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Collaboration Technologies
Jason Geesey
Argosy University
COLLABORATION TECHNOLOGIES 2
Introduction
mistakes. Hence, managers have employed utility scales, sensitivity analysis, and scorecards to
improve their decision-making results. Now, companies are utilizing technology to reduce costs,
increase information flows, and adapt to changes from consumer and market demands (Gilbert,
2011). According to Gilbert, collaboration technologies such as Cloud computing can handle
This article will analyze the current state of the art technology for collaboration
technologies and introduce some of its top vendors. It will also discuss how data is validated and
used to facilitate decision methods. Finally, privacy and confidentiality issues are addressed to
illustrate how the speed and custody of information affects Global Privacy and Security laws.
Cloud Computing
Cloud computing has caused a major paradigm shift for businesses and government that
are Internet-based (Gilbert, 2011). In fact, he contends that most information and resources are
hosted and managed with cloud computing software. This collaborative technology allows
companies to run customer relationship management and finance apps that instantly make credit
decisions such as approval for credit, credit limit increases, or customer retention offers within
seconds (Mullins, 2011). In the past, these decisions could take management up to 24 hours.
The recent state of the art break through by Quantivo (an IMB company) is the ability to
analyze compressed data that is 10% of its normal size (Mullins, 2011). This is a major
breakthrough because it adds significantly to a company’s existing data storage capacity. The
other uses for cloud allow businesses to track their sales, inventory, promotions, and loyalty
program activities (Mullins). The collaboration for all of these activities is essential for creating
COLLABORATION TECHNOLOGIES 3
competitive advantage.
All of the tech giants, HP, IBM, EMC, and Oracle are leading vendors for collaboration
technology (Mullins, 2011). As many of them moved away from hardware they focused on
enterprise applications and data analytics (Mullins). In particular, it just makes sense for these
applications (Mullins). In many cases tech giants like IBM will acquire startups with cloud
Data Validation
The essence of data validation is to ensure the information is true and transparent (Alreck
& Settle, 2004). Actually, these are the same goals and reasons why businesses and federal
agencies have moved to the cloud environments (Anonymous, 2011). According to Anonymous,
“Cloud services have improved transparency and collaboration between agencies” (p. 17). Since
the majority of an organization’s information is proprietary for their use to benefit from its
In other words, organizations and firms use the information on a continuous basis for
tracking their own sales and operations (Mullins, 2011). In turn, the information is used to make
business decisions that impact the company as it helps predict buying patterns and behaviors
(Mullins). Since the information is relevant for the success of the organization the data being
Decision Methods
As mentioned above, cloud services provide businesses with several decision methods.
One of the most common decisions is determining the credit worthiness of consumers and their
value to the company (Mullins, 2011). A current revelation is the collaboration of social media
COLLABORATION TECHNOLOGIES 4
in tracking suspicious credit card activity to prevent identity theft (Mullins). These are just two
examples that illustrate how collaboration technology is used to make and improve business
decisions.
One of the biggest controversies with collaboration technologies is the security and
responsibility of privacy and confidentiality (Gilbert, Jones, & Williams, 2009). Gilbert et al.
contends this is a global concern for all regulators. The main problem with collaboration
technologies is the responsible party. At this point, the dilemma is determining which party is
the data processor or data controller (Gilbert et al.). According to the Global Privacy and
Security Law the data controller is ultimately responsible for privacy and confidentiality (Gilbert
et al.).
The service providers (IBM) contend they are the data processors while the customers
(business or federal agency) are the data controllers (Gilbert). Yet, many of the service providers
want full control of the data and in many instances act as data controllers (Gilbert). To protect
themselves, services providers have set terms in their contracts to emphasize they are not
responsible for privacy and confidentiality issues (Gilbert). Nevertheless, recent cases have
overturned this contract provision when services providers have acted as data controllers and
The bottom line is there is much concern over privacy and confidentiality issues with
personal and proprietary information. Currently, there are unsettled legal issues for who is
responsible for data. However, to ensure the integrity and sustainability of collaboration
technologies, service providers will have to maintain the highest level of privacy and
confidentially. Thus, privacy and confidentiality issues should not be a major concern.
COLLABORATION TECHNOLOGIES 5
Conclusion
In short, the article introduced collaboration technology and the state of the art cloud
services. It was no surprise that tech giants like IBM are the vendors for this technology. The
article also revealed that data is validated through internal transparency. Moreover, cloud
services illustrated how technology is used to facilitate decision methods and issues regarding
privacy and confidentiality. Fittingly, the research should help the audience understand the
significance of collaboration technology for making decisions for businesses and government
agencies.
COLLABORATION TECHNOLOGIES 6
References
Alreck, P. L., & Settle, R. B. (2004). The survey research handbook. NY: McGraw-Hill/Irwin.
Anonymous, (2011). IBM supplies cloud services to federal community to speed agency
from ProQuest.
Gilbert, F. (2011). Cloud service providers as joint-data controllers. Journal of Internet Law,
Gilbert, F., Jones, F. F., & Williams, I. (2009). The power of cloud services. Mason, OH:
Cengage.