Professional basketball—especially March Madness– has always been at the forefront of innovation and technology. It has become a high-tech industry, and the use of automation and cloud computing has become an essential part of the game.
The National Basketball Association (NBA) and its teams are always exploring new ways to gain a competitive edge. One of the most significant technological advancements in recent years has been the integration of automation and cloud computing into the sport.
Cloud computing has become a crucial part of March Madness’s infrastructure, as it allows them to store and analyze vast amounts of data, including player statistics and game footage. The best part is that they can access this data from anywhere and collaborate with other teams in real-time.
Automation has been a game-changer.
The league uses automated software to handle many operations such as scheduling games, managing ticket sales, and advertising campaigns. This automation saves time and money, making their operations more efficient and accurate.
One of the most exciting things about automation and cloud computing is how they’re used in AI (artificial intelligence) and ML (machine learning). These technologies analyze player data and game footage to identify patterns and make predictions about player performance and game outcomes. Coaches and managers use this information to develop training programs and game strategies that give their teams a competitive edge.
Fans also benefit from automation and cloud computing, as the league uses chatbots to answer their questions and provide them with the information they need. Cloud-based systems deliver streaming video and other content to fans, making it easier for them to stay connected with their favorite teams from anywhere in the world.
These technologies have enabled coaches and analysts to gain new insights into player performance and game strategy, and have led to the development of new training tools. As the use of automation and cloud computing continues to grow in basketball, we can expect to see even more innovation and advancement in the sport.
When the NBA took on new technology, to enhance the experience for fans, players, and teams. they needed to accomplish a cloud-first approach—and a cloud partner that allowed it to scale up dramatically when needed. “Being able to spin up more compute when we need it during games is crucial,” Sarachek says in an article written about the experience.
Using Cloud Data to Deliver Personalized Data On Demand
“In 2020, NBA CourtOptix was launched with a primary focus on enhancing the fan experience. The platform delivers post-game analysis that combines video with previously challenging-to-track statistics, such as identifying players who get double-teamed more frequently. But now, with the help of Microsoft Azure, the NBA can share advanced stats that enrich journalists’, teams’, and employees’ understanding of the game which can transform how the game is experienced.
Every game night, NBA teams receive a cache of data on each game, a detailed breakdown that is changing team strategies. Teams that have signed up to receive data get it after each contest, helping them make adjustments on the fly—all thanks to a seamless backend data flow created by Microsoft Azure developers. As soon as a game ends, Azure Cosmos DB is used to check metadata to ensure the system should process the matchup. Then, Azure Kubernetes Service kicks off various pipelines running on Azure Databricks, which leverages ML and AI to process information (like the aforementioned defensive metrics). After being stored on Azure Data Lake Storage, the data is automatically synced to teams’ Azure Storage Containers using Azure Data Share. This cloud-first approach helps the NBA save money by being able to scale resources up and down as needed while ensuring data is seamlessly processed and shared with teams.
“With Azure Data Share, we can go into the Azure console and invite a new team or partner to receive the data,” Sarachek says. “Once they accept the invitation, they receive updated data in their Azure environments without having to build workflows or processes to pull it in themselves.” ” (read the full article here).
Automation and cloud computing have become essential tools for the NBA and its teams. They help improve player performance, streamline their operations, enhance the fan experience, and explore new innovations. It’s exciting to think about what’s next for the NBA as they continue to embrace these technologies and take the game to the next level!
As you probably know, HashiConf Global ’22 is right around the corner. Like anybody attending a technical conference, I’ve been busy planning my week with sessions I want to attend, networking opportunities, and local events I want to catch. Since HashiCorp’s products make up a large part of my day-to-day job as a consultant and content creator, getting the most out of the conference is very important to me. This year will be my 5th HashiConf in a row (and the 4th in a row to present), and lately, I’ve been reflecting on my expectations from the conference as compared to my first one. Fundamentally, HashiCorp is now a completely different organization than it was five years ago, which has naturally impacted how I interact with customers and HashiCorp as an organization. It also has drastically changed how I think about the conference itself and what my goals are for attendance.
If you think about the state of HashiCorp five years ago, there were probably around 300 employees, HCP didn’t yet exist (although I knew about it…shh), there were still only four primary products in its portfolio, and HashiCorp didn’t yet offer a certification program for practitioners to prove their skills.
My first HashiConf was in 2018 in San Francisco, and it was terrific. Even though I had only been working with HashiCorp products for a year or two, I was incredibly excited to attend a smaller conference where I could focus on learning technical skills and gaining knowledge I could use for my current and future projects. Back then, HashiCorp had a smaller catalog of offerings, and it was easy to focus on its core products and see how customers used them to solve real-world problems. I was also fortunate enough to know a large majority of employees. Hence, the conference was also an opportunity to meet and network with folks I’ve only met through conference calls. It was vastly different from the enormous conferences I was accustomed to attending, such as VMworld and AWS re:Invent.
One of my favorite memories of HashiConf ’18 was the keynotes. I can still replay the excitement, the announcements, and the ambiance of the overall conference in my head. I was so excited that I live-tweeted the keynotes as well. I specifically remember being excited about the announcements for my favorite products (Vault & Consul) and even remembering the colors of the lights changing depending on the product Mitchell and Armon were discussing. At the time, nothing could have topped this.
Fast forward to the upcoming HashiConf ’22, and I’m probably even more excited for the conference this year. First and foremost, I’m finally attending an in-person conference after the worldwide pandemic was responsible for turning HashiConf into a virtual event for the last two years. In a world full of Zoom meetings and virtual consulting work, I’m incredibly excited to see everybody in person. In the last few years, through content creation and consulting,
I’ve trained close to 40,000 people on HashiCorp products, and I’ll finally get to meet and network with many of those people in person. Very exciting!
