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- New Veroxity Whitepaper: VPLS for Any-to-Any Ethernet Connectivity
- Veroxity’s CEO Featured in Investor.com Article
- From Guest Blogger Jeffrey Harrington – The Outside Plant Puzzle: Pre and Post Build Process
- Customer-Centric Culture
- Google’s Plan for Fiber-Optic Networks
- The Consultative Approach to Disaster Recovery Planning: Part Two
- The Consultative Approach to Disaster Recovery Planning: Part One
- Upcoming Webinar: Any to Any Connectivity
- The QoS Question
- Demystifying Cloud Computing
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- experimental fiber networks
- Fiber-optic networks
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- fiber optic construction
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- MPLS
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- oversubscribed network
- post-build phases of construction
- pre-construction coordination
- QoS
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- VPLS
2010
New Veroxity Whitepaper: VPLS for Any-to-Any Ethernet Connectivity
Here is an excerpt from Veroxity’s new whitepaper entitled, “VPLS for Any-to-Any Ethernet Connectivity: When Simplicity & Control Matter.”
The Holy Grail: Achieving Simplicity and Control in the IT Infrastructure
Today’s Information Technology decision-makers face a major challenge in striking the right balance between managing the complex exchange of data and the operational efficiencies required to support their IT resources. At first glance, this appears to be an almost insurmountable task – two concepts that are completely at odds with each other. Consider an organization with multiple locations, needing to an abundance of data securely and in compliance with various regulations from and between local offices that have potentially varying levels of bandwidth requirements. How can such an organization achieve simplicity and control over its data networks?
Unfortunately, efforts to attain this level of simplicity and control have been hindered by the explosion of bandwidth requirements. To address this issue and enable quick, secure data transfer, various solutions have been brought forth over the years. But early technologies like Frame Relay and Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) that were once useful have shown their limitations. As an initial stopgap, telecom providers developed Multi-Protocol Label Switching (MPLS) for multipoint, Ethernet-centric connectivity.
Many organizations use MPLS today to enable connectivity between a large number of sites. But tradeoffs in implementing MPLS translate to a high level of complexity for the enterprise. While MPLS might be the right choice for organizations that need low-bandwidth solutions between a large number of sites, it can be overkill for many companies.
There is an alternative: a Layer 2 virtual private LAN service (VPLS), also called an Any-to-Any Ethernet solution.
Cheers,
Renay
2010
Veroxity’s CEO Featured in Investor.com Article
Last month, Eric Sandman was interviewed for an article that is now live on Investor.com, the online publication of Investor’s Business Daily. In the article, Eric is quoted regarding how business leaders can strengthen their organizations by analyzing financial trends as they relate to strategic investments. He points to seeking out greater efficiencies, as well as raising the bar for employees.
These statements are very applicable, especially as Veroxity has recently been named a Boston Business Journal Pacesetter, a Fastest Growing Private Company, for the sixth consecutive year.
Read the full article entitled, “Muscle Up With Numbers.”
Cheers,
Renay
2010
From Guest Blogger Jeffrey Harrington – The Outside Plant Puzzle: Pre and Post Build Process
My title, Outside Plant Manager, might immediately bring to mind thoughts of pulling fiber through manholes and construction of plant up on telephone poles. Although I am on the construction side of the house here at Veroxity and am out in the field on a daily basis, much of what I do is more about the coordination, preparation, and maintenance that goes into the build rather than the actual build itself. I would argue that 80% of my team’s time is dedicated to these pre- and post-build phases while the other 20% is spent installing the fiber itself. Getting our fiber from point A to point Z is always going to be the name of the game but in order to do that, we have to hit every letter in between.
Relationship-building (with city officials, utilities, etc.), planning, permitting, surveying, and quality-control are all incredibly important pieces of the Outside Plant (OSP) puzzle. Getting the cable in the ground or on the pole is the easy part. Going through the tedious and pain-staking process of planning and permitting a route or working with impossibly long timelines that you have no control over is where it tends to get sticky.
Permitting and licensing has always played an integral role in fiber builds. But in a down economy with fewer licensors and increased competition, the timelines can be pretty daunting. The trick is to have alternative plans. Getting the customer up and running on schedule while abiding by every rule, regulation, and standard (and believe me, there are many!) is the end goal and in order to accomplish this, we usually need to adjust the original plans. For example, if it is going to take over a year to license a fiber-run aerially and the customer needs service in 8 months, then we have to find another way to get the job completed. Is an underground run an option? Can we construct our own conduit?
In addition, making sure every necessary detail has been carried out in all phases of the build process is essential to the success of each project. We are constantly looking for ways to expedite the entire construction process from start to finish. New and improved equipment, strategizing fiber routes around utility and city permitting timelines, and selecting contractors that are right for each specific job are all a part of this. Our project managers and field crews work tirelessly to support this methodology.
