Move Readiness Planning

Data center relocations are generally looked on as a “problem” project. Organizations feel that way about them because of the amount of planning and coordination required to accomplish the project. They know that data center relocations cut across every aspect of IT and the business. That means that a successful data center move requires a fully meshed data center facilities plan and a IT organization plan that makes the relocation events transparent to the “business as usual” activities.

This aspect of a data center relocation makes it the IT equivalent of open-heart surgery. This makes data center relocations a high-risk project from a business point of view, particularly to businesses with mission critical customer facing online applications. Any risk that gets realized will probably cause a significant systems outage that results in lost revenue or lost customers or both. This “problem” label can be removed with proper planning that utilizes available technologies along with proper project management and risk mitigation plans.

Another reason these projects are considered a “problem” project is that the amount of effort and risk associated with this kind of project is almost always underestimated. The amount of time it will take, the hardware that will be needed, the skills required to do the job seems to be always underestimated. This underestimation seems to be more the rule than the exception when it comes to data center relocations.

Allow us to review your data center facilities plan, IT organizational plan, relocation assumptions, and your project estimates so we can develop a move readiness assessment to give you the peace of mind that your project is positioned to be a success for your company.