.” 

Check out the news release!

Follow @Ideaca

Best Workplaces in Canada Second Year in a Row!

Today it was announced that Ideaca was recognized for the second year in a row as 2012's Best Workplaces in Canada - Medium organizations. Best Workplaces in Canada is ranked using the results from employee surveys and comments. This year, we ranked at number 17 surpassing last year's number of 69! What an amazing accomplishment and an outstanding achievement for Ideaca and our employees!

The full list of companies will be posted in today's Globe and Mail and also can be viewed here.

Follow @Ideaca

Moving Towards the Cloud: Ideaca Profile with Terry Bradshaw

Ideaca is featured on television show Profiles hosted by Terry Bradshaw, 4-time Super Bowl Champion, broadcaster and successful business man. This episode of Profiles is a feature on "Leading Developments in Business Application Consulting".

Ideaca chose to focus on Cloud Computing for this segment and its role as a highly disruptive and revolutionary technology that is quickly gaining momentum in today's marketplace. We describe why this computing methodology is changing the landscape of information technology and Cloud's capabilities in revolutionizing internal IT systems in any organization.

Look out for this segment on your local news network!

Check out the clip here.

Follow @Ideaca

Ideaca Renews Multiple Microsoft Gold Competencies in the Microsoft Partner Network

We have renewed our gold competencies in Business Intelligence (BI), Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP), Portals and Collaboration and Customer Relationship Management (CRM) as well as silver competencies in Virtualization, Web Development, Application Integration and Data Platform.

"These Microsoft competencies showcase our expertise and commitment in today’s technology market and demonstrates our deep knowledge of Microsoft and its products,” said Mike Alkier, Managing Partner, Ideaca.  “Our plan is to accelerate our customers’ success by serving as advisors for their business technology needs.”

“By achieving a portfolio of competencies, partners demonstrate deep expertise and consistent capability on the latest Microsoft technology,” said Jon Roskill, corporate vice president, Worldwide Partner Group at Microsoft Corp. “These partners show true commitment to meeting customer technology needs today and into the future.”

Check out the full story here.
 

Follow @Ideaca

How Corporate Collaboration Strategy Affects Profits for Retailers Event

Last week Ideaca teamed up with Microsoft to put on an event focused around Corporate Collaboration and Store Portals for Retailers.

John Torella from J.C. Williams Group, gave an inspiring talk that made our attendees realize they need to keep with today's emerging technologies by being a differentiator.

"Surprise and Delight your Customers".
- John Torell

 Rob Alexander-Carew from Microsoft Canada, discussed how to Resolve your Retail Business Challenges

Valerie Prendergast and her team from Ideaca gave an impressive demo showcasing Store & Corporate Collaboration in Practice

The event was a great success, and motivated our retail audience to consider making impactful and necessary changes to their corporate collaboration strategy.

If you missed out on this event, don't worry! We are hoping to have a recording of this session up on our website in the near future. Stay tuned!

Follow @Ideaca

The Resurrection of Canadian Manufacturing

The crash of the financial markets threatened to eliminate the importance of Canada's manufacturing sectors. With over 300,000 jobs having been lost as a result of the financial crisis, economists were reluctant to paint a rosy picture of the future of manufacturing in Canada. But according to the Financial Post, the manufacturing landscape in Canada is beginning to flourish, particularly for businesses whom had managed themselves well enough during the economic collapse.

Interestingly enough, businesses that were able to survive the crash did so without succumbing to off-shoring practices; rather, they innovated at home to continue to illustrate their strength as a business. In order for manufacturing firms to innovate and withstand some of the issues that arise with an ageing labour force, they will need to invest in proper on-boarding solutions and other technologies that not only encourage a younger workforce to thrive in their business, but also allow them and your business to continue to innovate and become best-in-class leaders in their field.

Click here for more details about how we can help your manufacturing firm become best-in-class leaders.
 

Follow @Ideaca