Don’t get me wrong; every now and then I definitely get my hands dirty. But it’s often with a pen as we painstakingly plan out the best ways for Veroxity to exceed our customers’ expectations.
Jeffrey Harrington
Outside Plant Manager
jharrington@veroxity.com
2010
Customer-Centric Culture
Customer service seems to come up quite frequently as something that sets organizations apart from their peers, whether it sets them ahead or behind the pack is a different story. There is not a company on the planet that wants to have, or be known to have, sub-par customer service, but there is a lot of it out there. How did we let the importance of the age-old adage, “the customer is always right” slip through the cracks?
I believe that customer service, especially for telecommunications providers, needs to be more of a value set or culture that is instilled within a company’s core. Employees need to genuinely believe in it. From my experience, organizations either have this true value set or they don’t, and it becomes apparent it’s either one or the other pretty quickly in most cases. Immediately upon entering a phone conversation as a customer, I can tell if I am the entity that is indeed ‘always right’ or if I am simply a burden amongst a sea of similar burdens that someone must take on during their work day.
In my opinion, we need to get back down to basics. Nothing works perfectly 100% of the time, we all know that. But what a difference it makes to know that in the event that something does go wrong, you can expect a fully qualified, living human being to pick up your call rather than a recording that is “sorry, but didn’t get that … please state the reason for your call today.” We have all been there, and never want to go back.
We’ve heard it a million times, and as cliché as it sounds, it is the truth. The customer is always right. They can make or break an organization. Technology today allows an unsatisfied customer to broadcast their opinion and experience to the world with the click of a button. As a service provider you need to be more than just a self-proclaimed, well-oiled customer service machine; because in the end, if the customer doesn’t believe it, you simply have a menu of services with nothing behind them.
Filed under: Customer Service, General
Tagged: customer-centric culture, telecommunications providers
2010
Google’s Plan for Fiber-Optic Networks
A couple of years ago when Google was reaching out to a number of different sources looking for dark fiber, the general public knew that something was coming out of it, we just didn’t know what. The recent news about Google’s plan to build a number of experimental, fiber-optic networks has created quite a buzz in the world of telecommunications and the questions are now beginning to resurface. It seems that Google is willing, ready, and able to try their hand at anything technology related. We have established that. I am sitting at my desk ‘Googling’ information about Google while talking on my Google Android cell phone. When these networks are complete will we be ‘Googling’ on an internet provided by Google-owned fiber? I am curious as to what their main intentions and goals are with the building of this network. At first glance it looked like they were simply trying to reduce network costs by in-sourcing it completely but now I am not so sure. Is this endeavor really meant to be geared toward the ‘500,000 people’ they mention or is this more of an enterprise business plan? To me, it seems as though it could end up being a cannibalistic product offering. They would have to be competing with the Verizon’s and AT&T’s of the world if they built this network. Regardless of their intentions, Google has proven itself time and again at being incredibly successful at everything they get their hands in and I have no doubt that they will accomplish whatever it is they are setting out to do. I look forward to seeing their influence reflected in the telecommunications space.
Filed under: Carrier, Enterprise, General, Uncategorized
Tagged: experimental fiber networks, Fiber network expertise, Fiber-optic networks
2010
The Consultative Approach to Disaster Recovery Planning: Part Two
There are different reasons for needing any or all of these services. Your main concern might be email, application or database backup, or it might be that your servers and connectivity are active at all times. For some organizations, it might not be critical that email is undelivered for a short period of time in the event of a disaster as long as all of the emails within the database are backed up. In this situation, the focus is on database backup rather than constant connectivity. This is why our sale is very consultative in nature. If a customer asks for a connection from point A to point B, we need to understand what it will be used for. Once we understand the purpose for the connection we can gauge the need for diverse entrances, protected services, etc. The answers to these questions enable us to tailor the appropriate solution. It is so important to sell the right size tool for the job at hand. You would not go out and buy a John Deere riding mower to use on 10 x 10 patch of grass just like you wouldn’t grab a knife out of your drawer to eat a bowl of ice cream.
Many service providers today tend to walk into sales meetings with a menu and ask a potential customer what they are looking for. But that prospect may not need what’s on their menu; a different solution may be required. That’s why today’s sales HAVE to be more consultative. What is required by a customer to run their business as smoothly as possible? What exactly are these services going to be used for? Once we have the answer to these questions, we can customize and deliver the best possible solution.
2010
The Consultative Approach to Disaster Recovery Planning: Part One
From a service provider standpoint, the term disaster recovery is very broad. It has varying levels of importance that are dependent upon organizational goals. It can encompass your network, your databases, your applications, your internet access; again, it’s all about the business need. The scope of a disaster recovery plan changes from one business and industry to another. As a carrier, our goal is to ensure that we have the most survivable network possible so that we can deliver on our Service Level Agreements (SLAs). This is exactly why we have invested in a SONET based infrastructure, developed multiple entrances for lit buildings, and have dual pops in every location so that any one ‘disaster’ can’t bring down customer connectivity.
