When talking with clients we noticed they spend a lot of time talking about starting their IT journey with us but don’t always think about network management -- or what comes next. That’s understandable, just the start of moving your IT infrastructure onto a new network is a monumental task. From network design and routing to installation and configuration there are a lot of ways that your setup is critical to your IT needs.
Network management is perhaps the biggest piece of the puzzle you aren’t thinking about. Here are some reasons why it’s important for an IT strategy to include a network assessment and ongoing network management.
A network assessment tells you what you have
Think of your network as a garden. A network assessment gives you the general lay of the land. With it you’ll be able to see where weeds might grow, where a hole in the fence might allow rabbits to come in, and ways to better arrange your plants so that they grow better. Now that might seem like a heavy-handed analogy, but in a lot of ways, that’s exactly what a network assessment does.
Data Foundry has more than 25 years of experience creating networks for dedicated uptime. We used that knowledge to create a litany of best practices so that your network won’t ever be bothered by unwanted visitors or a surprise failure of the network. When we start the process of network management with you, the first thing to do is receive a network assessment.
We utilize our network assessment to document and map out your network. With it, we can identify single points of failure, find inefficiencies, and find opportunities to simplify your network and reduce downtime. Downtime is a big deal, any lost time means loss of revenue. No one has time for that.
Network management and why you’ll remember what PPDIOO means forever
We came up with a way to describe our best practices, the acronym PPDIOO. It stands for prepare, plan, design, implement, operate, and optimize. While we agree that this might not beat SCUBA in terms of a fun word to say, we think you’ll thank us for coming up with the concept later -- when your network is running smoothly and effectively. In simple terms, PPDIOO is a road map for understanding where you need to go next -- and keeping you on that path.
When we give you a network assessment, that’s part of the preparing and planning phase. From there we can design and implement ways to make sure that you’re staying on track. This can include reporting, monitoring the security of your networks, and looking at things like routine maintenance. Having a big-picture outlook means that you have a better understanding of how the little pieces fit together. That makes your network management, not just a day-to-day necessity, but the execution of a plan that will make sure your IT needs are always met.
Our network engineering team is able to provide both on and off-site support for your network gear. That includes 24x7x365 support. That’s a big deal because problems don’t just happen during business hours -- you need network management that’s up to the task of protecting your investment ALL the time. You need network management as part of your IT plans or you run the risk of some pretty big catastrophes. Luckily, we know some good people who can help you out.
