GSS provides a range of IT services to Fortune 500 customers, government, and vertical industry leaders. Mr. Herardian enjoys working directly with select GSS clients to provide technology strategies, system architectures, and other solutions. GSS clients range from enterprises, ISPs, and ASPs, to technology companies and major software vendors. GSS customers include leading companies such GE Capital, Motorola, NTT/Verio and AOL Time Warner.

Mr. Herardian has been frequently quoted in the press, speaks at seminars and trade shows, and participates in industry organizations. He is the author of numerous technical papers and articles on messaging and wireless technologies and served as Contributing Editor for Ziff Davis' Insider newsletters from 1996 to 1997 and as Technical Editor for DominoPower Magazine from 1998 to 2006. Mr. Herardian has contributed to books on e-mail and wireless technologies, including the Webmaster's Guide to the Wireless Internet (Syngress Media, 2001).

Prior to founding GSS in 1995 Mr. Herardian spent several years in the IT field and working with network, messaging, and directory technologies at cc:Mail, Inc. and Lotus Development (IBM) in various systems engineering, design, development, and testing capacities. Mr. Herardian worked directly with major Lotus customers such as Intel, Motorola, and several divisions of GE.

A California native, Mr. Herardian has been a member of the IEEE Computer Society and the Internet Society (ISOC) for more than a decade and is a member of the Project Management Institute (PMI), and of the American Management Association (AMA). In addition to various technical certifications, Mr. Herardian holds a BS degree in Psychology from Santa Clara University and an MLA degree in Intellectual History from Stanford University.

Published articles
The following 20 articles by Ron Herardian have been published in ZATZ magazines.

Why Ron Herardian thinks Notes and Domino are obsolete
Every year since we started DominoPower, one or more of our most respected contributors have declared either Notes or Domino to be dead. It's gotten so that we can almost set our clocks by the damning declarations. Our experience, however, has been that the Lotus market is prospering. In any case, it's time for another view into doom and gloom by Ron Herardian, one of our most prolific contributors. Is he right? Let us know what you think. Needless to say, Ron's opinions are not those of DominoPower, its editors, ZATZ Publishing, or anyone who loves chocolate. [DominoPower Magazine, August 2008]

Why I STILL recommend Domino over Exchange
In the United States, it seems that the decades-long Lotus-versus-Microsoft battle is long over. Certainly, it is no longer news. Microsoft Excel has all but replaced Lotus 1-2-3, Microsoft Office dominates corporate desktops compared with Lotus SmartSuite, and for a variety of reasons, more IT customers in the US use Microsoft Exchange and Outlook rather than Lotus Notes and Domino. But is Domino a technology belonging to the past? With 130 million licenses sold, it's hard to make that argument. In fact, Domino is the most important alternative to Microsoft Exchange today. Messaging expert Ron Herardian makes an important case for IBM to up its marketing effort and refine its strategy. [DominoPower Magazine, October 2007]

The evolution of anti-spam technology
In this very important article by Technical Editor Ron Herardian, we examine how spam has evolved and the evolution of anti-spam technology used to fight back against spam. [DominoPower Magazine, August 2004]

Wireless email roundup
As new wireless services, email, and devices hit the market, we wondered what the best wireless email devices were for business users. Technical Editor Ron Herardian rounded up five of the most popular devices--the Palm i705, the RIM 957, the Handspring Treo 270, the Siemens SX56, and a Danger Hiptop--and gave each of them a test drive. [Computing Unplugged Magazine, July 2003]

Domino vs. WebSphere: NextGen and the future of Domino
Last month, DominoPower Technical Editor Ron Herardian took a critical look at both sides in the current debate about Domino and WebSphere, and talked about potential points of integration between the two products. At Lotusphere 2003, he learned more about IBM's software strategy and "NextGen" collaboration products. In this important article, he'll look at the reasons why IBM is emphasizing WebSphere, and peer into the future of Domino. [DominoPower Magazine, February 2003]

Domino vs. WebSphere: the case for NextGen
In part one of this series, DominoPower Technical Editor Ron Herardian looked at whether the debate about Domino versus WebSphere makes sense. This time, he delves further into the debate and takes a critical look at both sides. He also discusses integration between Domino and WebSphere and describes what he hopes to see in terms of technology architecture in the NextGen product, which will be unveiled at the Lotusphere 2003 conference in Orlando, Florida, later this month. [DominoPower Magazine, January 2003]

Domino vs. WebSphere
One of the most hotly debated topics today in Lotus software circles is that of Domino versus WebSphere. DominoPower Technical Editor Ron Herardian wonders if the debate even makes sense. In this first article in a series, he explores the relationship between these two products and the controversy that surrounds them. [DominoPower Magazine, December 2002]

Is there hope for lost email?
IT departments blame "the Internet," but usually when email is lost, it's because of incompatible systems and human error behind the scenes. Although the Internet is a dangerous place for a lone email message, Ron Herardian comforts us with the knowledge that there is hope of recovery for lost email. [DominoPower Magazine, May 2000]

