Information lifecycle management: mastering complexity

Computer Technology Review,  Sept, 2004  by Mark P. Dangelo

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The key to efficient data and storage management lies with a simple principle: information has a lifecycle and it should only be stored as long as required by business and regulatory requirements. However, the traditional methods of administration do not suffice for the complex relationships among structured and unstructured data. New generations of solutions are evolving to meet business leaders' needs while reducing operational risk, meeting regulatory compliance, and improving system availability.

However, like every quantum change with strategic and operational management, reality is not keeping pace with the expectations of individuals and organizations that demand a quick, yet simple, solution to a very complex and growing problem. To further complicate matters, new terminology is being introduced, additional skill sets are required, products are immature, and the financial impact of implementation is empirically only just being understood with the first generation of products. This ambiguity has a potential to derail a robust framework that has the ability to deliver on historically unmet needs required for our ever-expanding, informationdependent industries.

[FIGURE 1 OMITTED]

ILM: Not Just Another Priority

The integration and dissemination of information is not simply reserved for large enterprises; it has become a mandate driven by shareholders, boards of directors, government regulators, and employees. Information Lifecycle Management is not just about managing storage--it is about using information assets from "cradle to grave." While it is a complex issue, the benefits of achieving ILM are recognized as improving ROI, reducing operating costs (i.e., TCO), increasing information availability, and promoting productivity among the employees. Simply stated, ILM is about the process of the information's lifecycle.

However, to achieve a viable solution with a realistic return, organizations must understand the company's critical business needs before selecting a technological solution or vendor. The enterprise needs are no longer limited to managing structured data from disparate, yet highly interfaced operational application systems. Today's business requirements are driven by high-tech VoIP contact centers, instant messaging, content intelligence, unstructured data, global outsourcing, culturally diverse workforces, and stratifications of data. These needs concentrate on the integration and synthesis of complex data sources and uses, not just the implementation of a SAN, processor, or software for Sarbanes-Oxley.

Justification of ILM

The solution to active and automated administration has been elusive for nearly 30 years. The root problems remain and they are growing more pronounced and visible with increasing government regulations, shareholder suits, employee turnover and rising litigation. As articulated by senior management, business justification for ILM as a solution to these core troubles includes:

* The globalization of markets--it is more than managing domestic information or personnel

* Government requirements are increasing at a compounded rate of 10-15% per year

* Compliance efforts being viewed as a series of "one-offs" are unrelated and seldom leveraged

* Reporting that is focused at a department-by-department level

* Lack of consistency when capturing data leads to multiple copies of the truth

* Information retrieval is time consuming and expensive

* Operational and archiving systems cannot meet stringent requirements needed for legal discovery and submission--lack of scrutiny

* No enterprise examination of the larger problem--management is distracted by trying to run the business

* Internal skill sets are few, dwindling, and stretched thin

Compliance has become a catalyst for ILM. With the current market offerings, organizations are dealing with a patchwork quilt of point solutions that require significant integration efforts. Moreover, there are the challenges of dealing with a legacy of products, skills, and business justifications that have been left over from historical innovation and adoption (Figure 2).

To meet the needs of the business and for the mobile, quality-focused customer base, embracing a comprehensive approach to deal with the over 50% yearly increase in data storage must be met with a pragmatic, yet compartmentalized ILM method.

The issues and challenges facing business and technical managers are not contained within the back office of IT. These risks and liabilities now reside within the executive suite and must be addressed using non-traditional ap-proaches and a hierarchy of storage solutions. A corporation's market and credit risk will be directly affected by its ability to deal with simultaneous outages, multi-faceted reporting, and operational tracking and hazards on an international basis. As a result, business continuity, availability and ILM are coupled. ILM has been spawned from business needs and a corporate mandate to deliver an innovative, comprehensive and expandable solution now and the future.