By 2024, companies will spend more than US$650B per year in Digital Transformation initiatives. But enabling Digital Transformation has created challenges as IT professionals plan highly distributed IT Edge Computing networks.
Schneider Electric, a leader in Digital Transformation of energy management and automation, has released two new e-guides to support the IT industry in addressing the challenges and opportunities presented by Edge Computing – available free to IT and data centre professionals, managed service providers (MSPs) and value-added resellers (VARs).
- Developed in partnership with the independent research firm Canalys, the new e-guide “How to Capitalize on the Edge Computing Opportunity” is designed to help MSPs and VARs identify new revenue streams by supporting customers in their Edge Computing strategy.
- “Buyer’s Guide to Edge Infrastructure Management” identifies the right questions to ask and key steps IT and data centre professionals should take before selecting and deploying an Edge infrastructure management solution.
The e-guides deliver proprietary research from Canalys, guidance from IT leaders and insight garnered from years of R&D developing IT and data centre solutions under the APC by Schneider Electric brand.
Practical guidance to solve Edge Computing challenges
Edge Computing is designed to put applications and data closer to devices – and their users. While cloud computing drove the creation of mega data centres, Edge Computing brings distributed IT with an exponential number of micro data centres. This new environment reduces latency and increases availability of data, ensuring IT systems can deliver the benefits of Digital Transformation. With a highly distributed network, IT professionals need to address new issues including lack of on-site IT staff, physical and cybersecurity, a lack of integrated or standardised systems and, as a result, poor resiliency.
“Our reliance on digital experiences is ever-increasing, changing how we personally interact with each other and the companies with whom we do business. A digital customer experience is now a business imperative and IT professionals – from end users to VARs and MSPs – are navigating a complex new hybrid IT world,” said Jamie Bourassa, VP IT Channel Strategy, Schneider Electric. “We have developed these guides, along with tools and other resources, to remove some of the complexity from the process of developing a unique Edge Computing strategy.”
Edge Computing offers new service and solution revenue for channel partners
“How to Capitalize on the Edge Computing Opportunity” is an in-depth e-guide presenting the results of Canalys’ primary research of more than 350 IT channel respondents regarding Edge Computing opportunities and challenges.
Key findings include:
- Priority vertical industries for Internet of Things solutions include healthcare (37%), manufacturing (33%) and industrial (23%)
- Channel partners report that an average of 75% of their end users cite downtime as detrimental to their business
- Nearly all IT providers cited remote site management, physical security and standardised deployment as important or very important
In addition to discussing how channel partners can grow Edge Computing expertise, the e-guide provides a detailed road-map for successfully identifying and implementing physical infrastructure to enable Edge Computing projects including how to:
- Identify solutions that complement existing portfolios
- Understand the required capabilities and sales approach
- Access tools that enable Edge design, deployment and management
- Leverage wide ecosystem of partners to address emerging opportunities in industrial environments
Buyers guide outlines pragmatic approach to evaluating Edge infrastructure management
The distributed nature of Edge Computing means sites often lack IT support and are more vulnerable to physical and cyber-risk. The “Buyer’s Guide to Edge Infrastructure Management” outlines the value of Edge management and the important steps IT and data centre professionals should take before buying and deploying a solution.
By understanding the considerations and evaluating approaches in a pragmatic and methodical way, decision makers can identify solutions more effectively, ensuring better outcomes. The e-guide includes sections and tools designed to help small, medium and large enterprises to:
- Self-assess if there is a need for an Edge infrastructure management solution
- Map the business requirement to the solution
- Assemble the right team of experts with appropriate skill-sets
- Build a business case and action plan
The e-guides are available to download on APC.com and SE.com.
