Revolutionizing Information Management with Titanium X with Mark Barrenechea at OpenText World 2024

This is Techron tv. All right, folks. We're back at OpenText World in Las Vegas, and we're with Mark, who just as it happens, is the CEO and the CTO for the company.

And we're gonna be talking a little bit about the platform itself, and maybe we're gonna geek out a bit. Mark, welcome to Yeah, Mike. It's real pleasure.

Very happy to be here. A lot of the folks who aren't here Sure. Um, didn't catch all the details of the keynote.

So at the foundation of all of this stuff is a platform called Titanium X. Um, you've been on this journey for a while. Sure.

What was the motivation for creating the platform and where does it go from here, from your perspective, and, you know, why do the customers value that or should be interested? Yeah, titanium X has been our, um, sort of, um, declared roadmap over the last two years. And, um, we've brought, uh, um, I think seven releases to market.

Two more to go to complete titanium X. Um, but we've, uh, called titanium X ready, uh, given where it's so far down the road. And what is Titanium x?

It, it is a, uh, recreation of our platform as a SaaS platform. So driver one inside of Titanium X was to deliver all the incredible things and information management that we do well. We've had a, always had a private cloud option for the last few years, and now we've brought to equivalency, uh, functional equivalency, our SaaS portfolio.

So SaaS has been a big driver for titanium X Second is a funny thing happen along the way, ai. And so, um, we've set out and, uh, to embed AI everywhere. Uh, we announced yesterday that we have 15 aviators and over a hundred agents, agents work underneath aviators, uh, that are also part of Titanium X.

We have a new user interface, our jato interface, um, of how you can now have a, a conversation. We've also started to embed security deeply in everything we do. We're, uh, security needs to be job one.

So we've, we've elevated significant pieces of functionality in our business clouds. Um, we have, um, uh, brought SaaS, uh, into titanium x, uh, embedded AI and, um, very integrated security. And, um, um, uh, that's what we, uh, uh, have been demoing here at the show.

Titanium, Are we on the cusp of some sort of renaissance and data management? I mean, I feel like it was kind of a sleepy area for a long time. And now with the rise of ai, everybody's talking about data suddenly again.

And are, are, are we on some new era here? Uh, I believe so. Um, and look, the, um, politicians can find their time, technology can find their time and, uh, ideas, find their times, right?

And, and I think, you know, we think of, uh, this new era of human potential. We, we, I mean, I deeply believe that we're on this, we're entering this era of, of hu um, uh, this new era of human potential. At the center of it is information.

And when I think of companies, organizations, they have at least two, two proprietary gifts. I like calling them gifts, first assets. Uh, talent, uh, is a great proprietary gift of an organization.

Your data as an organization is a proprietary gift. Our IPN products are also a gift at OpenText. Uh, an ai an AI unlocks the value of both those things of data and talent.

So, um, when, when I look at what we're creating, the tools we're creating, um, we are raising productivity for knowledge work or significantly, um, by, uh, organizing data, making that data cleaner more useful, unlocking it, and adding AI on top of it. It truly feels like the new error truly does. One of the things you pointed out in your keynote is, and it's almost a philosophical statement, but let the machines do what they're good at.

Sure. Yeah. Um, it seems like we're having a little trouble figuring out what that is exactly.

Culturally, it seems like maybe the problem is more of, uh, more with us than the machines, And it is gonna get worse. So I've, I've used for you with those listening, it is gonna get worse. Yeah.

Um, yeah, I, um, I love quoting the Matrix and Agent Smith, and it's his quote, but I'm, I'm, I'm using it everywhere I can. Uh, n never bring a, a human to do a machine's job, uh, uh, comma, but the machines do the work. And it's so true.

You look at security, um, you know, we're, our new XDR platform, you know, is processing 2 billion events a day. And, you know, it's so voluminous. Machines generate so much.

It's machine versus machine, not human versus machine. It's definitely no longer human, uh, versus human in the digital world. So, um, yeah, we need to let the machines do the work.

