Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/57875
Technology NEWSBYTES ■ ECO-FRIENDLY DATA CENTER Bryant University of Smithfield, Rhode Island, has completed a $1 million initiative to install an energy-efficient data center. One of the first data centers to be com- pleted under IBM's new Proj- ect Big Green, Bryant's center houses 40 IBM servers in 500 square feet. It replaces Bryant's old system of 75 servers, which were housed at four separate sites in 1,100 square feet. Using a system of targeted fans and cooling units, the center uses less energy during non-peak times. Even though Bryant's enrollment and number of facilities has grown, the new center has reduced Bryant's energy use for data storage by 35 percent, saving the school up to $20,000 a year in energy costs. ■ NEW ONLINE CAREER CENTER FOR CHINA The University of Maryland's Smith School of Business in College Park has partnered with CareerBeam, a virtual career services company, to offer online professional development services to students in the school's China Executive MBA program. The site will offer counseling, personal assessment, resume writing, and career planning tools, as well as job postings inside and outside China. The site also will offer information on more than 17 million companies worldwide. Career management is still "a relatively new concept in China," says Colleen Sabatino, CEO of CareerBeam. "As economic devel- opment spurs changes in China, ideas regarding career management must evolve to keep pace." 60 BizEd SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2007 ■ U.S., JAPAN BEST FOR TECH A study conducted by The Econo- mist Intelligence Unit recently ranked 64 nations on their tech- nological competitiveness, includ- ing 25 weighted factors such as computer ownership, broadband access, college enrollment, IT employment, pro- tection of intellec- tual property, research spend- ing, and cyber- security. The U.S. and Japan came in first and second, respectively. India came in at 46th; China, 49th. The last three on the list were Iran, Nigeria, and Azerbaijan. ■ TECH TRAINING IN QATAR Carnegie Mellon University's Qatar campus and Qatar Science & Technology Park (QTSP) recently unveiled a new Executive Entre- preneurship Certificate Program designed to boost opportunities for tech entrepreneurs in Doha, Qatar. The program, which begins in September, will teach aspiring managers and executives how to use entrepreneurial skills to build technology-based businesses in Middle Eastern business environ- ments, whether by innovating within their existing companies or starting new enterprises. The nine-month, part-time program is run by Carnegie Mellon's Tepper School of Business and its Donald H. Jones Center for Entrepreneur- ship in Pittsburgh. be held at the Wharton School from October 28 to November 2. "The core content of the Gartner CIO Academy has focused on IT issues, such as governance, commu- nication, and decision making," says Dawn Gudelis, director of the CIO Academy in the Gartner Executive Program. "Wharton's program will focus on how CIOs will use technol- ogy to address core business issues and contribute to a company's com- petitive advantage." In its annual survey of CIOs, Gartner found that the CIO's role is changing dramatically. For example, 50 percent of CIOs now have duties outside of technology, including helping to design business strategy. That's up 20 percent from 2003. In addition, the survey indicates that 74 percent of CIOs are reporting directly to the CEO, CFO, or COO, up from 69 percent in 2003. "For years, CIOs have been told that they wouldn't have a job unless they transformed from 'chief technology mechanics' to business executives," says Thomas P. Gerrity, a professor of management at Whar- ton. "But many focus on cost con- tainment at the expense of mak- ing important contributions to the CEO's vision." The new pro- DATABIT gram at Whar- ton will take a multidisciplinary approach to help CIOs understand the strategy and language of CEOs, CFOs, and COOs, as well as their peers in finance, marketing, sales, and operations. By the end of the In its survey of 161 marketing executives in Europe and the U.S., IT consultant company SDL International found that fewer than 25 percent of U.S. companies translate their Web sites into multiple languages to better reach users worldwide.