Business Partner Day Kicks Off Summit

"Together, we are going to expand the Smarter Commerce market to line-of-business professionals,"said Mike Rhodin, Senior Vice President, IBM Software Solutions Group, at yesterday's Business Partner Summit Opening General Session. Over 300 IBM Business Partners attended the full day Summit to further their knowledge and capabilities to help them capture the growing Smarter Commerce opportunities in their respective geographies.

Alisa Maclin, Vice President, IBM Smarter Commerce Marketing, described the market drivers surrounding Smarter Commerce, a market estimated at $20 billion in software and growing. She noted, "The winners will be those companies able to differentiate their customers' experience by effectively connecting, collaborating, and conducting commerce. This will require companies to respond in real-time to customer needs, based on insights, delivering exactly what they need, where and when they need it. Together we can help them do exactly that."

Mike Rhodin described how IBM's combined Smarter Commerce B2B and B2C capabilities, including new ones being announced this week ,will capitalize on usage of mobile and social technologies, synchronizing partners across the value chain, and explained, "The experience in the first few minutes of the social network is critical to a company's brand reputation. The outcome can make or break a company."

Melinda Matthews, Director for Channels, Industry Solutions encouraged partners to take advantage of a dedicated Smarter Commerce for Business Partner initiative, launched in June 2011, which provides training and enablement support.

Business Partner Panel Recognizes Smarter Commerce Opportunity

Steve Cowley, Vice President, Industry and Solutions Sales, IBM Software Group, recognized nine Business Partners for their recent achievement in reaching Software Value Plus Smarter Commerce Authorized partner status.

Sirius, Crossview and 20:20 shared their investment insights and experiences with the IBM Smarter Commerce solution in a panel session hosted by Mark Register, Vice President of Software Business Partners and Midmarket in IBM Software Sales. Panel member Darrin Nelson, Senior Vice President of Sales, Sirius, said his company is investing in a Smarter Commerce market where clients are “bridging the digital and physical landscape and applying data and insights to grow revenues while decreasing operational costs.” According to Terry Hunter, CEO of 20:20, clients in the European market are looking to e-commerce to deliver multi-channel capabilities, including stock efficiencies and order fulfillment.

“More valuable opportunities are open to CrossView as a result of the Smarter Commerce capability—larger sales, and the opportunity to serve more retailers with truly innovative technology.” Mark Foder, Chief Executive Officer at Crossview continued, “It’s a chance to help our customers transform.”

The Empowered Customer General Session

Don't miss today's general session with Craig Hayman, General Manager, Industry Solutions at IBM, as he explains how today's world of instant business and empowered customers is driving the need for companies to optimize the complete Buy, Market, Sell, and Service commerce lifecycle. Smarter Commerce is an approach that drives top-line growth and increases loyalty by better serving the end customer.

Guest speakers from Sears and Whirlpool, will share how their organizations are transforming information into real-time action, and leveraging social media and mobile devices to meet evolving customer demands. A lively panel session will follow,also featuring Citi and IBM.

Erik Qualman, author of best-seller Socialnomics, will describe the impacts of the social technology and social media boom from the vantage point of "products and services that provide the best value, win."

Tuesday, September 20
8:00am - 9:30am
Marriott 3 & 4

Super Women's Group Luncheon

It’s not too late to plan on attending the IBM Super Women’s Group luncheon, dedicated to the advancement of women in technology. Keynote speaker and renowned author, Darcey Howard will share her insights into Personal Branding Through Appearance (PBTA), a program focused on career and personal awareness. Much more than wardrobe management and personal style development, PBTA is a philosophy. Join us for lunch and learn more.

Tuesday, September 20
11:30am - 1:15pm
Roy's Private Dining Room – South Tower, Lobby level

Industry Exchanges

Join the Industry Exchanges where we will highlight future and current trends, priorities and issues impacting the Communications, Financial Services, Manufacturing, and Retail industries. This track, part of the Business Leadership Program, addresses the Buy, Market, Sell, and Service lifecycle in context of each industry sector, and provides interactive roundtables and forums to exchange best practices and discuss current challenges. Attend these sessions to hear from industry peers and learn how Smarter Commerce has helped organizations like yours turn insight into action, and stay competitive in today’s digital era.

Tuesday, September 20
10:00am - 5:15pm

Solution Center – Meet the Experts

Enjoy a truly interactive experience at the Solution Center, with solution demonstrations that will help your organization "redefine commerce in the age of the customer.” A dedicated Smarter Commerce Zone showcases solutions to help you better integrate and manage value chains, while putting the customer at the center of decision making and action. Experience all of the features of the Solution Center including:

• Buy, Market, Sell, and Service Areas – Take a self-guided tour through each of these areas that defines what each process means to your organization.
• Deep Dive Area – Don't miss new demonstrations for Smarter Commerce on Cloud, Web Analytics and Digital Marketing, WebSphere® Commerce, Social Media Marketing, mCommerce, and Payments and Settlements.
• Customer Zone – Learn how customers like The University of Phoenix, Whirlpool, Petco, and L'Occitane are using Smarter Commerce solutions to solve today's complex business problems.
• Watson Interactive Demonstration – Learn about the powerful analytics and system technologies behind Watson, and how this technology can be applied to solve real-world challenges.
• IBM Host Areas – Get a closer, more detailed look into the components that will help you get your Smarter Commerce strategy off the ground: Social Business (ICS), Systems and Technology Group (STG/RSS), Business Analytics and Optimization (BAO), and Global Business Services (GBS).
• déjà Mi– Take advantage of this cutting edge mobile and web application that allows users to collaboratively share experiences in real-time through location based media, telling, and retelling a story through each unique vantage point. deja Mi reps can be found throughout the conference, to any questions you may have and to help maximize your experience! deja Mi is available in the Apple App Store, Android Market, and on the Web at dejami.com.

A Taste of San Diego

Experience the sights and sounds of San Diego! Join us in beautiful Embarcadero Park this evening where IBM is hosting an exciting evening of local food, live music, and fun. A Taste of San Diego will feature the culinary delights of celebrity chef Brian Malarkey. You can sample some of the best local micro-brews, wines, olive oils, and chocolates. Enjoy the sights of the town, from the local artwork to the sailboats in the Bay. This event has it all! We’ll see you there!

Tuesday, September 20
7:30 pm – 10:00 pm
Embarcadero Park

Meet our Business Partner Sponsors

We are pleased to present the Business Partner Sponsors of Smarter Commerce Global Summit. Check out a complete list of sponsors and visit them at the Solution Center.