Networking

Connectivity & Communication - transmission of information is easier, cheaper, and more efficient that it would be without a network.

Data Sharing - allows millions of people (and applications) to share data quicker and much more easily.

Hardware Sharing - organizations can share a single expensive hardware asset (printers, network storage, or computing power - cloud computing) with several individuals reducing cost and improving ease of access. 

Internet Access & Sharing - individuals (and applications) are granted internet access via a single internet connection that can be managed and secured.

Data Security & Management - IT administrators can more easily and effectively manage access and security of an organization's data.

Performance Enhancement & Balancing - application performance and processing can be enhanced via distributing the computation tasks to various computers on the network.

Entertainment - games, audio/video streaming, etc. 

Network Hardware, Software, & Setup Costs - initial capital expenditure required to design, plan, purchase, implement, configure, and maintain increases greatly as the size of the network increases.

Hardware & Software Management & Administration Costs - ongoing maintenance and management requires skilled IT professionals especially for large corporate networks.

Data Security Concerns -   poorly designed, configured, and secured networks increases the risk of exposing critical data - threat actors, unauthorized access, and even sabotage.