Mike Vizard

All posts by Mike Vizard

Mike Vizard has covered IT for more than 25 years, and has edited or contributed to a number of tech publications including InfoWorld, eWeek, CRN, Baseline, ComputerWorld, TMCNet, and Digital Review. He currently blogs for IT Business Edge and contributes to CIOinsight, The Channel Insider, Programmableweb and Slashdot. Mike blogs about emerging cloud technology for Smarter MSP.

Infrastructure challenges
Legacy network infrastructure acts as a drag on strategic IT initiatives

Legacy network infrastructure acts as a drag on strategic IT initiatives

When it comes to IT projects, most organizations are fairly ambitious. From migrating workloads to the cloud to launching Internet of Things (IoT) projects, there is no end of IT projects in sight. Often, the one thing holding back those...

/ September 21, 2017
Data integration
Expanding data integration needs play to the strengths of MSPs

Expanding data integration needs play to the strengths of MSPs

Most managed service providers also resell hardware and software, so the shift to the cloud has forced them to rebalance their revenue streams. As more applications are consumed as a cloud service, an MSP’s balance sheet fundamentally changes. Instead of...

/ September 19, 2017
5G networking
MSPs need a reality check when it comes to 5G networking

MSPs need a reality check when it comes to 5G networking

Device manufacturers are generating a lot of hype about 5G networking. After all, they want to sell next-generation systems capable of accessing and processing virtual reality applications and Internet of Things (IoT) applications that can process massive amounts of data over...

/ September 14, 2017
cloud application workloads
Distribution of application workloads in the age of the cloud to vary widely

Distribution of application workloads in the age of the cloud to vary widely

Every managed service provider is more than aware that application workloads are moving into the cloud in droves. The real issue is what percentage of all enterprise workloads will wind up being deployed on those clouds. A global survey of...

/ September 13, 2017
Time for MSPs to get ready for the coming IoT data storm

Time for MSPs to get ready for the coming IoT data storm

There’s a storm of data coming unlike any other, and savvy managed service providers should be gearing up for it now. A new report from 451 Research suggests that organizations planning to implement Internet of Things (IoT) projects expect to...

/ September 7, 2017 / 1 Comment
IT labor trends
How IT labor trends impact delivery of managed services

How IT labor trends impact delivery of managed services

The day after Labor Day in the U.S. seems like an appropriate moment for managed service providers to take stock of how IT labor trends and the cost of IT labor is impacting their business. A new U.S. Salary Report...

/ September 5, 2017
MSPs Should Benefit as IT Management Plane Moves to the Cloud

MSPs Should Benefit as IT Management Plane Moves to the Cloud

It’s usually easy to pick out which server management software being relied on to manage the local data center environment is located. Find the oldest, slowest server and chances are high that’s where the management software is running. After all,...

/ August 31, 2017
VMware Cloud on AWS Portends Significant Changes for MSPs

VMware Cloud on AWS Portends Significant Changes for MSPs

Now that VMware has made the first instance of its software stack available on the Amazon Web Services (AWS) public cloud managed service providers (MSPs) that have been generating revenue by migrating application workloads from on-premises environments to AWS clouds...

/ August 29, 2017
digital business growth
Spike in private exchange traffic points to digital business growth

Spike in private exchange traffic points to digital business growth

The cloud is more than just another means of delivering IT services. As cloud computing continues to evolve, it’s starting to have a profound impact on how digital business processes are deployed and how companies ultimately operate. A new study...

/ August 24, 2017
data centers
MSPs need to evolve as data centers transform

MSPs need to evolve as data centers transform

Managed service providers need a two-pronged approach to managing data centers that takes into account both the short-term needs of customers and the rapid rate at which advances in IT management are occuring. When it comes to providing managed services...

/ August 22, 2017