This document summarizes a study commissioned by Equinix to analyze the total economic impact and potential return on investment of using Equinix interconnection solutions. It interviewed several Equinix customers and constructed a composite organization based on their experiences. The key findings are that the composite organization experienced a 300% return on investment over three years, with $17 million in net present value from benefits like increased revenue, time savings, cost savings, and fewer outages compared to costs of Equinix fees, infrastructure investments, and implementation/management resources. The study methodology involved interviews and financial modeling using Equinix customer data to evaluate the potential benefits, costs, flexibility, and risks associated with an Equinix implementation.
Shopping for a practice management solution can be a little overwhelming. You have lots of systems to choose from, so how do you decide which one will answer your total practice needs best? What is the difference between All-in-one platforms vs. Stand-alone programs. Or the difference between cloud based vs local server solutions. How do I know which type is best suited to my specific office situation and budget? This whitepaper explores it all.
Economic Value Validation: Aerohive Controller-less Wireless Architecture, by...Aerohive Networks
Mobility has not only changed how we live, it is also dramatically changing the network infrastructures that we rely on. As organizations cope with a tidal wave of mobile users, mobile applications, and demand for pervasive access, it’s becoming clearer that prior-generation approaches to providing mobility (controller-based) are breaking. Beyond providing the requisite performance and scale that mobility demands, the scenarios illustrated in this paper give a comprehensive overview of the clear economic justification for controller-less architectures and Aerohive in particular have over legacy controller environments.
Showcasing our award-winning predictive analytics service at HPE Discover 2015. Our Solutionpath experts discuss how our disruptive big data predictive analytics service is helping some clients achieve first year returns in excess of 19 times their initial investment.
Shopping for a practice management solution can be a little overwhelming. You have lots of systems to choose from, so how do you decide which one will answer your total practice needs best? What is the difference between All-in-one platforms vs. Stand-alone programs. Or the difference between cloud based vs local server solutions. How do I know which type is best suited to my specific office situation and budget? This whitepaper explores it all.
Economic Value Validation: Aerohive Controller-less Wireless Architecture, by...Aerohive Networks
Mobility has not only changed how we live, it is also dramatically changing the network infrastructures that we rely on. As organizations cope with a tidal wave of mobile users, mobile applications, and demand for pervasive access, it’s becoming clearer that prior-generation approaches to providing mobility (controller-based) are breaking. Beyond providing the requisite performance and scale that mobility demands, the scenarios illustrated in this paper give a comprehensive overview of the clear economic justification for controller-less architectures and Aerohive in particular have over legacy controller environments.
Showcasing our award-winning predictive analytics service at HPE Discover 2015. Our Solutionpath experts discuss how our disruptive big data predictive analytics service is helping some clients achieve first year returns in excess of 19 times their initial investment.
Corporater Overview | Business Management Platform (BMP)Corporater
Corporater is a global software company that empowers medium and large organizations worldwide to manage their entire business on a rapid solution configuration business management platform (BMP) that adapts to their unique business model.
Corporater BMP is a next generation software that enables organizations to have a complete overview of their business. Each solution can be run as a stand-alone or be a part of a holistic management approach for managing multiple frameworks within the domain of GPRC – Governance, Performance, Risk, and Compliance.
To know more, visit: https://bit.ly/3faryzl
Discusses the recommendations of the Gershon Review from an ITSM perspective, identifying opportunities and threats for IT organisations in each recommendation.
Presented at itSMF Canberra, March 2009.
10 Commandments for Achieving Operational ExcellenceMitch Ackles
This white paper is intended to provide a useful framework and guide for all Investment Management Firms.
Over the past 20 years the investment management industry, and specifically hedge funds, has achieved tremendous growth. As assets under management increased, so did diversification in strategies and investments. During that time investors have become very sophisticated in their selection of investments as well as the operational due diligence process. This growth and sophistication has reinforced the critical role of operational executives, and their teams’ responsibility to effectively manage the operational infrastructure. These are the people, functions and technology that are an integral part of keeping these firms thriving.
I have been on the operational side of the hedge fund business for 23 years, holding various senior positions. The first 8 years I had the privilege of being at Tiger Management, one of the premier firms at that time. The people I worked with were brilliant, the standards were high, the positive energy was contagious, and I felt honored to be a part of it. My background includes leading Global Operations for Tiger Management and Highbridge Capital, as well as having several COO positions for emerging managers.
I’ve witnessed and participated in the evolution of the operational side of hedge funds. In the early years hedge funds launched with mainly portfolio managers and traders, and relied heavily on their prime brokers to fulfill their back office needs. As assets grew so did the investment process, and subsequently, it was imperative to start building out an “operations group” within a hedge fund. Expansion from U.S. to foreign investments began, as well as diversifying from only equities and bonds to now including all types of derivatives and over the counter contracts. Also happening was the addition of multiple prime brokers to meet their “shorting” requirements. All these changes were occurring simultaneously.
The investment side of the business was growing so rapidly that the operations side had to quickly adapt to meet the challenge. As this expansion was happening the prime brokers were not as equipped to take on these new investments since their early model was built principally to support equity investments. Additionally, with hedge funds now engaging with multiple prime brokers, supporting them was even more challenging. Therefore, hedge fund operations, especially the larger firms, were taking back some of these functions from prime brokers to manage them more closely.
What's the Difference between GRC and Combined Assurance?Jim Kaplan CIA CFE
With more organizations exploring the concept of Combined Assurance, there have been many questions about how this relates to GRC. In this presentation, we will explore both concepts and discuss the differences between Combined Assurance and GRC so that you can consider and explore options that are most suited to the needs of your audit department and your organization as a whole.
Learning Objectives:
Understand the concepts behind Combined Assurance and GRC
Discuss pros and cons for both Combined Assurance and GRC
When the weather is nice, we all love to get outside more often. What better way to enjoy the warm weather than a family picnic? When planning your picnic there are a few things that you should consider about food packing, transportation, preparation and serving to avoid the risk of food poisoning. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, roughly 1 in 6 Americans gets food poisoning each year, of those 128,000 are hospitalized and 3,000 die. Many of these cases could be avoided through better food safety practices.
Springtime equates to warmer temperatures, flowers blooming and the smell of freshly mowed grass. However, it can also mean uncomfortable allergy symptoms such as sneezing and itchy eyes. DMG’s Relieve Outdoor Allergies infographic can help you understand how to better manage symptoms produced by the great outdoors.
Corporater Overview | Business Management Platform (BMP)Corporater
Corporater is a global software company that empowers medium and large organizations worldwide to manage their entire business on a rapid solution configuration business management platform (BMP) that adapts to their unique business model.
Corporater BMP is a next generation software that enables organizations to have a complete overview of their business. Each solution can be run as a stand-alone or be a part of a holistic management approach for managing multiple frameworks within the domain of GPRC – Governance, Performance, Risk, and Compliance.
To know more, visit: https://bit.ly/3faryzl
Discusses the recommendations of the Gershon Review from an ITSM perspective, identifying opportunities and threats for IT organisations in each recommendation.
Presented at itSMF Canberra, March 2009.
10 Commandments for Achieving Operational ExcellenceMitch Ackles
This white paper is intended to provide a useful framework and guide for all Investment Management Firms.
Over the past 20 years the investment management industry, and specifically hedge funds, has achieved tremendous growth. As assets under management increased, so did diversification in strategies and investments. During that time investors have become very sophisticated in their selection of investments as well as the operational due diligence process. This growth and sophistication has reinforced the critical role of operational executives, and their teams’ responsibility to effectively manage the operational infrastructure. These are the people, functions and technology that are an integral part of keeping these firms thriving.
I have been on the operational side of the hedge fund business for 23 years, holding various senior positions. The first 8 years I had the privilege of being at Tiger Management, one of the premier firms at that time. The people I worked with were brilliant, the standards were high, the positive energy was contagious, and I felt honored to be a part of it. My background includes leading Global Operations for Tiger Management and Highbridge Capital, as well as having several COO positions for emerging managers.
I’ve witnessed and participated in the evolution of the operational side of hedge funds. In the early years hedge funds launched with mainly portfolio managers and traders, and relied heavily on their prime brokers to fulfill their back office needs. As assets grew so did the investment process, and subsequently, it was imperative to start building out an “operations group” within a hedge fund. Expansion from U.S. to foreign investments began, as well as diversifying from only equities and bonds to now including all types of derivatives and over the counter contracts. Also happening was the addition of multiple prime brokers to meet their “shorting” requirements. All these changes were occurring simultaneously.
The investment side of the business was growing so rapidly that the operations side had to quickly adapt to meet the challenge. As this expansion was happening the prime brokers were not as equipped to take on these new investments since their early model was built principally to support equity investments. Additionally, with hedge funds now engaging with multiple prime brokers, supporting them was even more challenging. Therefore, hedge fund operations, especially the larger firms, were taking back some of these functions from prime brokers to manage them more closely.
