A Checklist for Choosing an Enterprise-Class IT Platform
Your organization’s computing infrastructure is the backbone for essential business functions. Think about it: IT infrastructure touches every aspect of your organization, no matter what industry you are in.
Modern, flexible IT infrastructure can enable new business models, agile processes, and other innovations. IT infrastructure that an organization has outgrown or is otherwise a poor fit can hinder modernization for all aspects of business operations. Instead of viewing enterprise-class computing platforms as a cost center, the organizations must shift its focus to classifying these as investments in business opportunities.
To help our clients, we developed the accompanying 10 step checklist to help you navigate the process of choosing an enterprise-class platform, based on a set of key questions.
Understanding Business Objectives of IT Infrastructure
Understanding the importance of IT infrastructure is a critical first step; equally important, however, is accurately assessing your organization’s current digital transformation progress. Are you just starting to investigate modernization options, in a continuously iterative cycle of IT transformation, or even on the path to becoming a digital native organization? Knowing where you are is just as important as knowing where you want to go.
Next, take a comprehensive inventory of your organizational priorities and core workload requirements. Can AI initiatives unlock new business opportunities? Or perhaps your organization is investigating automation for key business functions. How do these objectives connect with IT projects like integrating DevOps, building an API ecosystem, transitioning to hybrid cloud, or enabling microservices? Connecting the dots between business initiatives and IT projects further strengthens the paradigm shift from IT as a cost center to a profit center.
What Goes Into Selecting an Enterprise-Class IT Platform?
With business goals clearly outlined, the next step is to select an enterprise-class platform that will enable those objectives. What are the key requirements for the identified workloads? Is performance the utmost priority, or do uptime, reliability, or security outweigh sheer compute power? Alternatively, your organization may have other specific needs that must be considered when selecting an enterprise-class platform.
Next, evaluate where you plan to run your enterprise-class platform: on-premise, in the cloud, or a hybrid cloud approach that merges both approaches. Cost matters, too—and it is not just about the total cost of ownership. Does the enterprise-scale platform your organization is evaluating allow for a consumption-based pricing model? Paying for the compute you use versus a fixed price can enable flexibility for evolving business needs. Determine if this model aligns with your organization’s financial goals and explore the potential business benefits.
The right platform can also allow your organization to consolidate its hardware footprint. Streamlining multiple platforms into a unified and efficient IT infrastructure can conserve financial and environmental resources, but also comes with challenges. Assess the benefits and pitfalls of consolidating onto a single platform before making a decision.
IBM Power Systems Can Fit Your IT Modernization Needs
Your list of priorities and requirements may seem endless, but there is an enterprise-class computing platform that meets all of the aforementioned criteria for modern, scalable IT infrastructure. The IBM Power Systems platform can enable modernization and digital transformation to advance your organization’s business objectives.
Flexible, consumption-based pricing models can help your organization make infrastructure upgrades in line with revenue generation and business needs. On-premises, cloud, and hybrid cloud deployment options allow your organization to choose where to deploy workloads. And consolidating onto a single platform can free up resources for other initiatives.
Start With Us for a Simplified IT Infrastructure Approach
The good news is that you do not need to wade through this complex matrix of choices on your own. A thoughtful and systematic approach can help you make the best IT infrastructure choice for your organization’s operational needs—for today and for years to come. Our IBM Power Systems experts created this comprehensive checklist to help walk you through the process.
Ready to get started choosing an enterprise-class IT platform to support your organization’s IT modernization initiatives? Let’s talk.
