Azure Stack-as-a-Service - Harbour IT · A hybrid cloud solution is one of the more versatile and ... complexity, the more consistent the cloud environment the better. • Agility

Your personal guide to true hybrid architecture designed for serious cloud performance, security and compliance.

Azure Stack-as-a-ServiceCloud Power | Private Peace of Mind

CONTENTS OVERVIEW MINDSETS CHALLENGES BENEFITS Q&A WHY HARBOUR IT NEXT STEPS

Contents

Stack-as-a-Service: An Overview 3

Stakeholder Mindsets 4

Considerations for the Financial Officer 5

Considerations for the End User 5

Industry Challenges 6

How Does Stack-as-a-Service Benefit your Business? 6

Q&A: A Rock-Solid Footing in the Cloud

Adrian Yasin (Senior Manager of Product & Innovation) 7

Why Choose Harbour IT? 9

Next Steps – Free Expert Consultation 9

Foreword - Why is hybrid cloud important?

A hybrid cloud solution is one of the more versatile and scalable solutions a business can adopt. And while each business’ use of the cloud will differ, its overall growth is undeniable.

Gartner reports that over 90% of enterprise organisations expect to deploy hybrid cloud architecture in IT departments by the year 2020, and more than $1.3trillion in IT spending will be affected by the shift to the cloud by 2022. This shows the versatility of the hybrid cloud model.

Adopting a hybrid architecture empowers a business to take advantage of the best of every environment based on the unique risks and benefits their business or industry faces. As a result, the business is always in control of where workloads sit. The below diagram illustrates the trade-off between risk and benefits that a hybrid cloud enables a business to manage.

Do you need to and are you ready to adopt hybrid cloud? Ask your self the questions below, if your answer is yes to any of them then you could benefit from adopting a hybrid cloud architecture:

• Do you have aging infrastructure but aren’t quite ready for a full move to Public Cloud?

• Are you using Azure Public and looking for greater control over costs and data security?

• Are you trying to balance innovation with regulatory compliance and other non-technical concerns?

• Do you need greater control over where and how your applications are run?

• Is your dev team developing on-premise to deploy code to a Public Cloud at a rapid rate?

• Are you looking to build cloud skills and capability in a more secure environment?

https://www.harbourit.com.au/lp/azure-stack/

Stack-as-a-Service: An Overview

A truly unique combination of world class hybrid cloud technology, with unparalleled service from a known and trusted Managed Service Provider, Azure Stack-as-a-Service ensures rapid implementation of your hybrid cloud strategy without the large capital outlay and long lead times associated with building internal cloud capabilities and infrastructure.

House business-critical datasets and workloads in a private cloud environment to generate greater control over your security posture and compliance requirements.

Azure consistent, Stack enables you to harness the agility of the public cloud alongside its flexibility and scalability, freeing you up to focus on driving value for your customers and delivering business outcomes, instead of being handcuffed by slow IT operations.

As a result, your digital transformation takes on minimised risk, enabling IT to better execute on business demands.

Hosted on HPE ProLiant hardware in the Equinix data centre in Mascot, enjoy complete control over your data with consideration to costs, security and compliance, ensuring your ability to meet regulatory demands of today and tomorrow.

Delivered as a managed service on a per-use, per-month basis, Azure Stack allows your organisation to start small, with one workload and scale as needed.

Cost Predictability

Greater visibility and cost-predictability ensures your organisation can control costs, eliminating the potential bill shock of public cloud.

Accelerate Road to Cloud

Accelerate the establishment of your cloud strategy without having to build capability, worry about capacity or make CapEx investments.

Speed to Market

Deliver products and services quicker with IT focused on business initiatives rather than IT operations.

Security & Control

A private cloud environment delivers solidified control over your security posture and compliance requirements.


With Azure Stack, your digital transformation

takes on minimised risk, enabling IT to better execute on business

demands.


Stakeholder Mindsets

When it comes to implementing new IT platforms and refining overall IT strategy, priorities vary across stakeholders and industries. Something that is important for an IT Manager may not necessarily be important for a Chief Financial Officer.

We answer the question “why does cloud infrastructure matter to me?” across key stakeholders in the modern organisation.

