When “Good Enough” Is Not Good Enough; Debunking the Myths of a “Good Enough” Network
By Cisco Systems
Hundreds of Cisco customers have debated the trade-off of prioritizing the lowest price for a point product or service in their network over a strategic plan for how they architect their network infrastructure. Through interactions with many customers, Cisco has analyzed various network designs and implementations. Our findings show that although there is a place for building a low-cost tactical network, the ongoing operations, upgrades and lack of preparedness to meet new business challenges prove to be hindrances to organizations in the long run. Rather than just considering capital cost, organizations are well served to look at total cost of ownership, including operations and return on investment plus business capabilities enabled by a strategic network, as they build out their networks to address business needs today and tomorrow. Forrester Consulting Group provides an excellent analysis in this paper too.
