Workload Automation – Open solutions matter

In 2013, Gartner removed its magic quadrant for workload automation tools, saying that “IT operations leaders must evaluate workload automation in the context of broader data center or application and process automation efforts.” In other words, this means that IT automation has to look at the broader picture to manage codependent complex processes and more heterogeneous resources.

This conclusion is supported by multiple feedbacks where companies are looking to migrate from one vendor to another not because of the tool itself but because of the integration with other services. For instance, a company which originally was looking at batch scheduling might now expand its automation to other services. Another example can be found in the growing need for hybrid infrastructures. The initial need might have been to optimize datacenter utilisation but with the exponential collection of data, companies are looking at hybrid clouds and cloud bursting to support analytic needs.

In this new market, extremely open tools leverage a key requirement from businesses. Automation projects are now looking at batch processing, release automation, public cloud lifecycle management, maintenance and others rather than discrete needs or only for production environments. These open solutions will communicate with external services in both directions and will enable future services to integrate with the newly created architecture of services.

Finally, aggregating all services around a common platform has other benefits. It lays the foundation for more governance, more control and more visibility which enable by itself continuous improvement. This common platform could includes additional features such as priority, error management, a simple interface to manage dependencies, etc. which would not be available on simple custom scripts.