EDITOR ’ S COMMENT
FIVE KEY TRENDS DRIVING A10 NETWORKS ’ CHANNEL GROWTH IN 2021
CHRIS MARTIN , CHANNEL LEADER , EMEA AND APAC , A10 NETWORKS
Despite the disruption of the last year and a half , A10 Networks ’ business has continued to evolve and the company ’ s channel has continued to grow as a result of five key trends . Chris Martin , Channel Leader , EMEA and APAC at A10 Networks elaborates on these trends .
Last year was an extraordinary year and , if nothing else , the last 18 months have certainly accentuated the importance of digital resiliency . Now , as we move into a recovery phase post pandemic , our own research , undertaken earlier this year , has highlighted that the workforce won ’ t return to pre-COVID working practices and that we should expect a hybrid approach to the office environment . The research analysed how senior IT professionals in
Cloud services spend was already growing much faster than onpremises IT spend at the beginning of 2020 and this momentum has only increased during the pandemic . communication service provider organisations will adapt to a post- COVID-19 world and the challenges they face with a more distributed workplace . It found that 67 % believe their customers will continue to operate with employees working from home even post-pandemic .
Certainly , the consumer shift online is here to stay , whether that be for public services , retail , entertainment or healthcare . Again , while some will return to shopping on the high street or going into the civic centre to pay their council tax , others will continue to enjoy the convenience that online delivers .
Technology trends fuelling demand
Despite the disruption of the last year and a half , business has continued to evolve , and our channel has continued to grow as a result of five key trends .
The first is the acceleration and proliferation of IoT . In 2020 , there was a noticeable shift in the types of businesses adopting IoT , which is now becoming mainstream as enterprises move from experimentation to deployment across global operations .
The second and probably most notable trend is the shift to the cloud as organisations continue their Digital Transformation journeys . In fact , cloud services spend was already growing much faster than on-premises IT spend at the beginning of 2020 and this momentum has only increased during the pandemic .
Thirdly , 5G deployment and the associated security issues is very much front-of-mind , which was also reflected in our research . When it comes to 5G , just under one-third of respondents ( 31 %) we surveyed stated that maintaining a quality service and avoiding service outages were top security challenges . While 21 % said unpredictable subscriber usage with changing patterns on the network was a top challenge . And certainly , we see channel partners helping customers with cloud migration and the adoption of 5G as they address concerns around network security and the current lack of agility and visibility throughout the IT infrastructure .
Overcoming operational complexity
This brings me to the fourth trend which is around operational complexity . As organisations , regions and countries go in and out of lockdown and need to scale up or scale back certain initiatives , it has created significant IT challenges . In today ’ s digital business environment , you ’ ve got to stay agile and innovative to compete , grow and thrive . In fact , even facing an uncertain economic outlook
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