Abstract: Maturity Levels of Enterprise IT Infrastructure.
Description of the advantages and disadvantages of each level individually.
Analysts claim that under standard circumstances, over 70% of the IT budget is spent on maintaining infrastructure — servers, networks, operating systems, and storage. Organizations, understanding the necessity of optimizing IT infrastructure and the importance of its economic efficiency, realize that they need to rationalize their enterprise's infrastructure through standardizing desktops, consolidating data centers, and implementing best practices in information technology. When considering these initiatives in isolation, they provide no lasting effect. To achieve a long-term impact, it is essential to have a clear understanding of the maturity levels of your IT infrastructure, its relationship with overall business strategy, and its requirements.
Microsoft offers its infrastructure optimization model IOM (Infrastructure Optimization Model). This model is designed to help enterprises understand and improve the condition of their IT infrastructure, as well as to provide a clearer picture of expected future costs for optimization, its operational flexibility, and security level. Significant savings can be achieved by transitioning to a dynamic environment from an unmanaged one. The security level increases to proactive threat response at the highest maturity levels. Similarly, IT infrastructure management can be improved: all operations that need to be performed are done not manually but with a high level of automation, working proactively to prevent similar issues from arising in the future.
By acquiring and utilizing the optimization model from Microsoft, the client rapidly begins to understand the full benefits of the strategy, as well as the advantages for the business of transitioning from a basic level to a dynamic level of IT infrastructure maturity. Initially regarded as an expense, its value to the business becomes clear after the transition, and it is seen as a strategic asset that promotes effective business management.
The creation of the IT infrastructure optimization model by Microsoft is based on years of accumulated experience from the industry and the company itself, along with the successful application of that experience in practice. This model is grounded in Gartner's IT Infrastructure Maturity Model (IMM) and MIT's Application Maturity Model (AMM).
The primary goal set at the beginning of developing the IT infrastructure optimization model by Microsoft was to find a flexible and straightforward way to apply the model, which could later be easily implemented as a benchmark test to determine the technical capabilities of the IT infrastructure and its value to the business.
The first step in applying this model in practice will be to assess the maturity level of the company's IT infrastructure in terms of this model. The next stage will be to plan the pathways for developing the infrastructure to achieve the necessary maturity level.
Basic
An IT infrastructure characterized by a basic level of maturity has numerous processes carried out manually, minimal centralized management, and a lack of thoughtful or non-existent security policies and standards for infrastructure, system image management, and backups, as well as non-compliance with other IT standards. The enterprise does not clearly understand the details of its existing IT infrastructure and lacks knowledge about the tactics for modernization that could yield maximum effectiveness. The operability of services and applications is largely unknown due to the absence of suitable tools and resources. There is no mechanism for exchanging accumulated knowledge between the structural divisions of the organization. Organizations with a basic level of IT infrastructure find themselves in a difficult position and are unable to manage their environments, leading to costs for server management and PCs becoming extremely high, vulnerability to attacks and threats grows significantly, and as a result, the business suffers, gaining little from IT. Any deployment or upgrade of services or applications in this case will require substantial costs and efforts. However, organizations at the basic maturity level of IT infrastructure greatly benefit from transitioning to a standardized maturity level (Standardized), effectively reducing costs by:
- reducing security-related risks through implementing a layered defense (an approach characterized by implementing security at multiple levels: at the level of servers, applications, PCs, and throughout the network perimeter);
- implementing automation instead of manual and time-consuming operations;
- implementing best practices (various IT libraries: Infrastructure Library, SANS, and others);
- developing policies, standards, and strategies for their application.
Standardized maturity level (Standardized)
In a standardized IT infrastructure, clearly defined control points begin to emerge through the implementation of server and workstation administration policies and standards, connection rules for PCs to the network, resource management based on Active Directory, security policies, and access management. Enterprises with a Standardized maturity level IT infrastructure are already effectively employing all the best foundational policies and standards, but they still react to problems only when they arise. Deploying and updating new services/applications usually requires expenses within acceptable limits, though sometimes these costs remain high. Typically, such a company has some straightforward inventory information about its hardware and software, and license management begins. By securing the network perimeter, protection against external threats increases, but internal security remains low. Enterprises at a standardized IT infrastructure maturity level always benefit from transitioning to a rationalized level, gaining the highest control over their entire IT infrastructure, along with processes and policies aimed at proactive responses to various situations, from natural disasters to changes in market conditions.
Rationalized maturity level
This level of IT infrastructure maturity is characterized by minimal costs for managing servers and desktop computers, with policies and processes becoming crucial for business expansion and support. The focus on protection emphasizes preventive measures, and the company predictably and swiftly responds to any security threats. The application of 'Zero Touch' deployment (fully automated deployment with minimal operator involvement) reduces costs, installation time for updates, and the likelihood of technical issues. The number of system images is minimal, and the management of desktop computers requires little effort. A database is created within the enterprise, containing comprehensive information about hardware and software. As a result, the procurement of new computer equipment and software licenses is done in a targeted manner, without unnecessary expenses. Achieving a dynamic level of maturity, the IT infrastructure with a streamlined level offers the business numerous advantages: the enterprise becomes capable of implementing alternative and cutting-edge technologies required to achieve new goals and business tasks, with the gains significantly outweighing additional costs.
Dynamic Maturity Level
In organizations with an IT infrastructure that has reached a dynamic level of maturity, there is a complete understanding of the strategic value of this infrastructure, which contributes to effective business management and continuous competitive advantage. All expenses are fully controlled, and users have access to the necessary data for their work, regardless of which servers they are using. There is also well-organized and effective collaboration at both employee and departmental levels, with mobile users receiving nearly the same level of service as in the office. Processes become fully automated and are regularly integrated directly into IT systems, allowing these systems to be managed according to business needs. Additional investments in technology provide quick and predictable returns for the business. The use of quarantine-like systems and self-provisioning software that ensures proper management of updates and compliance with established security policies enables enterprises with a dynamic level of IT infrastructure maturity to automate processes, increasing their reliability. This format helps to reduce costs and maximize service levels. Enterprises with this level of IT infrastructure maturity can respond to any challenge of modern business.
Source: habr.com
