This year can be defined as one where everything is changing while it all still stays the same. The same pandemic. The same pressing business questions. The same need to embed technology that gives the organisation the agility it needs to adapt to constant change in market and customer need. The reality is that 2021 is not going to fundamentally shift the stresses and pressures of 2020, but that it does offer the organisation one very relevant opportunity – to invest into hybrid cloud platforms that are scalable, flexible, and cost-effective.

Research from the IBM Institute of Business has found that executives were not prioritising ‘competencies in crisis management, enterprise agility, cost management, workforce resiliency, innovation, or cash-flow management’ in the business. Today, the story has changed. Priorities have shifted to match the demands of an uncertain future. Research by the institute found that the mayhem of 2020 forced companies to realise the value of technology with many focusing on long-term solutions, particularly in cloud. Around 64% of companies moved to cloud-based business activities in 2020 and this trend is likely to continue because of its ubiquity.

You see, it’s still about people

The Forrester Predictions 2021: Winning CIOs get Future Fit report underscored the importance of providing employees with the technology and experiences they need to get the job done. Those companies that can’t leverage the technology to improve workflow, productivity, access and collaboration will likely lose top talent to those companies that can. The CIO that can enable the ‘work from anywhere’ approach will do far more than keep the lights on during the pandemic, they’ll be the only fuel that keeps the company driving come shut down, lockdown or slow down.

This resilience is found within the halls of hybrid cloud, a blend of the private and public cloud that has evolved significantly since it first emerged as a tasty concept for the more cautious company. Hybrid cloud investment, alongside public cloud, has proven its mettle in 2020. This year of enforced reliance on collaborative and remote technology put hybrid through its paces. This has made huge inroads into the doubt and resistance that many organisations had towards hybrid cloud as they saw it deliver exactly what it promised.

The hybrid IT infrastructure model allows for the business to manage remote workers, near real-time deployment of resources and additional infrastructure, increased flexibility, improved access to varied services, greater reach to client and customer, improved employee collaboration and productivity, and a digital transformation toolkit.

As the year progresses, even with vaccines on the horizon, the pandemic will continue to influence how the business does, well, business. Remote working and limited social contact will remain a fact of working life for the foreseeable which puts hybrid IT front and centre for the business that wants to stay ahead and prepared. ETZ Global has extensive, global experience working with companies to implement, manage and customise hybrid IT investment and can help you to shape your hybrid IT infrastructure perfectly. Contact us to find out how we can make hybrid IT fit your unique business needs.