This is a very interesting analysis of the IBMs intention to buy Kenexa by Ted Schadler, Vice President and Principal Analyst at Forrester Research, serving CIOs:
IBM has its eyes firmly fixed on improving workforce productivity through systems of engagement, including social business software. And that’s where IBM’s Social Business goals intersect Kenexa’s business model: Sell software and services to a business executive, then help that executive improve workforce productivity through the smart application of analytics, social connections, search, information capture, activity alerts, and real-time communications — the software anchors of social business.
So it’s a smart acquisition, and one that CIOs should tune into and see for what it is: IBM is moving up the application stack to deliver more value to your business executive peers. ...
If the future of software lies in business productivity improvements, then IBM will need to court and win and serve business technology executives, not just CIOs. This acquisition proves that it’s willing to spend money to do that.