Containerization 101: A Business Leader's Guide to Modernizing IT

The tech industry is moving at an increasingly rapid pace, and the agility of your IT infrastructure can make or break your organization. Yet, many organizations are held back by outdated, inflexible systems that drain resources.

Discover containerization—a cloud modernization strategy that can unlock the full potential of your IT and transform your business.

Sounds promising, right? 

Let us introduce you to the world of containerization and how it can significantly benefit your business.

What is Containerization in Layman Terms?

Containerization is a software development approach where an application, its dependencies, libraries, and configurations are packaged together into a standardized unit called a container. This container can then be run consistently across different computing environments, regardless of the underlying infrastructure.

Think of containerization like shipping goods across the ocean. In the past, cargo ships carried loose items, which made loading and unloading a slow, inefficient, and often risky process.

Then came shipping containers – standardized boxes that could be easily loaded onto ships, trains, or trucks. These containers revolutionized logistics by making shipping faster, safer, and more cost-effective.

Containerization in the cloud works similarly. 

Unlike traditional applications, which can be rigid and difficult to manage, containers offer flexibility, scalability, and cost-efficiency.

The Problems of Traditional Applications & Why Containers Are Better

Traditional applications, often built as a single unit of code, are like fragile houses built directly on shifting sand. They're difficult to modify, scale, or move without causing disruptions. This inflexibility hinders innovation, slows down development, and leaves you vulnerable to security risks.

Containerization offers a robust solution to these problems. By packaging applications into self-contained units, containerization makes it easy to deploy and manage applications in different environments.

In the next section, we will discuss the benefits of containerization in more detail.

Why Business Leaders Should Embrace Containerization

Businesses that fail to modernize their IT risk falling behind. Containerization is a proven solution that can help you stay ahead of the curve. Whether you're in e-commerce, finance, healthcare, or any other industry, containerization can help you:

• Launch new products and features faster.
• Reduce your IT costs significantly.
• Improve the reliability and performance of your applications.
• Respond to changing market demands with agility.

Sounds too good to be true? It's not. Containerization is already helping DevOps teams revolutionize how their companies build and deploy software. In fact, Gartner predicts that up to 15% of enterprise applications will run in a container environment by 2024, up from less than 5% in 2020.

Here's how containerization can benefit your organization:

1. Slash IT Costs, Boost Profitability: Containers are lightweight and share resources, meaning you can run more applications on the same hardware. This translates to significant savings on infrastructure and licensing costs.
2. Accelerate Innovation & Outpace Competitors: Containerization enables faster development cycles, meaning you can launch new products, features, or updates before your rivals.
3. Adapt to Market Shifts in Record Time: Containerization's flexibility lets you quickly scale up during peak demand or pivot to new strategies.
4. Easier Debugging: Containers isolate applications, which protects them from each other and minimizes the impact of failures. This isolation translates to less downtime and fewer headaches for your IT team.
5. Deliver Flawless Customer Experiences: Containers ensure consistent application performance across environments, which will help reduce downtime and provide an experience that keeps customers happy and loyal.

Beyond the Tech:

Containerization enables your business to thrive. By embracing containerization, you can:

• Optimize Resource Utilization: Get more out of your existing hardware and software investments.
• Improve Customer Satisfaction: Deliver a seamless digital experience with reliable and scalable applications.
• Empower Your Workforce: Give your development teams the tools they need to be more productive and innovative.

Containerization is a strategic investment that can transform your IT infrastructure and drive tangible business results. The power of containers can help you unlock new levels of efficiency, agility, and innovation.

Containerization Use Cases

Containerization can open up new possibilities for your business. The versatility of containers makes them applicable across a wide range of industries and use cases:

• Microservices Architecture: To break down complex applications into smaller, independent services for easier management and scalability.

• Legacy Application Modernization: To extend the lifespan of your older applications by making them more portable and scalable.

• Cloud Migration: Containers simplify moving your applications to the cloud.

With such diverse applications, containerization is a strategic tool for businesses to achieve agility, efficiency, and innovation.