What's the Difference between GRC and Combined Assurance?Jim Kaplan CIA CFE
With more organizations exploring the concept of Combined Assurance, there have been many questions about how this relates to GRC. In this presentation, we will explore both concepts and discuss the differences between Combined Assurance and GRC so that you can consider and explore options that are most suited to the needs of your audit department and your organization as a whole.
Learning Objectives:
Understand the concepts behind Combined Assurance and GRC
Discuss pros and cons for both Combined Assurance and GRC
When the weather is nice, we all love to get outside more often. What better way to enjoy the warm weather than a family picnic? When planning your picnic there are a few things that you should consider about food packing, transportation, preparation and serving to avoid the risk of food poisoning. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, roughly 1 in 6 Americans gets food poisoning each year, of those 128,000 are hospitalized and 3,000 die. Many of these cases could be avoided through better food safety practices.
Springtime equates to warmer temperatures, flowers blooming and the smell of freshly mowed grass. However, it can also mean uncomfortable allergy symptoms such as sneezing and itchy eyes. DMG’s Relieve Outdoor Allergies infographic can help you understand how to better manage symptoms produced by the great outdoors.
Nintex Workflow for Sharepoint - Return on Investment Whitepaper by Forrester...David J Rosenthal
Nintex commissioned Forrester Research to conduct aTotal
Economic Impact™ (TEI) study and examine the potential
return on investment (ROI) that enterprises may realize by
deploying Nintex’s workflow platform. The purpose of this
study is to provide readers with a framework to evaluate the
potential financial impact of using the Nintex workflow platform
within their organizations.
To better understand the benefits, costs, and risksassociated
with the implementation of the Nintex workflow platform, which we will refer to as the Platform, Forrester interviewed several
customers with multiple years of experience using Nintex Workflow and Nintex Forms. These customers recognize the value
inherent in automating processes. Their colleagues and customers are working both in offices and on mobile devices and
are spread across many countries. Content necessaryto collaborate and make business decisions is stored in many
applications across these devices. They have some well-defined processes, but the steps leading up to these processes or
to connect closely related processes are loosely defined and manual. With Nintex Workflow, customers can automate their
processes and create workflows that connect their people, processes, and content. With Nintex Forms, Nintex provides an
easy way to collect data from colleagues and customers within the workflow. Using Nintex Mobile, customers can extend
these workflows to users who are on the go. With Nintex Connectors, customers can easily integrate cloud services and lineof-business applications into their workflows.
Prior to using the Platform, these customers were mostly relying on custom code to automate processes. However, it was
difficult and time-consuming to build workflows, and many processes remained manual (e.g. paper-based,email, excel files)
while a backlog of requests for automation grew. This left customers frustrated with process inefficiencies and the inability to
automate faster. With the Platform, customers are able to automate processes in pace with demand, connect the right
people and data in each process, and easily make changes to workflows as processes change. This results in increased
productivity for end users and IT, reduced costs associated with automation, better collaboration, and higher quality of work.
Project Deliverable 2 Business Requirements1Project Deliverab.docxwkyra78
Project Deliverable 2: Business Requirements 1
Project Deliverable 2: Business Requirements 3
Project Deliverable 2: Business Requirements
Jessica Hill
Dr. Jan Felton
CIS 590: Directed Research Project
February 1, 2015
Table of Contents
1 Business Requirements……………………………………………………………….………3
1.1 Project Overview…………………………………………………………………….........3
1.2 Background including current process…………………………………………….3
1.3 Scope………………………………………………………………………………3
1.3.1 Scope of Project……………………………………………………….........4
1.3.2 Constraints and Assumptions……………………………………….............5
1.3.3. Risks…………………………………………………………………..........5
1.3.4. Scope Control ………………………………………………………………5
1.3.5. Relationship to Other Systems/Projects ……………………………………6
1.3.6. Definition of Terms (if applicable)………………………………………...6
1.1 Project Overview
This project is an information Technology project that was requested by WebFOCUS Company. The project is a development of a secure website that offers online advertisements, sharing, collection and storage of visual tools. The Website should be hosted in a cloud environment and should provide database functions for use in data warehousing
1.2 Background including current process
WebFOCUS was developed in order to generate profit through online advertisements as well as offshoring and outsourcing of business operations. Currently the business uses the relational database analysis. The company’s website in operated on both Windows and Mac OS X operating systems. In order to enhance virtualization, the company is seeking cloud computing services as well as data warehousing for data analysis purposes.
The project goals include;
a. Generation of profit through the charges on advertisement
b. Integration of database and operating systems in employee management.
c. Outsourcing work at a reduced cost (Olsen, 2006)
d. Developing a secure network infrastructure
e. The use of cloud computing to handle and share data
Tasks
a. Develop a website for advertisement
b. Install security measures
c. Integrate the website with cloud computing functionalities
d. Develop the outsourcing functionalities within the website
1.3 Scope
The scope of this project involves the determination and documentation of the project goals, deliverable, tasks, the cost and the deadlines.
1.3.1 Scope of the Project
Project Deliverables:
Scope Statement: This statement outlines the major activities to be carried out within the time allocated for the project. The scope statement’s goal is the financial analysis and financial documents regarding the operation of the project. The cost incurred and the revenue generated can be compared to observe the progress of the project.
Progress Reports: These include the process and the stages at which the project is undergoing. For the development of secure network infrastructure, the progress report deliverables would be network firewall types, authenticati ...
Webinar featuring Forrester TEI study: Driving 496% ROI with Tasktop VizTasktop
Business and IT leaders are under constant pressure to deliver outstanding customer experiences, fueled by technology and innovation, at the speed of the market and at a competitive cost.
To better understand how Tasktop Viz™ can connect enterprise transformation initiatives with financial benefits, Tasktop commissioned Forrester Consulting to conduct a Total Economic Impact™ (TEI) study and examine the potential ROI enterprises may benefit from by deploying the Tasktop Viz value stream management solution. What the study found was significant, with Tasktop Viz users experiencing up to 496% ROI over three years.
In this on-demand webinar, Tasktop CPO, Nicole Bryan, and guest speaker, Forrester Senior Consultant, Sam Conway, discuss the findings of the TEI study and what implementing Tasktop Viz could mean for your business.
Forrester interviewed a Citrix customer currently using Citrix XenApp to determine the cost savings and business benefits of XenApp. In the process, they discovered that the company reduced desktop support costs by $1.7 million, by delivering key business applications via XenApp. Read this white paper to examine the use cases and the cost savings and benefits achieved.
Integrated Technology Solutions for Drug SafetyCovance
Technology has forever transformed the entire healthcare continuum and has ushered in new and revolutionary ways to ensure patient and consumer safety. It has also enabled organizations to achieve higher levels of insight, quality and efficiencies by driving down operational costs and rendering information in meaningful ways. Technology has weaved itself into safety operations by being a strategic element of worldwide pharmacovigilance (PV) systems, fundamentally altering the drug safety continuum. To enable transformation, one of the biggest challenges organizations face is how to effectively integrate the complexities of two seemingly separate functions, the technology know-how behind IT and the science behind Safety Operations. Companies that recognize the synergies of an integrated strategy and unified communication process will see greater success in managing the safety of their products, including proactive responses to problems and business priorities.
Set-up a Centralized Data Warehouse System for leading Insurance Company with...ITC Infotech
Here's how ITC Infotech helped a customer by developing centralized data warehouse system that generated analytical reports for key business users in order to improve accuracy and effectiveness of price. Learn more
Rate of Return for Stocks and BondsFIN571Running he.docxmakdul
Rate of Return for Stocks and Bonds
FIN/571
Running head: RATE OF RETURN FOR STOCKS AND BONDS
1
RATE OF RETURN FOR STOCKS AND BONDS
2
Rate of Return for Stocks and Bonds
This paper will discuss how capital asset pricing model (CAPM), weighted average capital cost (WACC) and flotation costs influence the financial decision making with the capital budgeting process. Through these calculations, a company can better understand how the impact of debt and equity has on their capital structure. These concepts will also allow financial managers within an organization to make sound investment decisions when determining whether or not to invest in a particular project during the capital budgeting process. As a part of this assignment, calculations of the problems involving stock valuation, total return, CAPM, WACC, and flotation costs listed in a separate document under "Calculations – Rate of Returns for Stocks and Bonds."
