IBM recently concluded Impact 2014, an event showcasing Big Blue’s comprehensive portfolio offerings for mobile, cloud, the Internet of Things, Big Data and security. Now IBM is once again inviting IT professionals and practitioners on May 19-23, 2014 at The Venetian in Las Vegas Nevada for Edge2014.

IBM Edge2014 is all about infrastructure innovation, with 550 expert technical sessions across 14 tracks, and an expanded showcase Solution Center giving attendees access to the latest storage, System x and PureSystems solutions from IBM and its sponsors.

Watch LIVE!  Exclusive interviews from IBM Edge2014 here

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What to expect

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This will be theCUBE’s third trip to an IBM event this year, providing SiliconANGLE the opportunity to witness firsthand the transition behind IBM’s business. Having sold off much of its hardware business and seeing a substantial decline in this department, IBM’s already been through an executive shuffle with the departure of longtime storage head Rod Atkins. Despite fresh blood leading IBM’s hardware division, Big Blue has been unable to escape the fate of many legacy vendors — shrinking returns on hardware and rising demand for interoperable, automated cloud services.

IBM hopes to use software to enhance enterprise IT hardware, with software-defined storage, Flash and applied open source software solutions to get back on track, rivaling other transitioning legacy vendors including EMC. Several IBM initiatives are expected to play a role in making Big Blue’s transition a successful one, including Watson, the Global Parallels File System (GPFS), and a revamped focus on high performance computing and business intelligence through analytics.

While this represents a new strategy for IBM, the company’s ultimate goal is to provide a modern data center with automation and hyperscale capabilities. Wikibon co-founder and chief analyst David Vellante expects IBM will be boastful about their software-defined storage solution at this week’s event. He goes on to outline the importance of virtualization, saying it “is the key to success in implementing IBM’s software-defined storage solutions.”

The trick for IBM will be enabling this transition to new solutions while maintaining the business currently supporting their legacy technology, as Vellante identifies one major challenge being the limited functionality provided by new solutions, yet still having to manage and update older tech that still offers the functionality required.

The big question here is, where does IBM fit into the software-defined world, and can it leverage its technology and ecosystem of partners and developers to get back on track? While Vellante says IBM can likely manage this software-defined transition successfully, Big Blue is less likely to compete effectively in the current storage market.

For attendees

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Edge2014 is divided into three parts: ExecutiveEdge, TechnicalEdge and WinningEdge. ExecutiveEdge is a two-day event for IT executives and leaders focusing on breakthrough innovations and technology announcements, client success stories, presentations from IBM and industry thought leaders and top tier executive one-on-one meetings.

TechnicalEdge is a four-and-a-half day educational event for IT professionals and practitioners of all levels,  centering on a range of solution areas, client case studies and best practices, hands-on labs and on-site certifications.

For those who want to learn more about profitable business solutions, WinningEdge offers an exclusive sales education opportunity.  The two-part sales event will see IBM STG Specialty Business Partner sellers collaborate with IBM Client Sellers to deliver the latest information.

Attendees will hear from IBM executives such as IBM Systems and Technology Group Sr. Vice President Tom Rosamilia, IBM Sales and IBM Systems and Technology Group General Manager Stephen Leonard, IBM System X and IBM Systems and Technology Group General Manager Adalio Sanchez, IBM Development and Manufacturing General Manager Arvind Krishna, IBM Software Defined Systems Jamie Thomas, and IBM Software and Cloud Solutions Sr. Vice President Robert LeBlanc.

Perhaps just as important as the keynote speakers are the parties, starting with EdgeRocks! and EdgeLOL.  The former features Grammy winner Sheryl Crow, while the latter is a comedy show with 2012 America’s Got Talent runner up Tom Cotter.

Follow the News

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You can get the latest buzz from IBM Edge2014 by following on Twitter – @IBMEdge, #IBMEdge,  Facebook, YouTube, LinkedIn, and The Storage Community.

If you’re unable to attend the event, theCUBE, SiliconANGLE’s premier video production, has got you covered.  You can watch live recordings on theCUBE at SiliconANGLE.tv or watch at your own time on SiliconANGLE’s YouTube channel.

Watch hosts John Furrier, the CEO and Founder of SiliconANGLE, and Dave Vellante, the CEO and Co-founder of Wikibon, interview C-level guests and innovative IT practitioners.  You can also follow Furrier and Vellante on Twitter, @furrier and @dvellante, to get the latest happenings at Edge2014.

image source: IBM