There are basically three flavors of disaster recovery planning for which clients engage with carriers. They can be provided in conjunction with each other or separately. These plans mean different things to each individual company utilizing them as defined by their business. Each has varying levels of importance based upon business need:
1. Internet Access: A company needs internet access in order to conduct day to day business. However, companies that gain business via the web are looking for diverse routes and more than one carrier. Due to the nature of their business that centers on Internet transactions, they cannot afford to put all of their eggs in one basket.
2. Basic Connectivity: When a business has multiple facilities, connectivity between these locations must be available at all times. From a disaster recovery planning standpoint, a network that will maintain that connectivity to each geographically dispersed location at all times is ideal.
3. Data Center Back Up: It used to be that a company’s primary data center was located at a company headquarters while their secondary backup centers would be remote. We are seeing more and more customers will have a primary, off-site data center in addition to secondary backup locations that are also remote. Connectivity is needed between all of these sites. It is the organization’s business model and goals that determine the need for this connection and at what level. For example, pharmaceutical companies require huge amounts of data storage, so they will keep all information in two or three places. If one of those data centers goes down, this information can be found in the alternative locations. Some companies have applications that are running at all times, i.e. their customers are constantly tracking their online orders or making purchases, etc. If anything happens to either the server connectivity or the servers themselves these companies have an absolute need for another that is standing by, ready to go online.
…
Check in next week for Part Two of The Consultative Approach to Disaster Recovery Planning.
2009
Upcoming Webinar: Any to Any Connectivity
Join Veroxity on Thursday, December 3rd at 12PM Eastern for our webinar: “Any to Any Connectivity: The Benefits of VPLS.”
Chris Williams, Veroxity’s Director of Technology, along with Russ Pelham, our Senior Sales Engineer, will discuss the differences between MPLS and VPLS solutions for the Enterprise. If you have specific questions related to this topic, we would be happy to answer them during Thursday’s session so please email me at: rpicard@veroxity.com.
Hope you can join us!
Cheers,
Renay
2009
The QoS Question
The buzz about QoS has dwindled since the concept was first introduced but the debate as to whether or not a QoS product is useful seems to be ongoing. Typically deployed on an MPLS network infrastructure, the purpose of QoS is to ensure high priority customer traffic traverses a significantly oversubscribed network.
There is no question that oversubscribed networks need some type of mechanism to ensure no interruption but my doubts about implementing a QoS system are rooted in my view of how a customer might be affected. As a customer, if you are not buying the highest priority level, then your service quality becomes a function of the priorities level purchased by other customers. This leaves you pitted against other customers on the same network where your status can constantly change based on others willingness to purchase an advantage. Increasingly, customers are looking for networks that don’t deploy QoS because they prefer the idea of a level playing field. Their preference is to shape their own traffic before it gets on to the network.
Recently, Veroxity has reached a decision to take a capacity management approach designed to ensure that there is always adequate capacity such that prioritization and classes of service are not required and SLAs are met. Customers that need assistance in shaping their own traffic are offered a managed solution, adjusting their traffic at the edge so that no prioritization is necessary at the core. My belief is that QoS, while positively utilized on some networks, is not something that is a necessity on a VPLS network such as our own.
2009
Demystifying Cloud Computing
As a marketer who follows the latest trends, I am used to the hype that comes with new terminology. Often times, we “repackage” concepts to make them more exciting and inspire confidence. So, as you are well aware, the major buzz in the technology marketplace is all about Cloud Computing.
For my colleagues, the concept of cloud computing is “old hat.” Veroxity’s goal is to enable technology projects and applications via powerful Internet connections and Ethernet solutions so we are well aware of the power that comes with operating in the cloud. But I find that many of us non-techies are still trying to sort it out. What does cloud computing really mean? I found a few great clips out on YouTube that I found helpful.
I particularly liked the concepts that I found in this clip by CNET News entitled, “What is cloud computing?” If you think of “the cloud” as the Internet, this makes a lot of sense: Dan Farber, Editor in Chief of CNET News, states “”When there’s enough bandwidth, security, and reliability, the notion of the cloud will disappear – just like serving up electricity, we’ll be serving up data, applications and writing apps directly to the cloud.”
Salesforce describes this idea as “shared infrastructure” without software. Whatever the app is, just login, customize and you are ready to roll. It requires less IT resource while delivering security and performance. Think streamlined – no servers, no complex applications that are a nightmare to upgrade.
I believe that we have been doing much of this through SaaS products already and now the concept is being extended.
Cheers,
Renay