Capital Asset Pricing Model (CAPM)
CAPM typically measures the association between the risk and expected return of a stock portfolio. In this paper, we will discuss how CAPM is used to estimate the cost of equity capital and the expected rate of return. There is a particular type of symmetry when we are looking at the cost of capital to a company compared to the expected return on a stock. Companies may use this measure in determining how much equity they will use to fund a capital budget project. In the calculation assignment, we calculate the expected rate of return through CAPM. The expected rate of return equals the risk-free rate plus the beta times the difference of the expected market rate and the risk-free rate. We can also use the formula to estimate the cost of equity. The cost of equity can then be used to the beta risk of the project and what the discount rate on the cash flow of the project show be.
Weighted Average Capital Cost (WACC)
"The weighted average cost of capital (WACC) is the rate of return that the providers of a company's capital require, weighted according to the proportion each element bears to the total pool of capital." (Qatar Financial Center, 2014) It provides a measure similar to the CAPM, which the correct discount rate on cash flow and it also provides the rate of interest of capital. Many financial managers used this measure to make investment decisions while finding the correct capital structure for their company. In the WACC portion of the calculation assignment, we were asked to find the WACC which is the weight of equity within the capital structure multiply by the cost of equity times the inverse of the tax rate plus the weight of debt within the capital structure multiply by the cost of debt. By determining WACC, financial managers can analyze the value the project. The expected rate of return of WACC can be used to determine the risk and the capital structure of the company’s existing assets. This expected rate of return can then be used to calculate NPV to either ...
Microsoft India - Total Economic Impact of Microsoft SQL Server 2008 Upgrade ...Microsoft Private Cloud
Conducting in-depth interviews with an existing SQL customer that upgraded to SQL Server 2008, Forrester found that the organization achieved benefits, some easily measured for this ROI study and others, equally as valuable, that could not be quantified. Specifically, the benefits fall into the following categories: 1) avoided adding SQL Server 2008 servers – license and hardware savings; 2) avoided adding storage; 3) eliminated third-party software; 4) avoided hiring additional IT employees; 5) increased user productivity – business and IT; 6) improved database performance
and provided enhanced features; 7) improved data security; and 8) improved working experience for the database administration team. Only the first five benefits were quantified as part of the ROI
analysis. To fully understand the potential effect on their organizations, readers should consider all benefits, whether or not they could be quantified for this study.
Cloud: To Build or Buy - Can You Justify On-Premises IT?Dell World
Outsourcing IT to the public cloud may seem cheap and easy, but is it? Data shows that on-premises private and hybrid cloud can deliver superior ROI. Explore methodologies and TCO analysis that can help you build a better business case for your organization, while meeting a "cloud first" objective.
Similar to Forrester: Total Economic Impact Study - Interconnection (20)
GDS Summit Keynote - manufacturing at software speed draftEquinix
Enterprises are still dealing with the long-lasting impacts of the
pandemic. While remote working, resilient digital supply chain, and
optimized omnichannel business have accelerated over the past
year, companies that have adopted a Digital-First strategy and
pivoted to speeding up their business transformation are thriving
and are no longer suffocated by these pandemic transformation
requirements. On the other hand, those who are still locked in an
old-fashioned architecture continue to struggle to meet these
requirements and ultimately risk their long-term business success.
By examining examples of Digital First initiatives and use cases, one
will discover how these manufacturing business leaders are
enhancing their competitiveness in the industry.
To be
Challenges with Data Center Synchronization and Options for Precise Synchroni...Equinix
Presentation by Ramki Ramakrishnan, Principal - Product, Research and Incubation Group at Equinix at ITSF 2020 (#ITSF2020) on the challenges with Data Center Synchronization and options for precise synchronization. Learn more by checking out our blog post on The Future of Precision Time as a Service - https://blog.equinix.com/
Equinix Women Leaders Network (EWLN) Asia-PacificEquinix
“It’s a world of freedom, safety and
authenticity, where every individual –
regardless of gender identity – is able to
pursue a life that is true to their talent, values
and goals. Labels and barriers will begin to
dissolve as we respectfully empower and
honor every single individual as unique,
valued and worthy.”
Getting “Edge-y” with the Internet of ThingsEquinix
Integrated IoT capabilities accelerate product and service development and time to market, while optimizing asset data delivery and workflow processes. The intelligence gathered from distributed IoT devices and analyzed in real time enables greater operational efficiency and customer satisfaction.
5 IT Predictions for Digital Business in 2019Equinix
Read our blog on the 5 IT Predictions for Digital Business in 2019: https://eqix.it/ITPredictions2019
While digital transformation has the potential to dramatically accelerate long-term business performance, the truth is that we are deep into the digital awkward years. Though the promise of digital is full of new possibilities, most companies are currently experiencing the growing pains of hybrid IT complexity.
Today’s businesses see digital technologies that need to be seamlessly integrated with legacy IT infrastructures to optimize business processes, agility and scale. They anticipate an increasing number of connected-devices at the edge generating mountains of data that will expand their organization’s threat landscape, while data security and compliance requirements continue to increase.
We are working with our customers around the globe to build the data center of the future, blazing the trail for next-generation interconnection and innovation, including emerging security, data and application infrastructure services. And as business and technology leaders move closer to another year of high stakes digital transformations and the big IT decisions that power them, we’re taking a closer look at the technologies that will make the biggest digital business impact in 2019.
Equinix Cloud Exchange Fabric™ - Flexible, on-demand global interconnectionEquinix
Learn about the trends shaping the digital future and how IT can prepare for these demands, why Interconnection and ECX Fabric can help address IT needs on a global scale, what the most common use cases for ECX Fabric are, and how customers leverage ECX Fabric and an interconnection strategy for success.
https://www.equinix.com/resources/webinars/ecx-fabric-webinar/
- Trends shaping the digital future and how IT can prepare for these demands
- Why Interconnection and ECX Fabric can help address IT needs on a global scale
- The most common use cases for ECX Fabric
- How customers leverage ECX Fabric and an interconnection strategy for success
Gain real-time access to environmental and operating information relevant to your IBX footprint as if those cages were all in-house. Available through the Equinix Customer Portal, IBX SmartView helps you maintain your IBX operations and deployments with alerts and notifications, while enhancing long-term planning with customizable reports.
The Interconnection Index Volume 2: Breaking Down Interconnection in Latin Am...Equinix
Emerging market dynamics across multiple industries and the rising adoption of digital technologies in business are escalating Latin America’s adoption of Interconnection, the direct and private traffic exchange between businesses. The financial services industry in particular is centered in Brazil’s vital metro São Paulo, making it the largest financial hub in Latin America (LATAM). And the convergence of submarine cable systems, such as Monet and Globenet, makes Brazil a growth hot spot for telecommunications and hyperscale cloud providers such as Microsoft Azure, AWS and Google.
The second annual Global Interconnection Index (GXI) analyzes global Interconnection and estimates that, by 2021, the LATAM region will contribute 9% of the global installed Interconnection Bandwidth—the total capacity provisioned to privately and directly exchange traffic with a diverse set of participants at distributed IT exchange points. That may be the smallest share of Interconnection Bandwidth capacity at 750+ Terabits per second (Tbps), but LATAM is projected to be the fastest growing region in the world for Interconnection at 59% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) between 2017 and 2021.
The Interconnection Index Volume 2: Breaking Down Interconnection in Asia-Pac...Equinix
To succeed as a digital business, companies are adopting private Interconnection at accelerated rates to build an underlying digital-ready infrastructure. The Global Interconnection Index (the GXI) Volume 2, a market study recently published by Equinix, analyzes global Interconnection—the direct and private traffic exchange between businesses. The GXI projects that Asia-Pacific (AP) businesses will further scale and expand their digital transformation by harnessing Interconnection Bandwidth—the total capacity provisioned to privately and directly exchange traffic with a diverse set of participants at distributed IT exchange points.
By 2021, the GXI predicts installed Interconnection Bandwidth capacity will grow in the AP region to 2,220+ Terabits per second (Tbps), second to the Interconnection volume expected in the U.S. Asia-Pacific is expected to realize a 51% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) in Interconnection Bandwidth between 2017 and 2021, contributing more than 27% of the global capacity.
The Interconnection Index Volume 2: Breaking Down Interconnection in the Unit...Equinix
The story the Global Interconnection Index (GXI) Volume 2 tells about the United States is one of a country with an unmatched history in the development and expansion of Interconnection, but with plenty of growth and innovation still ahead.
The U.S. is the most mature region in the world for digital business, according to the GXI, which analyzes global Interconnection – the direct and private traffic exchange between businesses. The annual report by Equinix estimates that by 2021, the U.S. will contribute 40% of the global installed Interconnection Bandwidth – the total capacity provisioned to privately and directly exchange traffic with a diverse set of participants at distributed IT exchange points. That’s by far the highest share of worldwide Interconnection Bandwidth, an essential enabler of digital business expansion.
