> The same HBR survey found that 61 percent expect software release cycles to be three months or less, but only 27 percent of their companies actually achieve that goal. The takeaway is that executives aren’t hands-on enough to know how much time software development takes. Without a deeper understanding, they are prime targets for salesmen pitching digital transformation nirvana. thenewstack.io/add-it-up…

> The company hopes that Vans will reach $5 billion in sales by 2023 — and it’s on track, having grown 25 percent in its most recent quarter, and expanded at an average 15 percent annually over the last 15 years. www.businessoffashion.com/articles/…

> The strength of our IT department is that IT is fully integrated in our organization. About 400 IT people or engineers work at bol.com, and they are organized as much as possible in about 70 small, multidisciplinary and self-managing teams. We see that that works best. These teams build features for our customers or partners. These innovation teams are supported by an IT ecosystem that facilitates them in the flexible and fast construction and running of software.

> I have wasted so much time and energy stalling on a task because I was questioning myself [wasting] energy thinking about them when I could be spending that on improving my skills. Also, best use of tildes that I’ve ever seen. medium.com/@grace.m….

> Thus we’ve seen a bunch of Kubernetes services spring up, run by the same people who brought you all the other Infrastructures-as-a-Service. Google (from whence Kubernetes emerged originally) has Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE), Amazon has Elastic Container Service for Kubernetes (EKS), Microsoft has Azure Container Service (AKS), VMware has VMware Kubernetes Engine (VKE), you get the idea. Pivotal has Pivotal Container Service (PKS) that can run on AWS, Google Cloud Platform, VMware, and (as of its recent PKS 1.

> The unending chasm describes a mode in which an infrastructure company must function as both a product company and a consultancy. Your consultancy is necessary to integrate your product into the enterprise, and ensure that your software actually gets used. But it reduces the appealing economics of a pure software company. softwareengineeringdaily.com/2019/01/2…

> If you’re authentic and fully invested in making an impact while enhancing the experience of those around you, then you strengthen your case. Conversely, if you’re inauthentic or let yourself be silenced in the moments that matter, your case weakens every time you withdraw. www.strategy-business.com/blog/Good…

It’s all about that Unrealized Value. www.infoq.com/articles/…

> This may seem like overthinking, but the money, time, and opportunity cost that a booth represents is pretty immense, so it’s worth it to think through what you want to have happen before you get there. www.heidiwaterhouse.com/2019/01/1…

News isn’t a growth business, but a business nonetheless. www.cjr.org/business_…