Five steps to digital transformation

The pervasiveness of computers and overarching digitisation have culminated in increasing efficiency for business organisations around the globe. To pull ahead of competition however, organisations have come to the realisation that they must embrace digital transformation and leverage their IT capabilities not as a tool but as a strategic force multiplier.

We look at five steps that organisations embarking on digital transformation can take.

It is not uncommon to find enterprise data centres littered with servers and appliances whose original purpose have been obscured or even lost over the ages. Not only does this encumber the IT team with additional hardware management which may not actually be needed, the cost in terms of energy and rack space also adds up over time.

The savvy digital enterprise would want to ensure that all hardware assets, network configurations and software dependencies are properly documented. Even if no projects are currently planned, having the information on hand means that digital transformation initiatives can be implemented with minimum delay, and has the bonus of facilitating upgrading and consolidation decisions.

The importance of data backups is a perennial topic, and is arguably even more important than ever, given the centricity of data in today’s digital economy. Yet businesses continue to suffer data-related disasters, due to either the failure of IT equipment or a new generation of data-encrypting malware known as ransomware. 

Comprehensive data backup procedures are hence vital for organisations looking towards digital transformation. And while core data repositories are important, so are the various application software that can view or process the data. Inevitably, the ideal backup regime must also include the necessary configuration files and software licences to restore the digital infrastructure to its former state.

The need for executive buy-in of IT projects is well understood and is a topic that is commonly discussed. However, this represents only part of the equation for successful digital transformation. This is because genuine transformation can only happen with the collective efforts and inputs of key stakeholders within the organisation, which is possible only with organisational-wide support and participation.

This has the added advantage of taking care of shadow IT, which is the term for third-party cloud services or on-premises hardware that are quietly incorporated into business workflows. Such developments often happen without the knowledge of the IT department, and greatly increases the risks of data leakage. Widespread participation shines the spotlight on shadow IT sooner rather than later.

One way of preparing one’s existing infrastructure for the big digital transformation is to gradually modernise selected components within the current infrastructure. Dependent services and hardware components can be grouped together, and a roadmap drawn up to review them.

This approach works for legacy infrastructure too, which can be parcelled out as challenges for IT teams to solve within a predefined timeframe. Success will mean the ability to discard the legacy hardware, while failure will be limited to nothing more than the loss of some manhours. Alternatively, legacy equipment can also be migrated wholesale into a new colocation environment – more on that in the next section.

Finally, the digital transformation journey does not have to be walked alone. Instead of being bogged down by the complicated task of building the requisite physical infrastructure, a simpler option is to rely on experts to provide the requisite data centre facility. This allows the IT team to focus their energies on areas that impact the bottom-line.

And aside from a stable and accredited environment, a modern colocation environment offers an excellent base for growing businesses. This includes ready access to additional bandwidth, connectivity to other data centres for advanced failover deployments, and the option of private routes to popular public cloud platforms.