Technology refreshes have become pervasive and commonplace in our lives. I’m sure most of you have upgraded your phone or laptop, moved to a smarter TV or re-evaluated your home WiFi in the last two years. These transitions have become second nature and we often do them without much thought as we seek to have the latest and best of what’s available. When a company needs to refresh storage systems in the data center, there can often be more resistance to change. With data as the new capital, is your current storage hardware letting you tap into its real potential?
The specifications and type of hardware are likely the first focus of decision making on a technology refresh. In addition, our research and experience has revealed other factors that may influence the success of a storage refresh. Here are five key questions to ask yourself when approaching a refresh.
- Do you understand your current roadblocks?
A recent Forrester study found that 83% of decision makers report some or all of the following barriers to capturing, analyzing and acting on data*:
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- High storage costs.
- A data warehouse that is not optimized.
- Outdated IT infrastructure.
- Processes that are too manual to meet their needs.
- Have you maximized your current storage technology?
One thing to consider is if your current hardware is optimized. Our Optimize for Infrastructure service is designed to provide ongoing analysis to help keep your Unity, XT, PowerStore, SC Series, PowerScale and VxRail systems optimized and configured for year round peak performance. If your systems are not set up to be at top efficiency, you may already have storage capacity that you’re not using. Additionally, you may want to support your new storage with this service to stay ahead of future inefficiencies.
- Have you evaluated the right modality and business model for your outcomes?
With all the talk about public cloud and on-premises cloud it’s important to note that some data is better housed close to where it is created and consumed. This is true at both the edge and the data center. Security is also a factor when considering storage modality. How much control is required versus access to data, and how much risk can you afford? Expense is another consideration. Dell Technologies offers both traditional storage products and APEX Data Storage Services for a more cloud like ownership experience.
- Is your data in the right place to drive innovation?
70% of data decision-makers are gathering data faster than they can analyze and use it, yet 67% say they constantly need more data than their current capabilities provide. Refreshing technology is only the first step in achieving data driven business outcomes.
Putting new storage to work means getting workloads and data running accurately and efficiently the first time. Utilizing Dell Data Migration Services is an excellent way to accelerate your time to value in a technology upgrade. Designed as an efficient way to perform block, file, object and V2V migrations from Dell or third-party storage products, our services simplify the migration process by leveraging our experts to plan, manage and execute your migration. Available either remotely or with onsite add-ons, Data Migration Services provide you with greater control, security and value.
- Can you securely retire your existing equipment?
Concern for data security is the number one reason organizations require help with asset disposition. In fact, 72% of IT decision makers say they need external help to make sure they cover IT security and risk requirements*. With Dell Data Sanitization and Data Destruction for Enterprise Services we help businesses safely and responsibly manage assets at the end of the lifecycle. Whether you are looking to refresh and redeploy assets in your environment or retire them and have them removed, we have options to meet your needs. Aligned to the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) standards, our services help ensure data security and enable compliance. And we can help manage assets in a responsible way, focusing on reuse first and foremost, and safe recycling when reuse is not an option.
Find support at every step
The goal of any technology refresh is to evolve to meet future business needs in a way that maintains security and minimizes disruption to customers, workforce and business operations. Dell Technologies Services continues to innovate to provide best practices from planning to retirement of your storage assets. Learn more about Optimize for Infrastructure, Data Migration Services and Data Sanitization and Data Destruction services.
*Source: A Forrester Consulting Thought Leadership Spotlight Commissioned by Dell Technologies May 2021 Overcome Data Challenges with Data-As-A-Service
