The Changing Face of the Network: The User and IT Perspective

Is 2010 going to be a year of huge change for the network? With the increasing use of video conferencing, web 2.0 and other emerging technologies, will users demand that the network and IT better support these performance hungry services?


Loudhouse Research, a UK based firm thinks so based on a survey of 152 IT decision makers in companies with 1000+ employees. The trend would tie the business to the network and the network engineer to the user more closely than ever before. The key question – is the network ready for these services? The user and IT perspective on the challenges with the network today can be viewed in the chart below.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
An interesting difference of opinion is in terms of performance which is at the heart of the network and new services.


I agree with the trend that Loudhouse points out is coming, but I’m not as sure about the timeline. What do you think? Do you see these changes in your organization?

We do know that the network is constantly changing, so it’s always better to be prepared. In my experience I’ve found it to be helpful to use tools, such as dopplerVUE to manage the network to make sure users are satisfied with performance and that IT is aligned with the goals of the business. There is a free 30 day download available if you’re interested in trying it for yourself.