We need to bring a machine, uh, um, um, uh, so don't bring a human where a machine should be doing the work. And you can start to see in using what we call Gen a Wave three gen AI for like everyday ai, sorry to bleed everyday ai, it's raising productivity. But the next step kind of the breakthrough AI is agentic, uh, which is where the agents are gonna start making decisions for you and me, uh, looking at a, um, a multi-step complex problem, and that the data's so good, the agent is so good, the history and learning is so good, it starts to make workflow decision one, two, and three.

And I think that's when we start to get uncomfortable probably as users, even as a species that the machine is not just doing the work, but making decisions for us. I think when we cross that line to the, where it actually makes decisions, uh, I call that agentic ai. Um, and I think that's when you start to get these breakthrough moments, and it probably will feel uncomfortable.

All right. Yeah. Where will humans fit in that conversation then as we go forward?

Because even the most, uh, ardent advocate of AI has a gut check moment where they're kinda like, well, what, where, what, what will be my job in the future? Yeah. I Hope it frees us up.

You know, I talked a little bit yesterday that it's this new era of human potential. I hope it frees us up. Hope it frees us up to be not just productive, but creative.

And I highlight a few things where I think I just, I hope the future is awesome in a few areas, right? One of which is hope it, I hope the, uh, it, uh, that, you know, data and decisions become so advanced, uh, uh, maybe our lifespan increases, right? Maybe we, uh, you know, our, our, our grandkids live to a hundred.

Uh, 'cause, 'cause the advances in, in medicines and biotechnology, do we solve the energy crisis, right? You know, high tech, you know, we're a big consumer of power. Um, um, uh, but, uh, certain problems can't be solved without more power, uh, like agriculture and, and water.

Do we solve fusion? Um, does the brain computer, uh, interface become real? Uh, does learning change so dramatically that we all, uh, our grandkids get IQs of 160?

There are millions of Einsteins walking around. Certainly the cloud and the internet are gonna look so different. It's already starting to look different, uh, with ai.

So, um, I hope it frees us up to be more creative, uh, to get to do more as humans. Actually, we think we become more human. And, and I hope we just have some breakthrough moments that are awesome, you know, um, from intelligence lifespan, healthcare, um, societal, uh, challenges that we can solve.

I cannot, But I'm an optimist, right? So I cannot put my finger on exactly how, but one of the things that when I look at the platform and I see it has all these capabilities, I think about the silos in it. And will those kind of start to converge more or meld together more?

And do we maybe even need to reorganize how IT teams are structured? Yeah, great question. Um, you know, one of the things that, uh, we've certainly observed and it brought to market with titanium X is this concept of a corporate help desk.

Just one example where, you know, even just three, four years ago, it would have their help desk, HR would have their help desk, um, maybe legal would have their help desk in, in larger companies, your supply chain customer support, except they're all different experiences, all different tools, all different technologies. Um, we've brought this together in one service management platform now, where, um, we want an internal experience to be consistent regardless of what line of business you're in. So if you need it, help HR help, uh, supply chain, help vendor, help partner help, uh, uh, legal help inside a corporation.

It's one experience, one platform for service management. So, um, yeah, I think when you start break, you know, when you start breaking down barriers of what process and start bringing down barriers with data, uh, you start to think differently organizationally. Mm-Hmm.

Yep. Just one example For as long as I can remember, people have been talking about the divide between IT and the business. Mm-Hmm.

Um, has that gotten better? And will it get better in the age of ai? Because I can't make up my mind if it people know more about the business these days, or is it that business people know more about it?

Well, I make an observation, um, as, as CEO of a public company, um, the, in a relatively large public company, um, I could see a lot of things across the organization as, as CEO and, and, um, uh, but the other individual, the other role, the other skill that has, uh, uh, probably better visibility than me is my CIO. And so I, I think it's time, and maybe that's unique to OpenText, but we have a fantastic CIO who's also our chief data officer. Um, but Shannon, um, our, our C-D-O-C-I-O has such incredible visibility across the organization.

So I, I think it's, uh, in this age of, you know, you, we went from SaaS, which sort of broke down the barriers, right? Where, where businesses could wind the business, could make their own decisions. It's sort of kind of Rick, the pendulum kind of came back with security things being more centralized.

