Data Centre Transformation: Top Priority In 2009 For CIOs

New global research reveals that 84 percent of technology organisations are planning to implement a data centre transformation (DCT) project in the next 12 months, primarily to lower costs and reduce business risk.

The HP-commissioned survey further shows that a vast majority of technology decision makers are currently implementing or planning to implement in 2009 consolidation (95 percent), business continuity (93 percent) and virtualisation (91 percent) projects.

In support of these and other DCT initiatives, HP has announced the worldwide availability of the HP Data Centre Transformation Experience workshops. Designed to help build out efficient next-generation data centres, these collaborative workshops demonstrate how chief information officers (CIOs) can swiftly maximise their investments in transformation initiatives through an integrated and customised technology roadmap aligned to business goals.

Today’s CIOs are challenged more than ever to control costs and quickly achieve returns on technology investments. According to the study, respondents named reducing operational costs (31 percent) as their top driver for 2009 DCT spending. Enhancing security (29 percent) followed as a close second.
However, in both cases, decision makers reported that technology needs, more than business needs, are prompting the investments. This may limit their ability to achieve both short-term and long-term business benefits such as reduced costs, mitigated risks and accelerated growth.

“CIOs, who approach DCT initiatives with a focus on business needs, can significantly reduce time to value for today’s technology investments while laying the foundation for future growth,” said John Bennett, worldwide director, Data Centre Transformation Solutions, HP. “HP Data Centre Transformation Experience workshops offer CIOs an opportunity to align technology strategies with their specific business goals.”

Opportunity for CIOs to impact business performance in 2009

Most organisations are transforming their data centres through independent projects instead of taking a broad, integrated approach. The new research indicates that 20 percent of technology decision makers are initiating a complete transformation, while the remaining 80 percent are implementing individual transformation projects without an overall DCT strategy.

When asked to indicate what projects they would implement independently to achieve specific technology goals, respondents named the following:

• Automation – 64 percent
• Green IT – 60 percent
• Operations management – 59 percent
• Virtualisation – 59 percent
• Business continuity – 58 percent

All of these projects have the potential to also achieve business goals. By taking a comprehensive approach and aligning these autonomous projects to an overall DCT strategy, an opportunity exists for CIOs to maximise the value of their transformation initiatives.