IBM

IBM combines software, cloud services, server and storage systems, artificial intelligence, automation, and professional services. Its technologies are intended for organizations that need a reliable environment for running business-critical applications, processing data, and managing complex IT infrastructure.

A key part of IBM's approach is the hybrid cloud. It connects on-premises data center infrastructure, private cloud, and public cloud services into a unified architecture. As a result, an organization can run specific applications and data in the environment that best meets requirements for performance, security, control, data location, and cost.

IBM also integrates its cloud and infrastructure technologies with Red Hat solutions, particularly the Red Hat OpenShift platform. This enables the use of containers and a more unified way to develop, deploy, and manage applications across different infrastructure environments.

What we offer as a partner

We help clients plan and implement IBM technologies and integrate them into the existing IT environment.

• Needs analysis: we review the existing infrastructure, applications, data flows, security requirements, and the expected growth of the environment. Based on this, we determine which workloads make sense to keep in the on-premises data center and which can be moved to private or public cloud environments.

• Architecture design: we prepare the design of server, storage, network, and software components. We factor in requirements for availability, performance, recovery, data protection, and integration with other systems.

• Implementation and integration: we work on deploying IBM solutions, configuring them, and integrating them into the existing infrastructure. This can include integration with virtualization environments, databases, business applications, identity management systems, and other cloud platforms.

• Environment modernization: we support the modernization of legacy applications and infrastructure. The goal is to improve manageability, automation, security, and the ability to run applications in a hybrid environment without having to move all systems to the public cloud at once.

• Management and support: post-implementation we can provide monitoring, change execution, incident resolution, and support for the ongoing evolution of the environment. We tailor the scope of services to system criticality and the client's organizational requirements.

In solution selection we consider the full system lifecycle. This includes initial investment, operating costs, scalability options, licensing, security, support, energy efficiency, and the expected lifespan of hardware and software.

Hybrid cloud

A hybrid cloud combines on-premises infrastructure, private cloud environments, and public cloud services. The purpose of such an architecture is not only to connect different locations, but also to coordinate the management of applications, data, security policies, and automated processes.

An organization can keep sensitive data and critical applications in its own or a dedicated environment while running other services in the public cloud. This approach allows the infrastructure to be tailored to the characteristics of each workload.

A hybrid environment is particularly useful for gradual modernization. An organization does not have to replace or migrate all applications at once. It can update parts of the environment step by step while maintaining connectivity with existing systems and data.

The design must ensure unified identity management, network connectivity, performance monitoring, security policies, and cost control. Without appropriate architecture, connecting multiple environments can increase complexity instead of reducing it.

IBM provides technologies for building and managing hybrid environments, including IBM Cloud, Red Hat OpenShift, automation, security solutions, and IBM server and storage systems.

IBM Cloud

IBM Cloud is a cloud platform for running applications and services in hybrid and multi-cloud environments. It includes compute, network, storage, data, security, and platform services.

Clients can use virtual servers, dedicated physical infrastructure, network services, object storage, block storage, file systems, and other resources. The choice depends on application requirements, expected performance, the degree of isolation, and data processing rules.

Dedicated physical infrastructure is suitable for workloads where predictable performance, direct control over server resources, or specific software requirements are important. Virtual infrastructure provides greater flexibility and faster scaling up or down of available resources.

Cost management is also important when using the cloud. System size, usage duration, data volume, network traffic, and selected add-on services can materially affect the monthly bill.

Red Hat OpenShift

Red Hat OpenShift is an application platform based on Kubernetes and containers. It enables development, deployment, and management of applications in an on-premises data center, a private cloud, or public cloud environments.

Containers package an application and its dependencies into a more portable unit. This reduces differences between development, test, and production environments and facilitates automated deployment of new versions.

OpenShift provides developers with an environment to build and publish applications, and administrators with tools for cluster management, resource monitoring, security settings, and runtime control of applications.

The platform is suitable for developing new applications in a cloud-native way and for progressively updating existing solutions. A legacy application can be decomposed into smaller components or brought into a more modern deployment model when this is technically and commercially justified.

IBM watsonx artificial intelligence

IBM watsonx is a portfolio of products for developing, deploying, and managing artificial intelligence solutions. It is intended for organizations that want to embed generative AI and machine learning into business processes, applications, and employee workflows.

The platform supports the use of foundation models, traditional machine learning models, and an organization’s own data. Organizations can use IBM models, selected open-source models, or other supported models depending on the specific environment and use case.

AI can be applied to document processing, information retrieval, summarization, user assistance, employee support, process automation, data analysis, and developing features within business applications.

