2012 looks like it will be quite an amazing year in technology as trends like the consumerization of IT and bring your own device (BYOD) reshape the way we view and use technology in the workplace as well as in our non-professional lives. For IT professional, that means a constantly shifting landscape of new opportunities along with new and unique challenges.

I’m looking forward to seeing what this new year will offer to everyone and I’ll continue to be a source of information and resources as we all navigate an uncharted technological landscape.

In addition to my work with various publications (most notably Computerworld), I’ll be covering business and IT topics on a daily basis as Cult of Mac’s new business reporter. Much of my feature work at Cult of Mac will be posted on this site, but daily news posts will not – you can find those at my Cult of Mac author page or by following me on Twitter or Google+.

Warmly,
Ryan J. Faas

Recent Articles

IT departments and the duties of their staffers haven’t changed much in recent years. But the rise of mobile and cloud technologies, the bring-your-own-device trend, and a new generation of workers is already changing the very role that IT plays in business and reshaping the mix of core IT jobs and skill sets. The result is that IT professionals are facing shifts that would’ve been unimaginable a few years ago. In this extensive feature, I highlight the causes of those changes, how they are forever altering IT, and discuss what this will mean for new veteran and new IT professionals alike over the coming years.

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OS X Mountain Lion has just been announced with even iOS-like features and much more iCloud integration than its processor. The features announced so far and available in Apple’s developer preview offer a mixed bag for enterprise environments: it adds some very useful features, but its tight integration with iCloud will likely raise some red flags for CIOs and IT.

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Despite the death of Apple co-founder and CEO Steve Jobs, 2011 was a banner year for the company with record breaking sales across its product lines. Several of the trends that propelled Apple forward will continue in to push the company forward in the coming year. Here’s my look at those trends (enterprise and BYOD adoption, the evolution of Siri and iCloud, new iPads and iPhones, and Apple’s role in home entertainment) and the impact that they will have for Apple and the tech industry.

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As more mobile devices flood the workplace, IT needs to deal with an ever expanding list of consumer-oriented smartphones, tablets, and other devices regardless of whether those devices are company-provided, employee owned and supported by a bring your own device (BYOD) program, or are being used for work without IT being told about them. In this piece, I offer some guidelines for crafting and implementing an effective mobile strategy that recognizes that a one-size-fits-all approach is no longer an option.

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As Macs become more prevalent in businesses, so does the need to manage them securely and efficiently. Apple’s own management tools are a great starting point, but don’t often scale well in enterprise environments. These enterprise tools help IT deploy, monitor, and manage Macs and Mac software while also offering greater integration with Active Directory and other enterprise infrastructure.

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Managing Macs can seem like an onerous challenge to IT professional used to dealing with Windows. In this article, I look at the under the hood of OS X Lion and the mechanisms and processes that Apples offers for managed deployments including Active Directory and LDAP integration, account management, initial and patch management rollouts.

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iOS 5 and the iPhone 4S are packed with great new features that will appeal to business users and consumers alike. For IT departments, some of these new features like iCloud, Find My Friends, and Siri present some security concerns. The good news is that Apple gives IT some tools to lock down these features (though they aren’t as granular as one might like). The better news is that iOS 5 offers several enterprise-specific features that will appeal to both IT and end-users.

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As I sat stunned by the news that Apple Chairman Steve Jobs, I couldn’t help but think about his life and career, both at Apple and during his time away at NeXT and Pixar. Steve changed the world and several industries more than once. Here are some ways we can draw inspiration from his life for our own personal and professional lives.

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Apple’s iPhone 4S launch offers a lot of insight into the company’s vision of the future of mobile technology. The Siri virtual assistant, an emphasis on location-based features, and diversifying the iPhone lineup so that there’s an iPhone model for everyone all point to a strategy that is about personalization as much as it is about hardware.

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