From support to strategic asset: Solving the paradox of digital infrastructure

(May 2025) Oktoberfest is still months away, but Huawei is already in Munich – not for the beer, but for IDI 2025, a meeting of some of the top minds in the fast-moving world of data infrastructure.

One of those minds belongs to Ingrid Collu, a senior executive at the Engineering Group, which provides digital technology solutions and services in market sectors including finance, healthcare, and manufacturing.

In an interview with Transform Talks, Collu says data infrastructure presents one of the key challenges of managing such a complex business.

“The business is changing – edge computing, AI, automation, modularity, and hybrid IT models changes the infrastructure a lot. In every industry, there is a huge impact on service reliability.”

In a business where customers expect service 24 hours per day, providers like the Engineering Group must grapple with what Collu calls “the infrastructure paradox.”

“How can I deliver diversified services every time, without compromising infrastructure – without having to build new infrastructure from scratch every time?”

Collu says that a solid partnership with Huawei is one key to meeting this challenge.

Another helpful hint: altering the way one looks at storage.

“The key is to change the paradigm from storage as a support layer to storage as a way to drive digital transformation. New storage solutions should be adaptive and convergent,” she says – and should always have AI embedded.