When implementing, it is important to clearly define the business objective, the quality of input data, permitted information sources, and the method of validating results. Model choice alone does not deliver a usable solution if data, integrations, access controls, and accountability for using the results are not in place.

watsonx.ai

IBM watsonx.ai is an integrated environment for developing, testing, and deploying generative AI and machine learning solutions. It includes access to models, development tools, APIs, and runtime environments.

Development teams can adapt models to specific business use cases and connect them to applications and data sources. Different models can be compared, prompts can be tested, and the quality of outputs can be monitored.

The platform is designed to support the path from initial experimentation to production use. Beyond model performance, this transition requires addressing security, monitoring, version management, performance, and execution costs.

watsonx.data

IBM watsonx.data is a data solution designed for analytical workloads and for using data in AI. It enables working with structured and unstructured data in distributed and hybrid environments.

It helps organizations connect data from different sources and prepare it for analytics and AI models. It is important that data are properly described, accessed through controlled processes, and of appropriate quality.

More unified data access reduces the need to create unnecessary copies and separate data silos. The final architecture depends on existing data platforms, performance requirements, and data governance rules.

watsonx.governance

IBM watsonx.governance is intended for governance, monitoring, and documentation of AI solutions. It helps organizations establish visibility into models, their versions, input data, metrics, and risks.

AI governance is important because model outputs can change based on data, prompts, and how the model is used. An organization must therefore know which model it is using, for what purpose it was approved, and how its performance is validated.

The platform supports processes for more transparent, explainable, and responsible use of AI. However, a technology tool does not replace internal policies, legal assessments, security procedures, and human oversight.

Automation of the IT environment

IBM provides solutions for automating business and IT processes. Automation can include infrastructure management, execution of repetitive administrative tasks, document processing, application integration, and user assistance.

Well-designed automation reduces manual work and the risk of human error. It also enables more consistent execution of processes, as the same task is performed according to predefined rules.

Before automation, a process must first be understood and simplified. Automating a poorly designed process can simply repeat its shortcomings faster.

In infrastructure automation, change control, logging of executed actions, separation of duties, and the ability to roll back are important. This is especially important in production and regulated environments.

IBM Power

IBM Power is a family of server systems intended for business-critical applications, databases, SAP environments, and other demanding workloads.

IBM Power systems support the IBM AIX, IBM i, and Linux operating systems. They enable consolidation of different workloads and their separation into logical partitions.

Virtualization enables more efficient allocation of CPU, memory, and I/O resources across multiple systems. A single server can therefore run multiple isolated environments without dedicating a separate physical device to each application.

IBM Power can also be included in a hybrid architecture. IBM Power Virtual Server makes IBM Power resources available as a cloud service and connects them with other on-premises and cloud systems.

This type of environment is useful for extending capacity, establishing standby environments, testing, and gradually migrating certain workloads to the cloud.

IBM Z and LinuxONE

IBM Z is a platform for processing large volumes of business transactions and critical IT systems. It is used in environments where high availability, performance, security, and processing of large data volumes are important.

IBM LinuxONE is based on a related architecture and is tailored for running Linux environments. It is intended for consolidating a larger number of workloads, containerized applications, databases, and other Linux solutions.

Both platforms can be integrated into a hybrid environment and connected with Red Hat OpenShift, APIs, and cloud services. In this way, an organization can keep core systems on a dedicated platform while developing new applications using modern technologies.

Modernizing such an environment does not necessarily mean replacing the central system. It often includes exposing functionality via APIs, updating applications, automating development processes, and integrating with new digital channels.

IBM Storage

IBM provides storage solutions for primary data, backups, archiving, file systems, object storage, and other types of data workloads.

The IBM FlashSystem family is intended for primary data storage and uses flash memory technology. The systems include functions for performance management, storage virtualization, data protection, and integration into hybrid environments.

When selecting a storage system, factors to consider include data volumes, required access speed, latency, growth, availability, and methods of protection against failures and cyber incidents.

A key part of modern storage is resilience to ransomware. This includes access control, isolated copies, detection of suspicious changes, immutability, and proven recovery procedures.

A storage device alone does not constitute a complete data protection strategy. It must be included in a broader design for backup, retention, replication, monitoring, and recovery.

Cybersecurity

IBM provides technologies and services to protect identities, data, applications, infrastructure, and cloud environments. The security approach includes prevention, detection, response, and post-incident recovery.

Effective security requires connecting data across different systems. Logs, endpoint events, network traffic, user activity, and changes in the cloud can together reveal risks that an individual system would not detect.

Organizations also need clear procedures for incident classification, notifying responsible parties, containment, and restoration of operations. Technology tools must therefore be connected to organizational processes.

IBM's security services include areas such as threat management, cloud and infrastructure security, data protection, identity management, and incident response.

