How to Cut Costs: 5 IT Trends to Watch in 2009

The current state of the economy has made it critical for companies to adopt a small-business mentality of doing more with less. Cutting costs will be one of the most important trends moving into 2009 and will drive many IT decisions throughout the year.

As enterprises put forth their most strategic efforts to streamline operations and combat declining revenues, they'll turn to technology that can deliver fast time-to-value, help optimize resources and show a measurable ROI. These types of initiatives are also most likely to receive sign-off as budgets continue to tighten.

There are a number of ways to optimize and reduce costs within today's IT infrastructures. Here are five IT trends to watch during the next 12 months:

Trend No. 1: Data center transformation

The economic downturn is bringing data center transformation initiatives to the fore, as is the increasing demand for space. In 2008 alone, the need for data center space grew 14 percent worldwide. Yet, during the same period, the inventory of available space only increased by 6 percent.

While a recent survey found that only 20 percent of surveyed technology decision makers plan to take on "complete transformation" of their data centers in 2009, the remaining 80 percent are looking to implement individual data center transformation projects including automation (64 percent), green IT (60 percent), operations management (59 percent), virtualization (59 percent) and business continuity (58 percent).

Data center transformation initiatives such as relocation, consolidation, hardware replacement and virtualization will enable companies to leverage what they already have, consolidate space within existing data centers and immediately reduce costs. Before undertaking such projects, IT professionals need to conduct a baseline of their infrastructure. A baseline will give companies a snapshot of their entire infrastructure and should be the first step in any major data center transformation project. Your business can't manage what it can't measure, so this type of insight into your IT infrastructure will make data center transitions and tasks more manageable. It will also enable companies to identify end-of-life or aging software—an essential component of tracking down and eliminating unnecessary costs.

Trend No. 2: Greener, leaner IT

Besides the obvious environmental benefits a greener IT environment offers, the financial and business continuity incentives of an eco-friendly infrastructure are substantial. Green technology helps companies cut costs, remove data center waste and meet escalating energy requirements. With President Obama's push to decrease global emissions and boost green energy programs, requirements for green IT are sure to escalate.

Data center power consumption can cause astronomical costs and wasted resources. Between 2000 and 2006, data center power consumption costs doubled to $4.5 billion and could double again by 2011, according to the United States government. An efficient (read: green) data center uses about 25 percent less electricity than a run-of-the-mill one, which could amount to $4.5 million a year in savings at a midsized facility.

Some companies are already experimenting with creative ways to decrease data centers' carbon footprint. Google is attempting to float data centers on the ocean, Intel is seeing if it can cool data centers with outside air and Microsoft is trying to establish an economical data center inside a tent. But until other companies have an excess of funds to invest in such new, large-scale technology, they'll have to figure out how to make what they already have greener.

Trend No. 3: Cloud computing

It's clear that IT is moving toward a service-oriented future and cloud computing is one of the hottest trends. Cloud computing provides a single point of access for an enterprise's computing needs, allowing the organization to cut costs and create a leaner IT environment. But for all its benefits, cloud computing also presents a number of infrastructure management challenges, including in the areas of availability, security, policy and support. To combat these challenges, it's critical for businesses to understand their IT infrastructure before and after they move to the cloud.

Maximizing the cloud requires a certain level of IT transparency, as well as a thorough understanding of each infrastructure component and how it relates to others. Without this, companies will lack valuable insight into the cause and effect within their IT estates—which could adversely affect cloud operations down the road.