What is your enterprise’s cybersecurity process when it comes to ransomware preparedness? As a heavily relied upon technology leader, this is a critical question to ask yourself. Remember, there are two types of companies – those that have been hit with ransomware and those that eventually will be. According to numbers recently published by a ransomware attack occurs every 11 seconds. On average, each incident costs an astounding $700,000 in damages.

Ransomware criminals are constantly deploying attacks on company data that resides in backup storage. That’s why it is prudent to always solidify your enterprise’s ransomware backup protection strategy. A ransomware cyberattack can be even more devastating if the backup storage is eliminated prior to the main attack. Of course, even if your backup system can withstand the early assault, the process of restoring entire data repositories and virtual server farms is time consuming and expensive. It’s easy to see why ransomware is such a major disruptor to the operations of any organization.

The key to ransomware preparedness doesn’t mean purchasing and deploying an array of best-of-breed cybersecurity tools. But these tools alone won’t protect your enterprise – you need to establish a proactive ransomware defense strategy to prevent an intrusion. Transitioning to that posture requires an organizational framework that outlines the best practices and standards to manage ransomware preparedness. This framework is applicable to all levels of an enterprise as well as all points in its supply chain.

Combat Your Risks with Ransomware Preparedness Framework

Every company has unique risks, and they must contend with a diverse number of threats and vulnerabilities. But to defend against ransomware, all companies must start with identifying their risks. Where do those risks currently exist? What are the attack avenues that those enterprise cybersecurity threats will most likely use to infiltrate your organization? Many of these risks are contingent upon the company’s business drivers and security considerations specific to its use of technology. The end goal is not to eliminate all levels of risk to the organization, but to mitigate it. Just as no two organizations face the same levels of risk, the process to mitigate those risks will also vary from company to company. There is no secret recipe, no magic pill – and that’s where the ransomware preparedness framework comes in. One of the more popular options is NIST Cybersecurity Framework. This framework by the was designed to assist organizations through a five-step process:

1. Describe their current cybersecurity posture.
2. Describe their target state for cybersecurity.
3. Identify and prioritize opportunities for improvement within the context of a continuous and repeatable process.
4. Assess progress toward the target state.
5. Communicate among internal and external stakeholders about cybersecurity risk.

Creating the Necessary Cybersecurity Posture for Ransomware Preparedness

Sadly, most organizations operate with passive security posture. Risk is managed in an ad-hoc manner and there is limited awareness of cybersecurity risk across the enterprise. Security initiatives take place on a case-by-case basis and cybersecurity information is seldom shared within the organization. Meanwhile, ransomware attackers often execute a strategy defined by being proactive against such passive organizations. Often, they infiltrate the network of a target organization weeks or months in advance to perform reconnaissance to strengthen their attack plan. That’s why you need a proactive security posture to combat their efforts. A proactive ransomware defense strategy involves taking the following steps:

• Gain Full Visibility of Your IT Estate: The more you can see, the faster you can react to the incidents that are occurring. With the proliferation of you can no longer rely on signature-based protection. Your enterprise requires next-generation firewalls that can conduct deep scanning across all seven layers of your incoming packets to identify anomalies that vary outside of established baseline trends.
• Take Full Advantage of the Extensive Logging Information: This step is often underutilized by many organizations. Logs can be integrated with intelligence-based analyzers that can initiate alerts and reports on anomalies that exist outside of your established baseline trends.
• Educate Users: This starts at the leadership level. Users must possess the knowledge and skillsets to accurately monitor their environments for cybersecurity risks. Routine trainings for executives and managers can be a positive first step in helping transition to a security-first culture.
• Establish a Recovery Plan: Having a plan in place to instruct the members of a defined team what to do in the case of a cybersecurity incident is critical. This includes tasks such as contacting your cyber insurance company and notifying customers.
• Adapt: Make cybersecurity a repeatable process in which procedures are periodically reviewed, scrutinized, and modified, if necessary.

Accepting a Zero-Trust Environment

Risk is everywhere. The approach where a fortified perimeter separated the trusted inner network from the untrusted external world is now obsolete. Cyber criminals sneak their way into the network through email phishing attacks, USB sticks and remote access solutions, just to name a few. That’s why you can no longer trust any tentacle of your network. As a result, enterprises must now bring their firewalls and security appliances within the internal network to filter and analyze traffic within the network itself.

A zero-trust strategy helps manage risks within the network because it provides the necessary visibility, controls, and processes in a zero-trust world. WEI specializes in ransomware preparedness to protect, detect, and respond. How well your organization carries out those core functions will determine its degree of success against any of the pending threats out there. Let WEI help provide you the knowledge and the tools you need to protect your business. From our team of experienced subject matter experts to our proven array of security solutions, we can help you create a customized ransomware defense strategy and toolset that addresses the unique risks of your organization.

Next Steps: If you want to discover more proven tips and strategies to securing your backup solutions, we have published a fresh whitepaper titled, “The Mandatory Components of an Effective Ransomware Strategy.”

The post How to Posture Your Enterprise for Ransomware Preparedness appeared first on IT Solutions Provider - IT Consulting - Technology Solutions.

In today’s uncertain business climate, it’s critical to make sure your enterprise places itself at the forefront of innovation and leverages data effectively and efficiently to make decisions. A Connected CIO sets the tone for their team, playing a crucial role in adopting new and efficient technologies that encourage the use of data to lead innovation.

In the last year, CIOs who made digital transformation and data a top priority are now reaping the rewards of increased agility, productivity, and ongoing data-driven value. If you’re wondering how you can use data to lead innovation and become a connected leader for your enterprise, this article will provide the clarity you are seeking.

Why Using Data To Lead Innovation Is Important

Utilizing data to lead innovation is critical for enterprises that want to stay at the forefront of the data era. Embracing a data-first, data-anywhere approach as new technologies emerge is crucial for driving organizations forward, as seen in the following statistics:

• say their ability to collect, analyze, and act on data has made it easier to adapt and survive.
• agree that extracting valuable insights from data will be more important for their business than ever before.

• Organizations that increased their use of digital channels to reach customers or citizens are to be top performers than trailing ones.
• Organizations have increased the amount of data they manage by an since 2016.

Enterprises that access greater amounts of information can use this data to lead innovation. Being digitally connected allows your business to collect, analyze, and utilize relevant data to make informed decisions quickly.

Beyond the ability to collect and analyze information faster, the pandemic has also pushed enterprises to simultaneously face accelerated demand for a digital presence and shift work structures to a remote and hybrid environment. It’s imperative that your workforce can regularly access the data they need from anywhere. This requires modern devices and a flexible, responsive IT environment that keeps productivity, security, and cost-effectiveness a high priority.

Connected CIOs who prioritize a digital, data-driven workforce will create a long-term, sustainable strategy to ensure their teams have the right resources and devices to be productive from anywhere. By doing so, CIOs empower their workers to leverage data to lead innovation.

How Can I Use Data To Lead Innovation?

