Ian with excellent skills in solution selling, management and business strategy development helps in the development of the company.

At the onset of the pandemic and the subsequent lock downs, we were worried if our lives will be normal ever again. Most businesses felt the tremors, worrying about employees' health and safety on the one hand and struggling to keep their operations going on the other. But with adversity comes an opportunity for creativity & innovation, and resilience. That is what has kept the businesses a live from working from home to a phased approach to getting back to offices.

Many success stories emerged, despite the unprecedented challenges thrown up by the pandemic, where businesses managed to stay agile and resilient. They were quick to address potential threats to business continuity, identify the production, distribution, and supply chain networks in the areas potentially impacted. Business leaders were quick to implement mobilization, isolation, and education strategies for their workers.

Focus on Digital Transformation
Digital transformation was on the cards for most businesses that were yet undecided or putting the final pieces in place, but the pandemic accelerated that journey. There has never been a more compelling argument for going digital. As we move towards a more hybrid future, businesses will continue their digital transformation journeys, depending on data that resides on premises, in public and private clouds, devices at the edge, and within networks and operation centers. The newly introduced remote working realities have added further complexity and managing them will cost high and labor repercussions for businesses.

As businesses continue on their digital trans formation journey, the concept of infrastructure will evolve radically. This will require a more strategic approach to maintain physical and virtual infrastructures. With the evolution of the new market category Discover, Monitor, Support, and Optimize (DMSO) which is set to be worth $228 billion annually by 2023, the industry must start working in harmony with third party maintenance for servicing their digital IT infrastructure.

Businesses can no longer ignore the opportunity to maximize uptime, create cost efficiencies, enable greater infrastructure control and visibility, and enhance asset performance. Through support, predictive maintenance strategies allow promising local companies to become digital leaders. Gaining insightsthrough automation and analytics, businesses will be able to identify and address problems before they happen. Digitization allows companies to save time & money and streamline operations so they can use their precious capital towards innovation. It is imperative for companies to invest in predictive maintenance strategies to convert their IT infrastructure into strategic business assets and stay on the cutting edge of the industry.

Growth in the Time of Turmoil
Mergers and Acquisitions(M&A) was one activity that was expected to take a backseat while businesses were

focused on keeping themselves afloat. How the procedures would fair in a remote world, from handling negotiations via communications platforms to due diligence to keeping the remote workforce aligned and onboard, reviewing a target company’s books and assets, were obvious concerns. But it was not long before large scale deals were being struck, and fast.

Digitization allows companies to save time &money and stream line operations so they can use their precious capital towards innovation

At the best of times, M&A can be fraught with uncertainty. Personal interaction is an essential part of integrating sensitively and efficiently following an acquisition. Getting it right, impacts the level of productivity, job satisfaction, and vital business activities. The process can be tenuous once everything is complete even under normal conditions. Digitization helped to make the process possible even in these strange times. Through webinars, podcasts, town halls, training videos, and email communications companies managed to bring the whole enterprise along the journey.

Digital markets are ripe, and businesses should take advantage of this momentum. Augmented Reality (AR) technologies are expected to grow by 46.6 percent during 2019 to 2024, reaching a market value of $72.7 billion. This is supported by the shift to remote working and the need to compensate the digital enterprise experience with more human interactions. Meanwhile, data is more distributed, with 50 percent of enterprise data being created and processed outside the data center or cloud up from less than 10 percent in 2019 according to Gartner. While adding another layer of complexity for businesses to masters, it nods to the drive for more data fabric solutions as digital transformations take hold. The global data fabric market is expected to reach $4,546.9 Million by 2026.

Last Word
The pandemic fundamentally changed the way of doing business, and most surveys indicate that the changes will continue even afterthe crisis is over. Customer service and experience are under intense scrutiny. Portals that track real time interactions, mobile apps, performance guarantees, and direct client input are a few of the strategies that ensure the highest level of customer experience.

As IT managers and CIOs look for simpler ways to manage their infrastructure including, SD-WAN, virtual networking, and DMSO, we will continue to see market shifts.

IT departments will continue to feel the heat as business' IT infrastructure is put to the test. They will have to continue the smooth and cost-effective data strategies that meet the demands for higher quality customer service, more reliable partners, and cutting edge innovation. Innovation will drive growth and enable organizations to emerge even stronger from the crisis, and each one of us has a role to play in it.