As modern business continues to move into this technological age, where every single process is facilitated by and orchestrated through technology, organizations are creating more data than ever. In fact, over 90% of all the data in the world was created in only the past two years, demonstrating how quickly this exponential data system is growing.
Data is a useful tool for businesses, allowing them to gain insight into how effective their processes are and generate directional strategies. Even whole industries have arisen from data, with data-driven marketing how being a central format to boost the success of marketing campaigns from around the world.
But, with all this data, how do businesses go about managing what they produce? In this article, we’ll be covering data centers, explaining what they are, and pointing to their uses within modern business.
Let’s get right into it!
What is a Data Center?
A data center is a central hub where all the data that a business creates, interacts with, or collects will be stored. For many years, a data center would have been a physical location, typically on-site wherever a business was located. The proximity of the data storage facility would have made it easy for users and data engineers to work in the center and manage it if anything was going wrong.
While a data center is essentially a network of computers, each of which includes huge storage spaces, security initiatives, and firewalls, the concept of these centers is now shifting. Currently, business is moving away from physical data centers and replacing them with cloud data storage. Not only do cloud services offer much more space, but there is hardly any upkeep cost, and they can also be scaled to suit how much space the business needs.
Many companies, including tech giants like Google, Microsoft, and Amazon, offer data storage facilities, with monthly subscription plans allowing businesses to buy however much they may need.
What Goes into a Data Center?
Businesses produce huge amounts of data, going way beyond just internal emails and interactions. Typically, while emails and file sharing are a portion of what’s stored in these centers, business also includes the very frameworks upon which they rely.
An average business data center would include the following information:
- Files produced by the company – This would hold any files that are shared between company employees and that are needed to perform their job.
- Applications – Whether it be code for their own application or applications that they subscribe to that make their jobs easier (like a video platform for meetings), they would also be stored on the cloud.
- CRM platforms – Customer Relationship Management platforms allow businesses to more easily engage with their audiences, making sure the day-to-day of their business goes off without a hitch.
- AI – Perhaps a more recent update of the data center, but one that is vital to include. As AI and machine learning become more important to businesses, the center of these models will be included here.
- Big data – Finally, any industry data that the business uses or has bought will also be included in these data centers. Buying industry data can help data engineers understand trends that are currently going on, adapting and staying in line with the curve.
While this isn’t an exhaustive list of all the different formats of data that a business may hold, it does give a great overview of what’s most commonly found in their data storage systems.
Why Are Data Centers Important?
Going beyond just storage and making copies, data centers are vital for organizations as they allow them to perform a range of actions more easily. Typically, a business will use data centers because they allow for:
- Reduced Silos – Communication silos are when one department produces data, but due to their lack of communication channels with other departments, they keep what they’ve found or produced to themselves. This can lead to other teams not having the data they need to perform their job to the best of their abilities. Due to this, by storing everything in a data center, your business can easily reduce data silting and open up communication channels for everyone, no matter what team they’re on.
- Reduced Barriers – When performing tasks such as customer service, employees often need to gain information about how to execute a varied array of in-platform movements. When your data is all over the place, it is nearly impossible for employees to find the information that they’re looking for, slowing down their day-to-day operations and leading to stagnation. When everything is in one place, everyone has access to the data they need and will be able to speed up the pace at which they work.
- Higher Margins – By using data to more effectively analyze your business, companies are able to find areas in which they are overpaying for services when compared to industry trends. These industry trends analyzes will help your business to renegotiate contracts and will lead you toward higher margins.
- Growth Opportunities – Data-driven marketing is an industry that can radically help shift how effective businesses are at what they do. Instead of relying on guesswork, analyzing data will help employees to make data-guided decisions, which can radically improve how effective they are when at work. Not only can this facilitate better performance among employees, but it can also lead to huge growth opportunities for your company as a whole.
Data is a powerful tool, with a strong data center framework ensuring that you always have access to what you need.
Final Thoughts
Considering the versatility and application of data within business, it’s no wonder that the big data industry is set to reach $103 billion by 2023. If you want to make sure your organization stays ahead of trends, more effectively engages employees, and creates data-driven plans for future growth, then a data center is the number one resource you need.
With the array of different data options out there, you’re sure to find a cloud service that performs exactly what your business needs.