Traditional IT solutions inhibit the flow of data from where it’s gathered and stored to how it’s accessed by employees. This obstruction results in important business decisions being based on outdated and inaccurate information. When data can be accessed quickly and easily, enterprises are able to make the best decisions possible using complete and up-to-date information.

To effectively use data to lead innovation, you need modern strategies and technologies to accommodate the exploding volume of data coming from multiple locations. As a result, digital leaders have moved away from centralized data storage concepts to free their AI and ML workloads to analyze data in real-time, regardless of location.

Why CIOs Need To Set The Tone For Data To Lead Innovation

As a Connected CIO, your deeper understanding of your enterprise’s needs will enable you to use data to lead innovation. You will also be better prepared to handle new and unknown challenges. With your bird’s-eye view of the organization’s goals and processes, you can access data quickly and confidently to make swift decisions when faced with shifting business needs.

Additionally, you can guide your organization to prioritize digital transformation initiatives that improve agility, enable teams to work from anywhere, and encourage the use of data to lead innovation. As the person sitting at the top of the pyramid for your enterprise’s technology sector, you have the power to influence and encourage your team to adopt and use these new data-led initiatives.

Turn Your Data Into Insights and Action

With WEI and Dell Technologies, you can rest assured that you will have a team in your corner focused on creating integrated solutions that turn your data into insights and action. We make sure you’re up to date on market trends and cut through the noise to help you understand which solutions provide their worth in enterprise environments like yours.

NEXT STEPS: to identify five key factors for driving digital innovation in your enterprise.

Contact us at WEI to find out how we can guide you in making important IT decisions for your company.

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While 2021 hasn’t brought a definite end to pandemic-era IT challenges like many hoped, other technology predictions have held steady, largely propelled by the new remote working and hybrid workforce standard. Examples include the continued proliferation of internet of things (IoT) devices, the accelerated adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) and automation technologies, and an increased interest in software-defined wide area network (SD-WAN) technologies.

With that in mind, in the article below, we discuss five SD-WAN edge trends that will help IT leaders plan for what’s coming next and make informed decisions about their SD-WAN strategies, as shared by .

1. SASE Will Continue To Gain Steam

To fully take advantage of the benefits of digital transformation and a remote or hybrid workforce, enterprises need to make improvements to their WAN and security architectures instead of just focusing on one or the other. This is especially important as cybersecurity threats continue to multiply and remote workforces serve as tempting targets for bad actors.

Secure access service edge (SASE) offers the security needed to handle these evolving workforces while ensuring a consistent and enjoyable user experience for employees.

2. IoT Security Challenges Will Require New Solutions

In addition to remote workforces, the continued proliferation of IoT devices has created its own security challenges. Zero trust access and granular segmentation at the new WAN edge, which can enforce distinct security policies for each class of IoT endpoints, will be key in securing these devices and preventing them from being utilized by cybercriminals.

3. SD-WAN, SD-Branch, and SASE Will Be Essential To Edge Success

When it comes to security, a multi-pronged approach ensures that data will stay secure, regardless of the threat. By combining SD-WAN with cloud-first connectivity and steering, SASE, which provides a more direct way to connect users to business resources, and SD-Branch, which offers an easy way to simplify the branch even as IoT adoptions create new complications, enterprises can enhance their security posture while also improving operational efficiencies.

4. Edge Strategies Will Continue To Evolve As Circumstances Require

While many hoped that at this stage we would be in the post-pandemic era, the virus continues to impact enterprises and IT on a daily basis, delaying plans to return to the office and necessitating technologic creativity when designing and implementing infrastructure. Looking ahead, as we do eventually reach the end of the pandemic, enterprises will continue to utilize edge strategies to improve security and user experience for remote and hybrid workforces.

5. Enterprises Will Utilize Software-Defined Principles To Support Growth

As we’ve seen with SD-WAN, software-defined strategies are proving to be the most efficient and logical step forward for the modern enterprise. Beyond SD-WAN and SD-Branch, these software-defined principles are being applied to other areas of the enterprise, including the data center and campus LAN. To stay competitive in the market and ready for unexpected change, enterprises will need to adopt these strategies throughout their digital environments.

SD-WAN By Aruba And Silver Peak

In 2020, , the parent company of Aruba, acquired , a global leader in SD-WAN solutions. Through this acquisition, Aruba and Silver Peak are working together to provide customers with the very best in SD-WAN solutions, while also significantly reducing costs.

Silver Peak’s SD-WAN offerings will strengthen the by expanding Aruba’s cloud capabilities. Additionally, through a combination of Silver Peak’s SD-WAN and Aruba’s SD-Branch offerings, customers can simplify branch office and WAN deployments, benefiting remote workers and supporting cloud-connected distributed enterprises.

Are You Interested In SD-WAN From Aruba?

Regardless of your specific use case, Aruba offers the SD-WAN and edge computing solutions your enterprises need to be successful. By transforming WAN and security together, enterprises can discover increased benefit from their current and future investments in cloud-computing. Beyond the initial advantages of SD-WAN solutions, IT will experience additional benefits through reduced management complexity and overall lowered costs.

NEXT STEPS: SD-WAN is ideal for campus-based networks or distributed enterprises, or any enterprise with remote/branch offices. Explore the top three benefits of SD-WAN in our short video below.

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Today’s cybercriminals are better equipped and are utilizing technology that’s more advanced by the day. With the value and importance of data only growing, protecting that data has never been more essential and enterprises need all the help they can get. With this in mind, we recently held a cybersecurity event to share information on key topics including:

• The best strategies enterprises can use to keep data safe.
• The anatomy of a hacker.
• The tools hackers utilize to gain entry to your systems.
• Cybersecurity predictions for the upcoming year and beyond.

This virtual event, presented in partnership with , featured Theresa Payton, a legendary figure within the cybersecurity and IT world. Her resume was already impressive, with executive level roles in banking technology, but she made history as the first woman to serve as the CIO of the White House. She currently leads as CEO.

In the article below, we’ll share the top three takeaways from the event that you need to know to effectively combat cybersecurity threats.

1. Web Browsing Is A Minefield

Hacking isn’t as it appears in the movies. Instead of brute forcing your firewalls or other cybersecurity solutions, cybercriminals will exploit any simple way into your digital environment. Many of these opportunities can be as simple as a user clicking on a theoretically safe link.

As shared by Theresa, things like clickbait, fake ads, and chat bots are often utilized by cybercriminals to lead your employees astray. While they may not contain malware or other nefarious programs, the demographic data that’s exposed and tracked once clicked on can be all hackers need to get started.

The ad itself or the advertising company running the ads may be genuine, but bad actors that gain access to that data can take the information gathered, such as operating system, IP address and username, and use it to build social engineering campaigns, fraud campaigns, and other carefully constructed personas to further trick your employees into opening the doors to hackers.

2. Bad Actors Are Using AI To Impersonate Key Players

As previously mentioned, today’s hackers have access to technology far beyond what their predecessors could even dream of. One of the most insidious tools being utilized is AI technology that leverages internet photos and audio to create deepfake profiles.