Identity and access management

Identity management defines who can access a given application, data, or infrastructure resource. In a complex environment, a username and password are not sufficient.

An appropriate solution includes multi-factor authentication, user lifecycle management, privileged account control, and periodic reviews of granted entitlements.

Access must be limited to the minimum required for a user or administrator to perform their work. Special attention should be given to high-privilege accounts, as their misuse can provide access to a larger part of the IT environment.

When connecting on-premises and cloud systems, it is important for the organization to maintain a unified view of identities. Separate and unsynchronized directories increase the likelihood that unnecessary access remains active after a role change or an employee’s departure.

Data protection

IBM provides solutions for discovering, classifying, monitoring, and protecting sensitive data. The goal is to determine where important data reside, who accesses them, and whether they are used in line with defined rules.

Protection must cover data in databases, files, cloud services, and other systems. Particularly important are personal data, trade secrets, financial data, and information governed by sectoral regulations.

Encryption helps protect data in transit and at rest, but an organization must also properly manage encryption keys. Access to keys must be limited and separated from access to the encrypted data.

Activity monitoring enables detection of unusual access, bulk data transfers, or other anomalies. Such events may result from an attack, abuse of privileges, or a misconfigured system.

Digital transformation

Digital transformation means more than replacing legacy software. It involves changing business processes, how data are used, how services are developed, and collaboration between business and technical teams.

IBM Consulting helps organizations with strategy development, architecture selection, application modernization, cloud migration, and management of IT and application environments.

A successful project starts with clear business objectives. These can include faster rollout of new services, better user experience, reduced manual work, higher availability, or better control over data.

Technology should be implemented incrementally and measurably. An initial project can validate technical feasibility and business value, and the solution can then be extended to other processes or organizational units.

Change management must also be addressed. A new solution will not deliver the expected results if users are not trained, responsibilities are not defined, or new processes are not embedded in day-to-day work.

IT infrastructure management

A complex IT environment requires continuous oversight of servers, storage systems, networks, applications, databases, and security events.

Monitoring enables early detection of capacity shortages, faults, outages, and deviations from expected behavior. Operational data are also important for planning upgrades and assessing future needs.

Automation can accelerate system provisioning, configuration, updating, and remediation of recurring issues. All changes must be traceable and executed in line with agreed procedures.

For critical systems, availability targets, response times, recovery procedures, and the responsibilities of the provider and the client must be defined. These requirements affect the architecture, redundancy, and scope of support services.

Sustainability and environmental standards

For decades, IBM has used a global environmental management system to identify, manage, and reduce the environmental impacts of its operations. The system covers areas such as hardware development, manufacturing, data centers, real estate, procurement, logistics, and end-of-life equipment management.

At the corporate level, IBM holds certifications for management systems, including ISO 14001 for environmental management and ISO 50001 for energy management. A certificate does not mean that every IBM product has the same environmental characteristics; rather, it indicates that the organization operates with formally established management processes.

When designing infrastructure, it is advisable to consider energy consumption, cooling, hardware utilization, system consolidation, and expected equipment lifespan. Higher density and better resource utilization can reduce the number of physical systems, but the actual environmental impact depends on the overall design and usage.

IBM also offers Envizi software for collecting, managing, and reporting environmental, social, and governance data. The solution is intended for organizations that want to connect data from different sources into a shared environment for analytics, planning, and reporting.

IBM Envizi

IBM Envizi is a software suite for sustainability data management and ESG reporting. It enables the collection of data on energy, greenhouse gas emissions, water, waste, and other indicators.

Sustainability data are often dispersed across spreadsheets, invoices, metering systems, business applications, and different organizational units. A centralized solution helps improve traceability and reduce manual data transfer.

Envizi includes functions for data capture, calculations, analytics, planning, and reporting. Organizations can use it to track targets, prepare disclosures, and better understand the impact of individual locations and activities.

The quality of reporting depends on the quality of input data, correctly defined organizational boundaries, and the methodologies used. The software helps with processing and control, but it cannot by itself ensure the correctness of the data the organization enters.

Why Humanfrog

We do not treat IBM solutions as isolated products, but as components of the overall IT environment. In design, we consider the interdependencies between infrastructure, applications, data, security, cloud, and management processes.

We can help the client analyze the current state, select appropriate technologies, design the architecture, implement, and integrate solutions into the existing environment. After deployment, we can also provide ongoing management and technical support to an agreed extent.

This approach is especially important in hybrid environments where systems run on different platforms and in different locations. The goal is to maintain unified visibility, controlled access, reliable connectivity, and clearly defined procedures for monitoring, change, and incident response.

We tailor the solution to the client’s actual business and technical needs. We consider not only current capacity, but also options for future expansion, requirements for availability, data protection, cost, and long-term management.