Why Every Business Needs A Connectivity Cloud

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Businesses are set to benefit from the explosion of value that transformative technologies like AI will generate in the coming years. However, what could be considered “traditional” IT operations – networking and infrastructure, for example – are still critical to holding everything together.

As with many other areas of IT, a move to a cloud-based approach to connectivity can bring both opportunities like efficiency and scalability, as well as challenges, such as integration and security.

To help identify and address these issues, I was recently joined on my podcast by Sasi Murthy, VP at Cloudflare. Working with a business that’s involved in security for 20 percent of internet traffic, Murthy has developed an in-depth understanding of the “connected everything” ecosystems that companies must navigate today.

It’s a question no one can afford to ignore as we increasingly adopt models that span growing numbers of devices, platforms, data sources and application stacks. So, let’s dive in and overview some of the topics we discussed.

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What Is The Connectivity Cloud?

As IT environments become larger and begin to sprawl, a solution that unifies and simplifies global connectivity, encompassing security and resilience, becomes critical.

This is the essence of connectivity cloud – it acts as an additional layer to help tackle challenges of vast, distributed data, applications and workforce.

This means enabling oversight and control of infrastructure elements like networking (traffic management, routing and switching), data storage and management, applications and SaaS, and integrations across public, private, multi and hybrid-cloud architecture.

Murthy tells me, “In this environment, being able to do that globally with the security, with the reliability, and with the interoperability you need … I haven't met an IT leader that isn't looking for the ability just to simply put things together as they need to in their business and have it work.”

Those leaders – under continuous pressure to create ROI – often find themselves juggling the physical and digital infrastructure requirements of delivering business goals.

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Benefits Of Connectivity Cloud

Moving to a connectivity cloud model can be seen as a way of addressing this in several ways.

It creates opportunities for improved agility and continuity. The flexibility of this architecture approach lets businesses swiftly respond to changing market conditions or consumer behaviors. With the fast pace of change that comes with digital transformation and AI-driven disruption, this is critical for staying competitive.

Another opportunity is to increase reach and scalability, more easily managing operations as the business grows.

It can also simplify many of the complex tasks around security – including authentication and data privacy – by centralizing functions into a manageable framework, enabling the implementation of global security protocols.

On this issue, Murthy tells me, "When you're able to deliver the reach of access for your workforce, you don't need siloed secure up gateways or cloud brokers and so on … you have a chance to not only simplify your policy enforcement and your rules but understand how that can now integrate with your other ecosystem.”

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Challenges

Adopting a connectivity cloud model can bring big benefits but also creates challenges. Integration with existing systems and processes can be complex and must be planned for carefully.

Murthy says, "Companies have a whole load of different cloud applications and different services that are not necessarily natively connected. They’re also dealing with data that’s in many different clouds. In addition, they’re dealing with a lot of different security solutions that were really designed for a different time.”

Security concerns have to be addressed with any cloud initiative, and improving security is often a strategic priority that drives a move to a more connected and unified cloud environment. However, care must be taken with any infrastructure changes so as not to unwittingly create opportunities for unauthorized access, breach or disclosure.

Then, there are challenges around skills – managing and optimizing the use of cloud-based systems often requires upskilling of IT staff.

"They want to be able to easily integrate with and work with not just different clouds, but proprietary networks, and understand how all of that can easily bolt together,” Murthy tells me.

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The Future Of Connectivity Cloud

When we look at the way IT operations are evolving, it seems clear that the idea of connectivity cloud has become an increasingly vital part of the puzzle.

During our conversation, Murthy puts forward a paradigm in which connectivity becomes not simply a facilitator but a driver of digital transformation. The ability to integrate and scale platforms, services and technology becomes critical when delivering applications leveraging AI, big data and super-fast real-time analytics.

In many ways, this goes beyond being merely a technological upgrade, allowing businesses to more efficiently work with technologies that are available today, and plan for those that will appear in the future. This can be seen as a way of continuously fostering agility and innovation.

It’s a service landscape that I see evolving rapidly as businesses increasingly see the need to embrace emerging technologies and commercial opportunities.

You can watch my video podcast in full with Sasi Murthy, VP for Products and Solutions Marketing at Cloudflare, by clicking here. And to learn more about Cloudflare and connectivity cloud, click here: https://www.cloudflare.com/en-gb/connectivity-cloud/

About Bernard Marr

Bernard Marr is a world-renowned futurist, influencer and thought leader in the fields of business and technology, with a passion for using technology for the good of humanity. He is a best-selling and award-winning author of 22 books, writes a regular column for Forbes and advises and coaches many of the world’s best-known organisations. He has over 2 million social media followers, 1.8 million newsletter subscribers and was ranked by LinkedIn as one of the top 5 business influencers in the world and the No 1 influencer in the UK.

Bernard’s latest books are ‘Business Trends in Practice: The 25+ Trends That Are Redefining Organisations’, ‘Future Skills: The 20 Skills and Competencies Everyone Needs To Succeed In A Digital World’ and ‘The Future Internet: How the Metaverse, Web 3.0, and Blockchain Will Transform Business and Society’.