Computer Associates 2004 Annual Report Download - page 10

Managing Technology
With the exploding complexity of computing
infrastructures and continued emergence of new
technologies and trends, it has become clear to us
that the way customers can derive the most value
— and the highest competitive advantage — from
their technology investments is by managing what
they have better.
It’s that simple. And simplicity is at the heart of
what CA delivers. For more than a quarter century,
we have been helping companies manage their
computing infrastructures by making complicated
technologies easier to handle.
By the end of fiscal 2004, we were one of the
largest companies focusing primarily on man-
agement software. We do so because our vast
experience confirms that companies, regardless of
industry, are interested in using technology as a
competitive tool. Most, however, aren’t interested
in becoming technology experts because they
have businesses to run. Instead, they rely on
others, like CA, to stay abreast of trends, determine
which technologies are relevant and how best
to apply them to their own businesses. Our
experience suggests that the better companies
can manage their technology, the better they
can run their businesses.
CA’s core management software strength is
augmented by our ability to innovate at a practical
level. For example, we recently announced the
CA Management Bundle for Microsoft Exchange,
an integrated management solution for ensuring
the performance, security, data protection and
reliability of email. Given the enormous volume
of email that companies must manage daily, this
solution holds great promise. We plan to introduce
other bundles in 2005 for SAP, Oracle and
Windows environments that continue to optimize
the performance, availability, reliability and
security of enterprise IT environments.
Overall, we believe our software is transforming
the industry because it is self-managing and
self-correcting. It aims to offer built-in assurance
of service; works across the entire range of
functions — from transactions to information
management; can leverage 100 percent of
customers’ assets; and is integrated and complete.
CA’s solutions are designed to enable companies
to benefit from a range of current and emerging
trends, such as managing on-demand computing,
Web services, wireless technology, the Linux
operating system and even grid computing,
where companies pay for only the computing
capacity they use. In short, CA’s management
software is designed to ultimately enable
companies to run their businesses better.
Management software is critical now because
the future will require even greater performance
from computing environments. To succeed,
organizations must be able to manage their IT
infrastructures today and be prepared to
address their business needs tomorrow. We
believe the rapid pace of technological innovation
will continue, and IT providers driving and
delivering these new developments will continue
to stand apart from competitors. In turn, the
complexity of computing infrastructures will
increase, escalating the need for holistic
management. And for companies that manage
their infrastructures well, IT is — and will continue
to be — a strong competitive advantage and well
worth the investment.
CA 2004 ANNUAL REPORT | PAGE 8