IT managers waste budgets on storage

Research released today has revealed 94 per cent of IT managers invest in more storage than they need because storage hardware is often not available in smaller, more cost-effective increments.

The research, conducted by market researcher Vanson Bourne, also found that more than one in four (44 per cent) said they are forced to buy more storage than they need as a result and that 69 per cent find managing these environments increasingly difficult and complex.

The respondents said this is because they are investing in more storage capacity than is immediately needed as an investment in extra capacity for the future data growth.

But the survey of 100 UK large-enterprise IT managers commissioned by web hosting specialist, Hostway found this investment strategy left 38 per cent of an average UK company's total storage capacity unused.

Neil Barton, a director of Hostway said: "Purchasing storage you don't need is like hiring two people for one job, one of whom falls asleep at their desk and occasionally makes tea. Not only is it unnecessary, it also means that the IT team cannot use their budget as effectively as they would like."

He said this strategy could result in reduced business agility if an important project subsequently comes to light requiring IT support that cannot be delivered because purchasing excess storage has used up unallocated budget.

The survey also showed 72 per cent of organisations are using 60 per cent or less of their total storage capacity. And in one in five businesses the problem was even worse, with less than 40 per cent of storage capacity being used.

Hostway said this potentially wastes thousands of pounds each year, where analyst IDC said the global market for disk storage systems in 2006 was worth $24.4 billion (£12.3 billion).

The vendor also said that when IT managers are forced to use up budgets buying large blocks of storage, it often means they then have to use medium performance storage when they actually need high performance, because of pricing structures.

The research backs this, with 46 per cent of IT managers surveyed saying they have had to use non-optimal storage in the past because they can't afford the right kind. Hostway warned that data retrieval could take longer than is really necessary and slow down business operations as a result.

The storage specialist said companies need to look for more flexible storage methods. "Until recently they have been forced to pay for capacity they don't need as there have not been many viable alternatives. However, with the cost of WAN [wide area network] bandwidth dropping, it is now possible to effectively pay-on-demand for storage," said Barton.

He also said that re-engineering the way storage is purchased and used could reduce management headaches, while ensuring the cost effectiveness of storage investments at the same time.

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