While
the COIVD-19 pandemic has disrupted nearly every facet of our daily
lives, many businesses and employees are seeing their operations can
still take place remotely relatively seamlessly. But imagine if the
pandemic happened 30 or 40 years earlier, when connectivity networks
barely existed, this transition to remote working would not have been
the case for a lot of enterprises. Many workers would be left sitting by
their landlines and shuffling papers, with many of their day-to-day
responsibilities coming to a crashing halt.
Fast-forwarding
to now, with next-generation network infrastructures and advanced
connectivity within the comfort of our homes, business operations can
continue with minimal disruption to the workforce. However, the pandemic
has revealed a few areas where we can enhance our networks, so they’re
better equipped to handle the unexpected.
1. Deliver End-to-End Security
Up until recently, delivering faster connections would take priority over network security, but as the pandemic has revealed,
the biggest deterrent to a great user experience is a hacked
connection. Service providers are seeing an influx of socially
engineered attacks, and unfortunately, this isn’t likely to change. Bad
actors will always look to capitalize on vulnerable moments, including
the global situation that we’re currently facing, and it has an alarming
success rate.
But
by embracing solutions that deliver end-to-end security components,
service providers can better manage these threats. After all, security
is only as strong as the weakest link in the chain.
2. Manage for Availability and Reliability
While
current networks are designed for very high availability
and reliability, when traffic surges, so do customer calls
with complaints of slow speed, broken connection, or
poor application experience. To ensure availability and reliability,
service providers must manage their networks from both an end-to-end
perspective and end-user perspective, rather than from a node-by-node or
equipment perspective.
3. Double Down on Automation
In
the COVID era with network traffic soaring – service providers are
seeing network traffic double, and businesses are struggling to uphold
business continuity as their network capacity is being pushed to its
breaking point. Additionally, as an unexpected strain on our networks
continues, there is more room for human error. However, a network
infrastructure that can be managed with large-scale automation is one
that will be able to scale most effectively to meet these heightened
demands.
As
we enter this new normal, it’s clear the entire network needs to be
automated in terms of operations and maintenance in order to deliver the
right service experience to customers. Before we saw the impact of
COVID, zero-touch functions such as automation, provisioning,
commissioning, and operations were focused on reducing the operating
expense of sending people to the malfunctioning site and expedite the
speed of the operation. However, by leveraging automation technologies
that work faster and more efficiently, service providers are better able
to meet consumer expectations and network demands.
4. Extend Capacity
The
pandemic shifted our physical world into a virtual one, and we are
reminded every day how different it could have been without strong
network capacity. The good news is that these networks already support
high bandwidth services such as video, streaming, and multi-user
conferencing, making it more efficient for operators to manage their
networks during this crisis. Many networks have been built to peak
capacity and full redundancy to better handle the current surge in
traffic, yet there is room to impact so much more.
If
anything, COVID has renewed the need for more investments in our
networks to extend capacity and keep pace with growing demand.
Addressing the Current Crisis and Future Innovation
While
current networks have been able to adapt to this new, virtual world,
there is a dire need for future networks to extend their capabilities
and deliver more value. With the emergence of the Cloud + 5G + AI,
network operators have the ability to run networks much better in the
future and in times of crisis that we don’t yet know about.
After all, 5G
+ Cloud + AI will bring massive capacities, GB speeds, and ultra-low
latency that can make interacting in the virtual world almost as tactile
as in the real world. We will see doctors going beyond video calling
patients to diagnosing and treating them remotely. Educators will engage
students with AR/VR/interactive gaming to make the remote learning
experience more engaging. And manufacturing operations can be controlled
remotely, almost as if humans were doing it onsite.
A
strong network shouldn’t just be about delivering a seamless
connectivity experience during a crisis – it should help usher into the
next era of innovation.