Equinix and IDC Webinar - Trends Transforming Digital ConnectivityEquinix
Equinix and IDC experts discuss the trends that shape the digital future and how Interconnection is changing the way businesses build next-generation digital ecosystems and transforming all industries.
Maximize the Capabilities of Oracle® Golden Gate: Replicate Data Bi-Direction...Equinix
Maximize the Capabilities of Oracle® GoldenGate: Replicate Data Bi-Directionally across Data Centers with Equinix. Read our blog post here: https://blog.equinix.com/blog/2018/06/27/maximize-the-capabilities-of-oracle-goldengate/
The potential of IoT-enabled maintenance for businesses across industries such as Transport, Healthcare, Construction or Telecommunication is significant. From lower costs and lower risks to increased customer satisfaction, this infopaper takes a look at this upcoming technological trend.
Equinix Women's Leadership Network Celebrates International Women's Day 2018Equinix
The Equinix Women's Leadership Network (EWLN) is celebrating International Women's Day 2018 (#IWD2018) by asking a few of our leaders, "What Makes Women at Equinix Special?".
The Equinix Women Leaders’ Network (EWLN) is a resource group that offers personal growth, visibility and networking opportunities. Our values are centered around the core themes of promoting, connecting and empowering our community of Equinix women, no matter where they are based – New York, London, Tokyo or Rio. We run a variety of events and initiatives to drive a meaningful dialogue, build leadership skills, have a sense of purpose at work and make a difference to our communities. All this, while having fun and building strong peer connections
Optimizing Oracle Cloud Infrastructure through Interconnection Equinix
Robert Blackburn, Global Managing Director, Oracle Strategic Alliance at Equinix spoke at Oracle CloudWorld NYC on February 12, 2018 on how Oracle and Equinix empower organizations to transform their business by integrating hybrid and multicloud environments to increase operational efficiency, enhance system processes, improve customer experiences and grow revenues. Oracle Cloud Infrastructure FastConnect on the Equinix Cloud Exchange™ Fabric allows enterprises to optimize connection to the Oracle Cloud with flexible, on-demand, global interconnection—enabling applications, workloads and data to operate on-premises and in the public cloud over high-performance, private and scalable connections. This solution can be deployed as part of an Interconnection Oriented Architecture™ (IOA™) strategy on Platform Equinix™.
The IDC and Equinix Webinar - 2018 - The Year of the Intelligence Ready Digit...Equinix
Equinix, together with IDC, Microsoft and Asia Cloud Computing Association (ACCA), help reveal the usefulness of the intelligent edge and unpack the key criteria and success factors to effectively compete in an era of integrated, dynamic and real-time business models.
Observability Concepts EVERY Developer Should Know -- DeveloperWeek Europe.pdfPaige Cruz
Monitoring and observability aren’t traditionally found in software curriculums and many of us cobble this knowledge together from whatever vendor or ecosystem we were first introduced to and whatever is a part of your current company’s observability stack.
While the dev and ops silo continues to crumble….many organizations still relegate monitoring & observability as the purview of ops, infra and SRE teams. This is a mistake - achieving a highly observable system requires collaboration up and down the stack.
I, a former op, would like to extend an invitation to all application developers to join the observability party will share these foundational concepts to build on:
Generative AI Deep Dive: Advancing from Proof of Concept to ProductionAggregage
Join Maher Hanafi, VP of Engineering at Betterworks, in this new session where he'll share a practical framework to transform Gen AI prototypes into impactful products! He'll delve into the complexities of data collection and management, model selection and optimization, and ensuring security, scalability, and responsible use.
A tale of scale & speed: How the US Navy is enabling software delivery from l...sonjaschweigert1
Rapid and secure feature delivery is a goal across every application team and every branch of the DoD. The Navy’s DevSecOps platform, Party Barge, has achieved:
- Reduction in onboarding time from 5 weeks to 1 day
- Improved developer experience and productivity through actionable findings and reduction of false positives
- Maintenance of superior security standards and inherent policy enforcement with Authorization to Operate (ATO)
Development teams can ship efficiently and ensure applications are cyber ready for Navy Authorizing Officials (AOs). In this webinar, Sigma Defense and Anchore will give attendees a look behind the scenes and demo secure pipeline automation and security artifacts that speed up application ATO and time to production.
We will cover:
- How to remove silos in DevSecOps
- How to build efficient development pipeline roles and component templates
- How to deliver security artifacts that matter for ATO’s (SBOMs, vulnerability reports, and policy evidence)
- How to streamline operations with automated policy checks on container images
Welocme to ViralQR, your best QR code generator.ViralQR
Welcome to ViralQR, your best QR code generator available on the market!
At ViralQR, we design static and dynamic QR codes. Our mission is to make business operations easier and customer engagement more powerful through the use of QR technology. Be it a small-scale business or a huge enterprise, our easy-to-use platform provides multiple choices that can be tailored according to your company's branding and marketing strategies.
Our Vision
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Forrester: Total Economic Impact Study - Interconnection
1. A Forrester Total Economic
Impact™ Study
Commissioned By
Equinix
Project Director:
Sarah Musto
August 2015
The Total Economic
Impact™ Of Equinix
Interconnection Solutions
Cost Savings And Business Benefits
Enabled By Interconnection
3. 3
Executive Summary
Equinix commissioned Forrester Consulting to conduct a Total
Economic Impact™ (TEI) study and examine the potential
return on investment (ROI) enterprises may realize by
interconnecting in Equinix facilities. The purpose of this study
is to provide readers with a framework to evaluate the
potential financial impact of Equinix on their organizations.
To better understand the benefits, costs, and risks associated
with an Equinix implementation, Forrester interviewed several
customers with multiple years of experience using Equinix to
interconnect. Equinix offers carrier-neutral data centers and
Internet exchanges for companies worldwide and provides interconnection solutions, such as Equinix Performance Hub, to
colocate corporate IT resources in Equinix data centers close to network service providers. Equinix also offers Equinix Cloud
Exchange, which provides direct and secure, software-enabled access to cloud service providers.
Prior to using Equinix, each customer’s global user base struggled with application performance issues. Traditional system-
centric models of connectivity and reliance on public Internet could not address performance concerns in a cost-effective way
and stifled application innovation. In order to resolve these issues and pursue their cloud strategy, which would require even
greater responsiveness, the organizations needed to switch to a more user-centric model. This meant bringing data and
applications closer to the users; focusing on the interconnection between networks, applications, and users; and ultimately
pushing services and applications to the edge of the network. With Equinix Performance Hub and Equinix Cloud Exchange,
the organizations have access to reliable, scalable, and secure connectivity, boosting performance and end user satisfaction.
They also have access to direct and fast connections to cloud services, enabling their cloud strategies. The Vice President of
Platform and Architecture at one organization noted, “We did our due diligence to confirm that Equinix is where we need to
be for location, connectivity to partners, connectivity to our existing cloud strategy, and setting the right foundation for
international growth.”
EQUINIX IMPROVES APPLICATION PERFORMANCE, ENABLES INNOVATION, AND GENERATES COST SAVINGS
Our interviews and financial analysis found that a composite organization based on four interviewees experienced the risk-
adjusted ROI and benefits shown in Figure 1. See Appendix A for a description of the composite organization.
The composite organization analysis points to benefits of $23,038,257 over three years versus costs of $5,761,393, adding
up to a net present value (NPV) of $17,276,864.
FIGURE 1
Financial Summary Showing Three-Year Risk-Adjusted Results
ROI:
300%
NPV:
$17,276,864
Payback:
4.2 months
Average latency
reduction:
42%
Source: Forrester Research, Inc.
"The primary value proposition that we're getting
with Equinix is all around the ability to
interconnect. We definitely need to be able to
touch and reach those various cloud providers in
the ecosystem and still get the same level of
security visibility we have internally."
~Chief technology officer for cloud
4. 4
› Benefits. The composite organization experienced the following risk-adjusted benefits that represent those experienced by
the interviewed companies:
• Incremental revenue enabled by Equinix. High-speed connectivity and secure connections to providers near large
user bases generates millions in incremental revenue through enablement of new product opportunities.
• Time savings for developers and end users. Developers are able to save 10% of their overall time, and end users
are able to save 30 minutes per week, due to network and application improvements as well as fast provisioning
from providers.
• Cost savings each year related to application migration to public cloud. Running applications in the lower-cost
cloud providers with Equinix generates cost savings compared with running them internally.
• Data center cost savings and cost avoidance. The organization is able to reduce data center space requirements
and avoid future data center investments by pursuing its cloud strategy with Equinix.
• A 40% reduction in bandwidth costs. The organization is able to save $1.5 million per year due to more
competitive pricing and the network service provider choice available with Equinix.
