Of the three classic layers of computer systems (computing, storage and networking), the first two have been gradually abducted by the advantages of migration to the cloud; the third – corporate networks – has resisted, but in the end it is ready to be absorbed by the cloud model. The ability to also deliver these features as a service – or NaaS (Networking-as-a-service) – is causing a wave of interest that translates into effective demand. It is a matter of time before all the specialized network providers join the tide.
One of the first is Aruba, a company founded 20 years ago and acquired by HPE. It sees itself as a pioneer because, from the very beginning, it was already pointing out ways: initially, its business was Wi-Fi networks for companies and their inherent security, but its early orientation was already software. With the change of ownership in 2015, doctrine was made. It was the moment when a company that was originally a network hardware company really mutated into a software company, preaches José Tormo, Aruba's regional director for southern Europe and Israel.
About five years ago, the company – once integrated into HPE – decided that while the physical infrastructure would remain implicit in its offering, the workhorse would be the intelligence embedded in the network. The next step was to set the goal of becoming a 100% cloud company and to embark on the gradual shift of many company processes to locations far from the data center.
Its Aruba Central platform would be the axis on which this action would pivot and on it the services that customers could contract for the then innovative pay-per-use formula, which is now shared by almost the entire sector, would be mounted. Next step? Integrate that formula into HPE GreenLake. His CEO, Antonio Neri, promised that the entire catalog of the parent company would be available as a service and through payment for use in 2022 and is about to proclaim that it has been.
“From my point of view, the fundamental element of this evolution – explains Tormo – has been the reinforcement of the weight of software and analytics in Aruba solutions. This is exactly what clients expect from us: that we help them generate value and discern its details to exploit it.” The conversation between supply and demand is no longer about technology, but about the business opportunities it creates. "In its current state, our network infrastructures are capable of collecting information about user behavior and, with the help of artificial intelligence, make it intelligible to customers."
The digital transformation that the entire industry heralds is being seen in the results. "It has many facets, but I think the decisive symptom is the advancement of a new way of consuming the available infrastructure." The pace of innovation is making much installed hardware obsolete and staff with the necessary training are in short supply. Orders are growing – up to 45% in the case of Aruba – and only the supply crisis is slowing down their delivery.
Why put so much emphasis on the service model? According to Tormo, financial considerations are unavoidable: the replacement of capital investment ( capex ) by operating expense ( opex ) is becoming more widespread. Equally or more relevant is that companies are turning to multiple clouds and adopting new ways of working, because the conventional perimeter tends to be diluted.
