IT Trends & Technology

From just dipping their technological toe in the water to fully hosted data centers in the cloud, organizations have begun to embrace a wide range of managed services. If your organization has followed this path, then it is likely that you have heard the phrase “software defined data centers” (SDDC) and wondered what it meant and if it was right for your operations.

As managed services and hosting solutions have evolved, many customers have found that separating out their SQL databases from their other web and applications services can help them realize significant benefits. Whether the SQL databases are used for application development or in production environments, feeding data-hungry websites or business-critical applications with robust, highly available, and scalable hosted SQL databases can prove to be a differentiator for your business.

The digital transformation is underway in the utilities industry, with many public and private service providers modernizing grids and replacing aging infrastructure and assets with more efficient technology.

FNTS has a long history of building strong relationships and partnerships with our clients. Our people pride themselves on delivering excellent customer service, and as we move into 2019, this continued focus on our customer will stay a primary focus. As part of the customer experience and our service delivery focus, we intend to:

A few years ago, the phrase ”from the back room to the boardroom” was a new concept when it came to the IT department’s influence on business operations. Now, IT leaders are seen as key business enablers, driving initiatives that have changed the way customers interact with their suppliers and the way employees get their work done. This is all while they are also “keeping on the lights”—ensuring network connectivity, keeping hardware functional, and making sure services are secure and available.

Although mainframes are capable of processing over millions of transactions per second (much more, in fact, than the typical volume of searches on Google), they are largely viewed as unfashionable hardware.

Yet, despite generally being considered legacy technologies, you can plan on them being around for a while. This is because many companies are still using these behemoths, and in certain cases, actively purchasing new machines. Why?

Whether business leaders embrace digital transformation or not, it’s here to stay. Its  impact on enterprise has already proven to be quite profound, and adoption will be necessary to remain competitive and grow with each passing year.

Digital transformation is not just about the digitization of organizational processes needed to run day-to-day business operations. It’s largely a customer- and culture-driven transformation dictated by how consumers choose to do everything from initiate financial transactions to consume entertainment and the preference to use digital devices to communicate and express ideas.

Merriam-Webster has several definitions for the word myth. One of them is “a person or thing having only imaginary or unverifiable existence.”

Not surprisingly, there are many misconceptions and outright myths circulating about the cloud and cloud management that are just that—myths. In order to debunk these myths, one must come prepared with cold, hard facts that speak truth to fable.

The technology ecosystem is always changing, making it imperative for businesses to embrace new technologies available to them. However, many organizations rely on legacy technology to run their operations making it extremely difficult to make the transition to a more modern and innovative system.

As IBM iSeries celebrates its 30th anniversary, it continues to be a system of record for critical applications and data in sectors such as healthcare and manufacturing. The forward momentum of the digital business often means the server lags behind in the business backup strategy. This poses a myriad of challenges for users when it comes to avoiding downtime with iSeries backup strategies.

As the scope and pace of digital adoption continues to evolve and expand, business stakeholders now see it as imperative to survival and growth. Although total cost of ownership (TCO), operating expenditure (OPEX), and capital expenditure (CAPEX) are clear issues influencing digital adoption, it is the people sitting at the center of processes and technology that are the nexus of change.

First National Technology Solutions (FNTS) has welcomed two strategic leaders to its executive team. Ken Marr has joined FNTS as Chief Technology Officer and Arvind Thapar has been named Vice President of Strategy. 

Despite the growing momentum towards digital transformation, businesses across all sectors are limited to incremental change because of budget constraints. The result is legacy technologies and IT infrastructure that must be maintained for a wide variety of reasons. The challenge with this incremental approach is fulfilling the IT staffing needs for maintaining these legacy systems.

Agility, elasticity and automation of container technology will provide new capabilities to businesses who need to support digital platforms. According to the Forrester paper, Containers: Real Adoption and Use Cases, 63 percent of enterprises using containers have over 100 deployed, and 82 percent expect to have more than 100 containers deployed within the next two years. Though container technology is clearly making a mark across enterprises, the journey is just unfolding. What is clear is that containerization will have a profound impact on the future of IT infrastructure.

Maintaining a competitive edge is important in today’s technology environment. Organizations can lose out to competitors if they fail to keep up with advances in technology. According to a recent report by the International Data Corporation (IDC), by 2020, 50 percent of the world’s top businesses, known as the Global 2000, will see the majority of their business depend on their ability to create digitally-enhanced products, services and experiences. IDC predicts that worldwide investment in digital transformation initiatives will reach $2.2 trillion in 2019, almost 60 percent more than in 2016.

The Metropolitan Utilities District plans to save at least $6 million over the next 10 years by moving most of its internal data center operations to the cloud.  >>Read more 

Since there is more pressure on companies to decrease expenses—while simultaneously trying to bolster productivity and revenue—it has never been more important for them to find smart and affordable IT solutions to facilitate the digital transformation. Digital transformation means leveraging the opportunities that come with new technology and optimizing them to grow a business and make it more efficient.