Digital customer experiences, cloud-driven processes, and global collaboration have made uninterrupted connectivity essential for every enterprise. At the centre of this reliability is the network operations centre (NOC), constantly safeguarding performance and uptime. When outages strike, the financial impact is steep: most organisations report losses above USD 100,000 for just one hour of downtime, and for large enterprises this figure can rise to USD 1 to 5 million. These realities underscore the need for proactive monitoring and rapid issue resolution.
This article explores how NOCs deliver the resilience businesses depend on. To understand how they underpin modern digital ecosystems, we must first define the modern Network Operations Centre.
defining the modern NOC: mission and scope?
An NOC is a centralised, mission-critical facility where IT professionals monitor, manage, and optimise an organisation’s network infrastructure. Acting as the “command and control hub” for IT operations, an NOC ensures that networks run efficiently, threats are rapidly mitigated, and performance issues are resolved before they disrupt business operations. Beyond monitoring, NOCs also play a strategic role in sustaining digital transformation initiatives, supporting hybrid work models, and ensuring that highly distributed environments operate without interruption. By combining real-time visibility with rapid incident response, NOCs safeguard business continuity in an increasingly interconnected landscape.
These roles empower the NOC to execute functions that directly protect the bottom line.
how the core functions and responsibilities of an NOC ensure secure operations
NOCs perform several core functions critical to sustaining business operations and IT resilience:
- Continuous, 24x7 network and infrastructure monitoring, utilising advanced tools to detect anomalies and performance degradation early
- Incident management and rapid troubleshooting to reduce Mean Time To Repair (MTTR) and service interruptions
- Configuration and change management to keep network environments updated and secure
- Compliance monitoring and reporting aligned with industry standards and regulations
- Capacity planning and proactive maintenance to anticipate and forestall outages
- Serving as the communication hub that coordinates escalation, vendor management, and stakeholder updates
NOCs increasingly rely on automation, artificial intelligence, and machine learning to streamline operations, reduce alert noise, and enhance predictive maintenance capabilities. Even with these advanced tools, NOCs face challenges that directly impact performance and reliability.
overcoming common NOC challenges
Despite modern capabilities, NOCs must navigate a set of persistent and emerging obstacles:
- Growing network complexity: Multi-cloud, multi-vendor, and hybrid environments create fragmented data and limited visibility. Consolidated monitoring platforms and proactive analytics can address this.
- Data overload and operational inefficiencies: High alert volumes slow response. AI-driven alert correlation and automation help reduce noise and improve efficiency.
- Talent shortage and skill gaps: Burnout and lack of AI-specific skills reduce capacity. Continuous workforce training and multi-disciplinary teams help bridge this gap.
- Cost pressures and modernisation delays: Tight margins and technical debt hinder upgrades. Strategic investment in scalable, OPEX-based NOC solutions can optimise costs.
- Rapid technology shifts and security risks: Legacy systems and expanding attack surfaces increase vulnerability. Adopting AI-enabled automation and security-integrated workflows improves resilience.
- Organisational silos and misalignment: Poor collaboration between NOC, SOC, and engineering teams delays resolution. Integrated playbooks, dashboards, and communication protocols strengthen alignment.
By addressing these challenges systematically through structured, long-term practices, organisations can transform NOCs into proactive, reliable hubs that elevate operational maturity and sustain business performance.
top five NOC best practices that drive efficiency and resilience
To build a high-performing, future-ready NOC, organisations should focus on a handful of critical practices that strengthen efficiency, resilience, and operational maturity.
accelerate operations with AI and automation
Adopt AI-native platforms and intelligent automation to reduce alert noise, detect anomalies earlier, automate routine tasks, and improve incident response speed.
standardise processes with strong incident and change management
Use clear severity levels, escalation paths, updated SOPs, structured change controls, and consistent governance to minimise errors and ensure reliable operations.
enable unified visibility and proactive monitoring
Implement consolidated monitoring platforms across on-premises, cloud, and edge environments to gain end-to-end visibility, perform proactive health checks, and prevent outages.
strengthen collaboration across NOC, SOC, and IT teams
Create integrated workflows, shared dashboards, and cross-functional playbooks to eliminate silos, accelerate escalations, and enhance security response.
invest in skilled, continuously trained talent
Develop a multi-disciplinary workforce skilled in cloud networking, DevOps, AI tools, and cybersecurity, supported by ongoing training and initiatives that reduce burnout and improve agility.
Implementing these practices ensures an NOC can meet the demands of complex networks while maintaining operational excellence.
how can Infosys BPM help organisations overcome NOC challenges and boost performance?
Infosys BPM helps organisations transform network operations with proven expertise and measurable results. By leveraging AI-driven capabilities and optimised processes, we enhance network availability and enable a more resilient, future-ready NOC for businesses navigating complex digital landscapes.
Frequenlty asked questions
- What is a modern Network Operations Centre (NOC) and why is it critical for enterprises?
- What core functions and responsibilities does an NOC typically handle?
- What are the most common challenges NOCs face today?
- Which best practices have the biggest impact on NOC efficiency and resilience?
- Why is AI and automation becoming essential in NOC operations?
A modern NOC is a central command hub where teams monitor, manage, and optimise network and infrastructure performance 24x7, preventing outages and protecting revenue, customer experience, and digital transformation initiatives.
An NOC monitors networks and infrastructure, manages incidents, handles configuration and change management, supports compliance reporting, plans capacity and maintenance, and coordinates communication with vendors and stakeholders.
NOCs struggle with growing network complexity, high alert volumes, talent shortages, technical debt, expanding security risks, and organisational silos between NOC, SOC, and engineering teams.
High-impact practices include adopting AI and automation, standardising incident and change management, consolidating monitoring for unified visibility, strengthening collaboration across operations and security, and investing in continuous skills development.
AI and automation reduce alert noise, detect anomalies earlier, automate routine tasks, and accelerate incident response, allowing NOC teams to focus on critical issues and maintain higher availability at lower operational cost.
