NTT has heavily invested this year in the growth of 5G. Amidst the release of its 2022 Global Network Report uncovering dissatisfaction among enterprises when it comes to network maturity levels, the tech giant has more specifically pushed private 5G with city and enterprise deals.

Following another more recent report “The Future of Networking in 2025 and Beyond” looking at 2022’s global networking industry trends, NTT VP Amit Dhingra sat down with SDxCentral to discuss the report, private 5G, and the networking industry’s outlook approaching the anticipated recession.

SDxCentral: What are some of the biggest takeaways from the report?

Dhingra: Telecom vendors are moving toward as-a-service business outcome-based offerings, driven by programmable networks and the cloudification of networks.

Also, as network slicing takes shape in 2023, new capabilities will surface such as a multi-tenant 5G network, which requires clear traffic isolation between different slices or tenants. As the complexity of telecom deployment increases so does the threat surface, and network security will become even more critical. It is important for the network service providers to improve their network security controls and utilize AI/ML [artificial intelligence/machine learning] to not overlook anomalous behaviors on their deployments.

SDxCentral: How will 5G growth play into the anticipated recession approaching?

Dhingra: Connectivity, especially with low latency, is a catalyst for digital transformation whether it’s empowering a distributed workforce, to managing a suite of IoT devices to monitor temperature, energy consumption, and more. This all leads to data-driven decisions that will help organizations weather the anticipated recession.

When we look at economic growth during periods of uncertainty, it's critical organizations work with partners that can effectively scale up or down as needed. We’re seeing many organizations turn to private 5G networks for not only its ability to bring connectivity to remote or challenging environments but for the end-to-end service, expertise, and support specialized vendors offer at a competitive cost compared to traditional networking solutions and integrations. 

With the anticipated recession approaching, organizations are looking to deliver more with less investment. Private 5G will be a factor driving conversations around transformation considering the relatively lower investment required for getting the users, IoT devices, and industrial devices connected in a shorter turnaround time. Additionally, the low latency possibility of private 5G increases the involvement of a remote workforce who can perform highly skilled and critical jobs remotely, which can further drive cost savings during times of recession.

SDxCentral: What will be key in retaining a strong workforce through the coming recession and beyond as operations become more remote-enabled and mobile?

Dhingra: Without a doubt, flexibility will be top of mind for current and prospective employees. The pandemic revealed the benefits of a distributed workforce, and organizations must recognize the power of allowing people to work from anywhere on any device.

For recruiters, this is a significant boon as talent pools are no longer restricted to geographic areas stemming from physical office spaces. However, with a move to a work-from-anywhere model, authentic collaboration must be a priority in 2023 and beyond. Looking ahead, it will be exciting to see how organizations develop new connective solutions to replicate the in-office spark of collaboration within a digital environment.

We as [a] managed service provider are pivoting toward a platform-driven working model. All major processes of employee experience will be done by a combination of highly digitized corporate IT and service-delivery platforms.

Data [and] AI being available through a single pane also provides an opportunity for employees to work on interesting new use cases and be part of the innovation, which drives employee satisfaction on the work they are involved with. What’s exciting is the emergence of the metaverse ecosystem based on AR/VR [augmented reality/virtual reality], which will drive improved employee collaboration in this new remote working era.

This interview was edited for length and clarity.