Considerations for the IT Department

The days of IT existing as a cost-centre, entrusted to simply “keep the lights on” are nothing more than a memory. To grow and remain competitive in the digital age, IT must be seen as a business enabler, assembled with the resources and ability to drive digital experiences, create new products and services, and expand into new markets. But with the IT environment becoming more and more complex, coupled with a skills shortage and rising wage demands for talent, finding the time to innovate can be challenging.

Key Priorities include:

• Solidified security, mitigated risk, and total control of moving to

the Cloud.

• Time - Finding time to focus on initiatives that drive growth and

differentiation from the market.

• Consistency of environment – for workloads to run at optimal

efficiency they must be in the right environment. To minimise

complexity, the more consistent the cloud environment the better.

• Agility – Security is paramount, so having the agility to adapt

to business changes, adjust data processing capacity on-

demand, and move sensitive information when necessary.

Stack Delivers:

• As-a-Service, giving IT teams the necessary time to focus on

business initiatives.

• A clear on or off ramp to the public cloud, ensuring you have

the ability to manage each workload and optimise for the

benefits of each environment.

• Resolute security courtesy of the private cloud.

• Increased agility and go-to-market speed courtesy of the

Azure consistent environment, framework and tools.

Considerations for the Boardroom/Executive Team

Business leaders want to see legitimate value from the technology investment. Will the solution solidify our security posture, ensure the protection of our sensitive datasets and workloads, while also allowing us to comply with changing regulatory standards? Will it deliver improved levels of organisational efficiency? Will it enable employees to focus their energy more intently on innovation? How much will it cost us? Without having a developed and mature understanding of IT, executives want the assurance their data and reputation are secure, and that there’s legitimate business value and opportunities for growth in the investment.


• IT delivers continuously improved organisational processes

and efficiency.

• Risk-mitigation – Business-critical data is safe and secure.

• Developing shareholder growth by delivering business

outcomes and profitability without technology being a

limiting factor.

Stack Delivers:

• The powerful benefits of agility, flexibility and scalability to

continuously develop innovative products and services.

• High levels of security and control to maintain the integrity of

business-critical data.

• Technology that can drive shareholder growth through

improved time to market and innovation.



Considerations for the Financial Officer

Chief Financial Officers (CFOs) often act as the bridge between the executive team and the internal IT team, they must effectively liaise with all parties. When evaluating the value in a new solution they must assess the costs of maintaining the current environment (these are often the biggest IT expenses in terms of wages and upkeep hours), and what cost will be incurred in rolling out new technology? If so, what is the payback period on the technology before it becomes a successful cost cutting reduction strategy?


• Ensuring the projected return on technology investment

comes to fruition rather than remaining a mere projection.

• Delivering measurable outcomes from technology

investment.

• Investing in technology that effectively delivers

organisational outcomes.

• Ability to initially invest small, validate a solution through

proof of concept, and then scale up with larger investments

once Executive Team has experienced the benefits.

Stack Delivers:

• Cost transparency and predictability.

• Pay-as-you-grow service model that ensures your cloud

environment is up and running quickly, without the burden of

capital expenditure.

• Develop and deliver services through a subscription model

that enables cloud innovation to fuel further growth and

measurably deliver on business outcomes.

Considerations for the End User

End users are the backbone of any organisation, performing the processes and tasks that define an organisations success. Staff need the right systems and security posture in place for them to perform at optimal levels of productivity and efficiency. Frontline staff are much happier and at their most productive when they’re using and have access to systems that are secure and streamlined, allowing them to perfectly execute their role.


• Having access to systems and apps that facilitate

streamlined execution of daily tasks without obstruction

or downtime.

• Can service clients and customers promptly, using tools

that make work a pleasure.

• Desire for their identity and personal information to

remain secure.

Stack Delivers:

• A more streamlined and innovative platform

for service delivery.

• Peace of mind in the knowledge that data is secure

and private.

• Continued development of innovative tools.


By keeping your stakeholders front

of mind, we can deliver solutions that suit your

business needs.


Industry Challenges

At Harbour IT, we have a strong and demonstrated history of helping organisations balance the need for control and innovation, such as the Finance, Superannuation and Insurance sectors, where they face tension between the following challenges:

How Does Stack-as-a-Service Benefit your Business?

Your organisations IT infrastructure is the underlying vehicle that drives the tools you leverage to complete a myriad of processes and tasks. How your infrastructure runs can often be an indication of how your organisation is performing. Having a flexible, scalable and high-performance environment in place enables your staff to deliver optimal services and outcomes to your customers.

