EXPERT SPEAK
WHAT IS THE TOP DRIVER FOR AS-A-SERVICE DEPLOYMENTS ?
The rise of the networking-as-a-service ( NaaS ) business model has been nothing short of a revolution . Often championed for its flexible approach to keeping expenses down , the subscription service is becoming increasingly recognised for a wealth of other reasons . Sherifa Hady , Vice President Channel , Europe Middle East and Africa at Aruba , a Hewlett Packard Enterprise company , tells Intelligent Tech Channels why the As-a-service IT consumption models have proven to become increasingly popular across the IT landscape .
As-a-service IT consumption models have proven to become increasingly popular across the IT landscape in recent years , and it is easy to see why . Even before COVID-19 hit , organisations were being pushed to address fluctuating markets , technical innovations and unplanned events increasingly quickly . CAPEX planning can leave them with long product life cycles and an inability to pivot – locking them into costly spending patterns and damaging their capacity to meet today ’ s shifting business dynamics . Enter OPEX , the subscription approach with its flexible operating expenses and on demand payments that is underscoring business agility .
However , while flexible financing is often seen as the core reason behind the uptake of As-a-Service models , it appears the conversation is beginning to evolve beyond this . According to IDC ’ s latest IT Procurement Trends and Consumption Models Survey , a number of other factors are now deemed as , if not more , important than cost alone .
Here are three specific to networking that have come to the attention of IT buyers more recently :
Sherifa Hady , Vice President Channel , Europe Middle East and Africa , Aruba
Optimising IT staff
Top of IDC ’ s list of factors driving As-a- Service deployments is the wish to reduce IT staff workloads . This is particularly relevant to networks .
All too often IT teams find their days filled with requests to address network problems , prying them away from strategic workloads . Resource , time and expenses are spent on troubleshooting , determining root causes , and remediating the latest event or attack , leaving the team unable to focus on more critical projects .
With many key services such as deployment and decommissioning included in subscription offerings , their roll out can afford IT staff more time to carry out the more complex , value-add business tasks . This means truly optimising IT staff and driving new business outcomes .
Networking-as-a-Service ( NaaS ), for example , includes data analytics , expanded telemetry , Artificial Intelligence and automation – which combine to deliver critical efficiency gains in network
While flexible financing is often seen as the core reason behind the uptake of As-a-Service models , it appears the conversation is beginning to evolve beyond this .
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