Um, but I think with AI and the need for data, um, you know, your CIO is back, you know, it's the I and CIO, right? Information, or chief, or, or chief data officer, chief digital officer. So they, so the CIO needs to see everything in the organization, probably sees more than the CEO, um, a little less concerned about lines of businesses making decisions, but centralized security and, and really clean data.

So you could leverage ai. I think the CIO is back. Yeah.

Yeah. Have we got too many c-level people running around? 'cause you know, there was, let's see, chief data officers, chief digital officers, now you hear about Chief AI officers, and is that maybe Channel Happiness officer?

There you go. Yeah. May is that a little, sometimes, uh, maybe too mu too many cooks in the, in the kitchen, as it were?

Yeah, I, um, it's an interesting question. I, I think technology automation, I think AI should actually flatten the world. Mm-Hmm.

Not make it more round, if you will. So I actually think it should flatten the world. And, um, um, you know, I have 11 direct reports.

Um, some CEOs have fewer, some have more. Um, but I think as you look at an organization, um, you know, the, the distance between me and our valued contributors, I don't want a lot of distance in the area. We're 22,000 employees strong, and we only have, uh, uh, maximum, uh, six layers in the company.

That's pretty flat for a company. I like to keep flattening it, right? And I hope automation AI can just keep flattening organizations, um, and in flattening it, um, I think you start to move away from jobs and you move more towards skills.

You know, what's my skill? Um, now Navy, you need, you have a certain challenge in the organization like quality. So you need a chief quality officer or Navy quality is, um, uh, core to your mission.

So you can have kind of that chief, uh, position, if you will. But I'd caution having too many chiefs, and I'd go for more valued contributors. So, yeah.

One of the things, um, everybody in OpenText seems to be talking about is this notion of information reimagined. Yeah. Um, we've heard that data's the new oil, but when I go talk to companies, they don't seem to have any way to refine that.

So-called data into something that is actionable. Yeah. So what does it mean to have information reimagined and, and how should people take that concept and turn it into a series of things that can be done?

Yeah, Fair enough. Um, uh, we believe deeply that data rots like a cabbage and, uh, so data rots like a cabbage. So, you know, we, we, uh, we talk about automation, right?

Automation is the foundational thing. You automate a service management process. You automate a claims management process.

You automate, uh, talent onboarding. That that automation ain't going away. In fact, you want more automation, better automation, and the better the automation, the better the data, and the better the data, the better the automation.

So we have to keep perfecting this automation loop. Now comes AI to go talk to that data. And so, um, we think that automation data in AI should be deeply integrated.

You shouldn't rip the data out that rots. Uh, maybe if something so special, you need to take some data out and analyze it, but you've just broken the automation chain. And as soon as you break the automation chain, that data rots and becomes useless.

So we, we tell, we tell ARCA customers, we, um, uh, that integrate automation and ai, uh, keep refining automation to make the data better and cleaner. Uh, and the better the data, the better the ai. So, do we need to update that old Ben Franklin joke about, you know, what a data fish and relatives have in common?

I, I don't know this joke. They all start to stink after three days. Oh, there You go.

Yeah. It's, Um, ultimately, what is your best advice to the folks who are watching this about, um, how to motivate their organization and kind of get them to embrace these concepts and, you know, to change the culture? Yeah.

Think of breakthrough moments. Um, you know, I, I love this three circle Venn diagram, right? Uh, circulated a few years ago, uh, there were three circles.

Where do you like to spend your time? Um, big ideas, great people get stuff done. And so go to a whiteboard, draw three circles, right?

Surround yourself with these great ideas, great people, uh, and those who, uh, big ideas, great people, uh, those who can get stuff done and put an intersection in the middle and go, what are those ideas? What are the breakthrough moments? What is the next product or service that I can deliver?

Um, leveraging the proprietary gifts I have inside my organization? So there's one piece of advice I have is look for those breakthrough moments and make some key vets, um, because someone else is, um, so that'd be my one, one piece of advice and one place to look. All right, folks, you're heard in here.

Breakthrough moments might even include just a list of things you don't enjoy doing, and let the machine do it from there. Hey, thanks for being on. Yeah, Real pleasure.

All Right. We'll be back in a minute.