Deepfakes are synthetic media built using artificial intelligence (AI) to alter the appearance or sound of a piece of media, such as a video or audio recording. In the wrong hands, this technology is being used to create fake user profiles, impersonate employees, and using an executive’s ‘likeness’ to authorize fraudulent bank transfers.

As shared by Theresa during the cybersecurity event: “An international company with international lines of business needed to do a wire transfer to a vendor. The vendor sends a typical message to the CFO, who receives it and waits for the multi-factor authentication. In their case, the authentication is a phone call and voice authorization. CFO receives it [from the CEO] and makes the transfer.”

Unfortunately for this company, it was not the CEO on the phone and the transfer was fraudulent. By utilizing deepfake technology, hackers are creating a world where enterprises cannot trust what they see and hear and must rely on additional security layers, like codewords and separate lines of communication, to keep these incidents from happening.

3. We Have To Work Together To Stand Against Cybercriminals

As more enterprises fall victim to ransomware and large scale incidents wreak havoc ( being a perfect example), the cybersecurity community must come together to catch these bad actors.

Many enterprises seek to hide evidence of breaches to save face, but in doing so, they’re making it easier for bad actors to continue on with their actions. Instead, when attacks happen, information regarding it should be shared with the community in general, not just internally or only with law enforcement.

“We need international cooperation. Cybercrime has to be dealt with and we need to have an international accord that says an attack against a private sector company is an attack against all of us and it will not stand,” Theresa said.

Ensure Comprehensive Cybersecurity With WEI & Cisco

Having a trusted technology partner like WEI can help you build the right security foundation with secure tools, such as those found in We can walk you through a cyber-savvy strategy to identify vulnerabilities and take a proactive approach to risk mitigation. Contact WEI today to start a cybersecurity conversation that will deliver the security outcomes your business requires.

NEXT STEPS: Lack of visibility across your entire IT estate is often the biggest challenge when it comes to effectively securing your company from intrusion. Cisco can help you spot those vulnerabilities faster with a proactive security strategy. It really comes down to having the right tools AND frequent cybersecurity training for your employees, but let’s start at square one and take a look at what’s possible when you have full visibility!

Meet Cisco SecureX in two ways.
Watch the Demo and Read the Solution Brief.

The post 3 Key Takeaways From Cybersecurity Expert, Theresa Payton appeared first on IT Solutions Provider - IT Consulting - Technology Solutions.

As global industry evolves, digital innovation that features a hybrid, “from anywhere” business environment has become critical to modern workforces. New formats, like zero-trust access (ZTA), allow employees and external partners to utilize digital resources, no matter when or where they choose to work.

But this new approach creates complications for CISOs and other because business applications and data leave traditional corporate perimeters. Specifically, it broadens the attack surface of internal networks. Combined with evolving threats, this factor dramatically expands the risk of potential breaches.

In this article, we’ll explore how a zero-trust access approach to security featuring endpoint protection can help.

Mitigating Risk At The Edge

Conceptually, traditional security models feature “gateways” whereby permitted entry means users and devices can be trusted in perpetuity. But unpredictable and broadening access points render this traditional approach obsolete. Bad actors can steal credentials and access networks from any device, for example. This threat increases the complexity and risk of more frequent, more nuanced attacks.

ZTA is therefore critical to security as digital innovation continues. With ZTA, CISOs and other executives can ensure all users, devices, and applications are consistently authenticated, trustworthy, and managed. ZTA ensures users have only the correct frequency and depth of access as well.

What Is ZTA With Endpoint Protection?

The ZTA framework features a combination of security solutions that continuously and holistically identify, authenticate, and segment users and devices seeking network and application access. With these capabilities, security teams can:

• Establish identity through multiple authentication and certificate measures
• Enable role-based privileged access
• Ensure ongoing network control through automated orchestration and threat response
• Optimize the user experience, even with rigorous security measures

Essential Zero-Trust Access Capabilities For Modern IT Security

ZTA does more than offer superior security as enterprise attack surfaces expand. Enterprises that incorporate ZTA with endpoint protection as part of their integrated security strategy also enjoy the flexibility to support their business needs, beyond traditional security models.

Three critical capabilities ZTA features that optimize security and workflows on expanded networks include:

1. Authentication for Every Device, Every Time

Unlike traditional perimeter models, a ZTA-based security strategy assumes every user and device poses a risk. In this paradigm, ZTA authenticates every device before access is authorized. Because ZTA provides a seamless experience for users, automated security features can continuously authenticate devices every time a new or familiar device requests access, without adding friction to user workflows.

2. Role-Based Access for Every User

In this paradigm, security teams continuously monitor every user, no matter the user’s apparent risk. As part of this approach, security teams have visibility into the role-based access of every user, emphasizing a “least access policy” whereby users only access resources that are necessary for their roles.

3. Asset Protection, On and Off Network

Increased remote and mobile activity among users means that there is a greater risk they will expose their devices to bad actors. In doing so, they expose organizational resources to security threats, whether they realize a risk is present or not.

The ZTA approach improves endpoint visibility to protect against the risks associated with remote endpoint devices. Endpoint security measures share security telemetry data each time the device reconnects to the enterprise network. This provides security teams with visibility into vulnerabilities and threats, as well as into missing security patches and missing updates to role-based access, when applicable.

5 Essential Features Of Today’s Leading Zero-Trust Access Frameworks

Once CISOs and other IT executives understand the rationale behind ZTA frameworks, they must understand the ZTA market and the leading features each solution provides.

Consider the following five essential features as you review the leading solutions available today:

1. Automated Discovery Classification

Network access control discovers and identifies every device on, or seeking access to, the network. The ZTA system automatically scans those devices to ensure they are not compromised, then classifies each device by role and function.

2. Zone-of-Control Assignment

The system automatically assigns users to role-based zones of control where they can be monitored continuously, both on and off network. Network access control microsegments users in mixed environments featuring vendors, partners, contingent workers, and others in addition to employees, supporting robust capabilities even as companies expand the edge.

3. Continuous Monitoring

This feature is founded on the premise that no single user or device can be trusted, even after authentication, a device may be infected or a user’s credentials could have been compromised. ZTA frameworks continuously monitor users and devices, imposing streamlined authentication at every point of access as a result.

4. Secure Remote Access

The ZTA framework provides users with safe but flexible options for VPN connectivity, improving the user experience even as it imposes more robust security features. The framework also ensures internet-based transactions cannot backflow into each VPN connection, which would put the enterprise at risk.

5. Endpoint Access Control

The framework uses proactive visibility, defense, and control to strengthen endpoint security. Discovering, assessing, and continuously monitoring endpoint risk streamlines endpoint risk mitigation, risk exposure, and compliance. The framework supports encrypted connections across unsafe networks and continuously retrieves telemetry data to measure endpoint security statuses as well.

