Survey: CIOs see security as job one

Technology executives now see enhancing network security as job one, a new survey shows.

Thirty-five percent of chief information officers (CIOs) polled by Menlo Park, Calif.-based Robert Half Technology said improvements to network security are their highest priority. Operating-system upgrades were the second-most frequent response, cited by 16 percent of executives.

The national poll includes responses from more than 1,400 CIOs from a stratified random sample of U.S. companies with 100 or more employees. sionals on a project and full-time basis.

Among Seattle-area executives, network security was cited as the highest priority by 32 percent, followed by OS upgrades (18 percent) and CRM (15 percent).

Flood new ReliOn CEO

Spokane-based fuel-cell power technology developer ReliOn said Gary Flood has been promoted to president and chief executive. He was previously vice president of marketing and business development.

Prior to joining Spokane-based ReliOn in 2003, Flood served as CEO of Metawave Communications Corp.

Internap to expand Seattle data center

Atlanta-based Internap Network Services Corp. plans to expand its Seattle data center as part of a major U.S. expansion effort.

The Seattle center, along with those in Atlanta, New York and Boston, would be expanded by up to 50 percent.

Internap owns and manages seven facilities in Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, New York, Seattle and Jersey City, N.J., and subleases space in 27 other locations in various partnerships.

Lumera gains contract extension

Bothell-based Lumera Corp. was awarded a $1.1 million contract extension from an unnamed U.S. government agency to continue development of wideband optical modulators. The overall contract value has now reached approximately $4.7 million, Lumera said.

The company is using nanotechnology to develop a new generation of components for optical networks that are expected to deliver increased bandwidth at competitive costs, while requiring less power than current devices.

Optical modulation technology could enable the next generation of communication networks, including hybrid wireless-fiber optic networks, Lumera said.

Tech companies anticipate ownership changes

As competition continues to increase and companies battle to win new customers, executives of technology companies are not ruling out a possible change of ownership in the next decade, reports a survey conducted by Chicago-based Grant Thornton LLP, the accounting, tax and business advisory firm.

According to the Grant Thornton Survey of U.S. Business Leaders, 42 percent of technology respondents expect a change in company ownership in the next 10 years, while only 30 percent of all companies nationally feel the same. Among those who expect this change, 39 percent believe a merger is most likely, while 30 percent anticipate a trade sale.

Additional findings from the survey include:

-- Three-quarters (73 percent) report they are optimistic about the economy's growth in the next six months.

-- Almost all (95 percent) say they are optimistic about the growth of their own business.

-- Nearly two-thirds (65 percent) of respondents also plan to increase their headcount over the next six months.

South Fork updates ShapeBook

Toutle-based South Fork Technologies Inc. released ShapeBook 3.1 with 2D3DSteel 2.1.

ShapeBook with 2D3DSteel is a reference and parametric AutoCAD drafting application for structural steel design and detailing.

Structural steel shapes are available in U.S. Imperial and Metric units. Shape lists can be saved to a file, and the current list and shape selection can be automatically saved when you exit and then automatically restored the next time users run ShapeBook.

Envision suite noted

Seattle-based Envision Telephony Inc. said it won the Product of the Year award from Call Center Magazine for its Envision Performance Suite 8.3.

The Envision Performance Suite is a set of management applications that improves contact center performance with a focus on agent development and coaching, as well as enterprise process improvement.

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