- Image by DanieVDM via Flickr
We’ve all heard it, “I’m a “X-Y-Z”-Shop – won’t even consider anyone else. Well consider this. By introducing a second vendor into your network, the overall savings reach 30%, and even greater in some cases, according the Gartner Group. “Introducing a Second Network Vendor Saves Money and Solidifies Operations” (ID G00165103), research published in May of 2009, certainly illustrates the true cost of diversity in networks; and not just an incumbent vendor’s view on the world, and how that applies to their customers.
Key findings in Gartner’s research were that operational impact is modest and easily handled by most organization, and the changes required are largely based on best practices for running a single vendor network. Investing in multivendor network management tools alleviates many of issues and concerns with this change. The saves are significant enough (30% or higher) far outweigh the minimal increase in operational expenditures.
It’s recommended that by approaching the issue in an organized, systematic fashion to maximize benefits while minimizing risk, reaps the benefits of a lower-cost, better performing infrastructure.
More and more enterprises are realizing the benefits of a multi-vendor infrastructure. The three primary benefits as reported by these enterprises:
- Cost – improved negotiating position
- Improved functional alignment with requirements – decisions are based on which vendor best delivers the needed features, not what an incumbent vendor will “throw in” since you’ve made substantial purchases elsewhere.
- Improved operational processes – a major concern, but by taking a systematic approach to the architecture, the hurdles of interoperability, training, network management and support escalation will all be addressed adequately. This is addressed in another Gartner report on Vendor Influence (ID Number G00145023), in their Best Practices series.
The great news is that by introducing a second vendor into the network, the overall capital savings more than make up for the minimal increase in operating expenses, even if a multivendor network management tool is purchased, and there additional management expenses, and training. Not to mention, you won’t be stuck with a solution that was “thrown in” because the incumbent vendor can afford to take a loss – even though at some point in the future the solution may be relegated to a doorstop because it wasn’t really what you required for your network.