Consider Fortinet ZTA For A Fully Integrated Security Strategy

As an IT leader, your ultimate responsibility is not only to keep your company, resources, and users secure but also to help users innovate, improve the bottom line with new efficiencies, and generally meet the needs of the business. That’s why the experts at WEI recommend to IT and security executives who are re-thinking their approach to enterprise security as risks and business requirements evolve.

Framework includes:

1. Complete and continuous control over who is accessing applications
2. Complete and continuous control over who AND what is on the network
3. Integrated ZTA solution for Fortinet Security Fabric that works on-premises and in the cloud over LAN, WAN, and remote tunnels
4. A complete, integrated solution coming from one vendor

Featuring comprehensive visibility and control across infrastructure, users, and devices, Fortinet ZTA provides security leaders with the capabilities they need to both protect enterprise resources and enable modern workforces, no matter the location of each user or device.

Fortinet is leading the way with zero-trust for the enterprise

Fortinet offers comprehensive and holistic security solutions for the largest enterprise, service provider, and government organizations in the world. From firewalls to cloud security, Fortinet ensures security without compromising performance. Here at WEI we have expertise across all Fortinet solutions and can help you evaluate and determine the best approach to an integrated security strategy that delivers on your desired business outcomes.

Next Steps: Download our eBook highlighting the right mix of security solutions for your enterprise to help protect your business from emerging threats while keeping your users productive and happy. Click below to start reading!

The post 5 Critical Features Of Your Zero-Trust Access Strategy appeared first on IT Solutions Provider - IT Consulting - Technology Solutions.

Regardless of the subject, there’s no one better to learn from than the experts. With this thought in mind, we recently held a featuring Kevin Mitnick, a famous hacker and New York Times bestselling author, James Morrison, a Distinguished Technologist and a former FBI agent, and our own Greg LaBrie, an enterprise security industry veteran and our Vice President of Technology Solutions and Services.

The webinar titled “Hack Me If You Can!” is now available for , and it shared expert insights on key cybersecurity topics including:

• Common threats and tactics used by today’s hackers
• Which new technologies can improve your cybersecurity strategy
• How to turn the tables on cyberattacks through offensive and defensive security strategies

In this article, we’ll share the top three takeaways from the webinar that you need to know to effectively combat today’s evolving cybersecurity threats.

1. Identifying Your Priorities Should Be The First Step In Your Cybersecurity Strategy

In the last year and a half, enterprises around the world have been faced with a substantial, new challenges. In terms of IT and cybersecurity, the exodus to remote working, maintaining that, and the evolution of the hybrid workspace has stretched enterprise security teams to the breaking point. Unfortunately, the bad guys know it and have no qualms about taking advantage.

According to a from INTERPOL, the rapid deployment of remote systems and networks allowed criminals to take “advantage of increased security vulnerabilities to steal data, generate profits and cause disruption.”

Even now, as some companies go back to the office and others delay in-person plans, or adopt a hybrid approach, cybercriminals are waiting for their opportunity to strike and these transitional periods are the perfect target.

In addition to the confusion and uncertainty created by the pandemic and the subsequent rise in cybercrime, companies are overwhelmed as they re-evaluate their security strategy and solutions as they begin to implement a more comprehensive cybersecurity strategy.

During the cybersecurity webinar, Greg LaBrie shared how the amount of enterprise security solutions on the market and the complexity of setting up security throughout an enterprise’s digital environment is making it hard for companies to determine their security priorities. As a result, many companies end up utilizing solutions that aren’t the best fit for their needs or leave vulnerabilities by neglecting to secure certain aspects of their digital environment.

“Don’t just buy any server, but look carefully at your server. Just don’t throw any solution out there, but really look at one of these confusing acronyms like ZTNA (zero trust network access). It means you have to have endpoint protection. It means you need to have multi-factor authentication. It means you need to have network access control and identity management,” Greg shared during the webinar.

“Put those solutions in place and also have a plan B. Have a backup. Have a way that if you do get ransomware that you can recover. That you don’t need to even be concerned about paying a ransom or the threat of paying ransom.”

2. Utilize Penetration Testing To Analyze Your Cybersecurity Strategy

Once your cybersecurity strategy is in place and you’re up and running, the next step should be to test for any vulnerabilities. That’s where ethical hackers like come in.

After getting himself into some hot water utilizing his talents in not-so-legal ways, Kevin eventually began operating a cybersecurity testing company and now helps enterprises determine areas of improvement in their defense strategy.

“I think penetration testing is absolutely necessary, because how do you know what weaknesses are in your security controls? How do you know that your network services aren’t exploitable? What about your web applications?” Kevin said during the webinar.

During the course of a penetration test, teams like Kevin’s make use of strategies that today’s hackers would utilize, using their creativity and expertise to determine how a cybercriminal could gain access and then, figure out what needs to be done to remove that vulnerability.

Sometimes it’s the simplest things that give cybercriminals the keys to your digital environment.

“I can’t tell you how many times organizations we tested that have all the privileged passwords sitting there on unencrypted Excel spreadsheets on the IT drive. And that’s the first place a bad actor is going to look.”

3. You Don’t Have To Go It Alone

Just like any other predator, cybercriminals want their prey scared and isolated. Thankfully, as it is in the animal kingdom, there is strength in numbers when it comes to cybersecurity.

New security guidance is coming out every day and sharing information is one way we can get ahead of bad actors.

For enterprises, another method is to work with a partner like WEI on your cybersecurity strategy.

As shared by James Morrison during the webinar, security is being built into tools that never had it before and while not every solution is going to fit your enterprise, by talking to your IT solutions provider, you can better determine what your cybersecurity needs are.

“Modernization is not just about us tech companies trying to sell the new gadget. There are new security features built into a lot of the things that we do. So, let’s have that conversation. Don’t just ignore it because you think we’re trying to pump a product. If it’s ransomware that bugs you, let’s talk about it. Let’s talk about ransomware avoidance, ransomware remediation, ransomware recovery. All of these things, but we’ve got to start with having that honest conversation. Can you afford $11 million for ransomware? Because if you think your insurance is going to protect you from it, that ship is sailing.”

Ensure a Comprehensive Cybersecurity Strategy With WEI

Having a trusted technology partner like WEI can help you build the right security foundation with secure tools like integrated with Processors, while walking you through a cyber-savvy strategy to identify vulnerabilities and take a proactive approach to risk mitigation.

NEXT STEPS: Watch the webinar for other cybersecurity pearls of wisdom as you take a closer look at strengthening your own security posture. You can also sign up for a one-on-one .

The post 3 Key Takeaways From WEI’s Cybersecurity Webinar appeared first on IT Solutions Provider - IT Consulting - Technology Solutions.

After being popularized and exploding onto the IT scene almost a decade ago, the usage and management of containers is still evolving as new and more efficient organization strategies and tools are developed.

is one such tool. It was released in 2014 and over the last several years, has grown to be one of the most frequently utilized container management platforms.

That said, its popularity does nothing to simplify its core concepts and for executives, even those with an IT background, it can be hard to understand just how important and useful Kubernetes really is.

