Delivering next-generation transformation value over enterprise networks

“COVID-19 has escalated digital initiatives into digital imperatives,” analyst firm, Gartner, noted in describing how leaders need to rethink how an organisation approaches the years ahead.

It’s true that enterprises are having to rapidly grapple with this issue; KPMG has noted that by 2022, 80 per cent of revenue growth will depend on digital offerings and operations. For CIOs, the need to undertake digital transformation is a challenge that they face in the immediate term; not just for “keeping the lights on” and allowing work to continue through the pandemic, but rather to also drive competitive advantage in the recovery and rebound.

Overcoming challenges and driving successful transformations

Despite transformation being on the agenda for many years now, and the push to transformation accelerating over the past year, it remains a reality that only around 30 per cent of digital transformation projects meet or exceed their expected value.

In structuring a successful digital transformation initiative, CIOs need to be cognizant of four particular issues:

• Bandwidth and latency – A digitally-transformed environment is more reliant on cloud, applications, edge deployments, Internet-of-Things (IoT), AI and complex data processes. To manage all of this, the network environment needs to be carefully structured to ensure maximum bandwidth, minimum latency, and rapid scaling as needs demand.
• Security – In connecting applications and data online, the enterprise needs to reconsider its security environment. Perimeter defence will no longer be effective, and security best practices need to consider remote workers and points of connection.
• The need for 24/7 reliability – The more reliant an enterprise becomes on its digital business, the greater the costs of downtime. Redundancy and robust SLAs with providers are essential to shield the business from the impact of outages.
• The complexity of edge, hybrid and cloud environments – Where previously the network may have been a relatively simple datacentre, the modern IT environment is going to involve multiple datacentres, both owned and third party, as well as managed services. Ensuring a seamless connection and experience across all of these is essential to the success of transformation.

While CIOs are grappling with all these technical issues, they also need to account for a lack of internal skills in these areas, as Gartner noted. Finding the right partner that can help develop resilient, secure, scalable and fast networks will help the CIO build a foundation to leverage into a successful transformation.

Vocus provides its customers with dedicated account teams as well as 24/7 on-shore support (for rapid response times), and has developed a robust network of strategic partners to help enterprise and government customers grapple with the transformation challenge.

In addition, simplicity cuts to the core of the Vocus offering, with a scalable, robust fibre network that has been purpose-built for delivering to large enterprise needs. While operating with some of Australia’s largest enterprises, Vocus is also driven by the need to move with agility, developing solutions that allow customers to take a low-risk approach to scale and network resourcing.

Vocus in action

When the remote Minjar Gold mining site was unable to find any other fast, reliable network option for its employees, it turned to Vocus. Located 40km from the nearest town, and 400km from Perth, Minjar Gold was struggling on a limited-speed telecommunications network to perform business operations, provide employees with connectivity to connect with loved ones back home, as well as high-capacity internet for entertainment and other recreational purposes.

Vocus’ solution was to engineer a fixed wireless private network that boosted connectivity speeds from 40 Mbps to 500 Mbps, not only benefitting the miners, but also enabling Minjar Gold to provide local farmers and the nearby town with faster and more reliable services  – boosting both the productivity and morale of the area.

Read more about the Minjar Gold experience here.

Meanwhile, BankVic, a specialist financial institution that supports emergency services workers  and families, has only six branch locations, relying heavily on technology for the delivery of services. With customers constantly interacting with the bank through its app, website, and contact centre, downtime is a particular risk for the organisation. In recognising this ongoing challenge, as well as the need for more value and support from its telco provider, BankVic explored moving its network in 2019, and securing high-capacity, reliable links from its Melbourne branches and contact centre to datacentres in Sydney, along with strong dark fibre and connectivity capabilities.

Vocus was selected for its ability to be a strategic partner, and make recommendations that the bank hadn’t considered, and would not treat BankVic as a “minor” customer in comparison to some other larger contracts. As a result, Vocus was able to help BankVic make the transition by its deadline, even after facing issues with the telephony and contact centre cutover. Those issues weren’t of Vocus’ making, but Vocus supplied the resources to help the project remain on-track, highlighting its focus on customer engagement.

As BankVic ramped up its remote working capabilities to manage COVID-19 requirements, Vocus was able to rapidly scale firewalls where other technology providers would have struggled, and now, with COVID-19-enforced remote working proving to be a success, BankVic is looking to take further advantage of the opportunities it has for greater agility and productivity.

Read more about the BankVic experience here.

Enterprises that have been able to rapidly adapt to new working conditions now face an almost unprecedented opportunity to innovate, transform, and deliver an agile, nimble, future-proofed and digital-first environment. While digital transformation remains a challenge for CIOs, having the right network foundation and the expertise of the right network partner can help CIOs mitigate against the risk and deliver successful outcomes across the whole of the organisation.

For more information on Vocus’ fibre and network solutions, click here.