Citing Our WAN Sources

In our latest episode of the podcast, we dig into sourcing. Our listeners know that we often discuss the migration of large enterprises away from one or two global suppliers for a mostly MPLS network to a novel mix of transport types and suppliers. This is especially true due to changing trends in cloud migration, SD-WAN, and security.

May it be local internet breakouts from a variety of ISPs alongside MPLS or sourcing a backbone between data center nodes, many enterprises have taken on a “telco-like” role in buying connectivity directly.

For more on the state of sourcing, Greg welcomes Steve Rome, Chief Revenue Officer and co-founder of Advantage. The pair wastes no time cutting through the complexity of sourcing the modern WAN.

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Key Takeaways

WAN sourcing is evolving dramatically, driven by cloud migration, SD-WAN, and SASE

This transition is moving large enterprises away from relying on one or a handful of MPLS suppliers toward a model employing a novel mix of underlay technologies and suppliers.

This includes using local internet breakouts from various ISPs alongside MPLS, or sourcing backbone connectivity between data center nodes more directly. Enterprises are increasingly taking on a more "Telco like role" in buying their connectivity. Further, there's been an explosion in the available access options beyond traditional fiber, now including fixed wireless, coax, 5G, and even satellite, providing more choices for network architecture and redundancy.

A comprehensive approach to sourcing connectivity requires evaluating four key dimensions

These dimensions are:

1. Financial, considering the cost differences between technologies like Broadband, DIA, MPLS, and private line.
2. Technical, focusing on architectural aspects such as diversity, resiliency, SLAs, and analyzing paths, points of entry/egress, and drain points.
3. Administrative, addressing the complexity of dealing with multiple providers, invoices, contracts, billing paradigms, and account teams.
4. Operating Model, determining how the network is managed, whether fully outsourced, self-managed, or a hybrid approach.

The network is increasingly viewed as a strategic asset and a critical enabler of business operations

Because connectivity is now mission-critical and integral to business processes like delivering services, new business acquisition, and customer support, the traditional approach of simply trusting a single large carrier to source global or regional connectivity is often insufficient and can lead to pitfalls.

Navigating the complexity, the vast number of providers, and ensuring the right technical and operating models requires significant domain expertise and relationships.

Enterprises often find this difficult to manage internally due to lack of experience, time, or relationships. Partners can help by providing the necessary analysis, project management, and expertise across the full lifecycle, effectively serving as an extension of the client's team.