Interconnection to Empower Enterprise Digital Transformation

By Ivo A. Ivanov, Chief Executive Officer of DE-CIX International

Network solutions are not new to enterprises. A number of global, national and regional providers offer an array of private network solutions that enable businesses to access the Internet, cloud solutions, software capabilities, support private connections through VPNs delivered to a number of corporate end-points including residential locations as Work From Home (WFH) becomes the new normal. What enterprises have yet to adapt to is an interconnected solution to enable private business partnerships, research and development capabilities that will accelerate growth and adoption of applications enabling the Internet of anywhere.

Since the birth of the new digital era platforms enabling digital transformation (such as AWS, Microsoft, Google and more), continue to challenge traditional business models, forcing companies to accelerate their adoption of digital transformation to survive and prosper. Such dynamic and swift changes have forced enterprises to primarily rely on external third-party providers to rapidly implement network, cloud and connectivity solutions to ensure they keep pace with and adapt to the digital world. The explosion of data volume, the demand for security and the ability to optimize end-user experiences are highlighting the limitations of this ‘externalization' model.  Today, Enterprises need to take full control of their network interconnection infrastructure to deliver upon the high expectations of today (and tomorrow's) "digital generation" while remaining steadfast and competitive in their day-to-day business goals.

Furthermore, the COVID-19 global pandemic has only amplified and accelerated the widespread adoption of digital reliance, adding even more pressure on Enterprises to fully adapt their digital transformation commitments while ensuring business continuity in an unpredictable and wholly undefined period of time.

Digital transformation is not a single event but it's a process. As such, digital infrastructure is so important to the future of enterprises for the sole reason that it doesn't matter what product you have. If you want to be efficient you must adapt a digital process that is reliable, accessible and secure. As we look at three different sectors:  finance, automotive and healthcare - different products, solutions and challenges to overcome - yet they all need efficient access to cloud and software solutions, digital integration of CRM systems, collaborative work environments and more. They are not developing these solutions rather using them in similar and different ways to enable their businesses to be more efficient and effective both cost-wise and business-wise.

To solve this problem, a new approach is needed.  One that focuses on enabling Enterprises access to a closed user group extranet that is managed for specific vertical solutions and enabled for specific companies to design, develop and deploy custom ecosystems that can be solely used to empower and enable their digital business solutions.

At DE-CIX, we believe that traditional enterprise network solution capabilities overlaid on the digital transformative needs of businesses will continue to evolve, challenging the status quo and limitations of existing wide-area networking solutions.  As a result, an entirely new network architecture is required. One that will enable, empower and transform enterprises throughout the world - seamlessly, with security and privacy that gives them control while enabling collaboration all at the same time.

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About the Author

Ivo A. Ivanov, Chief Executive Officer of DE-CIX International

Ivo A. Ivanov is the Chief Operating Officer of the DE-CIX Group AG and Chief Executive Officer of DE-CIX International, responsible for the global business activities of the Internet Exchange Operator. Ivo has more than 15 years' of experience in the regulatory, legal, and commercial Internet environment. Ivo joined DE-CIX in January 2007. In recent years, Ivo has been deeply involved in the establishment of DE-CIX sites in Istanbul, Palermo, Madrid, Marseille, New York, Dallas, Dubai (UAE-IX powered by DE-CIX), and Mumbai (Mumbai IX powered by DE-CIX), as well as several DE-CIX consultancy projects in Africa, Asia and Europe.

Ivo's educational background focused on Law and Business. Fluent in German, English, Russian and Bulgarian, he graduated from a German business school in 1995 and holds two Law degrees, from the Universities of Sofia (Bulgaria) and Bonn (Germany).