Why there is no digital transformation without network transformation.

For the last decade, I have been involved in numerous digital transformation initiatives and have noticed a common theme across all these digital transformation initiatives - "In order to meet the expectations of an ever-evolving business environment, incorporating network transformation early on is the key to success for digital transformation initiatives."

The network is the backbone of any infrastructure and is a significant consideration in cloud migrations. In many cases, a branch or edge network is not ready for a digital transformation. The role of network readiness is a crucial element for the adoption of new technologies. A well-architected, reliable, resilient, and digitally native network is needed for the cloud-native enterprise. Many enterprises are migrating applications and workloads to hybrid and multi-cloud environments in order to achieve flexibility and elasticity. Their cloud journey highlights that WAN (Wide Area Network) impacts every aspect of the technology and business process, including security, end-user experience, business application delivery, and the underlying infrastructure.

Why should digital transformation start with network transformation?

Traditional MPLS (Multiprotocol Label Switching) circuits are significantly more expensive as compared to DIA (Direct Internet Access)/broadband connections and have exponentially more cost increment to support cloud applications adoption. These expensive MPLS circuits are implemented in the hub and spoke model by connecting the branch office as spoke and the data center as hub. Data traffic is then sent from the branch office to the data center in order to connect to the public cloud and SaaS providers, hence adding significant latency. Therefore, traditional centralized network architecture cannot support the expanding business requirements due to this bandwidth constraint and network latency.

What is SD-WAN-enabled Architecture?

SD-WAN is a software-defined wide area network that allows enterprises to use any combination of LTE, MPLS, DIA, or Broadband connections to provide secure access to applications. SD-WAN capabilities include virtualization of the WAN connection, orchestration and analytics, centralized policy management, and intelligent traffic routing. The SD-WAN orchestrator centralizes enterprise-wide SD-WAN policies, installations, configurations, monitoring, and manages the data flow. The edge appliances are zero-touch devices that provide connectivity to the applications irrespective of their hosting model.

1.   SD-WAN allows for central control and intelligent network traffic routing and security. It provides a framework to support hybrid cloud models by directing all approved internet traffic to exit the branch office and all other traffic routed to the datacenter.

2.   SD-WAN enables the network to reduce latency to the cloud by local traffic branch out to the cloud providers

Why is SD-WAN the right choice for your network transformation journey?

1.  SD-WAN enables utilization of all circuits (primary and secondary), thus increasing the network speed by leveraging application-aware routing.

2.   SD-WAN enabled WAN architecture shifts the traditional centralized topology to the de-centralized topology that will significantly increase the edge office bandwidth and at a lower cost.

3.   SD-WAN will make the edge sites ready by providing improved cloud connectivity through DIA/broadband connections. It also offers many capabilities for improving security (implementing Secure Access Service Edge (SASE) with SD-WAN), WAN optimization, load balancing, and intelligent application routing.

What are the key benefits of implementing an SD-WAN enabled network?

1.   It reduces the network circuit cost (i.e., the internet cost) and improves overall network performance, resiliency, and reliability (using both primary and secondary circuits).

2.   It implements a cloud-ready network with intelligent application routing.

3.   It improves network performance by identifying and prioritizing network traffic for the applications.

What are the key dimensions for SD-WAN selection?

SD-WAN vendor selection could be a long process involving multiple stakeholders. There are many competing enterprise-level SD-WAN providers, and IT leaders face a big dilemma in choosing the right provider to implement an SD-WAN solution. Your SD-WAN strategy must align with your existing technology investments, corporate technology strategy, and business strategy. Organizations should not overlook the expertise needed to manage and support a SD-WAN implementation.

What are the considerations for TCO analysis for SD-WAN?

IT leaders must consider both qualitative and quantitative cost aspects for building the TCO and business case for SD-WAN enabled network transformation. TCO analysis must include multiple factors such as network cost analysis, productivity loss analysis, cost avoidance, application savings analysis, and operational efficiency analysis.

IT leaders can gain full transparency into the network and can take a holistic approach to the enterprise network by implementing SASE architecture with SD-WAN and security.