To make the conversation easier, we’ve pulled the top four things enterprise leadership should know about Kubernetes from ‘s Kubernetes for Executives report and other sources, and shared them in the article below.

1. What is Kubernetes?

The first step to understanding the benefits of Kubernetes (Koo-burr-NET-eez) is to actually learn what it is. This is typically the part that creates the most confusion for non-technical members of leadership teams.

As described on , “Kubernetes is a portable, extensible, open-source platform for managing containerized workloads and services, that facilitates both declarative configuration and automation.”

Depending on your own technical knowledge, that explanation might seem pretty simple or it may require further explanation. To start with, what is a container and what are they used for?

In VMware’s words, “ encapsulate applications and make them portable.” Essentially, containers provide a way to keep software running under identical conditions when it is moved from one computing environment to another. As an example, this might be migrating an application from a test environment into production.

For today’s enterprises, containers offer a sort of “plug and play” method for administration, development, and distribution of applications and their relevant dependencies.

Kubernetes goes one step further and offers scalable, automatic management and administration for distributed systems at the container level and serves as a starting platform for developers, while also preserving user choice and flexibility.

2. What are the benefits?

At its core, Kubernetes is an API-based, scalable and extensible solution, supported in all major public clouds and with a growing community of open-source solutions that complement its essential features.

Among its other benefits, Kubernetes offers the following, :

• Service discovery and load balancing
• Storage orchestration
• Automated rollouts and rollbacks
• Automatic bin packing
• Self-healing
• Secret and configuration management

For a non-technical audience, Kubernetes can best be described as an automated system that eliminates many of the manual provisioning and other tasks required for container management.

Its components, which are easily replaceable to allow the system to be extended to new requirements and environments, work together to coordinate activities and react to events.

3. Why Your Enterprise Needs Kubernetes

As shared by VMware, Kubernetes benefits the enterprise at multiple levels, from the IT teams that administer the digital environment, to application developers, and all the way up to CIOs.

The bottom line is:

• Kubernetes reduces the amount of time administrators need to spend on container management, allowing them to focus on more complex and beneficial tasks.
• It allows enterprises to deliver new software and products more quickly.
• Kubernetes improves infrastructure and application availability, resulting in increased productivity at every level of the enterprise.
• It improves security by allowing application developers to play an active role in designing securable application.

4. How To Get Started With Kubernetes

Starting your journey to Kubernetes adoption can seem daunting, especially for those enterprises that have yet to fully embrace cloud computing technologies. However, the rewards of taking the leap are undeniable, especially for those enterprises the prioritize software development.

If you aren’t sure where to get started, VMware and can help you pave your way forward.

Are Your Looking For A Partner On Your Journey To Kubernetes?

VMware offers enterprises solutions that will help them manage and run consistent infrastructure, across on-premises data centers and public clouds, improving user experience and overall business operations. Their innovative approach to container orchestration offers architecture that is easy to deploy and manage, increasing enterprise agility and flexibility.

NEXT STEPS: Is your organization using containers?

Click below to grab your copy of our FREE EBOOK, “The IT Leader’s Guide to Using Containers in Today’s Digital World.”

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I’m sure you’ve heard the saying, “a company’s greatest asset is their employees.” However, they can only be your greatest asset when they have the tools they need to be successful. For this, and many other reasons, many enterprises are offering Apple products to their employees.

This is especially true as the need and desire for flexible working environments has grown. offers simplified deployment and management, all while offering superior security, interconnectivity between devices, and productivity benefits for users.

As an added bonus, Apple devices are a popular choice as personal tech devices, meaning there’s a good change your employees are already familiar with using Mac, iPhone, and iPad at home. This familiarity is an added productivity bonus, on top of letting your employees utilize devices they already know and love for work.

The Availability of New Technologies and Ease of Updates

There’s a reason why Apple is the gold standard for new and shiny pieces of tech. With frequent and significant upgrades to hardware and their signature operating systems, iOS, macOS, and now iPadOS, Apple offers your employees the latest and greatest in digital technology.

Recently, Apple announced a at , their annual worldwide developers conference. The news included the reveal of , , and All three will be available to the general public sometime this fall. In the meantime, it’s time for IT to see how these updates will impact the enterprise’s IT environment and get prepared for the switch.

Thankfully, Apple makes this easy too. While there are third-party alternatives for managing software patches and updates, Apple offers a cloud-based service called Software Update, which enables IT teams to apply security patches and operating system updates.

The service also publishes patches and updates for frequently used applications such as Safari and iTunes for added efficiency. Mac is pointed to the service by default, which automatically notifies end users of any patches and updates they need to apply, and then prompts them to execute the downloads. For enterprises, putting self-service in the hands of your users keeps them focused and productive and reduces IT support tickets.

Apple Offers Unbeatable ROI

Beyond all the previously mentioned benefits of Apple devices in the enterprise, your business will see additional savings when it comes to IT.

A found that when organizations decided to implement an employee choice program and offer Mac, they “reduced IT support costs, improved employee productivity and engagement, and improved overall security.”

By reducing the amount of time spent managing devices and responding to the help desk, Apple helps reduce overall costs and lets IT focus on more important and complex tasks.

BONUS: Read our 2-part blog series that shares the ROI highlights from Forrester’s TEI study about Mac.

Apple Helps Enterprises Keep Data Safe

Security is on everyone’s mind right now. New threats are popping up every day and the financial ramifications of a successful cyberattack just keep growing.

To help reduce the risk that cyberthreats pose, Apple has gone to great lengths to ensure the use of Apple devices in the enterprise does not pose a security risk.

Here are a few of the strategies and technologies utilized by Apple to ensure security:

• Secure startup processes
• Extensive system safeguards
• Strong passcode policies
• The Apple T2 Security Chip
• Runtime protection, sandboxing, and other tools used to ensure downloaded apps are only accessing data in pre-authorized ways

Over the last few years, Apple has emerged as an industry leader when it comes to user data privacy and security and has taken a firm stance on data protection as a corporation. Find out more about Apple’s security strategies from Apple CEO Tim Cook’s presented at the most recent Computers Privacy and Data Protection (CPDP) Conference.

Apple Authorized Resellers Can Help Enterprises Get Started

Enterprises looking to implement Apple devices can work with Apple Authorized Resellers to get started, as well as utilizing them for ongoing maintenance and support. As an Apple Authorize Reseller, WEI can help you quickly and efficiently integrate Apple into your enterprise with full lifecycle support, so you can deliver the user experience your employees have come to expect.

Are You Ready to Empower Your Employees with Apple In The Enterprise?

Implementing Apple for those employees who consistently request them drives productivity, collaboration, and creativity throughout the enterprise. Many of our customers have already made the transition to a blended Windows and Apple environment that enables employees to enjoy how they use technology in their jobs. Find out how WEI can help you create efficiencies with Apple device management and how our specialized services can help you roll out a user experience that will empower your employees to do their best work. Contact WEI today to find out how we are helping our employees deploy and manage Apple in the enterprise with full lifecycle support.

