Tools vs. Platform: How to Choose the Right Approach for Network Automation

As organizations are getting started with network automation or are already well on their way to building a network automation strategy, one of the most essential components is selecting the right technology that can support and accelerate productivity, cost reductions, and efficiency.

So, do you choose to build the capability in-house using existing technologies and open-source components (otherwise referred to as a tools approach), or do you take a platform approach and implement a fully functional, pre-integrated automation platform?

Let’s look at which approach is right for your organization.

The Value of a Tools Approach

With a tool-centric approach most of the efforts are focused on automating repetitive tasks to gain efficiencies. Business processes remain largely unchanged, with tools being used to automate standalone tasks within the process. The impact of these efforts can be meaningful for individuals, such as an engineer can perform 100 assignments in the time it previously took to complete one.

But, here’s where tools fall short:

1. Does Not Impact the Overall Process: Since this approach only addresses individual tasks and neglects handoffs and other activities that occur beyond execution, the overall process is not impacted which provides limited value.
2. Relies on Human-Centric Paradigm: Most activities and processes are designed around how much time it would take an average engineer to perform a task, which is based on human limits. By moving from a human-centric paradigm to a machine-centric model, the full process can execute more efficiently and safely. The only way to do this is to move away from a model that automates individual tasks, and instead automates the entire process.

The Value of a Platform Approach

For automation to become truly transformative it must have the ability to reflect a machine-centric paradigm, which is only possible by taking a platform approach to automation and moving away from a tools-centric model. By automating an entire process, not just individual tasks, users gain the flexibility to do much more in much less time with fewer resources — making innovation possible.

Here are some of the advantages of choosing a platform approach over a tools approach:

Itential Network Automation Platform

Building an in-house automation platform requires significant effort, both in terms of building the platform and then in terms of operating, maintaining, and updating the platform which creates additional burden on the automation team. Selecting an existing platform that meets the requirements, while providing additional capabilities that can further extend the functionality and flexibility of the automation system to scale and to support new use cases and emerging technologies is the key to successful network automation.

With the Itential Automation Platform, organizations can immediately onboard and deploy automations, driving much faster time to value than through any other method.

• Pre-Built Library: Itential provides out-of-the-box Pre-Built Integrations to over 100 IT and network systems as well as Pre-Built Automations for every use case.
• Low-Code Environment: Itential’s Automation Studio allows non-developers to create automations based on their technology domain expertise.
• Network & Cloud Support: Itential seamlessly connects to any IT system, cloud, or network technology for end-to-end configuration, compliance, and automation so network teams are no longer limited by what they can automate.

If your organization is ready to take the platform approach, learn more about all the ways you can get started with network automation with Itential to start driving immediate impact to your organization.