Mark Hurd's been at the helm of Hewlett-Packard for a year now, and during his talk at a recent economic council event, he told attendees that his company is flirting with the quest to be the top technology firm. To fuel this growth, Hurd has identified three specific markets to grow the business: printers, mobility and big compute environments. He vows to spend more bucks on research and development despite the layoffs that took place early in his tenure. The biggest challenge ahead is growth in tech talent, which could end up being a huge economic issue for the U.S., he says.

For more on Hurd's vision for year two:
- read this Mercury News article