Under the terms of the partnership, Verizon Business will enhance Bayer’s existing network capabilities to enable easier and cost-effective network management. It wil also deploy next-gen network technologies, including software-defined networking, to further improve resilience, flexibility and scalability.
“Verizon is well-positioned to deliver innovative and seamless network solutions for our customers at a global scale,” said Tami Erwin, CEO, Verizon Business. “We are looking forward to this next chapter with Bayer, as we ramp up our ability to build a future-ready infrastructure to support their ongoing growth.”
Prior to the collaboration, Bayer’s in-house team looked after its global IT real estate, supported by a variety of different technology companies, including Verizon. The company then decided to outsource management of the majority of its global network environment to a single service provider as part of its move to a cloud-first, digital business model.
In doing so, Bayer was able to free up its own resources to focus on its crop science, pharmaceutical and consumer health business activities, as well as to develop a secure, stable but flexible network platform.
“Our network is foundational to our future business success, and Verizon has the global technology and innovation capabilities and expertise to support us as we continue to digitally transform our company,” added Bijoy Sagar, chief information technology and digital transformation officer, Bayer.
“Most importantly, with our network management safe in Verizon’s hands, we are able to focus our internal IT competencies on generating value for our core Life Science businesses.”
Verizon Business will deliver managed network services to over 700 sites in 91 countries around the world. This includes a managed global Private IP network, a managed software-defined wide area network, and professional services support and governance.
The five-year contract is effective immediately and includes an additional two-year extension.
