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Ambitious plans and growing trends in cloud computing position Node4 as a company that will lead the pack this year.
By 2014 more than 50% of global workloads will take place in the cloud, rising to 57% by 2015, predicts Cisco’s Global Cloud Index. For 2010, that number was just 21%. By 2015, one-third of data centre traffic will be cloud traffic. Cloud computing, and “meeting the big data challenge” are two of Gartner’s Top Ten strategic technology trends for 2012.
Midlands’s data centre and unified communications provider Node4 is very much a company to watch in this space. Founded by cloud visionary and 2011 Data Centre Entrepreneur of the Year Andrew Gilbert, its mission is to transform the way that organisations manage data in the UK. Selecting sites situated close to the UK’s large cities such as Northampton, Derby and Leeds, to build its state-of-the-art data centres, Node4 is catering to the many UK businesses wishing to store their data close to where they do business.
Following this strategy, the company has already become the UK’s largest independent provider of data centres, and is currently preparing to go live with its fifth UK data centre in Leicester. The company reached a phenomenal £11 million turnover in the space of just eight years, and has maintained a growth rate of 60% year on year for the last three years in a tough economic climate.
What Node4 supplies are clearly in great demand. A report commissioned by BT Engage IT learned that 70% of CIOs across a broad range of UK industries, and 76% of small business CIOs, thought virtualisation and cloud-based technologies had had the biggest positive impact on their businesses last year. At a time when every business is going through its IT budgets with a fine toothcomb, this is head turning news. And businesses are getting increasingly knowledgeable now about where cloud can help them. Gartner records a trend of enterprises moving away from merely trying to understand the cloud, to making targeted decisions on which workloads to implement on it.
Node4’s Andrew Gilbert looks forward to continuing growth in this area: “We expect there to be further adoption of the cloud in 2012”, he predicts, “as increasing numbers of companies want to take advantage of the flexibility, increased efficiency, resource and cost savings, and sheer peace of mind offered by our network of secure, reliable and resilient local data centres. At a time when cost pressures loom large, the lower maintenance costs are a great incentive, as well as the ability of spread them into operational expenditure rather than taking the hit upfront.
“Node4’s hybrid solution of a private cloud with a shared infrastructure helps address some of the fears that initially surrounded the technology. Finally, it’s all part of helping to smooth the way for the UK’s data-rich, knowledge-based economy to emerge out of recession and into recovery and growth.”
Node4 also offers a wide range of options on connectivity, as well as hosted telephony with up-to-the minute functionality, and all of this is supported by Node4’s impeccable customer service. Node4 prides itself on listening closely to its customers and delivering what they really want. This means customers can concentrate on doing what they do best, running their businesses, secure in the knowledge that their IT needs are fully taken care of. In challenging economic times, this is an invaluable competitive advantage and is the reason why, when comes to the cloud, Node4 is definitely the company to watch in 2012.
Node4 receives esteemed Cisco recognition
Node4 has announced that it has achieved the Advanced Unified Computing Technology Specialisation from Cisco in the UK.
This accreditation reflects the rigorous requirements Node4 has met and enables the company to sell, deploy and support highly sophisticated applications-based Cisco Unified Computing System technology solutions. The system enables users to better utilise data centres by building a simplified, yet powerful infrastructure that reflects the needs of the 21st century business user.
Node4 has already received recognition from Cisco both as a Premier Certified Partner and as winner of the Innovation of the Year Award for the UK and Ireland.
Andrew Gilbert, the managing director of Node4 said, “This is recognition we are particular proud of because Cisco is highly regarded within the industry. Ever since we became partners of theirs in 2004, we have endeavoured to utilise their technology to enable users to get the best out of our service. The specialism also acknowledges the fact that Node4 employs the best of breed technology and will continue to do so as the reliability and performance of our services are paramount.
Node4 will move into the New Year with a new exclusive product offering, thanks to a partnership with Unified Communications specialists, Zeacom. For the first time in the UK, end users and resellers will have access to a new hosted calling platform that will boost the productivity of contact centres, reduce costs and enhance customer service.
The working partnership between Node4 and Zeacom introduces a comprehensive dashboard to Node4’s hosted calling environment. Zeacom’s application, which will be deployed through Cisco systems, will deliver a wide range of reports that will enable businesses to become more efficient and help contact centre staff to deal with customers more effectively. It will be offered on a ‘pay as you go’ basis whereby businesses can utilise best of breed technology without sizeable upfront costs. Instead, they will have the more flexible option of paying a more manageable operational cost.
