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Virtual Realities
The SD-WAN implementation fo-
cused on a hybrid SD-WAN that was
combined with a UCaaS that gave
high-quality voice service based on
how the SD-WAN was tuned to priori-
tize voice calls. The SD-WAN also was
designed to dynamically route traffic in
a way that balanced operational costs
for various types of bandwidth with the
goal of providing uniform service to
each of the company’s sites.
Personnel Services
A professional services company in
the human resources and employment
services field with dozens of North
American offices that were connected
with a legacy VPN-based system
dependent on routing equipment that
was obsolete needed an SD-WAN
upgrade. Based on an analysis of its
network infrastructure and how its
business needs were evolving, we
identified the following key criteria for
the SD-WAN strategy:
1. Eliminate expensive MPLS loop
costs that were contributing to the
cost of the legacy WAN;
2. Move away from costly data cen-
ter infrastructure that housed the
antiquated routing equipment as
the heart of the old system;
3. Provide centralized management
of the network that enabled the
company to more efficiently man-
age its use; and
4. Optimize the network’s design to
support key needs such as video
collaboration, voice communica-
tions and file sharing.
The resulting implementation was
a standalone SD-WAN implemen-
tation with architecture designed
around broadband/broadband loops
and cellular wireless networks. This
customer also needed help with the
ongoing management of its network
traffic to free up its team for other IT
responsibilities.
Three companies, three dramati-
cally different SD-WAN strategies and
implementations. A one-size-fits-all
approach would have been a terrible fit
for all of these organizations.
Your customers know their com-
pany is not a carbon copy of the mid-
sized business down the street. They
are unique, and their SD-WAN needs
to be unique as well, otherwise it won’t
come close to meeting their needs.
By educating customers about the
dangers of oversimplifying SD-WAN –
with the help of the right language and
the right examples – you will position
yourself as the straight talker that isn’t
just trying to sell them a solution in a
box. You are trying to save them from
a common mistake that will be costlier
in the long-run. Ideally, an SD-WAN
implementation begins with a com-
prehensive review of the company’s
technology needs and business strat-
egy, a detailed discussion of where the
company is headed in the future, and
development of an SD-WAN plan that
is tailored to the customer. It’s the kind
of process that requires a reseller that
is a true partner, and educating cus-
tomers about all of this will differentiate
your company from every other firm
trying to prey on the customer’s desire
for this to be a matter of a few clicks
rather than a discussion.
Simple makes sense for bread and
a lovely berry dessert. But SD-WAN is
complex enough to require a trusted
partner to steer the process, and the
provider that tells the truth and invests
the time to educate customers will be
the one who earns their trust and their
business. That’s the simple truth, and
simple truths are better than good –
better than great, actually. o
Yulia Duryea is director of product
management for Windstream’s En-
terprise Business Unit where she is
the product lead over the Enterprise
WAN and Managed Services port-
folio. She is Windstream’s resident
thought leader and technologist for
SD-WAN solutions.
ChannelVision | July - August, 2017 24
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