Securely handle large volumes of personal and sensitive information

Compliance and regulatory standards that must be met across industry, government and internal policies

Customer demands for innovative products/services and a streamlined customer experience


Juggling speed to market for critical business demands with time to develop new and innovative solutions

Key Benefits include:

• Start with single workload, scale as you grow, keeping you

in control and minimising risk

• Ability to control where datasets and workloads sit

(private or public cloud)

• Ability to move safely to the cloud, as you’re always in

control of where workloads reside

• All sensitive datasets and workloads remain secure

courtesy of a resolute security posture, aligned correctly

with regulatory and compliancy standards. You

know where they are, and that you have control and

sovereignty over them at all times. This is as opposed to a

strictly Public Cloud, where data can reside anywhere.

• High potential for the customer experience to improve

exponentially courtesy of the IT team’s increased time for

innovation

• Accelerated enterprise app development which

improves the delivery of services and products at an

unprecedented rate to customers


Q&A: A Rock-Solid Footing in the Cloud – Adrian Yasin

Senior Manager of Product and Innovation, Adrian Yasin is responsible for developing and executing Harbour IT’s product business plans, leading the way with innovative projects that help define both Harbour IT’s and our customers’ journeys into the future.

As we sit here, poised to reveal Harbour IT’s new Microsoft Azure Stack as-a-Service model, we thought it pertinent to sit down with Adrian and get all the key information, and highlight why it’s time for Australian businesses to get excited.

Q. Hi Adrian, thanks for taking the time to sit down with us today. The momentum behind hybrid cloud is growing significantly at the moment, why?

Adrian: Roughly 18 months ago, there was a big push for

everything to be in the public cloud because of the promised

benefits around scale, flexibility and the cost factor (CapEx to

OpEx). But in the midst of this migration, organisations weren’t

developing defined understandings of the associated risks and

benefits, the move garnered new challenges for cost

and security.

OpEx cost models created a new budget line that was

often unpredictable, which if not managed correctly lead to

significant bill shock and cost blowout.

Issues of security, compliance, regulation and the need for

data sovereignty had previously been under the watchful eye

of the IT department. But with data no longer housed on-

premise or within a private environment, concerns began to be

raised about access and the risks for sensitive and customer-

specific information.

So, while the benefits of public cloud were very promising,

many IT and business leaders were apprehensive

considering the associated risks. Hence the growth in hybrid

infrastructures began as a result of this tension. Organisations

want to embrace the innovation, flexibility and power of the


public cloud while simultaneously maintaining security and

compliancy requirements through on-premise environments.

Q. Harbour IT have been offering Private Cloud for over 15 years’ now with Cloud Metro, what’s the difference between that core offering and your new go-to market; Stack-as-a-Service?

Adrian: When we introduced Cloud Metro, it was a pioneer

offering for the Australian market at the time. Having the

ability to offer dual replication across data centres and an

all-flash storage array, as standard, was not the done thing

at the time. And it remains a very high performing private

cloud Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) solution, supporting

a number of Australia’s leading finance, superannuation and

insurance organisations.

Azure Stack-as-a-Service strengthens our hybrid portfolio,

with a more sophisticated and advanced version of hybrid

cloud. The Azure consistent environment simplifies IT

operations and provides a clear pivot point for organisations

wishing to move to the public cloud but still needing to

manage security, as well as those already on Azure public

but in need of a retreat strategy to better manage costs.

Q. When discussing hybrid cloud and Azure Stack, you’ve mentioned consistency in the past, and again just then, would you care to elaborate a little more on that?

Adrian: Sure. So, hybrid cloud architectures are traditionally

achieved through network connections to various public cloud

environments, typically using virtual machines and express

routes. Now, while these create a connection to the public

cloud environment, each environment in the cloud is unique to

its respective cloud provider. The impact of this is twofold.

1. Your workloads need to be optimised to work in each

environment.

2. Development teams require different tools and processes

for each environment, which multiplies the complexity of

the environment, and is very time consuming.

But Stack is Azure consistent, which means that it runs the

exact same operating environment in the public cloud.


Which delivers ease of movement for workloads between

environments. Your development team can develop once

and deploy in either private, public or a combination of

environments. So, less time spent orchestrating IT

operations, more time to focus on innovation and

delivering business demands.

