EDITOR ’ S QUESTION

JEFF TAPLEY , EMEA GROUP MD AND SVP PORTFOLIO MANAGEMENT GROUP , INTERXION : A DIGITAL REALTY COMPANY

DATA CENTRE LEADERS IN 2021 – MYSELF INCLUDED – NEED TO BE READY TO HELP THEIR CUSTOMERS LEAD LARGE- SCALE DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION INITIATIVES . f you had asked this question last year , I

Around 20 % of small businesses in Europe were closed for a week during the spring while the data economy thrived – the number of consumers in the region using digital services grew by 14 % – a shift we would usually expect to take between two to three years .

However , despite the obvious benefits of having a thriving data economy with strong , open data exchanges , current infrastructure is not fit for purpose . Left unchecked , we ’ re seeing a data gravity effect – the phenomenon of business data attracting more , similar data and services until a business houses so much data that it becomes too much to use or move and becomes a liability , not an asset .

Data gravity may look like a technical matter best left to the IT department , but its negative impacts are felt across the business – from poorer customer service to compliance issues and spiralling operational costs .

Data centre leaders in 2021 – myself included – need to be ready to help their customers lead large-scale Digital Transformation initiatives , which are impossible if data gravity isn ’ t dealt with .

We can help them deal with that by offering our customers platforms and infrastructure that allows for connectivity between networks , clouds and providers , ensuring capacity wherever it is needed .

By consolidating data infrastructure , you take control and become more flexible – simplifying the delivery of critical technology and services . This is going to be the key challenge for data centre leaders in 2021 as we see more businesses and sectors move to a more digitalised system and expect results on-demand . ◊

32 Issue 22 www . intelligentdatacentres . com