Headquartered in California, Informatica Corporation (Nasdaq: INFA) is an independent provider of data integration software. Worldwide, over 5,000 enterprises depend on Informatica to fully leverage their information assets from devices to mobile to social to big data residing on-premise, in the Cloud and across social networks. The corporation has a market cap of $ 4.49B

The last decade has seen several technological shifts that are profoundly changing the software industry. This unprecedented transformation is being propelled by Social Networking, Mobile Computing, Analytics and Cloud Computing (SMAC). The changes driven by "SMAC" technologies have led to the generation of information on a scale that can no longer be managed using traditional technologies and processes. Hence, most industry watchers call the current phase as the age of "big data". These trends are upending almost all segments of the computing industry, creating opportunities for start-ups and nimble companies that are able to leverage them faster than major, established players.

Increases in computing power, as predicted by Moore's Law, and miniaturizing of sensors and embedded systems is causing all major things to be connected to the data network. Today, we have "connected cars", "connected buildings", "connected airplanes and jet engines", "connected homes and appliances", "connected farms and tractors" and "connected machinery" - essentially, "connected anything" that is of any significant value. These connected entities have led to what is now known in the industry as the "Internet of Things". These connected devices are generating data on an unprecedented scale, pace and variety. Making sense of this data has become critical for today's businesses.

In their search for new levels of business value, insights and innovative ideas, enterprises often look toward software product experts to help them adopt new technologies. For service firms, fulfilling their customers' expectations will mean challenging their current capabilities and ways of delivering value. The rise of big data-related technologies has led to a "war for talent", with employers looking for engineers and data scientists who are trained in collecting, integrating, cleansing and managing data and then analyzing it to extract insights. While organizations are in a race to attract this skilled talent, they face the larger challenge of continuously upgrading the skills of the existing workforce to absorb new technical advances.

As the industry goes through the previously-mentioned "SMAC" technological shifts, the most critical question that CIOs and leaders of engineering organizations need to ask is, "What can we do to create high levels of employee engagement that lead to higher productivity and job satisfaction, which in turn can lead to better results and employee retention?"