NEXT STEPS: Get our official guide to everything you need to know to prepare for offering Apple in the Enterprise in our exclusive eBook below.

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It seems like everyone is going hybrid these days when it comes to enterprise architectures. According to Gartner, 75 percent of midsize and large organizations will have adopted a multi-cloud and/or a hybrid IT model by now. The reason is pretty simple, while 97 percent of IT decision makers confirm a positive experience with the public cloud, not everything can go there. Unfortunately, there are issues such as security, compliance, and the uncomfortable uncertainty of managing your stuff “up there” wherever that place is, that prevents companies from the public cloud experience for all. If everything could reside in a public cloud however, what a wonderful world it would be.

The inequality within hybrid models

The adoption of a brings about a lot of flexibility. It lets you choose where to host your applications, workloads and resources. But with hybrid architectures, many organizations quickly discover an unsettling consequence, inequality. While the public cloud is a panacea for matters such as scalability, rapid deployment time, resource utilization efficiencies and reduced startup costs, many of your critical applications that remain on-prem continue to be saddled with the typical restraints as was exemplified in a recent survey by 451 Research that examines the typical cloud experience through the lens of 1,001 “on the ground” practitioners. Here are a few of the key findings from that report that illustrate the ongoing challenges of the on-premises model:

• Scalability and agility were the biggest worries, with 80 percent citing that deployment times are too slow.
• Capacity planning was a major challenge for 71 percent of IT leaders, with 92 percent acknowledging a wait time of 30 days or longer to get new capacity installed.
• 83 percent of enterprises are still using fixed-capital models for on-premise capacity, reducing the agility of budgets and innovation.

There’s no doubt, that from the on-prem world, the grass looks a lot greener on the other side of the fence. And so lies the conundrum. How do IT decision makers balance the need for greater agility, and improved provisioning times that you typically get from a cloud experience while maintaining security and control of their resources? In the end, most IT leaders play it safe, which creates unnecessary 40-50 percent server capacity and lost opportunities.

Consumption-based IT

What IT leaders need is a cloud-like experience on-premises. Doing so would eliminate the blaring gaps that exist when comparing the on-prem experience to that of the public cloud. But is that even possible?

Here’s some good news at a time when good news is at a premium! You actually can have high resiliency, scalability, and effective capacity utilization while still remaining secure, compliant and in control. It’s a new cloud-like financial model referred to as consumption-based IT and it is available today through HPE GreenLake services. While you may not have heard of GreenLake, you have certainly heard of its parent company, HPE. So popular is the idea of transforming your on-prem environment to a public cloud-like experience, that GreenLake is HPE’s fastest growing business. With 10 years of experience as a market leading IT-as-a-Service provider, GreenLake has demonstrated to its customer base that you can have the cloud experience everywhere.

How the HPE GreenLake model works

There are definite reasons why the public cloud experience is superior to the on-prem strategies of most enterprises today. Public clouds are comprised of the latest equipment and service catalog technology. All of it is administered by experts in their field who utilize best practices, operational techniques and orchestration to ensure optimum performance. This what you get with GreenLake. You can achieve that cloud-like experience with the latest technology from HPE such as HPE SimpliVity, HPE Synergy, Nimble Storage and ProLiant Gen10 servers. They also incorporate third party software and services including Docker, Hadoop, SAP HANA, Nutanix AHV, VMware Cloud Foundation, Microsoft Azure and AWS. Multi-vendor flexibility without the lock in, that’s nice! All of this is then managed by them, while ensuring that you are calling the shots. By handing over the administrative burden to dedicated specialists, your own IT department can focus on business objectives and value added projects.

Four steps for adopting ITaaS with HPE GreenLake

The GreenLake blueprint involves the following essential steps to adopting an IT-as-a-Service experience across your entire enterprise.

1. Define the right mix to remain in control of your complete enterprise according to your current business needs
2. Implement in-place scalability and on-demand processes in order to stay ahead of business demand, while only paying for what you use (this is key!)
3. Optimize skill sets within your organization by offloading management of your hybrid environment to HPE GreenLake Management Services
4. Access your operating model to simplify IT, while providing increased security, visibility and flexibility at the same time

Greater cash flow and cost visibility

The GreenLake model is a pay-per-use model. No longer do you have to play it safe with excessive and wasteful capacity that approaches 40-50 percent for the average enterprise. By eliminating overprovisioning and upfront capital expenditures, HPE customers are seeing an average cash flow saving of 30-40 percent on average after adopting the GreenLake consumption-based IT model. On top of everything else they offer, GreenLake’s metering and analytics software helps customers determine the true cost and profitability to each of their allotted IT services.

Talk to WEI about consumption-based IT

There is nothing new about the concept of consumption-based IT. What’s new is that it is no longer just available in the public cloud. It’s available for your on-prem data center as well. If you want to learn how eradicating the inequality of workloads and performance within their hybrid architectures, then talk to WEI where we can introduce you to the GreenLake model, as well as the concept of having the best of both worlds at your doorstep.

Pay-per-use models are looking to be the future of IT cost models, ask us how your business can start reaping the benefits. Send me a message on LinkedIn to start a discussion, or contact our team here. We look forward to helping you find opportunities to move your business forward in the most cost-effective manner.

You might be interested in our white paper about implementing a hybrid IT model and how to overcome some of the common challenges we’ve seen across enterprise organizations. Click below to read more.

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Each Friday you can expect to see a new “Industry Info to Know” blog post from WEI consisting of a roundup of articles from industry experts, analysts, and our partners that we find insightful and helpful. We will also include links to industry news that you need to know about, news that will impact your business so you can plan ahead for it. We all need to help each other right now, we’re all in IT together.

As a team of trusted advisors to your company, we put a lot of effort into perfecting our practice. We are continuously learning, testing, and expanding our expertise across all facets of the enterprise IT landscape. That being said, we have an obligation to stay ahead of trends, look forward to the future of IT and provide insights to help our customers navigate the ever-evolving IT landscape.

There were a lot of great articles that caught our attention this week. Let’s take a look…

Industry News Insights

Remote access needs strategic planning right now
Regardless of the length of the current pandemic disruption, IT must plan for situations in which it will have to support a large distributed workforce. This Network World article discusses why IT pros should start work on a better remote-access architecture, focusing on secure access service edge (SASE).
Read more

Nutanix DR Multi Site Recovery
In a world where uncertainty is certain and IT disasters don’t come with a warning, IT leaders cannot afford to take the risk of not being prepared. Learn about how Nutanix supports three major DR topologies, with details for multi-site disaster scenarios and recovery workflows.
Read more

One of the goals of NetOps and DevOps teams is to optimize the application experience, but complex infrastructure and dynamic application flows pose challenges. In this post from Cisco, learn how Cisco SD-WAN Cloud Hub with Google Cloud simplifies workflows by automating the tasks needed to deliver a better application experience.

How do you create a consistently functional remote work environment when faced with inconsistent home internet connections that your employees are using? This article from an HPE VP shares six best practices that can help you significantly improve the overall functionality of your remote work environment in the face of inconsistent last-mile connections.

