We have been receiving an increasing amount of questions surrounding cloud strategy, so I thought I'd share a few key elements organizations need to address before they dive into developing an enterprise cloud strategy.
First of all, what problem is the organization trying to solve through a cloud strategy? It's important to address the 'why' up front. In many cases, companies struggle with articulating and stating specific goals that will be addressed through the adoption of cloud technology before jumping in. With the growing number of variable options in the marketplace, this can lead to wasted time, money and countering objectives. Key questions that organizations can ask to help start this process include:
These are some common goals that drive people to consider cloud technology.
Second, does the organization need public, private or a hybrid cloud strategy?
Cloud is NOT an all or nothing proposition. Certain demands might lead an organization to leverage a hybrid approach which uses a mixture of both public and private services. Both public and private cloud offerings have their advantages and disadvantages. They both support the latest and best that emerging technologies have to offer, and support things like flexible and powerful virtualization models as well as very strong security features to keep your digital assets secure. Randy stressed the importance of cybersecurity and the importance of addressing security as a part of the cloud strategy.
Finally, what service level requirements are right for your organization?
The level of service for cloud services is particularly important to organizations considering the use of public cloud services as part of an enterprise strategy. Higher availability and redundancy is where costs increase rapidly so you will want to define and understand your operational requirements in the beginning of your cloud journey.
If you have questions on the above, or pros and cons of cloud strategies, it might be time to reach out to an expert to learn more.