Today’s business networks are growing increasingly complex. Fifteen years ago, an employee would likely have a work computer that they only used in office, and that was it. Now, the average employee has 2.3 devices they use for work, and 14% of employees use 6 or more devices. To make things more complex, they aren’t just using these in the office. In fact, after COVID-19, many are using them from home networks, coffee shop networks, co-share networks, and more. On top of that, businesses themselves have more and more devices connected to their networks. In addition to servers, routers, and printers, they now have VoIP phones, smart appliances, network integrated security systems, and more. All of these devices, not to mention the data that gets transferred across them, all needs to be monitored and controlled. Failure to properly manage your network and the devices attached leaves you exposed to countless threats. However, trying to manage everything on a device-by-device basis is impossibly time consuming. This is why proper network management is critical to today’s businesses.
What is Network Management and Why Does It Matter?
Technically speaking, network management is simply the act of managing your network. However, when someone says network management, they’re typically referring to the use of software and hardware to manage, administer, and operate a data network. It is a comprehensive process that keeps your systems healthy and efficient. Network management typically includes:
- General operations
- Administration
- Maintenance
- Security
- Provisioning
- And more
Network management is performed through a network management system that provides a singular dashboard. From here, admins can monitor performance, execute patches and updates, and much more. Simply stated, proper network management gives you the all-encompassing overview you need for the complex infrastructures of today’s businesses. Even small and medium-sized businesses can greatly benefit from proper network management. The question is…how do you implement it?
Implementing a Management System
There are a number of tools and products available for managing today’s networks. Before a business can implement them, however, they need an understanding of their current systems and how everything interconnects. They also need a plan for implementing a network management system, and then they need admins to actually manage and monitor it. It’s a lot to take in at once. That’s where we can help.
- Why is network management critical for businesses of any size?
- Routine monitoring of devices, applications, and user visibility
- Optimized operations, lower total cost of ownership, centralized distributed management
- Diagnose and solve issues before they become problems
- Resource usage – Who is the bandwidth, and what are they doing?
- Plan for seamless growth and scalability with quick setups and provisioning
- Find security threats, control policies for users and applications