Ken Claffey, Senior Vice President, Seagate, explains why data storage is so critical to the future success of the UK businesses and how the right storage infrastructure can set UK plc on the path to pandemic recovery.
Across the UK, business leaders are asking: “what comes next?” British companies are entering a period of uncertainty, but there are also potential opportunities ahead. Data storage infrastructure can help firms capitalise on those opportunities and play a vital role in business recovery.
The data explosion
A recent report by Seagate and IDC, Rethink Data, predicted the amount of data in the world is set to continue to expand at an astonishing rate. This growth, driven by new technology users and nascent technologies, offers opportunities. But raw data is only valuable if it is made useful and today, most isn’t – with businesses failing to take advantage of 68% of data available to them, according to Rethink Data.
This is because managing massive data sets is excessively complex and costly. Indeed, IT leaders often discard data because the cost of keeping it is immediate, despite significant potential future payoffs. And even when they do opt to keep it, the total cost of ownership (TCO) of storing and maintaining massive data sets in the public cloud can be vast once hidden costs like data transfers, common API calls and egress fees are accounted for.
Herein lies the challenge for CIOs: how do you build a cost-effective data management strategy that allows you to intelligently capture, store and analyse information? We believe the answer lies in more efficient, scalable, affordable end-to-end data storage solutions – but picking the right solution is not always easy.
How data is stored can make it a boon or a burden
Gone are the days when expanding data capacity just meant buying bigger hardware. There are now many means to that end and the complexity of choosing the right solution often leaves companies with an imperfect fit – making data a burden, rather than an asset.
Both cloud and on-premises solutions have their strengths. Cloud offers the flexibility to create and host many applications. On-premises can offer better security, performance and cost control. Savvy business leaders know combining the two via a hybrid model can offer the best of both worlds, but fewer appreciate the importance of moulding that hybrid according to their business needs.
For instance, a company that needs to quickly build and update consumer applications may lean towards public cloud, but still wish to store sensitive consumer data on-premises. A videogame developer working with massive files may wish to prioritise the data transfer benefits of on-premises – but still wish to leverage cloud for customer support.
The technology within Seagate’s enterprise storage systems is designed to empower businesses in modern hybrid situations, such as our performance-optimising Automated Tiered Storage (ATS) software, our resilience-enhancing AcousticShield technology or our partnerships with independent software vendors like VMware, Veeam and Commvault.
Instead of tinkering with old hardware or shelling out on unnecessary cloud buckets, having the right storage systems for your business will empower you to look forward, adopt new technologies and grasp growth opportunities.
Future-proof performance and scalability
At Seagate, we also recognise that a business’s storage infrastructure doesn’t just dictate its capacity or flexibility. Data storage also underpins performance power – something that must also grow in line with data demands. The film industry is an extreme example: as animation quality and resolution improves, file sizes grow and so too do demands on IT infrastructure. To this end, Seagate works with partners like Pixit Media to provide purpose-built on-premises data storage solutions – like the Nytro X 2U24 all-flash array, ideal for colour grading and VFX.
To support business growth, you also need to be able to scale capacity quickly. That’s why we worked with data storage specialists Nexstor to offer highly flexible products with inbuilt scalability and modularity to address its customers’ changing data requirements, enabling their customers to grow quickly, without outgrowing their IT.
Setting up for success
There is unlikely to be a better time to review how and where you store your data. The pandemic has thrown the rulebook out the window, while data-hungry nascent technologies like AI and IoT are starting to deliver on their immense promise. The world’s reliance on technology has never been greater.
As a deeply vertically integrated enterprise data storage solution provider Seagate is uniquely positioned to help. For over 40 years, we’ve been offering the most innovative and easily integrated storage technology built on trust, affordability and performance. We know that just as every business is unique, so is their data – that’s why we build bespoke solutions, tailor-made to gear your company for growth.
Click below to share this article