When Two Networks Become One, the Personal Becomes the Technical

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When integrating two networks -- whether due to an acquisition or organizational change -- be sure to take the potential nontechnical impact into account. Not only do cultural changes matter, but they are just as likely to screw up the project. Enterprise Networking Planet looks at ways to ensure the merger doesn't wreak havoc with your user community.

Bringing two networks together is not always a simple matter. There are many ways that can go wrong technically and most of these can be traced back to applications. But there is also the non-technical side where projects can go seriously awry. The cultural side of a network merger, for instance, can play havoc and the user community can quite easily get up in arms about relatively minor matters if not dealt with correctly.

"Merging two networks often comes about from merging two companies, IT teams and network tools," said Stephen Brown, product marketing manager at Network Instruments. "In this case, it's important to think of the bigger picture."

But even it is two departments being integrated, he believes it is still more than bringing together applications and networks. Before you begin to work on the networks, then, it is important to look at the cultures of IT teams, their approaches to network management and other related issues.

Read the rest of "Joining Networks: The Personal Is the Technical" at Enterprise Networking Planet