This CIO.com article shares how corporate IT at Oshkosh Corporation has shifted its mindset from supporting core technologies to one that is more closely in tune with business objectives and customer needs. Plus, learn about 5 keys steps for digital transformation that helped them transition the business.

Cisco’s 2020 Global Networking Trends report provided a glimpse into what that future means for IT networking professionals. This article discusses new jobs that will emerge to address changing IT needs such as business translator, network guardian, network detective, and more.

This pandemic has reshaped the economy, the workforce and how technology supports all of it. CIOs are now looking to the future to prepare for the lingering effects it will have on business technology. See what CIO Dive has pulled together as some of the most pertinent stories to emerge from the last two months.

Industry Conferences Update

We are actively monitoring the status of industry tradeshows and conferences and will provide updates as they come in. We’ve been referring to this helpful roundup from SDxCentral: .

Assess your remote worker strategy today

We are finding that companies are all over the gamut when it comes to preparedness for remote workers at scale. WEI has experience and expertise in VDI and Desktop as a Service solutions from the industry’s leading vendors. We invite you to take us up on a VDI assessment or VDI Health Check up today.

How can we help?

We’ve been in tight communications with all customers and are providing peace of mind with the mantra, “Whatever you need, we’ll make IT work.” And we’ve answered the call, helping our customers with everything from supplying equipment, parts, cloud advice, architecture design, VDI, networking support, remote monitoring, staff augmentation services, and so much more… Contact us today to learn how we can help your business.

NEXT STEPS: Explore our other editions of the ‘Industry Info to Know’ Blog Series:

• Industry Info to Know – 05.01.20 Roundup
• Industry Info to Know – 04.24.20 Roundup
• Industry Info to Know – 04.17.20 Roundup
• Industry Info to Know – 04.10.20 Roundup
• Industry Info to Know – 04.03.20 Roundup
• Industry Info to Know – 03.27.20 Roundup

Subscribe to our blog using the form on this page to ensure you get a copy of this weekly email each Friday in your inbox.

The post Industry Info to Know – 05.08.20 Roundup appeared first on IT Solutions Provider - IT Consulting - Technology Solutions.

A global study commissioned by Dell EMC finds that if your enterprise isn’t actively using or pursuing ways to embrace artificial intelligence (AI) for success and risk mitigation you’re being left behind. And considering how fast today’s tech landscape moves, that gap is getting wider, faster.

Specifically, Dell’s study found 51 percent of firms have already implemented or are expanding their implementation of . An additional 20 percent plan to implement AI in the next 12 months. However, to ensure its success and mitigate the risks that come with it, CIOs must take the lead and ultimately drive the enterprise AI agenda themselves.

CIOs are optimally positioned for this task as the data, applications, server, accelerator, fabric, and storage infrastructures that they manage are critical for driving business value with AI. They can’t do it alone however, their IT teams will also need to transform and become familiar with the new software applications, infrastructure, and platforms necessary for AI, and modernize existing systems to better support the increasing number of AI initiatives. Simultaneously, CIOs must also track the business outcomes AI is driving to sustain and grow further investments in AI.

So where does a CIO start? After a survey of over 350 global enterprises, put together a CIO’s checklist to guide your transformation efforts, and we agree with the approach. Dig into the checklist below.

1. Engage with the lines of business on their AI needs

Fifteen to twenty percent of the time, lines of business (LOB) completely bypass IT departments when it comes to their AI initiatives. Start rolling ongoing AI projects into IT processes, assess the capabilities that have been developed, and engage business units on their AI goals, challenges, and unmet needs.

Embrace the LOB’s momentum and learn from their progress. Share that information within the organization and challenge yourself to learn the newest applications of AI and how they can impact your enterprise.

Use that knowledge to be the go-between for stakeholders and coordinate the investment, energy, and development of AI. Use that authority to proactively drive AI conversations and become the trusted partner on AI initiatives.

2. Start measuring AI’s impact and its progress

Identify, study, and track the key performance indicators (KPIs) that matter most to your enterprise. Use these metrics to assess and justify AI initiatives.

3. Modernize your infrastructure for existing workloads

According to Dell’s report, 64 percent of enterprises reported that outdated and antiquated software was a significant challenge in driving their AI initiatives. Avoid this by moving away from costly legacy technologies that can’t be upgraded and replacing them with software capable of growing and scaling with your enterprise.

Another half to three-quarters of enterprises reported their AI initiatives were hampered by a lack of automation. With an estimated 73 percent of IT spending going towards day to day operations, investing in automation and self-service now will free up resources for new AI initiatives later.

CIOs also need to ensure that their enterprise data integration, database, and data warehouses are ready and capable of handling and powering your AI initiatives.

4. Deploy platforms for building AI solutions

CIOs need to deploy platforms that can enable multiple lines of business to build AI solutions and leverage components from each other’s solutions. For example:

• Deploy predictive analytics and machine learning platforms that enable data engineers and scientists to collaborate on models and data pipelines across teams.
• Deploy text analytics, natural language processing, and speech analytics platforms that can be applied to use cases ranging from customer service, marketing, and sales, and can also support the creation of chatbots for both internal and external use.

5. Invest in infrastructure for AI at scale

Invest in the infrastructure hardware required for successful AI transformation. Machine learning, and especially deep learning, requires a new level of computational horsepower, as well as high-bandwidth, low-latency networking and storage.

Sixty-one percent of firms surveyed reported being challenged by a lack of servers with purpose-built processors like GPUs and FGPAs. Over eighty percent pointed to a need for new servers that can handle high-performance computing, as well as accelerators to cut down model training times from days and weeks to minutes and hours. That demand will only continue to grow, so CIOs should invest now in highly scalable, with accelerators to support the AI demands of the business.

6. Take charge of the company’s AI strategy

As you become an invaluable partner on AI initiatives, take responsibility for driving the master AI strategy for the enterprise. Ultimately the successes or failures of the enterprises AI ventures will fall on the CIO’s shoulders, whether or not the project was started by them.

7. Build AI capabilities for the company and IT department simultaneously

Assess AI projects that you can support effectively. Begin with technologies that have well-defined use cases, a proven ROI, and relatively mature commercial solutions. Use the KPIs you identified at the onset to track and broadcast AI efforts across the company to keep senior leadership and other stakeholders appraised. Build capability in IT with data science, data engineering, DevOps, and developer skills necessary to build these solutions.

8. Continuously build the business case for further AI investments

Identify, study, and track the business performance metrics that matter most to your company on an ongoing basis. Proving the positive impact of AI to the business will drive increased investment. With meticulous tracking and reporting, the business case for AI investments will be impossible to ignore.

CIOs should also regularly scan for new business opportunities and find new investments, before the lines of business even know about them. Dell’s study found that mature organizations who invest more in AI get more in return. For instance, approximately half of enterprises with an annual spend of $36M in AI expect an ROI between two and five times their initial investment.

