The British are eagerly looking forward to the royal wedding of Prince Harry to Meghan Markle—it will surely be a well-run affair, but just think of all the planning and details! Your computer network may not be as glamorous as a royal wedding but planning it can be just as complicated as a royal wedding.
The Proposal — What Are Your Business' Computer Needs?
IT Radix has had the honor recently of assisting several new businesses or business mergers that required a new computer network. The list of things to be considered was long. Like the royal wedding, it started with the proposal which required us to determine the client's business goals—whether it was a marriage of existing computer technology or the start of a completely new computer network. It also required consideration of the software needed to run the business, everything from the basics—email, word processing, spreadsheets, accounting software and more.
The Venue — Should Your Server be Local or in the Cloud?
Just as Harry and Meghan had to choose a venue for the wedding, a business needs to decide whether to have a server on-premise or to house everything in the cloud. Quite often this decision is driven by factors like where the staff is located—will they be working together in a single location, or alternatively distributed and completely virtual, or perhaps it’s a combination of the two. The software a business uses is also an important consideration when evaluating whether on-premise servers or a cloud-based solution will be more suitable.
The Dress — How Will Your Computer Network Need to Look Outside the Organization?
A lot of hubbub ensued over the selection over Meghan's wedding dress. We're sure she will make a beautiful bride. Most businesses want a positive presence on the Internet and it starts with a website. While many don't typically think that a website is something that impacts a computer network, a business' Internet presence and its computer network are intertwined. Often the strongest threads between the two is email, but with the proliferation of e-commerce websites, many of our clients need their website to be able to communicate with their business software. An e-commerce website requires strong and secure links between an organization's internal business network and the external Internet-facing network.
The Guest List — Who Will Use Your Computer Network and Company Information?
Who's invited is also a topic of great interest. When creating a new computer network, you need to consider not only the number of internal users but also potential external users such as consultants, other business partners as well as your actual business clients.
Security — What Security Is Required to Protect Your Assets?
It is reported that over 33 million pounds will be spent on security for the royal wedding. While a small-to-medium business doesn't need to spend millions on security, it must be considered and addressed. Everything from security on the individual user devices to email security, encryption, backup, and more. The list of basic security concerns and measures is long.
Date and Timeline — Counting Down to the Big Day
As it turns out, the royal wedding is on the same day as the Football Association Cup Final—one of the most highly attended football games in the world. Not ideal but unavoidable. When planning your computer network, it's is important to consider business cycles and other factors that may affect timing such as availability of equipment, Internet service installation, construction/build-out dates, and much more.
The Benefit — A Well-Planned Computer Network Pays Dividends Over the Long Term
The royal wedding is expected to generate millions in revenue for the U.K. in tourism, wedding parties, souvenirs and more. A well-planned computer network can also boost revenue by making a business more productive and agile to respond quickly to changing market demands and more.
Don't let planning your computer network be a "royal pain." Call us today. Together, we can create your computer network so your business can enjoy a fairy-tale ending and "live happily ever after."
