To facilitate digital transformation, most businesses are focused on ways to improve IT efficiency and productivity, provide instant network control, enhance application speed and performance, and mitigate security risks.

That’s where a software-defined networking platform can add value and accelerate efforts. This “adaptive network” enhances performance while providing greater visibility and control over data.

And there’s evidence that companies are moving toward such a platform, according to a new study sponsored by CenturyLink and conducted by IDG. Enterprises that have deployed SD-WAN, hybrid WAN, Ethernet WAN, or a mix of all three—and who measure these technologies’ benefits—cited the following impacts:

• 91% see improvements in network speed/performance of up to 29%.
• 90% see improvements in networking costs of up to 28%.
• 79% see improvements in multilayered network response to security threats of up to 31%.
• 74% see improvements in on-demand connections of data center to public cloud of up to 34%.