How SHI’s Customer Innovation Center can supercharge your digital transformation

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Over the years, technology has shaped our perspectives of the world and transformed the way we live, learn, work, and play. In 1990, less than one percent of U.S. households had internet access. Today, almost 65% of the world’s population (5.3 billion users) interact with the Internet through devices such as smartphones, tablets, laptops, and desktops (to name a few).

We are seeing a new revolution unfold right before our eyes with advancements in artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), Internet of Things (IoT), edge computing, and blockchain. But while any modern technology brings promise, it also creates risk. How do you reap the benefits of new technology while minimizing risk in your environment?

Now is the time to embrace innovation and simplify technological complexity with a creative edge – that’s where SHI’s Customer Innovation Center (CIC) comes in.

Innovation you can count on

The CIC is an 8,000-square-foot state-of-the-art facility at SHI’s corporate headquarters in Somerset, New Jersey.

It contains a set of diverse labs where customers, partners, and employees can design, build, demonstrate, deploy, and validate technology solutions that transform organizations.

Our focus areas include computing, storage, networking, cybersecurity, automation, cloud, extended reality (XR), AI, IoT, and more.

Backed by a multidisciplinary team of IT professionals, the SHI Customer Innovation Center supports hundreds of organizations annually and can help you take the guesswork out of decision-making.

Core offerings

We understand that evaluating the latest technologies can be cost-prohibitive and operationally inefficient for many organizations. The CIC helps alleviate these pain points by providing your team with the platforms, resources, and services they need.

Product and integrated solution demonstrations

We deliver a brief overview of a product or solution’s features and capabilities, followed by a live presentation of the software interfaces to provide a practical understanding of how it works. Demos are available on demand and can be delivered in as little as thirty minutes.

Proofs of Concept (POCs)

Verify that certain concepts or features have the potential for real-world application. POCs may include a single test plan with success criteria and can be carried out in just a few hours or over multiple days. If your POC is successful, you can opt to conduct some additional testing via a pilot before moving the solution into production.

Pilots and sandbox environments

These include product comparisons, design validation, benchmarking, multivendor solution evaluations, and more. They can be utilized for several days up to multiple weeks and are a popular way to explore new ideas, examine alternate configurations, conduct break/fix testing, or gain hands-on experience with bleeding-edge technologies outside of your normal operating environment.

We provide empty rack space, power, cooling, and VPN access for all pilots. You can choose to bring your own gear or work with the appropriate manufacturers to procure the resources required for your project.

Each pilot includes an initial rollout of a system into simulated production, targeting a limited scope of the intended final solution. The scope may be limited by the number of users, business processes, partners involved, or other restrictions as appropriate. If the pilot is deemed a success, you can move the environment into production and roll it out to your end-user community.

Testing services

We can perform a variety of testing on your behalf, including comparison, functional, unit, performance, benchmark, stress, upgrade, migration, and end-to-end. This enables your organization to:

• Offload expensive, time-consuming internal testing processes.
• Accelerate the development of new products and services.
• Generate new sources of revenue.
• Decrease the overall time to market with our testing services.

Our team of subject matter experts will manage the entire testing process, enabling you to focus on your core business.

Workshops and training

Through our workshops and training, we will provide the business and technical information you need to make informed decisions and set strategies. We offer half-day, full-day, and multi-day options where you’ll gain insights on the latest IT trends, participate in whiteboard sessions, and obtain hands-on access to today’s most innovative technologies. They are conducted by our team of certified IT professionals and can be delivered inside our Executive Briefing Center (EBC) or remotely.

Assessment services

Get a comprehensive understanding of your IT environment. We’ll conduct an in-depth review of your current state, identify gaps in accordance with industry best practices, highlight redundancies and inefficiencies, determine potential risks, and make recommendations that align with your desired business outcomes. Expect to walk away with a strategy that will deliver long-term success by minimizing risk in the face of change.

Design and deployment services

Simplify and expedite the utilization of new products and solutions. Want help architecting a SASE solution that enables access to your on-premises and cloud resources simultaneously, securely, and seamlessly? Require assistance throughout your XR project’s lifecycle with device enrollment, platform testing, pushing out updates, and ongoing management and auditing tasks? Our team of skilled engineers will complement your IT staff, minimize disruption, and accelerate your company’s time to value. We offer a range of end-to-end services that will help you maximize your IT investments.

Engage with SHI through our Customer Innovation Center

In today’s uncertain world, one thing is for sure – technology continues to change at an exponential rate. Organizations that want to thrive must reduce risk and take advantage of these extraordinary advances to maintain flexibility and scalability when resources are scarce.

With specialized guidance from our solution architects and engineers, SHI’s Customer Innovation Center offers a variety of solutions and services to help support your transformation and budget objectives with high confidence and speed.

Contact us today to learn more about how SHI can help you evaluate competitive technologies, gain insight into the latest technology trends, solve complex IT challenges, and improve time-to-value.