All NRENs Are Local
A Business Case for NRENs – a Swiss Perspective
Christoph Witzig
[email protected]
TNC 2014 - Dublin, May 20, 2014
Outline
• Introduction
• Main
– “Historical Background”
– SWITCH Strategy 2020
– What really matters …. 5 key issues for NRENs
• Conclusions
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Introduction
All politics is local
Tip O’Neill
Speaker US House of Representatives, 1976 - 1989
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“Historical Background”
• SWITCH founded in 1987 as a foundation
• 1990-2000: Establishes itself firmly as national research
and education network
• 2000-2010:
– “unchallenged” position as network provider
– Authentication and authorization infrastructure
– Support for collaboration, e-Learning, Grid
• Is this enough? What do we need to do to stay successful?
 Strategy 2020
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SWITCH Market Model
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Observations …
• Growth identified by providing services to researchers and
lecturers
• Questions:
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Where can you provide value?
Who is the customer really? How do you approach him?
What is the role of the IT services ?
What does this mean for SWITCH / NRENs?
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Where can you provide value?
• New services, but …
– Cannot compete on price alone
– Role of IT services changes
– NRENs are not very strong in turning off services and re-allocate
existing manpower to new activities
• Examples from SWITCH:
– ICT Law, SWITCHprocure
– Swiss edu-ID, SWITCHdrive (aka “academic dropbox”)
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Who is the customer really? How do
you approach him?
• Need to become more open to do things differently …
• Need to become more “business-oriented” …
… without losing proximity to academia,
our key competitive advantage
• Examples from SWITCH
– Reorganization of company across customer segments
– Consider non-technical IT related services
– Analysis of the existing service portfolio
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SWITCH Portfolio Analysis
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SWITCH Portfolio Analysis
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IT Services at Swiss Universities
• Core customers grouped into 3 types of universities
– Cantonal universities and institutions of ETH domain
– Universities of Applied Sciences
– Pedagogical universities
• IT services are very heterogeneous
– Size and budget
– Financial constraints
– Mission: Enabler for R&E -- vs -- running standard business service
• Change in perception of IT services for the university management
– Changes in personnel and culture – also generational
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What is the role of the IT services ?
• Partnership as key competitive advantage
• Taking the following facts into account
– New services must not come at their expense
– Involve them in the development of new services
• Example: Cloud Advisory Committee, Swiss edu-ID
– Tailor service offering to their needs
• Example: SWITCHdrive, Cloud offering
– Transparent billing
• While being aware of heterogeneity of the academic sector
– Be flexible handling institutional differences (e.g. IT srv vs R&L)
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What does this mean for NRENs?
• Five key issues
– Trust and partnership
– Innovation in existing services
– Identification, implementation and commissioning of new services
– Pan-European collaboration
– Consider your national setting … and turn it into your advantage
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Trust and Partnership
• One of the biggest assets that you can have !
• Key ingredients:
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Successful track record
Transparency and openness
Work with partners across the entire hierarchy chain
It must be earned every day …
… and is very easily lost
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Innovation: existing and new services
• Innovation trap:
Yesterday’s inventor is
today’s beneficiary
and tomorrow’s inhibitor
• Difficulty to
– Innovate existing operational services (wherever beneficial)
– Abandon existing services (to free up resources for new initiatives)
– Dare to venture into new domains if your constituencies benefit
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International and national setting
• Pan-European Collaboration
– Unique asset for NRENs
– Exploit opportunities beyond the network
• Higher level services
• Support for international research communities
• Consider national setting – “all NRENs are local”
– Focus on your core customers / partners and their needs
– Work within your national framework turning it to your advantage
wherever possible
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Conclusion
• Find your “sweet spot” in your country
• NRENs must adapt to changing environment
– Must not rely exclusively on existing services
– Should not be afraid to become more “business oriented” within the
framework of academia
– Should offer higher level services – also non-technical if there is a
need
• Exploit opportunity for NRENs/Dante/Terena to offer new
services to international research communities and
infrastructures
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Q&A
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SWITCH Portfolio Analysis
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