An Example of Containerization

Let's say your company develops a CRM application.

Traditionally, this would involve installing the application directly on servers, which could be a complex and time-consuming process. With containerization, you package the CRM application and all its dependencies into a container.

This container can then be easily deployed on any platform that supports container technology, whether it's your own servers or a cloud provider like AWS. Containerizing your CRM’s infrastructure means you can quickly scale it to handle more users, move it to a different environment if needed, and ensure consistent performance across the board.

Is Containerization Right for You?

While containerization offers many benefits, it's not a one-size-fits-all solution. Here are some questions to consider when evaluating whether containerization aligns with your business needs:

• Are you looking to modernize your IT infrastructure? If you're struggling with outdated, rigid systems that are slowing down your business, containerization can be a powerful tool for modernization. 
• Do you need to improve the agility and responsiveness of your IT team? If you want to foster a culture of innovation and rapid iteration, containerization can be a valuable asset.
• Are you concerned about the costs of maintaining and scaling your IT infrastructure? Containerization can help you optimize resource utilization and reduce hardware and software costs.
• Is the reliability and security of your applications a top priority? If you need a more robust and resilient IT environment, containerization can provide that added layer of protection.

If you answered yes to any of these questions, then containerization could be a strategic investment for your business. Of course, every organization is unique, so it's important to carefully evaluate your specific needs and goals before making a decision. 

Contact StratusGrid for a consultation. Our team of experts can help you assess your current IT infrastructure and develop a tailored strategy to modernize it with containers.

How to Get Started with Containerization

As a business leader, you don't need to become a tech expert to understand the value and potential of containerization. Here's a simplified roadmap to get you started:

1. Define Your Goals:Take a step back and clarify your objectives. Are you looking to reduce IT costs? Improve scalability? Accelerate time-to-market? Understanding your goals will help you choose the right containerization approach for your business.
2. Choose the Right Partner: Containerization requires specific expertise, and unless you have an in-house team well-versed in this technology, partnering with a cloud consulting firm is the smartest move.
3. Start Small, Scale Smart: Don't try to containerize your entire IT infrastructure at once. Begin with a pilot project – a non-critical application or service that can serve as a testing ground. This will help you learn the ropes, identify potential challenges, and fine-tune your approach before scaling up.
4. Embrace Change and Collaboration: Containerization often requires a shift in mindset and culture. Encourage collaboration between your development and operations teams. Fostering a DevOps culture where everyone works together to streamline processes and accelerate innovation is important.

Now that you have a high-level understanding of how to get started with containerization, let's explore how it can be leveraged on Amazon Web Services (AWS), the leading cloud platform. 

Containers on AWS

When it comes to containerization in the cloud, AWS stands head and shoulders above the rest. 

Did you know that 80% of all containers in the cloud are running on AWS? This isn't just a coincidence—AWS offers a comprehensive suite of container services, deeply integrated with their vast cloud infrastructure, that makes it the preferred choice for businesses worldwide.

What Sets AWS Apart? 

It's the breadth and depth of their offerings. AWS has a solution for every containerization need.

With robust security features, seamless scalability, and a vast ecosystem of supporting services, AWS empowers you to harness the full potential of containerization for your business.

If you’re looking to containerize—containerize on AWS, where your applications can run in a secure, scalable, and high-performance environment.

StratusGrid Can Help You Launch Applications Faster with Containerization

StratusGrid is your AWS Certified Containerization Partner.

With our deep expertise in AWS containerization and a proven track record of successful projects across various industries, we can guide you through every step of your modernization journey.

Our comprehensive services include:

• Containerization strategy development.
• Seamless AWS cloud migration.
• Infrastructure optimization.
• DevOps enablement.
• Ongoing support and management.

Claimwell & StratusGrid: A Containerization Success Story

Read about how StratusGrid helped Claimwell move to a containerized, horizontally scalable, multi-stage environment in AWS in our case study.

Embrace the future of IT with containerization and StratusGrid. Schedule a containerization assessment with our AWS experts and discover how we can help you achieve your business goals.