• Fifteen percent fewer network incidents and outages, leading to reduced labor costs. The organization is able
to reduce the amount of time spent on troubleshooting connectivity issues.
› Costs. The composite organization experienced the following risk-adjusted costs:
• Equinix costs of $715,000 per year. These fees include space, power, cross connects, and exchange ports for the
Performance Hub and Cloud Exchange solutions.
• Capital investment of $1.65 million upfront and $330,000 ongoing. The infrastructure investment associated
with the Equinix implementation includes network and security deployments in multiple Equinix facilities.
• Costs associated with implementation and ongoing management. Internal full-time equivalent (FTE) time and
professional services support cost $1.15 million upfront for the implementation and $145,820 each year for ongoing
management.
Disclosures
The reader should be aware of the following:
› The study is commissioned by Equinix and delivered by Forrester Consulting. It is not meant to be used as a competitive
analysis.
› Forrester makes no assumptions as to the potential ROI that other organizations will receive. Forrester strongly advises
that readers use their own estimates within the framework provided in the report to determine the appropriateness of an
investment with Equinix.
› Equinix reviewed and provided feedback to Forrester, but Forrester maintains editorial control over the study and its
findings and does not accept changes to the study that contradict Forrester’s findings or obscure the meaning of the study.
› Equinix provided the customer names for the interviews but did not participate in the interviews.
5. 5
TEI Framework And Methodology
INTRODUCTION
From the information provided in the interviews, Forrester has constructed a Total Economic Impact (TEI) framework for
those organizations considering implementing Equinix solutions. The objective of the framework is to identify the cost,
benefit, flexibility, and risk factors that affect the investment decision.
APPROACH AND METHODOLOGY
Forrester took a multistep approach to evaluate the impact that Equinix can have on an organization (see Figure 2).
Specifically, we:
› Interviewed Equinix product personnel, along with Forrester analysts, to gather data relative to Equinix and the
marketplace for interconnection solutions.
› Interviewed four organizations currently using Equinix to obtain data with respect to costs, benefits, and risks.
› Designed a composite organization based on characteristics of the interviewed organizations (see Appendix A).
› Constructed a financial model representative of the interviews using the TEI methodology. The financial model is
populated with the cost and benefit data obtained from the interviews as applied to the composite organization.
› Risk-adjusted the financial model based on issues and concerns the interviewed organizations highlighted in interviews.
Risk adjustment is a key part of the TEI methodology. While interviewed organizations provided cost and benefit
estimates, some categories included a broad range of responses or had a number of outside forces that might have
affected the results. For that reason, some cost and benefit totals have been risk-adjusted and are detailed in each
relevant section.
Forrester employed four fundamental elements of TEI in modeling Equinix interconnection solutions: benefits, costs,
flexibility, and risks.
Given the increasing sophistication that enterprises have regarding ROI analyses related to IT investments, Forrester’s TEI
methodology serves to provide a complete picture of the total economic impact of purchase decisions. Please see Appendix
B for additional information on the TEI methodology.
FIGURE 2
TEI Approach
Source: Forrester Research, Inc.
Perform
due diligence
Conduct
customer
interviews
Design
composite
organization
Construct
financial
model using
TEI framework
Write
case study
6. 6
Analysis
COMPOSITE ORGANIZATION
For this study, Forrester conducted a total of four interviews with representatives from the following Equinix customers:
› A Fortune 500 financial services firm with a nationwide network of employees, customers, and partners. The organization
has been using Equinix hubs for 1.5 years to integrate its public and private cloud services.
› A multinational global conglomerate that has been using colocation facilities for two years and is integrating with Cloud
Exchange to support its cloud strategy.
› A construction and engineering firm with a global network of employees, customers, and partners. The organization has
been using Performance Hub and Cloud Exchange for less than one year.
› A global company with significant business-to-business (B2B), API, web, and mobile traffic. The organization uses Equinix
to run its own private network as well as for peering relationships with cloud providers via cloud connect.
Based on the interviews, Forrester constructed a TEI framework,
a composite company, and an associated ROI analysis that
illustrates the areas financially affected. The composite
organization that Forrester synthesized from these results
represents an organization with the following characteristics:
› A global organization with B2B and business-to-consumer
(B2C) digital product lines.
› Recent fiscal year revenue of $5.1 billion.
› 5,300 employees.
› A cloud strategy that involves migrating applications to the
public cloud and enabling innovative applications that leverage
big data analytics.
INTERVIEW HIGHLIGHTS
The four customer interviews provided common challenges and
objectives, highlights, and investment results that formed the
foundation for the composite organization’s story.
Situation
Prior to investing in Equinix, the interviewed organizations
struggled with a number of connectivity-related challenges that included complex network architectures and carrier
inflexibility, slow and expensive provisioning of capacity, latency disrupting application performance, and cloud connectivity
options that were expensive and lacked security. Key business objectives and drivers for the Equinix investment were:
› The organizations wanted to streamline their network architectures, with a focus on cost, reliability, and time-to-market.
The end goal was to move workloads closer to users to deliver those workloads quickly and consistently.
“We simply couldn’t provide
the level of performance
necessary globally in a hub-
and-spoke model along with
being able to get the same
security view of the world we
had, and so we started to look
at Equinix as a solution
provider that can help us solve
that problem.”
~ CTO for cloud
7. 7
› The organizations wanted to pursue a cloud strategy focused on application migration and innovation. Traditional
connection models did not meet security or performance requirements, so the organizations needed a more secure way to
enable high-speed connectivity to cloud providers.
› Several of the interviewees sought to differentiate and pursue business growth through delivering new services that
leverage big data analytics. The magnitude of these datasets led to performance problems. In order to support this and
future business agility, the organizations needed improved time-to-market and quicker provisioning, along with high-speed
connectivity that could improve performance.
Solution
The interviewed organizations noted the following key factors in their selection of Equinix:
› Flexibility provided through expansive choice of network, cloud,
and IT service providers.
› Ability to increase bandwidth while lowering cost.
› Ability to direct connect to cloud providers versus over the public
Internet, to achieve the speed needed for applications while
retaining security.
› Ability to provision additional capacity or services much faster
than traditional models.
› The potential for cross-connect opportunities with key customers
and partners.
Implementation times ranged from six months to one year and
involved:
› Multiple data center deployments to place IT infrastructure near
customers, partners, and employees in key regions, with an
emphasis on security infrastructure deployment.
› Connecting a majority of office locations to Equinix hubs to
provide faster and more reliable connectivity.
› Direct connections to key cloud providers early, with additional
connections to follow.
Results
The interviews revealed that:
› The key to achieving high performance and consistent user experience is to create a network architecture
focused on users. The interviewees were dissatisfied with the cost-effectiveness and reliability of their previous
connectivity, and a complex topology created an inconsistent user experience and difficulty in manageability. By using
Equinix performance hubs, the organizations could create a streamlined, flexibile architecture with global coverage through
access to the provider ecosystem and deploying performance hubs closer to users. This improved performance and user
experience was easier to manage and resulted in cost savings.
“With Equinix and their
facilities, many of the service
providers and partners that
my company needs to do
business with are already
there. So by investing to build
and connect my enterprise
into an Equinix facility, I
immediately unlock the
opportunity for my business to
directly connect to a number
of services.”
~ VP of Data Center, Network, Storage Services
8. 8
› A key enabler of the organizations’ cloud strategies was
upgrading their networks to effectively deliver cloud
services. Creating a simplified and flexible network architecture
through Equinix allowed the organizations to more easily enable
the benefits mentioned above compared with their prior use of
public Internet. It also allowed the organizations to more easily
and cost-effectively pursue their focus on cloud delivery. Cloud
applications in particular require proximity between users and
providers, reliable delivery, and consistent high performance,
often while working with large volumes of data. By being able to
locally peer with cloud providers through secure, direct
interconnections and get out at the edge capabilities to access
cloud services, the organizations are able to provision cloud
services quickly and provide an improved end user experience.
The VP of Data Center, Network, and Storage Services at one
organization noted: "There’s a lot of security benefit to me
directly peering with cloud providers in an Equinix facility versus
me building that peering over the public Internet. So I can open
my business to new cloud services, but not have the
dependency on the public Internet. That’s a huge
differentiation."
› The organizations all mentioned the strong present and
expected future business value of their Equinix partnership. Along with the business benefits that the organizations
are able to achieve through the Equinix investment, the interviewees also felt that they will gain additional benefits in the
future from the services Equinix provides, the ecosystem created within Equinix data centers, and the direction that Equinix
is taking. As one vice president of platform and architecture said: "Every time I talk to Equinix, they are very progressive.
They’re thinking smart, thinking future. They are an easy partner, and I wanted to partner with somebody who is going to
be innovating on my behalf that I can leverage from."