Be ready to invest significant portions of the IT budget into new endeavors; it won’t be cheap, but the CIO must drive these new investments and put the priorities of the business as a whole above those of the IT department.

NEXT STEPS: Learn more about how AI in the data center can transform the way you manage IT operations. Click below to read our Tech Brief today.

The post Implementing AI – A CIO’s Checklist For Success appeared first on IT Solutions Provider - IT Consulting - Technology Solutions.

According to a report by Gartner in 2016, 50% of CEO’s expect their industries to be substantially or unrecognizably transformation. The underlying scope of this proclamation is that the companies that successfully compete in this new economy will have substantially or unrecognizably transformed themselves as well. These IT leaders expect change, dramatic change. They are faced with the immense task of augmenting their organizational processes and shifting the cultural mindset towards innovation. The key to success here is leveraging the power of digital technologies to create that change. There are two choices today, adapt to change or create it.

So what are the benefits of this transformation that seems to be so imperative today? How about the ability to be proactive instead of reactive and gain unprecedented efficiencies and value for customers?

A classic example of this modulation to a proactive organization is how businesses support the physical products they sell such as automobiles and appliances. Fifty years ago, automotive and appliance repair required a sense of instinct and an element of trial and error. It might even take more than one attempt to actually fix the problem. Thanks to the computer revolution, automobiles and appliances soon had built-in computer sensors, which gave the mechanic or technician the all-important error code to help eliminate guesswork. This eliminated the time required to fix the product and decreased the displacement and inconvenience of being without it. In the proactive digital world, the onboard computer within your devices will connect to the Internet and alert the technician of an impending component failure. The technician will then call you and schedule a visit before it even breaks. That is what proactive value is.

The Benefits of Digital Transformation

The Internet of Things, or Internet over Everything, plays a major role in the digital transformation the world is undergoing. IoT helps create real time data streams that provide greatly enhanced experiences for customers. However, the process of digitizing your organization provides major benefits internally for organizations as well, such as:

• Increased internal collaboration as employees can now openly communicate across departments and between business functions. Frontend point-of-sale employees can now interconnect with engineers and programmers on the backend.
• Shorter development times for products and services allowing them to get into the hands of customers faster; thus shortening the time to value.
• Streamlining operations in order to attain efficiencies and savings in your two most limited commodities, time and money.
• Allowing researchers to focus on innovation and creativity rather than repetitive efforts by utilizing the tools of digital automation.
• Cultivating a culture of innovation due to increased levels of work empowerment as employees can now witness the results of their substantive efforts.
• Taking advantage of unprecedented levels of data mining that can provide key performance indicators through digital dashboards, allowing management to change existing processes, products, services and even business models in record time in order to take advantage of newly recognized opportunities.
• Faster levels of geographical expansion can now take place, exposing the organization to new customers and opportunities.

According to an MIT study, companies that have embraced digital transformation are than their average industry competitors are and enjoy a 12% higher market valuation. Similar studies have shown a 9% increase in revenue through their employees and physical assets as well as similar attainments in higher market valuation ratios. Another study conducted by IDG Research services found that 92 percent of IT and business leaders said their organization’s competitive strategy calls for digital transformation initiatives. What’s more, 90 percent called digital business “a top IT priority” for the next one to three years. Some 44 percent called it their number one priority!

Obviously, digital transformation is far more than simply digitizing data streams, products and services. Just as important is the ability to manage the processes that create, enable, manage, and deliver them. The entity that makes all of that possible is the cloud.

Where Organizations Stand Today in the Digital Transformation

Business leaders across the board are aware of the race to digital transformation. Some industries are more vulnerable to disruption than others are currently. Where a company is in the transformation process is often based on just how vulnerable their industry is to disruption. Not surprisingly, B2C organizations have made the greatest strides towards this end goal. According to CIO Magazine, 63% of B2C industry leaders are planning to enhance their online experience and 46% are looking to improve their mobile offerings. In addition, any industry with an inherent low barrier to entry is far more willing to embrace all phases of digital transformation.

Today, 90% of organizations claim to have a digital transformation strategy; however, a study done by Oxford University found that only 16% of companies feel that they have the ability to successfully implement it. published a similar finding last year citing that while 84% feel they currently lack the means, 40% feel that they will still meet their targeted achievements within the next three years.

The truth is that all organizations are at different levels of digital maturity. Challenges that are impairing the maturity process include:

• The skills gap required to implement the required processes
• The dependence on large legacy infrastructures that are costly to transform
• A lack of vision to know just where and how to go about the transformation process
• The inability to let go of legacy technology and infrastructure
• Lack of budget and resources to fund necessary projects

Although 90% IT and decision makers report to be on course to achieving digital transformation, the truth is that most companies are at a crossroads with one foot in the digital world and one still comfortably resting in the past world of legacy technologies.

How the Hybrid Cloud Expedites Digital Transformation

The cloud is the change agent that is digitizing the world. Whether we are discussing IoT or mobile devices and applications, the cloud is the common thread that binds them together. The cloud is the universal ecosphere that provides the services that all of these devices and apps rely on to be “smart.” It is also the collector and storage mechanism for the petabytes of data that these devices collect as well.

“Cloud computing is the agent of digital disruption,” stated Alex Hilton, CEO of the Cloud Industry Forum. “We can see that there are significant benefits to be had by businesses that pursue both in tandem.” The Gartner research group also agrees that cloud computing is one of the most disruptive forces since the early days of the digital age and estimates that will collectively spend more than $1 trillion dollars on it within the next five years.

The reason is simple. Only the cloud can provide the necessary coverage to:

• Service customers regardless of geographic location
• Enable storage and processing resources to share and collect data
• Support IoT and mobile environments
• Provide backup and DR solutions that are flexible, yet inexpensive

The end goal of transitioning to a hybrid cloud is to achieve total flexibility in the hosting and transfer of services and resources. In the beginning, the hybrid cloud provides a way to accelerate the transition to realize the speed and agility the cloud offers while still maintaining control of resources which are dictated by compliancy and security factors.

The traditional concept of the hybrid cloud is a private cloud in an internal, on premise data center coupled with a public cloud. A common use of this coupling is to handle burst level capacities during times of peak demand. Indeed, the ability to scale up and scale down enables digitalization without the burden of overprovisioning, which in today’s competitive environment is unsustainable. The hybrid cloud can be a unified collection of multiple public clouds and private clouds, all seamlessly connected together that mitigates risk and vendor lock in. With one foot in the cloud and one foot on premise, the hybrid cloud allows organizations to achieve the proper balance they need.

Choosing a cloud option is no longer a choice between public or private. It is about developing the right cloud strategy with the right costs, services and characteristics. Talk to an IT services and solutions provider like WEI to ensure your cloud strategy will achieve the digital transformation goals of your organization. Our cloud experts have vast knowledge of and experience with the technology options and public cloud vendors you may be considering as part of this strategy.

Next Steps: Is your organization ready for hybrid cloud? Have you already implemented a solution? Refer to our for tips for success. Download it today!

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