Proactive IT: How AI is Transforming Future of Network Visibility

IT teams have been stuck in a reactive mode for years, responding to performance issues only after they begin to affect users. Yet, despite the availability of monitoring tools which can flag performance issues, 84 percent of network professionals say they typically learn about issues from the users themselves. There is a lot of opportunity to proactively improve the identification and resolution of issues before they begin to impact productivity.

Most monitoring tools can overwhelm professionals with data overload - charts, logs, and endless alerts that require manual correlation to diagnose issues - meaning resolutions take time to be implemented and productivity suffers. But the answer to these issues lies in the latest technological advancement - artificial intelligence (AI).

Queue in AI - the gamechanger

AI enables faster decision making, clearer insight, and more efficient operations by automating tasks, enhancing security, streamlining routine processes, optimising resources and more broadly, improving efficiency. In general, it helps organisations shift from reacting to problems to anticipating them, reducing the time to a solution.

Artificial intelligence changes what is possible

So, how can IT teams leverage AI today to make a difference when solving issues?

Firstly, they can use automated anomaly detection. Here, AI continuously analyses vast amounts of network data in real time to identify unusual patterns before they escalate into outages. Additionally, they can leverage predictive maintenance, which takes this a step further by replicating human-like decision-making to diagnose complex issues, enabling proactive interventions. Through intelligent alerting, AI-powered systems effectively filter and prioritise critical notifications, minimising noise and ensuring swift responses to real problems.

On the security front, AI also enhances protection by examining traffic for suspicious activity, identifying potential threats, and launching rapid countermeasures against cyberattacks. Finally, proactive network management benefits from AI’s ability to automate configuration, detect faults, and implement repairs, boosting performance while significantly reducing the likelihood of human error.

It’s time we embrace AI

AI isn’t here to replace IT teams - it’s here to empower them. Those who embrace AI will gain a competitive advantage and will shift from acting reactively to issues, to proactive optimisation. With AI-driven automation, potential issues are identified and addressed before they ever affect users.

Delivering a seamless user experience demands a balance of efficiency, security, and reliability, and AI is the catalyst for achieving all three. But automation alone isn't enough. IT needs a unified view of the network, with a single platform that consolidates visibility across all traffic, whether on-premises, in the cloud, or direct-to-internet, so teams can stay ahead of disruptions and keep everything running smoothly.

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