Is unified communcations leading to a new ear in computing?

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Here's an article that caught my eye on itWorldCanada today.

Unified communications marks start of new computing era, says Nortel CEO

By:
Sandra Rossi
In a bid to generate strategic advantage, IT is entering a new phase of computing with real-time integration of the front and back office, according to Nortel Networks Inc. Chief Technology Officer Phil Edholm.
What we're witnessing, he said, is phase three of the computing age. Phase one was during the 1960s and 1970s when payroll and inventory was automated.
"It didn't change a lot but it made business run faster," Edholm said.
Phase two emerged in the late 1980s when there was a fundamental shift from technical to strategic, as business processes began to change.
"Wal-mart [Stores Inc.] was the poster child of this transition which was repeated industry by industry during the 1990s," Edholm said.
[Read full article]

I certainly agree with the WalMart observation. In the classes I used to teach, I often used WalMart as example of how technology can be leveraged to competitive business advantage. In many cases a strategic advantage.

Example: WalMart uses the cash register as an inventory control mechanism. They always know what the hot sellers are because they watch the inventory constantly. But that also parlays across to other business strategies. Couple known inventory of rain gera, for example, with weather charts predicting a big storm in a specific region, and a company like WalMart is on top of the game enough to "pre-load" stores in the region with foul weather gear in anticipation. Market analysis looking ahead only a day or two. It's being proactively reactive.

Good article and it points out a real trusim in the marketplace today. New technologies and unifed communications solutions aren't about cutting costs. Not really. They're about tightening processes to deliver more quickly to market. They're about productivity and revenue and being nimble.