Q. Being first to the Australian market with this solution, what are the key business benefits that customers can expect to see?

Adrian: I believe there has been similar solutions available in

New Zealand and Norway, but you are right, this will be the

first Stack multi-tenant solution of this nature available in

the Australian market. Harbour IT is offering it as a managed

service, allowing organisations to start small, with what’s

manageable and then scale as needed. The key benefits are

four-fold.

1. Security, control and compliance

2. Accelerate Road to Cloud – With Harbour IT managing

the environment, organisations have the ability to

accelerate the establishment of their cloud approach

without the need to build capability, worry about capacity

or make any CapEx investments.

3. Speed to Market – Organisations take advantage of faster

speed to market courtesy of IT having sufficient time to

focus on what differentiates and drives their business

forward, rather than IT operations.

4. Cost – Stack-as-a-Service delivers greater visibility and

predictability, hence ensuring IT teams and business

leaders have control over costs, eliminating the potential

bill shock that public cloud can bring.

Q. From an industry perspective, when considering the finance, superannuation and insurance sectors, they have a lot of compliance and regulatory standards to meet – does Stack-as-a-Service assist in meeting those?

Adrian: In short, yes. This Stack-as-a-Service model is a very

strong solution for those particular sectors. All three-face

tension between a number of challenges that include:

1. Handling of large volumes of personal and sensitive

information.

2. Customer demands for innovative products/services and

a streamlined customer experience.

3. Compliance and regulatory standards that must be met

across industry, government and internal policies.

Models that are consumed as-a-Service enable organisations

to leverage the expertise of a trusted managed service

provider to assist them in meeting competitive demands of

regulation and innovation. Access to industry leading talent

and expertise ensures they are ahead of the curve with respect

to security and compliance while also affording their internal

teams the necessary freedom to focus on the innovative

initiatives that drive the customer experience.

High performing organisations like to focus on building and

retaining their competitive intellectual property in house,

so as-a-Service models are justified because the focus on

operations and support functions is taken out of their hands.

Q. That’s fantastic, do you forecast an increase in uptake for these models? And where do you see hybrid cloud in 12-24 months’ time do you think?

Adrian: Absolutely, IT is becoming more complex, and there’s

a clear skills shortage in terms of talent across the market.

Savvy organisations are partnering with integrators such as

Harbour IT as a direct strategy to meet the demand for skills

and capabilities, as well as ensuring they remain competitive.

In terms of hybrid cloud, it’s quickly become the new standard,

and companies will require the security private cloud delivers

but market pressure will continue to the push the need for

public cloud. Over time, hybrid will evolve to be very much

multi-cloud, where the most innovative customers will

demand the flexibility to move workloads between the

various public cloud providers, and private.

Whether you’re new to cloud services or a seasoned

professional, a conversation with one of our cloud experts

is the best way to get clarity for your project. Our expert

consultations are designed to ensure the right cloud fit for

your organisation, no matter where you are on your cloud

journey. We’ll work alongside you to see how Azure Stack

fits with your organisation.

VISIT HARBOURIT.COM.AU



Why Choose Harbour IT?

At Harbour IT, our reputation is founded on ensuring the security, control and compliance of our customers most sensitive workloads. Known for our knowledgeable, personable service, we offer the most secure and flexible hosted and managed cloud offerings available in the market – helping our customers to transform the way their businesses are run.

We have provided cloud hosting solutions and managed services for nearly 2 decades. You’ll benefit from the expertise of the best engineers in the industry and enjoy a level of security and reliability that’s second to none.

Next Steps – Free Expert Consultation

Whether you’re new to cloud services or a seasoned professional, a conversation with one of our cloud experts is the best way to get clarity for your project and move forward.

Our expert consultations are designed to ensure the right cloud fit for your organisation, no matter where you are on your cloud journey. We’ll work alongside you to see how Azure Stack fits into your organisation.

CALL 1300 785 942 VISIT HARBOURIT.COM.AU



Unlock Cloud Power, with Private Peace of Mind

CALL 1300 785 942 VISIT HARBOURIT.COM.AU


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Azure Stack-as-a-Service - Harbour IT · A hybrid cloud solution is one of the more versatile and ... complexity, the more consistent the cloud environment the better. • Agility