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Nikkei Computer

July 10, 2006 Issue <<Contents>>

FEATURE 1 The “Moral Fiber” of the IT Industry Is Subject to Scrutiny - The “moral fiber” of the IT industry has come under intense scrutiny.  A symbolic example of this is the problems regarding moral issues such as a sense of responsibility and ethics at sites where system development is actually carried out.  Nikkei Computer conducted an emergency survey and received many opinions that raised the alarm over a “moral hazard crisis.”  It is now time for both vendors and corporate users to recognize the problems accurately and to take corrective measures in order to regain their moral stature. - There is a clear and present “moral hazard crisis” - A survey of 800 IT professionals has shown that excessive demands push the sites of system development to the brink of moral collapse - Government and industry organizations take on the challenge of “visualizing” the IT industry- An interview with Yasuro Tanahashi, chairman of the Japan Information Technology Services Industry Association: evolution into an attractive industry FEATURE 2 The Final War over Groupware Has Begun - In the current groupware market, corporate users are faced with the choice of continuing to use the groupware that they have used for years or replacing it with other products.  Not only IBM, which offers Lotus Notes (which holds a top share in the groupware market), but also Cybozu and Microsoft, which are trying to catch up with IBM, have released new versions of their groupware products.  It is hard, however, to switch existing groupware with another, because the application software is used by many employees on a daily basis. Corporate users are now under pressure to make a final decision after careful consideration of all the pros and cons of their choice.

REPORTS

[Inside]

- The Postal Savings Bank has suddenly decided to purchase the former Daiwa Bank's system for its accounting system 

- IBM Japan intends to sever capital ties with all of its joint companies


[News & Trends]

- The thin client market is heating up

- Microsoft’s new anti-virus software has made its debut

- A Japanese consortium is to be established to develop a “made-in-Japan” search engine

- More offshore development is planned for large-scale projects

- SAP Japan has started reforming its partner programs

- The internal control functions of system operation and management software have been further strengthened

- The presence of Japanese manufacturers is growing weaker in the supercomputer market

- The details of the latest version of ITIL have been worked out

- The IT Coordinator System is at a crossroads


Actual Practice of Internal Control (3)

- By using an ERP package, Energy Transfer Partners has successfully completed preparations to comply with the SOX law in 10 months


[From BusinessWeek]

- Damage from personal information leakage is surprisingly small


[News Flash for Each Industry]

- Finance: NTT Card Solution lost ¥3.27 million due to unauthorized access to its e-money service

- Distribution: FamilyMart has introduced a new store system in its 6,700 stores

PEOPLE

Interview
Kaoru Yano: President, NEC Corporation

- Our Next Generation Network project is the kind of major reform that only comes along once every several decades


Real Feelings Expressed by Top Executives
Takashi Komori: Executive Officer, Director of Information Systems, Ryohin Keikaku Co., Ltd.

- It is important to respond promptly to changes in business conditions

CASE STUDIES

Investigation of a Noteworthy Project
Osaka Securities Exchange Co., Ltd.

- The exchange has transferred to an open-source trading system


Absolute Solutions for Enhancing IT Strategy
Mammina Co., Ltd.

- The company uses a two-stage evaluation process to select vendors


A Computer That Does Not Work
JCB Co., Ltd.

- The company’s huge project, worth more than ¥50 billion, has run into trouble


Novel / Cyber Lawless Area

Second Chapter: Employee Monitoring (7)

MANAGEMENT/TECHNOLOGY

Hints for IT Managers
- It is important to explain, in a straightforward manner, the benefit of being able to learn about business operations to new recruits who are assigned to an IT division


Risk Management That Brings a Project to Success
- You can rid yourself of dependency on stopgap measures by learning six management processes


A Practical Project-Management Course for Users
- It is important to take into consideration the outsourcing of system operations at the planning stage


An IT Project Recovery Management Approach That Is Effective at Those Sites Where IT Projects Are Actually Being Carried Out
- The risk factors that can throw a project off course lurk even at the preliminary examination stages


IT Keywords You Should Have Known Long Ago

SOA (Service-Oriented Architecture)