Stay ahead in a connected world
A guide to designing and sourcing global connectivity
Designing a global WAN used to mean one MPLS provider and one contract. Now its' cloud, SASE, AI traffic, hybrid teams, and a long list of vendors (all with their own terms).
In this free white paper, we give Network Managers and Procurement teams a practical way through it: the questions to ask for every site, and an honest look at every type of connectivity vendor.
Key takeaways
- Global WAN design now spans SD-WAN, SASE, zero trust, cloud, and AI workloads, so one provider/technology rarely fits every site.
- Better market data (pricing, SLAs, lead times, who owns the last mile) is one of the biggest advantages in connectivity sourcing.
- Six questions per site decide the right solution: connectivity type, what you're connecting, what's available at the address, bandwidth up and down, high availability, and guarantees.
- Global carriers, MSPs, local ISPs, and ISP aggregators each have clear strengths and gaps. Knowing them can guide your procurement strategy.
- A carrier-neutral aggregator gives you local expertise with one contract, one invoice, and one support team.
Why is designing a global WAN harder than it used to be?
Because there are more moving parts than ever. A few years ago, most enterprises relied on a single provider for their global MPLS. Today's networks combine many WAN technologies, overlays... underlays... and many vendors.
Your workforce is office-based, remote, and hybrid. Your applications have moved to the cloud, and sometimes back again. AI has changed traffic patterns and capacity planning. Security frameworks like SASE and zero trust are now essential. And for global organizations, local regulations, where your apps are hosted, and the nature of your data all shape the design.
Enterprise networks used to be ... simpler.
Why take a data-driven approach to connectivity sourcing?
As with any purchase decision, transparent, comparable data lets you match each site's requirements to the right service, at a fair price, from a vendor with a proven track record. The catch: global connectivity has been, traditionally, notoriously opaque.
What you gain
- Informed decisions. Market data, vendor information and other customers' experiences help you match business needs to the right solution.
- Reliable performance. Knowing vendors' track records and who owns the last mile lets CIOs and WAN Managers build a network they can count on.
- Operational efficiency. Full visibility from provisioning to daily operations, plus fast troubleshooting, means fewer delays and less downtime.
The common challenges
- Choosing the right solution. Site requirements vary, and cloud and AI make robust, flexible connectivity even more critical.
- A crowded vendor landscape. Every vendor has its own terminology, SLAs and ways of working. Weighing global reach against local expertise, telcos against managed service providers, and non-standard SLAs against each other eats up procurement time.
What should you ask before choosing connectivity for a site?
Start with six questions.
Having worked with hundreds of global enterprises, we've found these decide the right solution for almost every site.
1. What type of connectivity do you need? Most SD-WAN and SASE networks work best on an internet-based underlay, like Dedicated Internet Access (DIA) or business broadband. Latency-sensitive applications or data centers may need a private option, such as point-to-point links.
2. What are you connecting? An office, a factory, or a data center? How many users, and what do they send: emails or massive files? Is demand seasonal? Is latency critical? Different sites need different connectivity.
3. What's available at the site address? Providers already in the building can deliver much faster. For a new site or a remote area, weigh the wait: laying fiber takes time, while some wireless options can go live on day one.
4. How much bandwidth do you need, up and down? It depends on the site and the applications on it. Do you need symmetrical speeds, or is slower upload acceptable? AI traffic is shifting the balance between download and upload.
5. Does the site need high availability? For critical sites with no room for downtime, plan for at least 2 diverse connections, ideally 3 or 4. Check that the vendor can actually deliver diversity before you commit.
6. Do you need guarantees? Most vendors offer an SLA. The real question is whether they keep it. A payout after an SLA breach is nice; a connection that stays up is better.
Who can you source global connectivity from?
One contract beats a drawer full of invoices.
Where GNX fits: An aggregator with a plus
GNX is a global provider of internet access and private connectivity. We give enterprises and Managed Service Providers full insight and control to design, source, and manage their global underlay, with Global Internet Access, Point-to-Point, and Cloud Fabric services in 190+ countries.
GNX+, our carrier-neutral platform, lets you:
- Compare pricing, SLAs and lead times from 3,000+ vetted carriers and local ISPs, and order in a few clicks.
- Track global deployments and monitor your services in real time and raise tickets with our 24/7 NOC.
- Manage changes, renewals, and end-of-service requests in one place.
- Connect through API and e-bonding to your portal of choice.
We are the leading provider of global internet and private connectivity solutions, here to guide you on your next steps. Get in touch with our team to learn more.
