Everyone seems to be concerned about the “tsunami of data” that is overwhelming the IT world. However, relatively few people appear to be worried about the “ripple effect” of this growth on other areas that are directly or indirectly impacted by this phenomenon.

Storage growth does not occur in a vacuum.   Every gigabyte of data written to disk must also be backed up, managed, transferred, secured, analyzed, protected, and supported.   It has a “ripple effect” that can spread throughout the organization, creating problems and resource shortages in many other areas.

A case-in point is the backup & recovery process.  Every gigabyte stored must be scheduled for backup, so if we’re experiencing a 50% CAGR data growth rate, then we are also subjected to a 50% growth rate in demand for backup & recovery services.  In addition, most companies keep more than one copy of data in the form of supplementary backups, clones, replications, and other forms of duplication.  Therefore a single gigabyte of data can exist in multiple areas throughout the organization.

Areas that are directly or indirectly affected by storage growth.

The picture above identifies at least (36) specific areas that are impacted by data growth.  I’m sure there are others.  Gone are the days when problems could quickly be resolved by “just buying more disk”.

It’s time to “think outside the box”.  This is no longer a localized issue that can be solved by stove-piped departments and back-room technologists.  It is an enterprise-wide challenge that needs the creative minds of many individuals from diverse areas of the organization.  Consider bringing in independent Subject Matter Experts from the outside to analyze complex problems, stimulate creative thinking, and discuss how others have attacked similar challenges.

In today’s world of “big data”, there needs to be far greater emphasis on comprehensive planning, designing in architectural efficiency, minimizing the impact on IT infrastructure, and improving the manageability of our entire IT environment.  Your future depends on it.