For data center managers, the pandemic has changed everything. And we are not going back, at least, not anytime soon. And when we can go back to the way things used to be, we might no longer want to — or even be able to.
So what does the “new normal” look like? Here are a few ways that data center management has changed.
No More Travel
As the world’s largest colocation provider, Equinix has seen the new normal from both sides now.
As a service provider, it’s had to help its enterprise customers adjust to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. And, as a company that was itself affected by the lockdowns, it has had to change how it does business.
The biggest and most immediate change was that customers could no longer travel to Equinix facilities, said Jon Lin, president of the Americas for Equinix.
Initially, this was because of the pandemic-related lockdowns, he told Data Center Knowledge. But many companies are still reluctant to start scheduling business trips again because of continued waves of the infection, and there are still travel restrictions in place, Lin said.
“It’s hard to navigate borders,” he said. “So [customers are] trusting us to do more and more.”
