As the cloud networking experts, Aviatrix wants to elevate the work of cloud networking heroes who labor to keep networks secure, effective, and performant. We’re proud to highlight people who have taught themselves the necessary skills, designed and managed successful networks, and have the expertise to share, including several who joined Aviatrix in New York at the NASDAQ tower.
Our next hero spotlight is on Shamus McGillicuddy, IT Industry Analyst at Enterprise Management Associates (EMA). Shamus’s experience as a journalist and analyst gives him unique visibility into the latest developments and long-term trajectory of the networking industry, from GenAI to best practices for cloud security. See our previous hero spotlights here.
Journalism in a Dynamic Industry
Shamus came to the cloud networking industry as a journalist. “I was a newspaper reporter for a number of years,” he explained. “In 2006, I joined TechTarget as a news writer for the company’s publications aimed at CIOs. After two years, TechTarget promoted me to news editor and I took over all news coverage for the company’s networking publications.”
Later, Shamus moved into another role: “After 9 years at TechTarget, Enterprise Management Associates hired me in 2015 to be an industry analyst, where I took over the network management practice,” he said. “Today I’m EMA’s VP of Research. I conduct market research and provide consulting and advisory services on the enterprise networking industry.”
Shamus talked about how he’s seen networking change throughout his career, especially concerning the data center model. “When I first started covering networking full time in 2008, the data center ruled,” he said. “That’s where all the applications and data resided. At the same time, networking vendors were just then introducing switches specifically designed to provide data center connectivity. Cisco introduced its Nexus line around that time, and it began selling networking pros on the idea that it was not ideal to build data center networks with Catalyst switches. Then SDN came along promising to revolutionize the data center switching market, but that didn’t happen. Multiple products flopped and several startups disappeared. Instead, the cloud took over.”
He clarified how the ups and downs have resolved in the industry: “While data centers didn’t disappear, their overall importance to enterprises waned as more workloads moved to the public cloud, where networking was supposedly commoditized. Now networking is very focused on APIs and automation as enterprises develop hybrid, multicloud architectures that span their data centers and the cloud.”
For Shamus, the best part of his job is the discoveries he makes. “I like to investigate technology adoption through market research, which involves surveying thousands of IT pros and interviewing dozens one-on-one to learn about their goals and challenges as they build and operate various types of networks,” he explained. “I enjoy uncovering hidden insights and highlighting it in content and consulting. One network architect at a Fortune 500 company told me this year that reading one of my market research reports helped him crush a job interview that earned him a new job. I was glad to hear that.”
When it comes to challenges in Shamus’s work, the biggest obstacle is reaching the right people while investigating and researching technology. Finding accurate data has also become more difficult. “The rise of AI technology has challenged survey data collection because AI-driven bots are corrupting data. I’m constantly applying new tactics to detect them,” he said. “Also, it’s often difficult to find network engineers and architects who have the time to talk to me for research interviews.”
Over the next ten years, he foresees a convergence across multiple technologies, including SD-WAN, secure access service edge (SASE), multicloud networking, Kubernetes, switching/routing, and firewalls. “Vendors will offer broader platforms enabled by cloud-native technologies that make it easier to build an end-to-end hybrid, multicloud network,” he predicts.
The Network is the Cloud
When asked what “the network is the cloud” means to him, Shamus explained that it highlights the importance of connectivity: “It speaks to the fact that many enterprises are adopting hybrid, multicloud architectures, and none of that can work without connectivity. Enterprises are implementing a variety of networking solutions to connect and secure these services.”
Outside of Work
In his free time, Shamus writes. “I write a lot of fiction,” he said. “Mostly horror. I’ve published three stories in magazines over the last few years. I’m shopping several others. And I’m working on two novels.”
He also enjoys gardening. “I’ve spent the last three summers building out a large pollinator garden that is beloved by goldfinches, hummingbirds, at least ten species of bees, and rabbits,” he explained.
Curious about other cloud networking heroes like Shamus?
- We’ll keep highlighting networking professionals on this blog.
- Learn more about the Cloud Networking Heroes program and apply on The Cloud Network Community.