But putting the social interactions aside, I’m looking forward to the broad range of technical sessions at HashiConf. HashiCorp is a much bigger player in the industry and offers its customers so much more these days. With eight different products in its arsenal, there’s truly something for everyone. So much, in fact, that I think HashiCorp could easily expand the conference by another day or two and still be valuable for attendees.
The Announcements
Powerhouses like HashiCorp tend to announce new features and products in the keynote, and it’s something I’m here for. As a techie at heart, the hour-long presentations about how the big, name-brand organizations use their technology don’t appeal to me. While important in its own way, that’s just not something that excites me.
I’m here to catch a glimpse of product roadmaps, new features I can use to further help customers solve problems and understand what’s next for the HashiCorp organization as a whole.
During the morning keynotes, HashiCorp’s massive Terraform community will closely watch for any announcements. Considering how many organizations have standardized on HashiCorp’s flagship product, Terraform, for Infrastructure as Code, it’s always a hot topic for any HashiCorp event. Even though Terraform v1.3 was just announced, I’d be willing to bet that HashiCorp still has something up its sleeve for the keynotes. Vault Enterprise customers will watch for improvements and new features to their favorite security platform. And, of course, there are bound to be updates to the cloud-based solutions hosted on the HashiCorp Cloud Platform.
Sessions and Hallway Tracks… read the full article here!
Or what automated customer testing environments and Infrastructure as Code across private VMware cloud have to do with it?
Both have the workforce, employees, laborers, whatever name we want to call them today, in common.
River Point Technology values the mindset and mental health of its employees (So much so, that they sent us all to Cedar Point for a day!) The connection between the satisfied laborer and revenue is obvious, meaning we need to prioritize our employees’ skills, comfort, and opinions if we want to see true prosperity.
This holiday weekend, take a moment to acknowledge how Labor Day originated to ensure we- nor our clients- end up with an uproar like the infamous Haymarket Riot of 1886.
“The Haymarket Riot (also known as the “Haymarket Incident” and “Haymarket Affair”) occurred on May 4, 1886, when a labor protest rally near Chicago’s Haymarket Square turned into a riot after someone threw a bomb at police. At least eight people died as a result of the violence that day. The Haymarket Riot was viewed as a setback for the organized labor movement in America, which was fighting for rights like the eight-hour workday.
At the height of the Industrial Revolution in the United States, the average American worked 12-hour days and seven-day weeks to make a basic living. Children were found in the worst conditions and making a third of what their adult counterparts brought in.
People of all ages, particularly the very poor and recent immigrants, often faced extremely unsafe working conditions, with little access to fresh air, sanitary facilities, and breaks.
As manufacturing increased, so did the organization and voice of labor unions. These unions began to set up strikes and rallies to protest the poor conditions and convince employers to renegotiate hours and pay.
“Many of these events turned violent, including the infamous Haymarket Riot of 1886. Others gave rise to long standing traditions: On September 5, 1882, 10,000 workers took unpaid time off to march from City Hall to Union Square in New York City, holding the first Labor Day parade in U.S. history.”
It took four years from that bloody riot, until one union’s strike finally won the eight-hour day for its 28,000 members, setting precedent for others- but the victory wasn’t complete just yet.
As industrial centers across the country began to adopt the idea of a “workingmen’s holiday,” to be celebrated on the first Monday in September, many states passed legislation recognizing it too. However, congress would not legalize the holiday until 12 years later, when workers’ rights swarmed the public eye.
On May 11, 1894, employees of the Pullman Palace Car Company in Chicago went on strike to protest wage cuts and the firing of union representation.
Then, a month and a half later, the American Railroad Union organized a boycott of all Pullman railways.
Traffic around the country was crippled.
The Federal government responded by sending troops to Chicago, which inspired a flood of even more riots.
Congress sent in the troops, and at the same time, legislation passed the first Monday in September as a federal legal holiday to recognize and celebrate labor. This became one of the crucial pillars in American History that prioritized the well-being of our workers.
River Point Technology agrees with Anne Frank who said “whoever is happy, will make others happy too.” We understand the need for comfortable, safe, and efficient working conditions AND an environment that optimizes talent and resources.
All the concepts Labor Day is about.
A client of ours, who is one of the leading healthcare payment solutions providers connecting payers, healthcare providers, and members most cost-effectively and efficiently, was struggling with their workers spending more time and energy on projects that could run without their influence— if the right tools were put into place.
They knew the challenges faced with cost and duration of provisioning their on-premise infrastructure. And the employees knew full well their skills could be better utilized.
This client was smart. They too believed happy workers equals happy customers.
Our client needed automated customer testing environments and Infrastructure as Code across private VMware cloud.
Right away, our team recognized the need for Terraform Cloud with VMware vSphere Provider for rapid and consistent infrastructure deployments; in addition, to Self-Service provisioning of environment build-outs with Terraform and GitLab integration.
These solutions resulted in 5X reduction in deployment time and reduced a multi-day process down to less than one hour. This allowed employees to optimize their skills with other tasks and innovation. RPT also enabled the process to quickly onboard new customers and demonstrate new application features to existing customers in a repeatable way.
It didn’t take long before our client’s employees felt the shift in their working conditions and were finally able to do their best job.
Like the Haymarket Riot of 1886 proved, unhappy employees can lead to the demolition of greatness.
More importantly, the contrary is equally true.
If an employer optimizes the workers’ well-being and skill set, like our client did, their staff feels valued, works more efficiently and in the end increases revenue. Like Anne said, “Whoever is happy, will make others happy too.”
Happy Labor Day to all! Thank you for your hard work, dedication, and direct contributions to the growth and goals you have influenced.
These results are not guaranteed and each circumstance has its own challenges, goals and accomplishments to achieve.