Increasingly Called upon to Convey Complex Network Performance Details to Non-Technologists, Many Network Managers Wrestle with the New Role
WESTFORD, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Oct. 19, 2007--Network managers
may be more accustomed to writing scripts than creating PowerPoints.
However, times are changing and technical types are increasingly
finding themselves cast in the unlikely role of marketeer. That was
one of many conclusions reached during the week long NetScout User
Forum (NUF) conference which came to a close in Miami, Florida last
Friday.
Hosted by NetScout Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTCT), the industry
pacesetter for advanced network and service assurance solutions, the
sixth annual NUF brought together a record number of NetScout nGenius
System power users as well as brand new customers and strategic
partners for a week of training, best practices, product road map
discussions, networking and opportunities to collaborate with NetScout
engineers and executives. Attendance at the annual event swelled by 20
percent and the number of attendees with director-level titles surged,
illustrating network management's increasing business relevance.
There was general agreement that the new marketing aspects of the
network management job are not only due to the ever-increasing need to
convey technical information to non-technical managers, but also due
to the need to collaborate across functional teams effectively. One
NUF attendee, for instance, noted that something as simple as word
selection can mean the difference between a slammed door and a
productive discussion that can impact the business' bottom line. "If I
tell my applications team I have a list of the worst performing
applications, it will put them on the defensive immediately," said the
attendee. "If I instead tell them I have evidence that will give us an
opportunity to improve the performance of several key applications, we
can be united in a common goal."
Gary Abbott of InterContinental Hotels, a veteran NUF attendee,
noted that marketing skills do not necessarily come naturally to many
network managers and engineers. "But this is something we have to
improve upon," said Abbott. Solutions like NetScout's nGenius System
can help, he said, "but we also have to help ourselves; we have to
understand how important this is and work hard at it."
In a keynote session, industry luminary Jim Metzler took it one
step further, saying network professionals would be ill-advised to
shirk the new responsibility, as it will become increasingly important
as network management gets more proactive. "The network team is used
to being fire fighters," said Metzler. "Lots of people witnessed the
flames and felt the heat, and the network manager was a hero when the
flames were extinguished. But what will happen when we successfully
avert those fires before the smoke turns into actual flames-- how are
we going to continue to convey the value of performance management?"
"This is one more example of how network and application
performance management is evolving from a tactical activity to
strategic necessity," said Jim Frey, NetScout's vice president of
marketing. "One of the manifestations of this evolution is the need
for better communications, both in terms of collaborating across
functional teams as well as making management aware of business
impact. As NUF attendees pointed out time and again, NetScout is among
the most customer-centric vendors, and is focused on helping network
teams meet these challenges."
Throughout the event, attendees expressed keen interest in the
recent news that NetScout intends to acquire Network General
Corporation. In an onsite survey, 90 percent of attendees reported
they currently use Network General products-- illustrating the
complementary aspect of the NetScout-Network General combination. NUF
attendees used the opportunity to ask the many onsite NetScout
executives how the combination will impact their organizations.
About NetScout Systems
NetScout Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTCT) has been the industry
pacesetter for advanced network and service assurance solutions for
over a decade, and counts the world's largest enterprises, government
agencies, and service providers among its customers. Enterprise and
government IT organizations deploy NetScout's nGenius(R) Performance
Management System to increase service levels to their users by
reducing or preventing service disruptions. Service providers depend
on NetScout's proven IP performance management technology and
expertise to protect the quality of their customers' experience with
IP-based services. NetScout is headquartered in Westford,
Massachusetts and has offices worldwide. Further information is
available at http://www.netscout.com.
NetScout and the NetScout logo, nGenius, and Quantiva are
registered trademarks of NetScout Systems, Inc. The CDM logo,
MasterCare, Progressive Analytics and the MasterCare logo, are
trademarks of NetScout Systems, Inc. Other brands, product names and
trademarks are property of their respective owners. NetScout reserves
the right, at its sole discretion, to make changes at any time in its
technical information and specifications, and service and support
programs.
CONTACT: NetScout Systems, Inc.
Christine Johansen, 978-614-4113
johansenc@netscout.com
or
Davies Murphy Group, Inc.
Brian Alberti, 781-418-2403
netscout@daviesmurphy.com
SOURCE: NetScout Systems