The research found that the increasing levels of confidence amongst IT Managers in their own knowledge (97%) is resulting in them also being much more demanding of their data centre operator partners. 66% of respondents, from across the UK & US, considered it essential that a data centre operator could now offer a scalable solution whilst 48% thought it important that an operator had specialist expertise in design, build and ongoing operations. Just as high on the business agenda (47%) was having access to a single point of contact during the entire process - from design to day-to-day maintenance - and 38% said that they expected specialist knowledge regarding how to maximise energy efficiencies.
Whilst IT Managers may also have felt under pressure to seek assurance on their decisions from external consultants in the past (83%) what they seem to be indicating today is that they would prefer to take the route of partnering with data centre experts who can immediately add value through experience at the coal face.
“As IT Managers turn to the latest technologies and ever more sophisticated solutions in a bid to manage big data, increase efficiencies and performance it is becoming increasingly clear that specialist data centre operators will be expected to play a vital role in helping businesses achieve these goals,” said Franek Sodzawiczny, Chief Development Officer and Co-Founder at Sentrum. “There is absolutely a tangible opportunity for data centre operators to rise to the occasion by offering high levels of value added services that come from a proven track record in running successful data centres from the ground up.”
The report, entitled Creating Data Centre Confidence, also shows that there is still room for improvement during the procurement process as 85% of IT Managers admitted to purchasing more space than is actually needed in a bid to future-proof their requirements and that 40% of organisations found that data centre specifications and plans were out of date within 2 years or less.
“In my experience, advice and guidance is much more likely to be accepted when it is offered by a business partner that can show it is acting with its clients’ best interests at heart,” continued Sodzawiczny. “A dedicated in-house team of facilities management experts are not only responsible for ensuring that they have their fingers on the pulse of the data centre but that they can also earn their clients’ trust. In my opinion, this only comes from offering solid advice and consultancy that ultimately delivers a difference to their business.”