<p>What is Happening? This year's IBM Connect event formerly Lotusphere clearly affirms and confirms IBM's company-wide and deep commitment to the inextricably intertwined IT and business realities of Cloud, Mobile, Social, Analytics and Integration.</p><p>The event's over-arching theme of "Social Business" established two years ago has taken hold and permeates IBM's product and service positioning and messaging. We see IBM's key positioning tenets of "Social Business," "Innovation," and "Transformation" continually carrying the message to the attendees.</p><p>However, Saugatuck sees a major challenge for IBM: Put simply, IBM risks being inconsistent or unclear in its core positioning, and stunting the effectiveness of its efforts with customers and the effectiveness of its business partners. This opens the door for other vendors to define and articulate the market leaving IBM as a powerful, but less influential and less profitable player.</p><p>Why is it Happening? Heading into the third day of the Connect event, Saugatuck has already sat through a handful of analyst briefings and Q&amp;A sessions in addition to the usual keynotes and customer presentations. The three themes of "Social Business," "Innovation," and "Transformation" are repeated by every presenter, to the point where some of the more cynical in the audience already consider them to be buzzwords rather than doctrine.</p><p><a href="http://www.information-management.com/blogs/ibm-connect-strong-ideas-but-messaging-in-transition-10023898-1.html">Keep reading...</a></p>