3 March 2004 IBM has outlined its ‘roadmap’ for on-demand computing in a bid to reassure business partners and customers about the future of the strategy.

IBM’s chairman and CEO Sam Palmisano reiterated his company’s faith in on-demand computing, a business model which enables companies to be more flexible and responsive, in his opening address to more than 5000 delegates at its PartnerWorld conference in Las Vegas, Nevada.

“When we first rolled it out, there was a lot of confusion around on-demand,” Palmisano admitted, but told IBM’s partners: “You have to commit to our point of view. You have to commit to open standards. If you do that we will invest with you, to help you become more successful.”

IBM’s on-demand roadmap is an attempt to convince partners to commit to IBM by clarifying and simplifying its approach. It consists of five key software elements: standardization, integration, infrastructure automation, improved collaboration and a per-usage purchasing model.

IBM’s new range of “enablement tools” for partners also includes support and training, marketing, incentives and sales tools, through to new ‘innovation centres’. “There is no company that won’t need help to stay ahead in an on-demand world,” said Abby Kohnstamm, senior vice president of marketing for IBM.

IBM regards on-demand as part of a fundamental shift in the IT industry. “The world has changed,” said Palmisano, stressing the need for a standardized computing environment to allow integration and automation of business processes.

He added: “The IT industry is a young industry maturing into adopting standards. It’s the only way to solve the very great, very important, complex problems.”