The new service will allow businesses to see detailed statistics across an infinite number of criteria such as how quickly calls are answered, how many calls are received and peaks and troughs during each day. Managers can then act on this data by having the right amount of specialists available for most types of enquiries, route calls to the most suitable members of staff and use sophisticated techniques to make various cost savings in many areas. Because the system is scalable, it is an ideal solution for large contact centres to small customer service units, including IT support desks.
Andrew Gilbert, Managing Director of Node4, is pleased with the added functionality Node4 is able to offer thanks to this exclusive offering to the UK marketplace.
He said; “Node4 worked very closely with Zeacom to devise a solution that serves the clients of both companies perfectly. This exclusive service fits in with the cloud platform we’re deploying, and because it helps businesses to become more customer focussed, it mirrors the Node4 ethos. It also allows our resellers and partners to add this to their portfolio and increase revenue streams. It’s scalable and provides leading edge technology to businesses of all sizes.
“In the current business climate, we’re seeing more and more people looking to change their expenditure from capital expenditure to operational expenditure and this service allows them to do this without sacrificing quality. We are Cisco partners and are confident in the ability of their hardware that will deliver this service. It will be supported by the Node4 in house team that already has the trust of customers in a wide variety of business sectors where reliability is key.”
Chris Harris, Managing Director of Zeacom Europe, said, “This is a tailored offering that will enable operatives in contact centres to become experts by making them feel more comfortable and empowered to utilise comprehensive data to their advantage. Resellers will be empowered with favourable monthly fees and will be able to market them to end users with greater ease. When factoring in the level of functionality and support on offer, you realise it’s a really competitive offering. We’re delighted to be working with Node4 to provide this new service.”
Data centre firm Node4 has been unveiled as the title sponsor for a 2012 professional cycling team. The naming of the Node4 Pro Cycling team, led by Malcolm Elliot, marks the continuation of the company’s association with professional cycling. Node4 was a co-sponsor for the same team last year.
Andrew Gilbert, the Managing Director of Node4 has furthered his relationship with the Pro Cycling team on the back of his keen interest in the sport. As well as being responsible for driving IT trends since creating his firm at the age of 23, Andrew, now 31, is also lending his support to what has been a passion of his for many years.
He said, “I am delighted to be on board with the team this year. We thoroughly enjoy the sport and it’s one that is expanding massively. The televised tour series has given some fantastic exposure to cycling, particularly the Tour of Britain. I thought it was the ideal time to get involved in this way.
“I love the passion of the team boss Phil Griffiths and proven track record of the team manager Malcolm Elliot, and was compelled to work with them in a greater capacity. As a keen cyclist myself, I was able to recognise the enthusiasm within the team and also its capability to perform at the highest level. I am confident we have a winning team and I am proud to have the Node4 brand associated with these riders.”
The team, which has 12 male riders, will also have the addition of Junior World Champion Lucy Garner and five other female competitors. The Node4 team has also secured deals with kit sponsors Giordana and with Subaru to provide the team cars.
Companies are still apprehensive about progressing with their IT plans despite the fact that such investment could deliver substantial cost and efficiency benefits in the long term. Many cite cost concerns and low budgets as reasons for hesitation with IT strategy.
A report from Modis International has found that over half of decision makers are being held back in terms of IT plans because of a lack of available funds. The same survey also stated that 43% of firms are looking for time and efficiency savings through IT – a 4% increase on last year’s figure.
According to Andrew Gilbert, Managing Director of data centre and communications firm Node4, with technological advancements taking place at breakneck speed, companies that don’t implement develop and implement sustainable IT strategies could get left behind.
He said, “It would be naive of anyone to completely disregard the current climate that businesses are operating in at the moment. Business confidence is low and with economic growth forecasts cut recently, companies are tightening their purse strings. Be that as it may, a comprehensive IT strategy is a priceless way of future proofing a business and ensuring its future.
“Businesses that are keeping a close eye on their spending now have a proliferation of options that allow them to make use of leading edge equipment without large up front capital investment. Outsourcing to data centres that allow for the operational expenditure of renting servers, as opposed to traditional capital expenditure, has afforded businesses with a greater deal of flexibility. It has also enabled them to plan adequately for the future. Despite this, there are still too many decision makers that don’t make use of these opportunities available to them.”
Node4 is a vocal advocate of the benefits of cloud computing, particularly those of the private cloud that has allayed security fears associated with the technology. When combined with ability to cut maintenance costs, outsourced data is an enticing prospect.
Andrew added, “Forward thinking decision makers should weigh up the risks associated related with security breaches, non-compliance and excessive labour costs associated with outdated, inefficient and short sighted equipment and strategy. With these threats considered, there should be a greater deal of urgency when planning IT investment.”
