BPO in the Data Center Management Industry: Ensuring Reliable Operations

Keeping information hubs in good condition is crucial to achieving smooth workflows. A few errors can result in operational delays and potential breaches. If they escalate further, these incidents will weaken your credibility and slow your growth.

Business process outsourcing (BPO) helps ensure your data centers run without the risk of costly disruptions. Service providers combine human expertise and modern technology to oversee and maintain your data management hardware and software systems.

Continue reading this article to understand how BPO impacts your data center management operations. It also helps you learn how to leverage outsourcing benefits and resolve related risks.

How BPO Contributes to the Data Center Management Sector

Outsourcing your data center operations improves efficiency, cost reduction, and information security. Third-party vendors deploy experts trained to handle these hubs properly. While human error accounts for 21% of data breaches, providers help mitigate them by deploying the following artificial intelligence (AI) and automation systems along with their workers:

• Monitoring tools track a data center’s health and performance. These automated solutions notify third-party teams about anomalies affecting the hub’s servers, networks, and applications. Nagios and Zabbix are some examples of these tools.
• Orchestration technologies, such as Ansible and Puppet, help streamline repetitive data center services. They automate the infrastructure’s provisioning and configuration and help ease app deployment and task execution.
• Virtualization management systems optimize resource utilization and facilitate the implementation of remote data machines. For instance, Microsoft Hyper-V establishes virtual representations of data storage, servers, and networks.
• Cloud computing solutions (e.g., Azure Portal and AWS Management Console) enable seamless and safe data access, sharing, and storage over the Internet. These affordable platforms lessen the need for on-premises data centers.
• Security tools, including firewalls and antivirus software, help track and resolve cyber threats. These technologies, such as Palo Alto Networks and Cisco Power, also involve encryption and multifactor authentication capabilities to safeguard confidential data. 
• Backup and recovery platforms duplicate and store relevant enterprise and customer data securely. Authorized teams can access and retrieve such information in case of loss or damage after emergencies. Commvault and Veeam Backup & Replication offer this capacity.
• Data center infrastructure management (DCIM) systems facilitate the automatic monitoring and maintenance of physical and digital information hubs. These consist of tools for power usage, cooling, and space optimization. Nlyte and Device42 are some examples.
• Ticketing and incident management tools automate the tracking and categorization of reported issues related to data centers. They also organize service requests based on urgency and complexity.

Because of these benefits, businesses continue to entrust their data center facilities to third-party service providers. This increasing demand led to a market revenue of $164.81 billion for global data center outsourcing (DCO) in 2023, based on an Expert Market Research (EMR) study.

EMR expects the sector to expand at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of more than 5% to reach a value of $222.14 billion by 2032. Declining information technology (IT) budgets, restricted IT proficiency, and increased operational overhead costs drive the industry’s growth. 

Ensuring Reliable Data Center Operations With BPO

Acquiring cost-effective BPO services for data center management requires a strategic outsourcing plan. You must work closely with your potential provider to align contract terms and conditions. This action also ensures both parties agree on data privacy and security measures.

Suppose your IT business needs managed services and data center infrastructure support. You aim to cut costs while maintaining smooth and safe day-to-day operations. What are BPO best practices to follow? Here are a few considerations before signing a contract:

• Clarify measurable goals. This foundational step strengthens your work relationship with a provider, especially for long-term collaborations. It sets the stage for performance measurement and continuous improvement in your data centers.
• Conduct market research and analysis. Understand the level of expertise, scope of services, and pricing scheme of your ideal BPO organization. Check prospects’ market standing and credibility to match your business objectives and strategies.
• Develop a well-structured service-level agreement (SLA). Discuss your specific targets while negotiating contract terms and conditions with your potential BPO partner. Outline clear expectations for data center management efforts.
• Establish centralized communication channels. The client company should consider establishing regular communication channels with the BPO provider, including weekly status meetings and monthly performance reviews. These meetings provide a platform for open communication, swift issue resolution, and collaborative decision-making.
• Plan for scalability. Ensure your outsourced data center infrastructure plans can quickly adjust to market changes, trends, and issues. These strategies should include scaling your information hubs up or down based on fluctuating demands.
• Perform a comprehensive risk assessment. This action helps identify potential threats to data center operations before they worsen. List preventive measures and disaster recovery strategies after evaluating the risks of hardware failures, security breaches, and natural calamities.
• Optimize data center monitoring tools. These technologies automatically track the performance of servers, networks, and other critical components. Their automated alert features notify in-house and third-party teams of impending information system vulnerabilities.
• Enforce security protocols. Both parties must implement strict methods to protect data from criminals and cyberattacks. These approaches should include access controls, encryption measures, and compliance with industry regulations.
• Ensure continuous training. Support your BPO provider’s effort to train the workers responsible for managing your data centers. Include training covering the latest security measures, technological advancements, and industry best practices. The team must remain up-to-date with the evolving landscape of data center management.
• Secure documentation and knowledge transfer. Apply your joint data protection techniques when performing remote file sharing. Doing so avoids the risk of losing or leaking sensitive enterprise information.

The Bottom Line

BPO companies specializing in data center management deliver significant benefits to your business. They provide streamlined access to scalable human and tech resources at competitive pricing and optimize these resources to ensure smooth workflows for your information hubs.

As you seek a service provider, draft a well-defined plan for outsourcing your data centers. The steps above help you maximize the partnership’s advantages while avoiding expensive operational incidents.

Let’s connect if you need further assistance when looking for a reliable BPO company. Unity Communications houses skilled workers and robust solutions to meet your IT needs. The provider’s proven expertise helps safeguard your data centers from physical and online threats.