
Industry executives and experts share their predictions for 2018. Read them in this 10th annual VMblog.com series exclusive.
Contributed by Mike Puglia, Chief Product Officer; Dana Epp, Chief Technology Officer; Miguel Lopez, SVP and GM, Kaseya
Corporate Networks, GDPR, Cloud and More
On Corporate Network Evolution
Cloud Computing Changes the Traditional
Office Landscape
Especially with
small to medium sized businesses, the prevalence of cloud computing in 2018
will turn traditional business offices into places for congregation and
interaction versus housing critical business units. Because of the acceptance, and use of cloud applications and cloud
infrastructure, there is very little-other than an employees computing device-needed
in a physical office. Accounting will work out of Netsuite, sales out of
Salesforce.com and the service department out of Zendesk, for instance. We will
see a huge shift in the New Year where SMB workers will no longer be confined
to physical borders when operating their technology, and thereby lead to great operational
efficiencies for companies of all sizes.
Network Fluidity
Anywhere access
to almost any device will redefine the modern corporate network. From a
security standpoint it isn't about a traditional firewall protecting the IT
system inside the network anymore. In 2018, the new and evolved corporate
network will be an "always connected" universe where we have even more fluid security
perimeters that follow both users and applications, rather than the more
traditional thinking of protecting the actual networks themselves 24/7. Networks
will not go away, they are being redefined, and as such IT teams will need to
evolve in order to safeguard them.
On GDPR Adoption
May 25 will be Anti-Climatic
Executives in
businesses affected by GDPR understand there are important steps to take to ensure
compliance, and avoid fines levied if they fail to do so by May 25. But similar
to HIPAA many years ago, there will not be much movement until GDRP fines are actually
levied and sink their teeth into companies that have failed to comply. There
will be a few "shots sent across the bow" so to speak that will send a message
that GDPR compliance and fines are for real. That said, actual fines will not
happen until the end of the year, maybe even into early 2019. Expect a high-profile
fine to raise awareness, but it will be many months after May 25.
Fine Enforcement Controversy
Part of the
problem with enforcing GDPR is the Information Commissioners Office in the UK,
which has only around 500 workers right now. They plan to hire 300 more over
the next three years, but the fact remains that office will be severely
understaffed in 2018. So when they go after that high-profile case to make a
statement, it will end up being controversial and likely tied up in court as
the understaffed office will have the burden of making a compelling case
against the targeted company. There will be fines levied and also a lot of
controversy at whether the fines are justified or not.
On AI Adoption
Artificial Intelligence Moves Deeper
into the Enterprise
In 2018, AI
will move from its present consumer-dominated use cases-Siri, Alexa, etc.-deeper
into the enterprise. You see Microsoft as an example,
using cognitive services to tie into apps like Skype, creating the ability to
have communications and meaningful dialog with software. Moreover, AI will
drive deeper business analytics, allowing IT to actually take advantage of the
information they are collecting. For instance, next year businesses will use AI
to add intelligence to everyday desktop management tasks, such as software
patching. New network intelligence will allow IT to patch faster and cleaner,
with much more automation involved.
On Cloud Computing
Cloud Security Matures
2018 will be the year organizations finally realize the
cloud is actually more secure than storing critical apps on-premises. Amazon,
for instance, has hundreds of employees working on a single service in its
cloud with the goal of maintaining that service's security. In general, the
cloud is more secure when considering the investments companies like Microsoft,
Amazon and Google have made in order to deliver the type of service their
customers need. 2018 will be the year that IT leaders will stop asking if the
cloud is safer than on-prem, the question will become obsolete as cloud
security permeates the enterprise.
On the MSP Market
Rise of the "Super MSP"
This coming year we will see a growing trend of more super
MSPs showing up in the market. The MSP market used to be defined by local
competition, made up of smaller niche firms-much like local competition with a
"mom and pop" hardware store. In 2018, this market will get turned on its heads
as more super MSP powerhouses-the Lowes and Home Depots of the hardware store
world-set up shop in the North American market. This has already begun, but next
year the impact of super MSPs will be even more acute. These super MSPs are the
result of M&A activity among smaller players. The MSP market will see much
consolidation in the coming year, leading to the rise of the super MSP.
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About the Authors
Mike Puglia, Chief Product Officer
Mike
Puglia brings over 20 years of technology, strategy, sales and marketing
experience to his role as Kaseya's Chief Product Officer. He is responsible for
overall product strategy, management and development across Kaseya's solutions.
He most recently served as the company's Chief Information Officer.
Dana Epp, Chief Technology Officer
As
Kaseya's Chief Technology Officer, Dana Epp is responsible for driving the
company's technology strategy with a focus on accelerating innovation, product
development and R&D. He most recently served as the company's Principal
Architect for Security, Identity & Access Management, focusing on the
architecture and security of the next-generation identity and access management
platform for cloud-based IT management.
Miguel Lopez, SVP and
GM
Miguel Lopez brings
over 20 years of experience to his role as SVP and GM. In this position, he
consults daily with Managed Service Providers (MSPs) to help them solve their
clients' business problems with technology solutions. Prior to joining Kaseya,
Miguel served as the director of consulting services for All Covered, a
nationwide technology services company that is a division of Konica Minolta
Business Solutions USA Inc.