“I think the Cloud Exchange
offering is highly valuable
from a speed and market
innovation standpoint. If you
envision the world in that
multicloud standpoint, you get
to a model that allows you to
bring the next kind of startup
online in a very rapid fashion.”
~ CTO for cloud
9. 9
BENEFITS
The composite organization experienced a number of quantified benefits in this case study:
› Incremental revenue.
› Developer and end user time savings.
› Cloud deployment cost savings.
› Data center cost savings and cost avoidance.
› Bandwidth cost savings.
› Cost savings from improved network reliability.
Other important benefits mentioned by the composite organization were improved end user experience and ability to engage
the global workforce due to better application performance. Additionally, the organization felt that security was dramatically
improved due to the ability to direct connect versus connect via the public Internet.
Incremental Revenue
A key benefit for the composite organization is the ability to leverage big data analytics to drive new revenue
streams, among other potential product innovations. In order to enable this incremental revenue, the organization
needs to be able to make high-speed, secure connections to end users, customers, and cloud providers.
Traditional network and cloud connectivity models could not provide the security view and performance
necessary to access against these large datasets. With Equinix, the organization can implement its security stack
and additional infrastructure in Equinix facilities near large user bases and direct connect to cloud providers,
providing real-time analytics capabilities at the edge where data is created. Additionally, the improved reliability
and consistency of performance with Equinix frees up time that would otherwise be spent on troubleshooting and
can now be used to focus on these and other revenue-generating product enhancements. These new revenue
streams make up 0.15% of total revenue, or over $2.4 million in gross revenue, by Year 3. As the senior VP and
CIO at one organization said, “We can make more creative designs, more innovative designs . . the outcome will
directly impact our ability to improve profitability.”
Interviewed organizations provided a broad range for the magnitude of revenue enhancements, since there are a
variety of outside forces that might also have an impact on this, and revenue generation can be difficult to
estimate and attribute to specific solutions. To compensate, this benefit was risk-adjusted and reduced by 25%.
The risk-adjusted total benefit resulting from incremental revenue over the three years was $3,581,749. See the
section on Risks for more detail.
10. 10
TABLE 1
Incremental Revenue
Ref. Metric Calculation Year 1 Year 2 Year 3
A1 Annual revenue $5,100,000,000 $5,253,000,000 $5,410,590,000
A2
Revenue resulting from
Equinix investment
0.05% 0.10% 0.15%
A3 Gross margin 30% 30% 30%
At Incremental gross revenue A1*A2*A3 $765,000 $1,575,900 $2,434,766
Risk adjustment 25%
Atr
Incremental gross
revenue (risk-adjusted)
$573,750 $1,181,925 $1,826,074
Source: Forrester Research, Inc.
Developer And End User Time Savings
Developers at the composite organization achieve time savings due to improved simplicity through having a
reliable and consistent platform to roll out and run applications. With the Equinix implementation, developers now
spend very little time worrying about environments. Additionally, network and cloud providers can provision in
days versus months, and there is less work needed to do the physical connectivity necessary for new
deployments. These improvements help to speed project time and accelerate innovation. Forrester
conservatively estimates that the 500 developers at the composite organization have a 5% overall time savings
in the first year and up to 10% time savings in years 2 and 3.
End users at the organization also save time. Placing infrastructure closer to users and connecting to more
efficient networks reduces latency and improves the performance of frequently used applications. Additionally,
network disruptions and outages are significantly reduced and have very little impact on the end user. The
combined effect of these improvements allows 3,000 end users to save 15 minutes per week in Year 1 and 30
minutes per week in years 2 and 3. Forrester assumes that 50% of the developer and end user time savings are
repurposed for further productive use.
Interviewed organizations provided a range of time savings improvements, since there are a variety of outside
forces that might affect this benefit, which can be difficult to measure. To compensate, this benefit was risk-
adjusted and reduced by 15%. The risk-adjusted total benefit resulting from developer and end user time savings
over the three years was $7,881,625. See the section on Risks for more detail.
11. 11
TABLE 2
Developer And End User Time Savings
Ref. Metric Calculation Year 1 Year 2 Year 3
B1 Developers 500 500 500
B2 Average developer time savings 5% 10% 10%
B3
Average annual fully loaded
developer compensation
$100,000 $100,000 $100,000
B4 End users affected 3,000 3,000 3,000
B5
Average end user time savings
(hours)
30 minutes/week 13 26 26
B6
Average fully loaded end user
compensation per hour
$65,000/2,080 $31 $31 $31
B7 Productivity capture 50% 50% 50%
Bt
Developer and end user time
savings
((B1*B2*B3)+(B4*B5*B6))*B7 $1,854,500 $3,709,000 $3,709,000
Risk adjustment 15%
Btr
Developer and end user time
savings (risk-adjusted)
$1,576,325 $3,152,650 $3,152,650
Source: Forrester Research, Inc.
Cloud Deployment Cost Savings
Using Equinix Cloud Exchange, the organization can make fast interconnections to cloud services and manage
its usage much more easily, while retaining the right security levels. As the organization migrates applications, it
achieves cost savings by running the applications in the lower-cost cloud providers versus running them
internally, which results in charges being sent to various business segments. By using a single port and API to
automate connections to multiple clouds with Equinix, instead of using the traditional model of a physical cable
per port per partner, the organization saves costs and reduces the time required to provision resources and
manage the one-to-many connection. With traditional connectivity models, it is very difficult to deliver multicloud
services to users efficiently and economically. As the CTO for cloud at one organization noted, “We would have a
degradation in performance had we not placed our cloud strategy in Equinix facilities.” While the composite
organization begins application migration slowly in Year 1, by the end of Year 3 it achieves a cumulative
$770,000 cost savings from application migration.
There are a variety of outside forces that might affect the magnitude of these savings and speed to realize them.
To compensate, this benefit was risk-adjusted and reduced by 15%. The risk-adjusted total benefit resulting from
cloud deployment cost savings over the three years was $1,079,925. See the section on Risks for more detail.
12. 12
TABLE 3
Cloud Deployment Cost Savings
Ref. Metric Calculation Year 1 Year 2 Year 3
C1
Cost savings for application migration
to cloud
$115,500 $385,000 $770,000
Ct Cloud deployment cost savings C1 $115,500 $385,000 $770,000
Risk adjustment 15%
Ctr
Cloud deployment cost savings
(risk-adjusted)
$98,175 $327,250 $654,500
Source: Forrester Research, Inc.
Data Center Cost Savings And Cost Avoidance
The composite organization can leverage the scalable solution that Equinix provides to connect to multiple clouds
quickly and cost-effectively. This supports the organization’s cloud strategy, including the migration of its B2B
and B2C applications to the public cloud, thereby removing those applications from its own data centers. As a
result, the organization reduces its facilities spending and data center space requirements. While these savings
are lower in Year 1 as application migration ramps up, the organization is able to achieve a cumulative $1.75
million cost savings by Year 3.
In order to achieve equivalent levels of performance and functionality by pursuing a cloud strategy on its own, the
organization would need to build out its own data center facilities in various locations. By using Equinix Cloud
Exchange and performance hubs, the organization can pursue its cloud focus while avoiding this future
investment. The organization estimates it can avoid an additional $4.5 million in data center investments in Year
1, and avoid maintenance and power costs associated with that investment in subsequent years.
Data center and infrastructure costs can vary substantially from organization to organization since there are a
variety of outside forces that might have an impact on these costs. To compensate, this benefit was risk-adjusted
and reduced by 15%. The risk-adjusted total benefit resulting from data center savings over the three years was
$6,757,500. See the section on Risks for more detail.
13. 13
TABLE 4
Data Center Cost Savings And Cost Avoidance
Ref. Metric Calculation Year 1 Year 2 Year 3
D1 Data center cost savings $250,000 $1,000,000 $1,750,000
D2
Data center cost avoidance due to
cloud hub deployment
$4,500,000 $225,000 $225,000
Dt
Data center cost savings and cost
avoidance
D1+D2 $4,750,000 $1,225,000 $1,975,000
Risk adjustment 15%
Dtr
Data center cost savings and cost
avoidance (risk-adjusted)
$4,037,500 $1,041,250 $1,678,750
Source: Forrester Research, Inc.
Bandwidth Cost Savings
Prior to using Equinix, the composite organization was using a number of partners for connectivity, and in some
locations the organization only had access to one carrier. Long-term, inflexible contracts locked the organization
into inefficient and costly routes. With Equinix, network service provider choice leads to more cost-effective and
flexible pricing and improved throughput capacity at better price points. The composite organization reduced its
bandwidth spend by an average of 40%, saving $1.5 million each year.
