The Formula 1 racing season has started. It amazes me at how the teams are such well oiled machines. F1 cars are finely tuned machines that meet the dynamic challenges of every track and condition to finish and win the race. F1 pit crews practice every day to orchestrate an integrated set of complex maneuvers to complete a four second pit stop. Plus, the tremendous amount of telemetry F1 cars generate provides constant feedback to the driver and team on the car performance.
F1 cars are very similar to IT operations. Private
cloud infrastructures are integrated solutions that require constant vigilance to meet the dynamic challenges of the business. They must deliver top performance, availability, and capacity over their lifespan.
IT operational teams are expected to respond quickly to business requests and incidents. IT is expected to deliver efficient, integrated processes to get the infrastructure back on track to service the business. Plus, solutions like disaster recovery, require continued practice to validate the people, processes and tools working in concert.
Finally, IT systems generate a significant amount of data regarding health and performance. The challenge is transforming that information into clarity. Developing insightful reports enable proactive decision making. Actionable alerts integrated into a robust incident management process and system ensures IT meets ever-demanding service levels.
We face that challenge daily with the
Datalink managed services we deliver to our clients. For managed services, we have an advantage since we are able to focus 100% of our efforts on operations with numerous clients. Most IT clients I talk to are challenged to balance business value activities with 24x7 operations.
Are you winning the race on IT Operations? What are the challenges you face?
Phil O'Konski
Director, Managed Services
Datalink