As a network engineer, did you notice how many people in an organization can get confused and blame the mysterious “network” for everything, and write help tickets for even the most banal problems? In fact, blaming and defending the network happens so often now, there’s a hashtag for it: #NotTheNetwork. One good example comes from @ghostinthenet —
"Far, •far• too often, the first piece of technology that gets blamed for a problem is the piece that is understood least. It doesn't matter that none of the evidence points in that direction. It's just an easy way to redirect responsibility. #NotTheNetwork " —Jody Lemoine @ghostinthenet
When everyone blames the network, help tickets come always pouring in... If a computer won’t start… if a computer crashed … if the intercom went down… if a meeting fell apart…how often do you need to defend the network?
What do we need in order to protect the network, and to prove it is NOT the network's fault?
First, we can gather the resources needed: In this case, we need strategies and tools to quickly and smoothly do root-cause analysis on the network, providing results that we can rapidly communicate in plain English to an end user. We’ll also want to be ready to show users what is happening in real-time on the network, so that we can prove things with authority.
How can we rapidly identify an issue and where the problem really lies?
If we don't use automatic, advanced network monitoring and problem-solving tools, we're actually doing ourselves a disservice. We need to be willing to invest in our operations and in ourselves. If we haven’t invested in any tools yet, maybe we should spend some money on tools and software that can help us achieve our goals, to do advanced and automated network monitoring. We also should be making a commitment to our own education, so we’ll know how to address network problems, both the real and the perceived problems, and be committed to being of service as the engineer. Right?
By using better tools, investing in our tools and in ourselves, and committing to our team, we can build a better environment.
For more information, tips and techniques, watch our recorded webinar, How to Prove Its NOT the Network’s Fault.
