Enterprise IT organizations are in the midst of unprecedented change. Cloud adoption, digital transformation initiatives, managing hybrid IT and multicloud architectures, and the proliferation of agile and CI/CD software delivery models have completely transformed the manner in which IT services are delivered and consumed.
TechBeacon's top 12 enterprise IT stories for 2019 focus on the most influential trends and developments for IT Ops teams. For your convenience—and for the first time—we have grouped the top stories into four categories—cloud, data centers/data management, hybrid IT, and IT Ops.
The stories across each of the categories cover topics that are of critical importance for IT organizations. They include articles that offer advice on how to work with cloud service providers, trends to watch in the serverless computing space, the challenges associated with edge computing in the hybrid cloud, and the use of predictive analytics in the cloud.
Also included: handy lists of essential container technologies, and the best bootcamps for data scientists.
Cloud computing
How to drive new business with your cloud service provider
Cloud service providers (CSPs) have fundamentally redefined how software is offered, delivered, and consumed. For independent software vendors (ISVs), CSPs are now crucial to business success—but working with them can be very different from working with traditional systems integrators. In this story, Erez Yaary, cloud CTO and fellow at Micro Focus, draws on his more than 20 years of experience working at startups and established companies to offer advice to ISVs on how to get along with CSPs.
The state of serverless: 6 trends to watch
A variety of factors are driving adoption of the serverless computing model, including lower costs and reduced operational complexity. Here, freelance writer Chris Null talks to experts about key trends in the serverless computing space in 2019. Among them: the expansion of the serverless model into the hybrid IT space, the growing interest in products for securing serverless environments, how serverless technology can be a better testing option, and the use of Knative to drive standardization between cloud service providers.
How Maersk accelerated cloud delivery
Moving enterprise workloads to the cloud involves a lot more than just finding a CSP to host the data. It requires changes to internal processes and ways of working, and involves a completely new approach to platform and software delivery and consumption. Rasmus Hald, head of the cloud center of excellence at A.P. Moller – Maersk, describes the strategy his company took to accelerate cloud delivery and how it addressed challenges along the way.
Data centers/data management
COBOL at 60: The legacy and future of the original business language
Six decades after COBOL was first introduced, the programming language remains viable and more widely used than most people realize. Over the years, the language has evolved and been improved upon to keep pace with constantly changing business and technology requirements. In this report, Ed Airey, product marketing director for COBOL solutions at Micro Focus, highlights some of the reasons why COBOL has remained relevant for 60 years and explores what the future holds for the industry's oldest business language.
Edge computing in hybrid cloud: 3 approaches
Edge computing models—where the computing platform is typically placed close to the device that produces data—can reduce latency and allow for better logical data partitioning. But the use of edge computing in hybrid cloud environments can raise a variety of issues. Here, David Linthicum, a leading cloud influencer and thought leader and the chief cloud strategist at Deloitte Consulting, highlights three approaches for making edge computing work in the hybrid cloud.
A complete guide to the best data science bootcamps
People with data science skills are a hot commodity. Over the last few years, demand for qualified data scientists has far outstripped supply. The outlook for the next several years for people with skills around machine learning, artificial intelligence, data visualization, predictive analytics, and other data science topics remains high. For those looking to break into the field, freelance writer and editor Linda Rosencrance offers a comprehensive description of 12 of the best data science bootcamps in the country.
Hybrid IT
Predictive analytics in hybrid IT: The future of ops
The use of predictive analytics and IT operations has the potential to help organizations address some of the complexity involved in managing hybrid IT environments. Systems that can predict how changes will affect IT Ops, security, and governance risks will help companies solve problems before the problems even emerge, says David Linthicum, cloud thought leader and chief cloud strategy officer at Deloitte Consulting. Here he highlights key trends to watch around the use of predictive analytics in IT Ops.
How to architect and manage hybrid multiclouds: New tools required
Organizations that are looking to implement a consumption-based, on-demand IT services model within their internal environments face multiple challenges. The biggest among them is finding a way to integrate and orchestrate resources across on-premises, public cloud, and hybrid IT environments. In this report, freelance writer Jaikumar Vijayan focuses on the main takeaways from a report by analyst firm 451 Research on the capabilities organizations will require to deploy on-demand IT services.
Hosted private cloud: Key benefits and drawbacks
A hosted private cloud model allows organizations to combine the security and control of a corporate data center with the agility and flexibility of the cloud. All the leading cloud providers—including Amazon, Microsoft, and Google—sell cloud services that allow organizations to keep workloads privately on premises but that are actually hosted on the vendor's infrastructure. Freelance writer Christopher Null speaks with industry experts about the benefits and drawbacks of a hosted private cloud approach.
IT Ops
Kubernetes fails: 3 ways to kill your clusters
Kubernetes has its advantages, but organizations should not underestimate the many operational challenges that come with it, says Henning Jacobs, head of developer productivity at European fashion and lifestyle company Zalando SE. For this report, Jacobs, who was part of the team that helped build the AWS/STUPS cloud infrastructure, compiled a list of public failures associated with Kubernetes. He then describes the major factors they all had in common, including cloud integration issues and a lack of operational maturity.
How IT can keep pace with digital transformation
Digital business is about speed. IT organizations that are using old project-driven deployment approaches can no longer keep up with the pace of business requirements. Increasingly, there's a need for IT organizations to implement a consumption-driven model where services are delivered continuously; business users can employ them either individually or bundled together. Keith Jahn, leader of the product services delivery center at Micro Focus and a veteran of several transformation efforts at the company, advises IT organizations on how they can transform themselves for digital business.
30 essential container technology tools and resources
Containers are helping make life easier for IT organizations. But the rapid growth and expansion in container technology are forcing organizations to make choices about the technologies they use, the standards they adopt, and the way they manage containers in production. With this handy list of 30 essential container tools and resources, Matthew Heusser, managing consultant at Excelon Development, eliminates some of that guesswork and gives organizations a focused set of choices.
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