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Introduction

While information is oft described as the lifeblood of business, the sheer volume of data generated in the course of everyday work makes the analogy of knowledge workers drowning in an ocean of information a more apt one. Indeed, data volumes are growing at such a rapid clip that Meta Group has projected aggregate storage growth of 45% annually, yielding an increase of 34 times in storage floor space within the next five years. In addition, not all data are created equal: 90 percent of the data stored is rarely accessed, and the value of specific data may change significantly over time . Further compounding the data challenge is the enactment of regulations such as HIPAA and Sarbanes-Oxley, governing the use, storage and retrieval of corporate information.

Given such trends, many businesses, especially large enterprises, are facing the challenge of effectively managing the creation, transmission, storage and deletion of information without incurring excessive costs or missing service level objectives, and still maintain compliance with regulatory requirements and audit procedures. Without enhanced and optimised information strategies, processes and management, the sheer cost of maintaining data and storage assets will exert significant drag on business performance in the immediate term.

The Changing Value of Information over Time

This is where ILM can help. ILM refers to a set of processes and technologies that determine how data flows through an environment, from the time it is created to the time it is archived and ultimately destroyed. It means placing varying levels of importance on information associated with applications, metadata and data, and managing that information as levels of importance increase or decrease over time.

An effective ILM program will help identify and prioritise data according to its value to the business; apply specific creation, storage, and archival processes accordingly; and allocate the appropriate technology for accessing, transmitting and storing the data as needed. A simple example of ILM in action is in the area of data storage: as data moves through various stages of its lifecycle, the ILM infrastructure should be able to shift data across storage mediums – from primary high-end storage arrays to secondary lower-tier storage devices to tape backup - in order to provide ideal levels of access, protection and recovery at the lowest possible total cost.

The 3-Step ILM Framework

While the allure of ILM is undeniable to businesses looking to get a grip on their data woes, implanting ILM effectively is much more than just a simple technology purchase to help archive emails: an ILM strategy is fundamentally about transforming business information in incremental stages over several years, and requires organizations to think deeply about the evolution of strategy, process and technology in a concerted manner.

For enterprises planning to move to an ILM environment, IBM – thanks to the company’s vast experience with a broad range of ILM technologies and strong relationships with leading independent software vendors – recommends that companies take an evolutionary-based approach and implement these programs in incremental phases. Businesses should ideally transition gradually from a functional to services-based and ultimately, a utility-based ILM infrastructure. This approach spans the whole spectrum of ILM requirements from hardware to software to services, which means that businesses will be able to effectively align their information with business processes. Generally, an ILM strategy should evolve over the following phases:

• Phase 1 – Functional: this initial stage aims to help businesses reduce their costs through storage optimisation. It involves identifying the information that is most often accessed and placing varying levels of importance to the data generated. It helps businesses examine their requirements for information storage, by determining the importance of content to the business, rather than blindly migrating data based on technical specifications. This allows enterprises to consolidate storage islands and plan for centralized backup and restoration capabilities.
• Phase 2 – Services-based: this phase begins integrating the solutions implemented in the first stage to maximize and sustain efficiency. At this stage, information is classified according to the different service levels, and requires enterprises to move to a multi-tier storage architecture solution so that the information can be stored according to its service level. This phase focuses more on business processes and backup and recovery objectives, and serves as a critical foundation for the final phase.
• Phase 3 – Utility: this final stage should enhance and automate the processes established during the earlier phases, by utilizing a combination of virtualisation technologies and automated information management systems. Virtualisation helps to provide a simplified, logical view of complex storage resources to applications and end-users, while automated information management systems ensure that storage and recovery policies and processes are executed cost-effectively, without the need for manual intervention. The ultimate objective is to create a utility-based ILM service, which provides users with access to the information they need, when they need it.

For organizations planning to embark on an ILM program, they should seriously consider the role of a partner with a deep understanding of their business processes, the ability to design an ILM strategy that aligns information with business objectives, and the technology and services that support the deployment of such a strategy. An ILM strategy – well designed and executed - enables organizations to realize immediate cost savings by consolidating and reducing the number of storage arrays, and optimizing the use of remaining storage space. As ILM evolves, enterprises can further improve application performance, streamline data management, and support a sustainable storage management strategy – with the ultimate objective of being able to respond to demand in real time.

Michelle Wong was named Country Sales Manager, Global Technology Services of IBM Singapore on January 1, 2006. In this role she leads IBM Singapore's direct sales force for technology services. Prior to this appointment, Ms Wong was the Business Manager, Desktop Management Services for IBM ASEAN/South Asia. Preceding this role, she led the business operations group for Global Services for IBM ASEAN/South Asia. She joined IBM Singapore in 1988 as a trainee in the Sales and Distribution organisation and spent the next five years in the pre-sales technical support role for the iSeries. Ms Wong also spent eight years outside of IBM Singapore leading the IT operations for a US-based insurance company with 13 branch offices in Asian Pacific. She was also the Business Development Director, Managed Services for AT&T Solutions. Ms Wong holds a Bachelor of Science (Computer Science) degree from National University of Singapore.