Interviewed organizations differed in the level of cost savings they were able to negotiate. To compensate, this
benefit was risk-adjusted and reduced by 5%. The risk-adjusted total benefit resulting from bandwidth cost
savings over the three years was $4,275,000. See the section on Risks for more detail.
TABLE 5
Bandwidth Cost Savings
Ref. Metric Calculation Year 1 Year 2 Year 3
E1 Prior bandwidth spend $3,750,000 $3,750,000 $3,750,000
E2 Average percent reduction in spend 40% 40% 40%
Et Bandwidth cost savings E1*E2 $1,500,000 $1,500,000 $1,500,000
Risk adjustment 5%
Etr
Bandwidth cost savings (risk-
adjusted)
$1,425,000 $1,425,000 $1,425,000
Source: Forrester Research, Inc.
14. 14
Cost Savings From Improved Network Reliability
In the organization’s prior environment, maintaining service levels and performance between locations was
difficult and unpredictable. The organization was also exposed to risk in locations where carrier options were
limited. By avoiding public Internet with cross connects and gaining access to broad network service provider
choices, the organization is able to save time that was previously devoted to troubleshooting connectivity issues.
The organization is able to save about $1.5 million in troubleshooting time and noted that it is able to prevent
revenue loss with improved reliability, though this is not quantified.
Interviewed organizations provided a range of time savings, since there are a variety of outside forces that might
also affect this. To compensate, this benefit was risk-adjusted and reduced by 5%. The risk-adjusted total benefit
resulting from improved network reliability over the three years was $4,210,625. See the section on Risks for
more detail.
TABLE 6
Cost Savings From Improved Network Reliability
Ref. Metric Calculation Year 1 Year 2 Year 3
F1
Time savings for network
administration (FTEs)
0.25 0.25 0.25
F2 FTEs on operations team 50 50 50
F3 Average operations team time savings 60% 60% 60%
F4
Average annual fully loaded
compensation
$100,000 $100,000 $100,000
F5 Productivity capture 50% 50% 50%
Ft
Cost savings from improved network
reliability
((F1*F4)+(F2*F3*F4)*F5 $1,512,500 $1,512,500 $1,512,500
Risk adjustment 5%
Ftr
Cost savings from improved
network reliability (risk-adjusted)
$1,436,875 $1,436,875 $1,436,875
Source: Forrester Research, Inc.
Total Benefits
Table 7 shows the total of all benefits across the six areas listed above, as well as present values (PVs) discounted at 10%.
Over three years, the composite organization expects risk-adjusted total benefits to be a PV of more than $23 million.
15. 15
TABLE 7
Total Benefits (Risk-Adjusted)
Ref. Benefit Category Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Total
Present
Value
Atr Incremental revenue $573,750 $1,181,925 $1,826,074 $3,581,749 $2,870,345
Btr Developer and end user time savings $1,576,325 $3,152,650 $3,152,650 $7,881,625 $6,407,151
Ctr Cloud deployment cost savings $98,175 $327,250 $654,500 $1,079,925 $851,440
Dtr
Data center cost savings and cost
avoidance
$4,037,500 $1,041,250 $1,678,750 $6,757,500 $5,792,261
Etr Bandwidth cost savings $1,425,000 $1,425,000 $1,425,000 $4,275,000 $3,543,764
Ftr
Cost savings from improved network
reliability
$1,436,875 $1,436,875 $1,436,875 $4,310,625 $3,573,295
Total benefits (risk-adjusted) $9,147,625 $8,564,950 $10,173,849 $27,886,424 $23,038,257
Source: Forrester Research, Inc.
16. 16
COSTS
The composite organization experienced the following costs associated with the Equinix investment:
› Equinix costs.
› Additional infrastructure investment.
› Implementation and ongoing management.
These represent the mix of internal and external costs experienced by the composite organization for initial planning,
implementation, and ongoing maintenance associated with investment.
Equinix Costs
The fees charged by Equinix for the Performance Hub and Cloud Exchange include space, power, cross
connects, and the Cloud Exchange port to connect to multiple cloud providers. These fees can vary based on a
number of features related to an organization’s deployment. For the composite organization, we have estimated
that the fees sum up to $715,000 per year, yielding a three-year risk-adjusted cost of $2,145,000.
Additional Infrastructure Investment
The composite organization invested in additional infrastructure as part of the Equinix implementation, including
multiple deployments of its security stack and network stack in Equinix facilities. The organization also replaced
aging infrastructure with newer-generation hardware. We estimate the upfront investment to total $1.65 million,
with $330,000 in maintenance costs and incremental investments in each of the following years. The three-year
risk-adjusted total for additional infrastructure was $2.64 million.
Implementation And Ongoing Management
As part of the implementation effort, a number of internal FTEs worked part or full time over the course of several
months on planning and design. Following this period, these FTEs spent a little over six months on the
implementation and deployment of the performance hubs and Cloud Exchange access, and they spent minimal
time on training. On an ongoing basis, internal FTEs work on enhancements to the platform and application
migration. In addition, one FTE spends a few hours each month on the Equinix partnership and future direction.
The composite organization also used some professional services support upfront to help with design and new
hardware and minimal support on an ongoing basis. The three-year risk-adjusted cost for implementation and
ongoing management was just over $1,587,000.
Total Costs
Table 8 shows the total of all costs as well as associated present values, discounted at 10%. Over three years, the
composite organization expects risk-adjusted total costs to be a PV of a little more than $5.7 million.
17. 17
TABLE 8
Total Costs (Risk-Adjusted)
Ref. Cost Category Initial Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Total
Present
Value
Gtr Equinix costs $0 $715,000 $715,000 $715,000 $2,145,000 $1,778,099
Htr
Additional
infrastructure
investment
$1,650,000 $330,000 $330,000 $330,000 $2,640,000 $2,470,661
Itr
Implementation and
ongoing
management
$1,150,000 $145,820 $145,820 $145,820 $1,587,460 $1,512,633
Total costs (risk-
adjusted)
$2,800,000 $1,190,820 $1,190,820 $1,190,820 $6,372,460 $5,761,393
Source: Forrester Research, Inc.
FLEXIBILITY
Flexibility, as defined by TEI, represents an investment in additional capacity or capability that could be turned into business
benefit for some future additional investment. This provides an organization with the “right” or the ability to engage in future
initiatives but not the obligation to do so. There are multiple scenarios in which a customer might choose to implement
Interconnection Solutions and later realize additional uses and business opportunities. Flexibility would also be quantified
when evaluated as part of a specific project (described in more detail in Appendix B).
While Forrester could not quantify flexibility options for this study, organizations noted that using Equinix Interconnection
Solutions for their own benefit was a first step. The interviewees believe that the Equinix investment will enable partners and
customers, colocated within the same facilities as their organizations, to proactively connect to them as they innovate their
B2B product lines.
RISKS
Forrester defines two types of risk associated with this analysis: “implementation risk” and “impact risk.” Implementation risk
is the risk that a proposed investment in Equinix may deviate from the original or expected requirements, resulting in higher
costs than anticipated. Impact risk refers to the risk that the business or technology needs of the organization may not be
met by the investment in interconnection, resulting in lower overall total benefits. The greater the uncertainty, the wider the
potential range of outcomes for cost and benefit estimates.
18. 18
TABLE 9
Benefit And Cost Risk Adjustments
Benefits Adjustment
Incremental revenue 25%
Developer and end user time savings 15%
Cloud deployment cost savings 15%
Data center cost savings 15%
Bandwidth cost savings 5%
Cost savings from improved network reliability 5%
Costs Adjustment
Equinix costs 10%
Additional infrastructure investment 10%
Implementation and ongoing management 15%
Source: Forrester Research, Inc.
Quantitatively capturing implementation risk and impact risk by directly adjusting the financial estimates results provides
more meaningful and accurate estimates and a more accurate projection of the ROI. In general, risks affect costs by raising
the original estimates, and they affect benefits by reducing the original estimates. The risk-adjusted numbers should be taken
as “realistic” expectations since they represent the expected values considering risk.
The following impact risks that affect benefits are identified as part of the analysis:
› Incremental revenue and time savings impacts will vary from organization to organization and can also be more difficult to
measure and attribute to the Equinix investment.
› Costs related to eliminating data center space and minimizing the hardware footprint, as well as avoidance of future data
center and hardware investments, are highly dependent on location and the needs of the company.
The following implementation risk that affects costs is identified as part of this analysis:
› The cost figures for the composite organization represent an average of the common cost categories indicated by the
interviewees, scaled to fit the size of the composite organization. Costs associated with the Equinix investment will vary
substantially from customer to customer based on the specifics of each deployment.
Table 9 shows the values used to adjust for risk and uncertainty in the cost and benefit estimates for the composite
organization. Readers are urged to apply their own risk ranges based on their own degree of confidence in the cost and
benefit estimates.
