MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. and BERKELEY, Calif. — March 27, 2007 — In response to dramatic changes being experienced and anticipated within the software industry, Carnegie Mellon University and the University of California, Berkeley have joined to sponsor “The New Software Industry: Forces at Play, Business in Motion.” The one-day conference gathers academics and industry leaders to discuss the background, current status, and future of the software industry. The conference will be held April 30, 2007, from 8:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. at the Microsoft Research campus in Mountain View, California. For more details, please see west.cmu.edu/sofcon/5404216.html.

“The New Software Industry” is the brain child of Carnegie Mellon West; The Fisher IT Center at the Haas School of Business, UC Berkeley; and the Services: Science, Management and Engineering program at UC Berkeley. The universities have attracted industry executives, such as Ray Lane, and academics, such as Michael Cusumano, who will lead interactive discussions on the issues and trends that will significantly alter the way technologists do business. Software customers, investors, and developers will gain a framework for the future of the software industry and pointers on where the best opportunities will be found.

“The software industry is consistently in a state of flux, yet developments such as globalization and outsourcing are altering both the tempo and the type of change taking place,” said James Morris, dean of Carnegie Mellon West. “We are entering a period of profound change, and we all need to know what's happening and what we can expect going forward. This conference draws on some of the best and brightest minds in academe and the software industry to answer those questions.”

Added Jack Grantham, executive director of the Haas School's Fisher Information Technology Center, “This conference presents a rare opportunity for vendors to check their sales and marketing hats at the door and settle into discussion and debate over the future of the industry with attendees, academics, and other industry thought leaders. We will cover a wide range of issues, including the changing business of software, the role of open source in service management, integrating traditional software engineering practices with modern service-oriented development, and more.”

Inside “The New Software Industry”

The consensus is that software, backed by commodity hardware, will shape the future of business. However, predicting and designing its course over the next ten years is a challenge requiring deep understanding and imagination. The build-out of the Internet and mobile technology are giving rise to new service delivery models, while open source and globalization are changing how software is created. What kind of software to produce, how to produce it, and how to deliver its value will be very different tomorrow than it has been in the past.

The conference program includes strategic insights into the industry; tactical insights into approaches, risks and tradeoffs to development and deployment of service models and services; and an overview of the competitive trends and landscape that affects the field. As discussed below, all attendees will take away a valuable understanding of the new software industry:

• Information technology executives and managers will learn about the new kinds of software and developing services they will be responsible for acquiring and using over the next few years.

• Software and service developers and providers will gain a better understanding of market trends, best practices, risks, and rewards for these services.

• Investors will find guidance in the rapidly evolving field of new software and services and gain insight into the related opportunities and risks.

• Members of the higher education academy will be able to follow and participate in the opportunities for original thinking and research being spawned by the new software and related services.

• Students will learn about careers in the software and services field and maximize their understanding of the opportunities.

To register for the “The New Software Industry: Forces at Play, Business in Motion,” go to www.acteva.com/booking.cfm?bevaid=128819. The early registration fee of $395 is available until Friday, April 6, 2007.

Related Links

• Carnegie Mellon West Launches Master's Program for Software Management (west.cmu.edu/west_connect/events_news/news/5808[...]). Announced on February 12, 2007, the program was specifically designed in response to corporate interest in educating engineers in the business of software so that they, and their employees, can remain globally competitive, innovative, and entrepreneurial.

• The Fisher IT Center and the Services: Science, Management and Engineering program at UC Berkeley promote the world-class Haas School of Business Management of Technology (MOT) Certificate Program (mot.berkeley.edu/Berkeley_Visitors/Main_Visitor[...]). Many of its over 60 courses emphasize software as a fundamental key to business success. MOT, the most popular interdisciplinary program at UC Berkeley, enrolls some 1,400 students annually, including Haas MBA students and Masters and PhD students from the College of Engineering and School of Information.

About the Fisher IT Center at the UC Berkeley Haas School of Business

The Fisher Information Technology Center promotes interaction between corporate executives, including CIO-level managers, and UC Berkeley faculty and students through the many programs and services within the Haas School of Business and UC Berkeley. The Fisher IT Center serves professional and academic communities of interest in information technology by promoting dynamic interactions between corporate practice, research, and instruction, and by encouraging the professional development of participating information technology professionals, students, and faculty.

For more information about opportunities and resources, please see fisheritcenter.haas.berkeley.edu.

Contact: Jack Grantham, executive director, Fisher Information Technology Center; grantham@haas.berkeley.edu; 510/642-6145

About Services: Science, Management and Engineering (SSME) at UC Berkeley

Services: Science, Management and Engineering (SSME) at UC Berkeley is a multi-disciplinary research and teaching program that aims to improve the performance of services, defined as configurations of people and technology that engage in activity that provides value for others. Since services account for the lion's share of most developed and many developing economies, this unique, discipline-based curriculum prepares students to participate in, contribute to, and thrive in a dynamic services world through a theoretical and practical education in the theoretical, technological, management, and engineering foundations of services.

Services research encompasses many topics such as services theory, service architectures, flexible services, adaptation, personalization, scaling of services, and innovation, drawing on work from fields such as political science, management, engineering, information and computer science, operations research, and public health. A variety of domains and industries provide context for these explorations such as business services, information search, and healthcare.

For more information on the Berkeley SSME program, please visit ssme.berkeley.edu.

Contact: Ravi Nemana, executive director, Services: Science, Management & Engineering (CITRIS); rnemana@eecs.berkeley.edu; 510/642-1083

About Carnegie Mellon West

Established in 2002 at Moffett Field in Mountain View, California, Carnegie Mellon West is the west coast campus of Carnegie Mellon University and carries on the Carnegie tradition of preparing students for life and leadership by cultivating their abilities to think independently and critically, to learn, and to change and grow. Carnegie Mellon West offers innovative masters programs in software engineering and software management to working professionals on a flexible, part-time basis. Both programs are distinguished by pragmatic curricula that combine the technical and business skills critical to advancing a student's career and to fulfilling the demand for leaders in the global software industry. The School's world-class faculty members perform pioneering research that connects the university to many local, national, and global software organizations.

For more information about opportunities and resources, please see west.cmu.edu.

Contact: Diane Dimeff, associate dean for External Relations and Professional Development; diane.dimeff@west.cmu.edu; 650/335-2813

Media Contact:

Diane Dimeff

Associate Dean for External Relations & Professional Development

Carnegie Mellon West

650/335-2813

diane.dimeff@west.cmu.edu