It’s no longer a luxury! Investing in network modernization is your ticket to participate in the fast global digital transformation that’s happening right now. It’s also the best path to scale up your business. On the other hand, holding on to your familiar, legacy network will likely mean you lose your competitive advantage soon. Besides, according to Deloitte, digitally mature businesses do better than average on key financial metrics!
In this article we’ll explain why network modernization is the best way to
- adapt to today’s hybrid working practices,
- keep up with new business models,
- offer employees a secure and fast experience,
- save on IT resources, and
- protect your workplace from vulnerabilities.
And to help you think about digitally transforming your business, we’re going to explain our top five reasons why you should modernize your network.
But first, let’s have a closer look at what network modernization is.
What is Network Modernization?
The modern workplace has changed. Many companies are now remote-friendly, and the number of IoT-connected devices has multiplied over the years. Both these facts have increased the need for efficient, updated, and secure networks. With the amount of data processed daily, it’s also crucial for companies to keep data hosted in the cloud.
Yesterday’s networks, with multiple product lines, tools, and interfaces, cannot keep up with the increasing demands of these new work environments. That’s why all businesses need to look at network modernization.
Modernization involves
- updating outdated infrastructures,
- improved security, and
- investments in new technologies and network architectures.
However, due to ever-changing improvements in all these areas, network modernization is, above all, a continuous process. It doesn’t stand still. Your network needs to be able to quickly adapt to future demands and also offer simplicity, speed, security, savings, performance, automation, and flexibility.
So, let’s check out the main reasons to modernize your network.
1 Security: Protect Your Workplace With Stronger Network Authentication
Needless to say, cyber security should be the number one priority of any organization in the digital era. The more diverse the set of users and devices connecting to the network, the more vulnerable to cyberattacks it is.
Therefore, the first and most effective way to protect your networks will be to implement security frameworks, such as Zero Trust and Secure Access Service Edge (SASE). They’re industry-recognized and offer a strong security foundation on the network. According to Aruba, you should also insist that Zero Trust and SASE are integrated with your network solutions, not bolted on.
In addition, by requiring identity-based access control, these frameworks ensure all devices and users trying to access your network are authenticated. This provides you with high security and protection.
2 Agility: Faster Communication is Key to Leveraging the Business Advantage
Speed is one of the main features of modern work environments. With hundreds of thousands of users and devices connected simultaneously in different locations and time zones, network solutions must effectively and safely adjust to changing conditions.
Traditional VLAN architectures are no longer enough to meet your ever-changing business objectives. This means you need structural changes that are both secure and cost-effective. And what would be the best option to meet these demands?
You’re right if you thought “cloud!”
Cloud-based solutions deliver agility while concentrating network and security policies into a single point of visibility and control across wired, wireless, and WAN. They also provide continuous updates. This optimizes functionality and performance and allows you to incorporate new solutions that scale to your business needs.
3 Automation: Leverage AI to Optimize Business Operations
Modern networks already exceed the ability of humans to monitor and troubleshoot them. And companies no longer have enough time and resources to plan, deploy, and manage network issues.
So, how can you effectively improve network operations to catch up with tasks that continually scale up faster than your resources?
The answer is automation.
Automation has never been so necessary as nowadays to optimize business processes. And one way to modernize is through AI-powered automation of operations (AIOps) – a human-assistive technology that
- anticipates problems,
- automates tasks, and
- optimizes network performance and functionality.
Installing AIOps will enable your employees to focus on strategic projects to scale up your business, while the AI works on solving repetitive tasks, such as network configuration management and troubleshooting.
4 Cost-Savings: Reduce Monthly Expenditure With a Network-as-a-Service (NaaS) Model
Following the trend to hire cloud-managed services, a good way of modernizing your network while reducing business costs is to move from CapEx to OpEx with a NaaS solution.
NaaS provides flexible, customized, and scalable network solutions. This enables you to keep up with technology innovations and ever-changing business needs. The result is optimized performance, user experiences, and functionality.
The NaaS model delivers hardware, software, and operational solutions, including monitoring and administration services via a monthly subscription model charged to your operational expenditure. This means no upfront (CapEx) investment.
A Network-as-a-Service model is therefore a great option to reduce costs while having access to the latest technologies.
5 Adaptability: Set Your Business Up For the Future
If you haven’t started thinking about adapting your workplace to tomorrow’s challenges, it’s time to create a long-term, strategic plan in response to the fast transformations we’re already facing. Network modernization is now paramount for businesses because it will ensure you can adapt to changes.
The first step to preparing your business for an adaptable future is to migrate your network architectures and operations to the cloud. It’s the best way to
- ensure your security,
- make cost savings, and
- optimize your operations.
In addition, when you migrate to the cloud, you also
- avoid legacy vulnerabilities,
- increase your business’s agility, and
- set your business up to thrive for years to come.
The bottom line is that in today’s hybrid, multi-tasking, and diverse workplaces, adaptability is no longer just an advantage but a requirement.
Ready to Modernize Your Network? We Can Help
Once you decide to go for network modernization, it’s essential to engage with a trusted partner to find the right network solution that meets the specific needs of your business.
RFIP can provide secure, cloud-native, AI-powered innovative solutions to meet your connectivity, security, and financial requirements.
We know that a well-designed, secure, modern network setup is crucial for any business’s success. Our Wi-Fi experts are highly qualified and ready to help you design and build your company’s modern network to the highest standards to fulfill your demands.
Whether you need to install brand-new network architecture or modernize your current network infrastructure, we have the right, tailor-made solution to set you up to thrive in the future. Speak to our specialists today.