In today's competitive market, responsiveness to customer or supplier demand is often a decisive factor in the success of an organization. The network is considered one of the most critical resources in an organization, both in the private and public sectors.

Networks are created to provide a means to satisfy an objective or need. These objectives and needs are frequently critical, therefore the network itself is critical. Consider the metaphor of a transportation network (roads, highways, rails, and so on). If any of these conduits were to become suddenly unavailable, our ability to distribute food, clothes and products would be seriously compromised. The residents of a town or country who need the food, clothes and products are the "end users" of this particular type of network.

Similarly, a computer network is created to provide a means of transmitting data, sometimes essential data, from one computer to another. The accuracy and speed of daily business transactions for large organizations are vital to their success. Unscheduled disruption resulting in the failure to process these daily business transactions are costly and potentially disastrous.

The widespread use of networks extends the reach of organizations. These remote interactions with customers, suppliers and business partners have significantly benefited countless businesses. It has correspondingly positively impacted the overall productivity of many countries. Such productivity gains, however, are only as good as the network.