IT complexity has been increasing. The rapid adoption of cloud computing, big data and mobile device proliferation are making it harder for organizations to get their hands around IT, especially as the IT environment has expanded to include new sources of applications, infrastructure, and devices accessing corporate resources. These new concepts require new ways to efficiently and effectively manage and secure the environment.
Effective service management is more difficult when services rely on dynamically shared resources. It’s even more difficult when some resources are on premise, and some are in the cloud. Many organizations don’t even realize they’re a Hybrid IT shop. IT services are more frequently sourced within business units with barely a blessing from IT. Many of these applications and services are Cloud driven.
As IT organizations adopt new technologies or approaches to implementing technology, they seldom eliminate the existing technologies and approaches. For example, as IT organizations make increasing use of Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) and Software-as-a-Service (SaaS), they still continue to provide infrastructure services and host applications on-premise. As a result, IT managers face challenges associated with both the legacy environment and the emerging environment and require a single tool that can provide visibility across all of the technical domains that comprise a given service, which can also integrate management data from the traditional and the emerging environments.
We see three major new technologies that create their own set of Management challenges.
- Cloud Computing – The benefits of quicker access to applications and reduced costs are offset by a lack of visibility and control over the resources that comprise cloud-based applications and services. This makes it difficult to manage and insure an acceptable service level. Blend Cloud and On-Premise into a hybrid design, and it gets very interesting quickly.
- Mobility – “Work From Anywhere”, and “Work With Anything” have resulting in many companies establishing BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) policies. IT has been thrust into having to support a broader range of devices. Mobile device support is entirely different from PC and laptop support. Adding the complexity of employee-provided devices with company-provided devices increases the challenge. Since many companies now have three types of access devices to manage — laptops/desktops,
company-provided mobile devices, and BYOD devices — IT managers need a management solution that encompasses all three and is centralized, and consistent, yet tailored to the specific needs of each device type.
- Big Data – Working with large and complex data sets are new challenge to processes that use traditional techniques. Many of the management challenges associated with big data are the same challenges associated with any type of data analysis – providing authorized, secure access to the data. However, some of the management challenges associated with big data stem from the size and complexity of the underlying data sets.
The implication of cloud, mobility, and big data for IT organizations is that they must now manage these new environments along with their legacy infrastructure and applications in an integrated, automated fashion.
Three significant considerations for evolving management solutions are:
- Manage cloud infrastructure and application services along with legacy on-premise services with an integrated management system, all within a single command center.
- Manage company-owned and employee-owned mobile devices, along with traditional end user clients, as part of an integrated management solution, including the ability to remotely access devices anytime, anywhere.
- Automate every manual, repetitive task possible to maximize IT efficiency and reduce human error.
Do solutions exist that will address these changing management requirements? Absolutely! If you want to know how, we look forward to speaking.
Tim Krueger, PEI
