Managing applications in the cloud

The proliferation of Web and mobile applications and content is currently changing the application and software market. This is according to Haydn Pinnell, Divisional Director of EOH Application Management. “When your customers pay per click and do not receive the expected result, they will go and click somewhere else,” warns Pinnell.

“Time to market and the ability to rapidly change are key differentiators for most organisations. Doing business with customers and other organisations through Web-based and cloud-based applications require a completely different application management strategy, from requirements through to development and testing, and into performance and change management,” Pinnell states.

Performance and security of data are being touted as the biggest challenges currently facing Web and cloud-based applications, says Pinnell. “In the traditional enterprise and packaged application world, we still see a fundamental shift to a more flexible and agile approach to application management, with the priority shifting away from customisation and more towards creating visibility into the performance and availability of business-critical applications.”

Pinnell says the biggest stumbling block that South African businesses face is a definitive lack of visibility into the application life cycle phases, specifically around performance and change. “Business and IT executives alike are currently unable to obtain the visibility they need to objectively analyse the risk that change will have on the business, much less the poor performance that their organisations face. A proactive approach to providing visibility into application management will greatly rectify the situation. However, a prevailing trend in the industry sees businesses remaining ignorant of the fact 90% of the time, due to a lack of resources in the form of people, processes and technology.”

Visibility remains key, says Pinnell. “Around 99% of all organisations we approach have software products and tools in place that manage a piece of the application life cycle, such as testing tools, requirements analysis tools, project management tools and performance or infrastructure management tools, to mention a few. This approach is, however, very limited in terms of demonstrating the value that the business gains in its entirety.”

Pinnell says the solution lies in the provision of a comprehensive business and IT focused metrics that spans an organisation's entire application and infrastructure bouquet. “It will provide visibility and empower the business to identify the risk it faces with relation to poor performance, application quality and security, and the impact of change,” Pinnell concludes.