CIOopinion

CIO OPINION

had already established a timeline for their Zero Trust model initiative with 15 % having projects currently underway . Still , nearly two-thirds have no current plans or initiatives around the Zero Trust model .

Moving to improve security

Technologies and strategies planned for the coming year reflect a key focus on the competitive requirements of fast-paced digital markets . The top-two initiatives included moving from hardware appliances to more flexible software form factors and deploying hybrid cloud automation , management and analytics to increase operational efficiency .

With DDoS attacks a prime concern , 29 % of respondents planned to deploy or replace an existing web application firewall ( WAF ) or DDoS protection solution . Surprisingly , even several years after the introduction of modern Perfect Forward Secrecy ( PFS ) and Elliptical Curve Cryptography ( ECC ) encryption standards for enhanced security , 29 % of organisations are only now working to upgrade their Transport Layer Security ( TLS ) capabilities to support these technologies . Even as cloud adoption continues to be strong , 5 % of decision makers intend to repatriate applications from private cloud environments to their private data centre . While not a high number , this is not entirely insignificant . Given the diversity of form factors , architectures and deployment methods to choose from , it is important to make sure that the approach fits the organisation ’ s needs before proceeding .

Addressing the requirements of hybrid cloud

Moving forward , decision-makers view capabilities related to risk as especially important for their financial platforms . When it comes to the most important capabilities for financial platforms running in hybrid cloud environments , regulatory compliance , comprehensive application security and redundancy / Disaster Recovery are top must-haves .

In addition to the importance placed on redundancy / Disaster Recovery , many respondents ( 43 %) named centralised management and analytics as important capabilities . Along with elastic scale for variable / seasonal demands ( 25 %), this shows a recognition of the requirements to provide effective service through redundancy , scalability and a sound infrastructure . Compared with riskrelated and operational priorities , cost saw considerably less emphasis in the survey . While 28 % of respondents placed importance on automation for operational efficiency and reduced costs , just 18 % prioritised flexible licensing and pricing .

Desired benefits from new technology

As they plan new technology investments , decision-makers are motivated foremost by risk reduction – far outpacing business factors such as revenue , customer experience and competitive advantage .

By a large majority , security was the most likely benefit to spur funding for new technology . Operational considerations followed , including operational improvements ( 65 %) and cost savings ( 63 %). Regulatory compliance , emphasised earlier in the survey as a priority for a hybrid cloud requirement , was not necessarily top-of-mind in the technology funding stage – but still of high importance ( 57 %). Revenue generation was named as a highly important benefit by only 35 %, followed by customer satisfaction at 32 %. Even in an industry undergoing rapid Digital Transformation , just 32 % of decisionmakers cited business advantage from new technology as a prime factor – and only 17 % were moved by the ability to accelerate development speed .

The results of the survey offer a snapshot of an industry in transition , as decisionmakers seek to keep control over security and compliance and maintain operational consistency , as they look to tap into the agility and scalability of the cloud . It is clear that , while security is important for Digital Transformation initiatives , application delivery and managing multi-cloud environments are of equal importance . Above all financial services organisations must maintain their good reputation and ensure customer trust . Firms must demonstrate that they are protecting customer assets , providing an ultra-reliable service , working with trustworthy partners and reducing risk to the business . •

46 INTELLIGENTCIO www www . intelligentcio . . com. com