19. 19
Financial Summary
The financial results calculated in the Benefits and Costs sections can be used to determine the ROI, NPV, and payback
period for the composite organization’s investment in interconnection at Equinix.
Table 10 below shows the risk-adjusted ROI, NPV, and payback period values. These values are determined by applying the
risk-adjustment values from Table 9 in the Risks section to the unadjusted results in each relevant cost and benefit section.
FIGURE 3
Cash Flow Chart (Risk-Adjusted)
Source: Forrester Research, Inc.
TABLE 10
Cash Flow (Risk-Adjusted)
Initial Year 1 Year 2 Year 3 Total Present Value
Costs ($2,800,000) ($1,190,820) ($1,190,820) ($1,190,820) ($6,372,460) ($5,761,393)
Benefits $0 $9,147,625 $8,564,950 $10,173,849 $27,886,424 $23,038,257
Net benefits ($2,800,000) $7,956,805 $7,374,130 $8,983,029 $21,513,964 $17,276,864
ROI 300%
Payback period (months) 4.2
Source: Forrester Research, Inc.
($5,000,000)
$0
$5,000,000
$10,000,000
$15,000,000
$20,000,000
$25,000,000
Initial Year 1 Year 2 Year 3
Cashflows
Financial Analysis (risk-adjusted)
Total costs Total benefits Cumulative total
20. 20
Interconnection With Equinix: Overview
The following information is provided by Equinix. Forrester has not validated any claims and does not endorse Equinix or its
offerings.
Equinix connects businesses to their customers, employees, and partners inside interconnected data centers. In 33 markets
across five continents, Equinix is where companies come together to realize new opportunities and accelerate their
business, IT, and cloud strategies. Equinix offers the following products and services:
› Equinix Direct Connect. A direct, secure intra-data center connection between a purchaser of cloud services and a cloud
service provider.
› Equinix Performance Hub. This places corporate IT resources in distributed data centers connected to many networks
and clouds and delivers improvements in application performance and IT agility.
› Equinix Cloud Exchange. This enables on-demand, direct connections to multiple cloud providers and networks from a
single port.
› Equinix Internet Exchange. This connects peers at 19 Internet exchange point locations in 17 global metro areas.
› Equinix Cross Connects. These directly link customers in the same data center or metro, for secure, instant, and private
one-to-one connections.
› Equinix Metro Connect. This links data center customers in the same metro to each other and our broader global
footprint.
› Equinix Global Roaming Exchange. This platform allows mobile data providers to exchange GPRS roaming traffic with
other providers through a single connection.
21. 21
Appendix A: Composite Organization Description
For this TEI study, Forrester has created a composite organization to illustrate the quantifiable benefits and costs of
implementing Equinix solutions. The composite company is intended to represent a global organization with 5,300
employees and is based on characteristics of the interviewed customers.
The composite company has multiple B2B and B2C digital product lines and is focusing on migrating applications to the
public cloud and enabling innovative applications that leverage big data analytics.
In partnering with Equinix, the composite company has the following objectives:
› Simplify its network architecture and improve network reliability, performance, and cost-effectiveness.
› Improve application performance and end user satisfaction by placing IT resources near large user populations.
› Enable business and IT agility with scalable capacity and fast connections to providers.
› Enable new revenue streams by leveraging big data with high-speed connections.
For the purpose of the analysis, Forrester assumes that the composite organization is able to migrate a sizeable percentage
of its applications to the public cloud, and that the organization has the opportunity to leverage large datasets within its
product offerings by building out innovative applications that can capture and analyze that data for its clients’ benefit.
Forrester also assumes that application migration and innovation begin slowly in the first year and pick up speed by Year 2.
This will affect the speed at which some cost savings benefits are realized.
FRAMEWORK ASSUMPTIONS
Table 11 provides the model assumptions that Forrester used in this analysis.
The discount rate used in the PV and NPV calculations is 10%, and the time horizon used for the financial modeling is three
years. Organizations typically use discount rates between 8% and 16% based on their current environment. Readers are
urged to consult with their respective company’s finance department to determine the most appropriate discount rate to use
within their own organizations.
TABLE 11
Model Assumptions
Ref. Metric Calculation Value
X1 Hours per week 40
X2 Weeks per year 52
X3 Hours per year (M-F, 9-5) 2,080
X4 Hours per year (24x7) 8,736
Source: Forrester Research, Inc.
22. 22
Appendix B: Total Economic Impact™ Overview
Total Economic Impact is a methodology developed by Forrester Research that enhances a company’s technology decision-
making processes and assists vendors in communicating the value proposition of their products and services to clients. The
TEI methodology helps companies demonstrate, justify, and realize the tangible value of IT initiatives to both senior
management and other key business stakeholders. TEI assists technology vendors in winning, serving, and retaining
customers.
The TEI methodology consists of four components to evaluate investment value: benefits, costs, flexibility, and risks.
BENEFITS
Benefits represent the value delivered to the user organization — IT and/or business units — by the proposed product or
project. Often, product or project justification exercises focus just on IT cost and cost reduction, leaving little room to analyze
the effect of the technology on the entire organization. The TEI methodology and the resulting financial model place equal
weight on the measure of benefits and the measure of costs, allowing for a full examination of the effect of the technology on
the entire organization. Calculation of benefit estimates involves a clear dialogue with the user organization to understand
the specific value that is created. In addition, Forrester also requires that there be a clear line of accountability established
between the measurement and justification of benefit estimates after the project has been completed. This ensures that
benefit estimates tie back directly to the bottom line.
COSTS
Costs represent the investment necessary to capture the value, or benefits, of the proposed project. IT or the business units
may incur costs in the form of fully burdened labor, subcontractors, or materials. Costs consider all the investments and
expenses necessary to deliver the proposed value. In addition, the cost category within TEI captures any incremental costs
over the existing environment for ongoing costs associated with the solution. All costs must be tied to the benefits that are
created.
FLEXIBILITY
Within the TEI methodology, direct benefits represent one part of the investment value. While direct benefits can typically be
the primary way to justify a project, Forrester believes that organizations should be able to measure the strategic value of an
investment. Flexibility represents the value that can be obtained for some future additional investment building on top of the
initial investment already made. For instance, an investment in an enterprise-wide upgrade of an office productivity suite can
potentially increase standardization (to increase efficiency) and reduce licensing costs. However, an embedded collaboration
feature may translate to greater worker productivity if activated. The collaboration can only be used with additional
investment in training at some future point. However, having the ability to capture that benefit has a PV that can be
estimated. The flexibility component of TEI captures that value.
RISKS
Risks measure the uncertainty of benefit and cost estimates contained within the investment. Uncertainty is measured in two
ways: 1) the likelihood that the cost and benefit estimates will meet the original projections and 2) the likelihood that the
estimates will be measured and tracked over time. TEI risk factors are based on a probability density function known as
“triangular distribution” to the values entered. At a minimum, three values are calculated to estimate the risk factor around
each cost and benefit.
23. 23
Appendix C: Glossary
Discount rate: The interest rate used in cash flow analysis to take into account the time value of money. Companies set
their own discount rate based on their business and investment environment. Forrester assumes a yearly discount rate of
10% for this analysis. Organizations typically use discount rates between 8% and 16% based on their current environment.
Readers are urged to consult their respective organizations to determine the most appropriate discount rate to use in their
own environment.
Net present value (NPV): The present or current value of (discounted) future net cash flows given an interest rate (the
discount rate). A positive project NPV normally indicates that the investment should be made, unless other projects have
higher NPVs.
Present value (PV): The present or current value of (discounted) cost and benefit estimates given at an interest rate (the
discount rate). The PV of costs and benefits feed into the total NPV of cash flows.
Payback period: The breakeven point for an investment. This is the point in time at which net benefits (benefits minus costs)
equal initial investment or cost.
Return on investment (ROI): A measure of a project’s expected return in percentage terms. ROI is calculated by dividing
net benefits (benefits minus costs) by costs.
A NOTE ON CASH FLOW TABLES
The following is a note on the cash flow tables used in this study (see the example table below). The initial investment
column contains costs incurred at “time 0” or at the beginning of Year 1. Those costs are not discounted. All other cash flows
in years 1 through 3 are discounted using the discount rate (shown in the Framework Assumptions section) at the end of the
year. PV calculations are calculated for each total cost and benefit estimate. NPV calculations are not calculated until the
summary tables are the sum of the initial investment and the discounted cash flows in each year.
Sums and present value calculations of the Total Benefits, Total Costs, and Cash Flow tables may not exactly add up, as
some rounding may occur.
TABLE [EXAMPLE]
Example Table
Ref. Metric Calculation Year 1 Year 2 Year 3
Source: Forrester Research, Inc.