Network visibility is key to making technology investment pay
Sander Barens
Chief Product Officer
Multinational organizations are increasing their digital technology investment to drive growth, resilience, and sustainability, despite concerns about the global economy. But they will be disappointed in the results if they can’t optimize their connections to applications and data across the enterprise. This is where network visibility comes in.
To grow and thrive in these unpredictable times, businesses must be agile, scalable, and able to anticipate change. Digital technology provides the answer, and around three-quarters of respondents in Expereo’s Enterprise Horizons 2023 report plan on spending more across security, digital, cloud, and network. The leading digital enablers were artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML), automation and analytics, and the Internet of Things (IoT), followed by cloud.
This is in line with analysts’ forecasts. Gartner[1], for example, predicts that global IT spending will grow 5.5%, despite economic turbulence. Digital technology is seen as a route to transforming enterprises’ growth and revenue prospects, both short and long-term.
All these technological advancements rely on a robust network connectivity infrastructure to achieve business outcomes. Uninterrupted, secure connectivity allows users to communicate and collaborate as part of a unified environment. This can be maintained by giving IT managers overarching visibility into their infrastructure for optimized, secure performance with minimal unplanned downtime.
Connectivity is the foundation of transformation
Many enterprises are already finding it difficult to keep up with the complexity of their expanding infrastructure, with multiple sites and, in many cases, numerous providers. As demands for robust, predictable connectivity grow with the implementation of AI, ML and IoT, visibility of the infrastructure’s performance is critical to confidence in the networks capability to deliver. Repeated downtime can significantly impact operations, leading to unhappy customers and lost revenue.
CIOs we spoke to see the connection between running an efficient operating base and simultaneously supporting ambitious growth plans. What is essential to understand, however, is that maintaining comprehensive network visibility is pivotal to business operations in terms of both performance and security.
Always aiming for maximum visibility
To achieve these business goals, enterprises must be agile and able to cope with rapid change. Enterprises that transform into cloud-first, data-driven organizations supported by the right network and connectivity solution will have flexibility and scalability that on-premises, legacy systems can’t match.
However, enterprises face the challenge of managing IP-based multi-vendor networks working across geographies to deliver hybrid workforces’ cloud applications and devices with predictable results that keep users happy. These applications have different levels of requirements depending on in which cloud they are hosted, bandwidth consumption and network performance. An overarching view of the network enables administrators to spot the root of any issue and proactively assess before they have a significant impact. It also allows for a better understanding of bandwidth usage and captures network behaviors for incident detection and prevention.
We understand the criticality of visibility and the impact downtime can cost your organization. This is why we have developed expereoOne, which gives complete visibility across an enterprise’s entire estate, overlay, and underlay, down to site level from a single view. Through a single dashboard, IT managers have a full real-time view of the Internet and SD-WAN services. They can see the health of their network infrastructure, create and reply to support cases, and view real-time maintenance information and affected services with the support of analytics.
Finding the best connectivity fit
Furthermore, the improved visibility expereoOne provides can help soften enterprise fears about moving away from MPLS towards more cost-effective internet-based networks. It helps deliver control and visibility into internet and cloud services to deliver optimized applications and business continuity.
According to our calculations, enterprises using MPLS spend 10% of their IT budget on networks, which include routers, switches, and firewalls, as well as expensive MPLS connections. As well as cost, there is complexity, limited coverage, and inflexibility to consider. Here at Expereo, we specialize in moving enterprises from MPLS to an IP infrastructure, as well as providing the SD-WAN overlay to provide agility, visibility, and cloud optimization. We provide the necessary visibility to ensure business-critical applications and services run smoothly.
As a vendor-agnostic supplier, we have strong relationships with a host of internet providers across the globe, meaning we can replace or augment MPLS with robust, cost-effective internet links. This is alongside the availability of other access options, including fiber, microwave, satellite, 4G, and 5G. This means enterprises get a bespoke solution with a single view that delivers end-to-end performance. One that best works for their business and not one that has been modified to fit.
When your network is down, so is your business.
Network visibility is critical to understanding your network and the traffic moving through it. Without it is impossible to make smart decisions, increase efficiencies and enhance security posture. Network visibility requires continuous monitoring, but the improvements are invaluable and contribute significantly to overall business outcomes.
To find out more about expereoOne and its capabilities in providing full visibility and control through a single view, click here
[1] Gartner forecast worldwide IT spend 2023 https://www.gartner.com/en/newsroom/press-releases/2023-04-06-gartner-forecasts-worldwide-it-spending-to-grow-5-percent-in-2023