Given its significant cost savings and range of benefits, cloud strategy has become the go-to solution for more and more organizations. It is safe to say that migration to the cloud is becoming the standard practice for companies’ data and network computing needs. When cloud computing is combined with cross-location data centers and edge architecture, it gives organizations an unprecedented degree of flexibility.

However, if you plan on migrating your IT operations to the cloud, you must take several things into consideration. It is not a move that should be taken lightly or on a whim. Companies need to develop a comprehensive cloud strategy to guide their migration process as well as provide a future roadmap.

You can develop a solid cloud strategy and make it easier for your company to reach to changing scenarios by considering a few points. We’ve outlined these points in question form for you to answer.

Why Do You Need to Migrate to the Cloud?

Migration to the cloud is solely a business decision, even though its maintenance and operations fall under the purview of IT. So, its worth considering whether or not adopting a cloud-based infrastructure is worthwhile in terms of the “big picture” of your company.

This translates into factors like cost-savings, increase in productivity and greater ease of scaling. Migration to the cloud also means that your IT staff won’t need to spend as much time in maintaining infrastructure, and hence will work on enhancing business-critical functions and services. Shifting to a cloud-based architecture is a great way to free up your workforce and expenses from making costly purchases, maintaining and upgrading data centers.

This makes cloud computing a great way to promote growth, scalability and innovation. But cloud migration might not be up the alley for every sort of company. And it might also expose a company to potential problems if they go with the wrong cloud vendor. So, its crucial to make a cost-benefit analysis of migration to the cloud, just like any other “big” business decision.

To combat some of the potential problems, you can either keep some part of your cloud computing on-premises, or choose cloud vendors that provide Service Level Agreements (SLAs) that cater to your specific concerns and that can meet your security requirements.

So, first it is crucial to understand why you need to migrate to the cloud. In answering this critical question, you will establish the motivation for your organization to adopt a cloud computing strategy. This leads us to the second question:

Which Cloud Deployment Do You Need?

This might seem like a trivial matter, but a lot hinges on this. Choosing the right kind of cloud deployment is necessary because it will determine the kind of solutions that your organization can most benefit from. Here are the five main types of cloud deployment that you can choose from:

Public Cloud

Public clouds are a popular cloud deployment. These are hosted by 3^rd party providers like Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure. Public clouds offer a range of benefits which include easy accessibility and inexpensive maintenance and scaling. This is the best option for small companies that cannot afford to purchase and maintain in-house servers and processing power. However, the public aspect of the cloud environment makes it more susceptible to security risks than other deployments. If you store sensitive and business-critical data on the public cloud, you need to be aware that your data could be compromised and targeted by malicious attackers. This has made many companies to reconsider a purely public cloud deployment.

Private Cloud

With contrast to the public cloud, private clouds provide the most secure solution. But these are also the most expensive. A private cloud is housed in a physically secure location, cut off from public access. All data, assets and applications are stored locally, and only authorized IT personnel have access to them and often through strictly monitored devices. Since this is all completely in-house, companies need to invest in server infrastructure and create a data center, either on-premises or in a remote location. Aside from hosting assets, they also need to maintain a private cloud infrastructure, along with the processing power. This all builds up to a great deal of costs. Nonetheless, for companies that can afford it, the private cloud provides the best combination of security and optimization.

Hybrid Cloud

A hybrid cloud combines the best of both worlds, i.e. the benefits of both the public and the private cloud. Hybrid clouds allow you to host business-critical processes and data in a secure private cloud and the majority of non-critical applications and computing needs on the public cloud. This means that there is the cost of purchasing and maintaining infrastructure for the private cloud, but it still is cheaper than a purely private cloud. Besides, you can also enjoy the scalability and flexibility of the public cloud at the same time.

Multi-Cloud

Many confuse hybrid and multi-cloud, however, the two are distinct. A multi-cloud setup incorporates many different public clouds under one architecture. This means that data and applications are dispersed across multiple specialized platforms. Since it is still fully based on the public cloud, there are the same pros and cons of the latter. But its still a great option if you want a lower cost method of spreading your computing needs across specialized platforms.

What Are Some of The Risks of Migrating?

Once you have decided which sort of deployment you want, it is also worth considering some of the risks and issues that come along with the transition. Choosing the right cloud vendor and identifying which assets to migrate will also be based on this.

Security:

Cloud vendors often provide a range of security measures to safeguard clients’ data and resources, but the nature of a public cloud means that compromises are possible. When finding the right cloud partner, make sure you understand their terms and policies for transparency and their willingness to work with their clients to provide the utmost security possible.

Difficulty in Shifting Out:

Some cloud vendors make it difficult for you to shift out and move to another cloud provider. This means hefty fees and the difficulty (sometimes impossibility) of transferring your data and assets elsewhere. Before choosing a cloud vendor, make sure that you know about whether or not migrating to their service will lock you in.

Regulatory Compliance:

Cloud vendors must pass a number of requirements by federal law to ensure that they adhere to the strict guidelines. Make sure that your cloud vendor meets all of these regulatory standards.

Final Thoughts

Migrating to the cloud can often be an unnerving process for organizations. However, if you have a robust cloud strategy in place, you can ensure that your company passes through all the hurdles with ease. By considering the things mentioned above, you can start your process of developing a comprehensive cloud strategy.

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Percento is a Professional IT Consulting, Implementation and Management firm.  To find out how we can help your organization, please contact one of our friendly sales representatives. We will review of your system and a comprehensive (No Obligation) proposal of services. Call today toll-free at 800.614-7886 [Austin | Dallas | Houston | League City | Sugar Land | The Woodlands  | San Antonio] or email us at sales@percentotech.com