The Olympics are all but upon us – which is a good thing for sports fans all over the world, but not so good for the people responsible for avoiding downtime of businesses’ IT infrastructures being put under immense pressure. Work will have to continue for businesses under what will feel like unprecedented circumstances, particularly as London’s networks take on the trafficking of massive amounts of new inbound and outbound data.
For many businesses, the Olympics bring the potential of increased business whilst also presenting potential of increased complexity. We have had a number of enquiries from businesses based in and around London and the South, who are dependent on the internet, whether it’s for back office SaaS applications, ecommerce sites, customer service portals, virtual training or anything in between, who want to make sure their business benefits rather than suffers from the increased activity in the capital.
To take advantage of the opportunities the Olympics is presenting, businesses will need their systems to work reliably, every time and without question. Here are my top five tips in choosing a hosting solution to ensure that happens:
1. Ensure your solution is ‘walled in’ to ensure you are insulated from the worst of stresses on London’s IT infrastructure. It needs to contractually as well as technically robust. This will guarantee peace of mind to you and those in your business to continue business as usual even in the biggest net traffic storms.
2. Double check your SLA to ensure your provider has exactly the right people in place to support the network, and ensure their support is available round the clock. Web hosting and data centre experts understand the specific type of attention a business requires. If its support is only 9 to 5 it’s likely their experience and expertise is limited.
3. Look into the history of your provider; does past experience and performance in crisis management prove its worth? An international reputation in the web hosting marketplace confirms a provider has the network security to persevere through an unprecedented event like the Olympics anywhere in the world.
4. Look into the corporate social responsibility of your provider from a number of different aspects. The ecological and conscious efforts of their offering should be in line with those of your own business, as the media spotlight will be searching for business focus both positively and negatively throughout the summer events.
5. Converse with your own team members; receive feedback and set out strategy. Seek advice on strategy from your provider surrounding telecommuting. If they have the right experience and expertise, they can provide you with personalised advice from day one.
The Olympics will be a great showcase for the capital if businesses get the chance to shine when the pressure is on. The right hosting provider can take the stress off the business managers and IT departments, who can then continue making strategic contributions, rather than fire-fighting difficulties which should never have arisen in the first place.
PEER 1 Hosting has launched its own ‘Team 2012’ to offer assistance to businesses needing to stay online during the Olympics. Visit www.peer1hosting.co.uk/london-2012-games, call 02380 926 309 or email [email protected] to find out more.
By Dominic Monkhouse, MD EMEA, PEER 1 Hosting
The Olympics are all but upon us – which is a good thing for sports fans all over the world, but not so good for the people responsible for avoiding downtime of businesses’ IT infrastructures being put under immense pressure. Work will have to continue for businesses under what will feel like unprecedented circumstances, particularly as London’s networks take on the trafficking of massive amounts of new inbound and outbound data.
For many businesses, the Olympics bring the potential of increased business whilst also presenting potential of increased complexity. We have had a number of enquiries from businesses based in and around London and the South, who are dependent on the internet, whether it’s for back office SaaS applications, ecommerce sites, customer service portals, virtual training or anything in between, who want to make sure their business benefits rather than suffers from the increased activity in the capital.
To take advantage of the opportunities the Olympics is presenting, businesses will need their systems to work reliably, every time and without question. Here are my top five tips in choosing a hosting solution to ensure that happens:
1. Ensure your solution is ‘walled in’ to ensure you are insulated from the worst of stresses on London’s IT infrastructure. It needs to contractually as well as technically robust. This will guarantee peace of mind to you and those in your business to continue business as usual even in the biggest net traffic storms.
2. Double check your SLA to ensure your provider has exactly the right people in place to support the network, and ensure their support is available round the clock. Web hosting and data centre experts understand the specific type of attention a business requires. If its support is only 9 to 5 it’s likely their experience and expertise is limited.
3. Look into the history of your provider; does past experience and performance in crisis management prove its worth? An international reputation in the web hosting marketplace confirms a provider has the network security to persevere through an unprecedented event like the Olympics anywhere in the world.
4. Look into the corporate social responsibility of your provider from a number of different aspects. The ecological and conscious efforts of their offering should be in line with those of your own business, as the media spotlight will be searching for business focus both positively and negatively throughout the summer events.
5. Converse with your own team members; receive feedback and set out strategy. Seek advice on strategy from your provider surrounding telecommuting. If they have the right experience and expertise, they can provide you with personalised advice from day one.
The Olympics will be a great showcase for the capital if businesses get the chance to shine when the pressure is on. The right hosting provider can take the stress off the business managers and IT departments, who can then continue making strategic contributions, rather than fire-fighting difficulties which should never have arisen in the first place.
By Dominic Monkhouse, MD EMEA, PEER 1 Hosting. PEER 1 Hosting has launched its own ‘Team 2012’ to offer assistance to businesses needing to stay online during the Olympics. Visit www.peer1hosting.co.uk/london-2012-games, call 02380 926 309 or email [email protected]
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