Capacity planning: cost and design
IT organizations and integrators often don't understand the way capacity planning relates to cost and to Domino system architecture and design. This can lead many Domino projects to budget and deadline overruns. This month, technical editor Ron Herardian offers some important suggestions that could save you and your company both time and money. [DominoPower Magazine, April 2000]

Domino goes wireless!
To many people, the word "mobile" means lugging around a seven to ten pound notebook computer with another five pounds of gear, including everything from power supplies and spare batteries to network cables, telephone wires, and a jumble of connectors. In the past two to three years, two things have happened that could eventually save the backs, necks, and shoulders of mobile professionals from further abuse. If you're back's been a-hurtin', this article by technical editor Ron Herardian is a must read. [DominoPower Magazine, March 2000]

Backup methods for Domino
Backing up Domino presents a set of technology issues and backup requirements similar to other database systems. The crude solution is to shut down the server, back up, and bring the server back online -- but since Domino is a Web server, 24/7 is the expectation. The most elegant solutions use sophisticated backup software capable of open file management and an investment in additional hardware for clustering. Technical Editor Ron Herardian helps you understand the options. [DominoPower Magazine, July 1999]

cc:Mail and Domino mail backbones
If you're using cc:Mail and Domino, or if you're planning to migrate away from cc:Mail to Domino, you should plan on spending a few minutes reading this important article by Technical Editor Ron Herardian. In it, Ron helps you understand what's involved in implementing mail backbones and how to make sure cc:Mail and Domino work smoothly together. [DominoPower Magazine, June 1999]

Intelligent front-end hosts for SMTP
This article is the second in a three-part series covering Domino and Internet email. Last month Technical Editor Ron Herardian explained capacity planning issues for Internet email. This month's article describes front-end solutions that allow centralization of SMTP services and that ease migration to Domino from cc:Mail. [DominoPower Magazine, May 1999]

Why I recommend Domino over Exchange
Once again, we revisit the subject of Exchange vs. Domino. In this article, Technical Editor Ron Herardian tries to look at the deployment of Exchange vs. Domino and which has the better solution. As you can tell from the title, he recommends Domino. Read the article to find out why. [DominoPower Magazine, May 1999]

Why Internet mail gets out of control and how to avoid going postal
All network administrators seem, on some days, to run the risk of going postal. Fear not. DominoPower Technical Editor Ron Herardian can help you reduce some of the stress of managing a network. How? By helping you take control of email growth within your organization. It might not have the romance of Prozac, but reading this article might help feel a bit more like you're in control of your network and your stress level. [DominoPower Magazine, April 1999]

Delay of R5 may spark new quality trend
Senior Technical Editor Ron Herardian provides DominoPower readers with a new no-holds-barred opinion on the state of the R5 delay. In this important editorial, Ron explains why it's better to have a late R5 and actually applauds Lotus for their decision to hold the product back. [DominoPower Magazine, March 1999]

Another look at Exchange vs. Notes and Domino
One of the most common questions we get is, "What's the difference between Notes and Exchange?" In reality, they're very separate beasts. But understanding how the Lotus integration strategy differs from Microsoft's can help you plan how to best move your organization forward. In this insightful article, Senior Technology Editor Ron Herardian compares the two companies' strategies and concludes (no big surprise) that Lotus' is better for groupware. [DominoPower Magazine, March 1999]

Will the real groupware please stand up?
What exactly is groupware and where did it come from? In this article, senior technical editor Ron Herardian helps us understand the history of groupware. He shows us groupware's four distinct phases of evolution, looks at how Lotus has creating appealing solutions for each of those phases, and helps you understand the major opportunities groupware holds into the future. [DominoPower Magazine, September 1998]

cc:Mail to Domino Migration: the NetWare challenge
We might as well get it over with. Eventually, you're going to have to meet contributing editor Ron Herardian and it might as well be in the Premier Issue. Ron's a brilliant Lotus Business Partner and former Lotus employee. He'll be regularly writing important technical articles for DominoPower. But Ron's also got a unique perspective as a "real world" Lotus Business Partner. Most issues, we'll run the Business Partners Speak Out guest editorial so you can get the word directly from those who are dealing with Notes and Domino every day. Since these guys are in the trenches, their opinions are often unvarnished and direct. That certainly describes Ron's perspective. Never let it be said that we always suck up to Lotus. [DominoPower Magazine, August 1998]

Introduction to Internet security standards
Notes has always had a powerful security model, while the Internet has always been pretty open about everything. But as the net grows into a global community, security becomes critically important. Over the next few months, we'll be running a variety of tutorials about different aspects of Notes and Domino security. In this article, contributing editor Ron Herardian provides an excellent overview of the three key elements of Internet security: encryption, authentication, and access control. [DominoPower Magazine, August 1998]