More and more businesses are shifting to the cloud. Credible sources anticipate that roughly 85% of companies will be “cloud-first” in the next few years. Whether their goal is to meet increased demand for remote workers or improve customer service, financial services, or human resources process automation, cloud services enable you to stay on top of every facet of your business.
However, cloud implementation is easier said than done. The procedure is time-consuming, costly, and resource-intensive. However, we have listed tried-and-trusted practices that will ensure successful cloud services implementation. So without further ado, let’s dive right in:
1. Conduct a Comprehensive Assessment
Assessment is vital for successful cloud implementation. Before implementing any cloud solution, you must have a firm grasp of your current situation and desired goals. Look into what you need and what your preferred cloud service provider can do. Map out a plan to accommodate your needs accordingly. In addition, determine organizational risks, readiness, and costs associated with migrating to the cloud. When these factors are in harmony, it will be much easier to address your objectives and plan for success.
2. Set Up A Cloud Center Of Excellence
Due to cloud computing’s decentralized nature, IT can no longer manage the allocation of funds to purchase and upkeep IT infrastructure. That is where the Cloud Center of Excellence (CCoE) comes in handy. The CCoE is responsible for creating organizational guidelines that guarantee safe and lawful business practices.
Typically, the CCoE will consist of experts from DevOps, IT finance, SecOps, and IT Ops. While there can be more than one representative from each sector, a well-defined CCoE should not have more than ten members. If you lack experts to form a formidable CCoE, getting hooked up with a professional service such as JD Edwards Implementations is your best bet.
3. Choose The Right Cloud Service Provider
The success of your cloud journey heavily hinges upon the selection of the cloud service provider. However, choosing a suitable vendor requires an evaluation of the criteria for selection and time. Well, the good news is that you can select the most appropriate cloud service provider by learning more about the following criteria:
• Regional availability: Cloud service providers, like any other business, have varying degrees of availability and support in different parts of the world. From the standpoints of product development and customer satisfaction, this is crucial for businesses that store data exclusively inside certain geographical zones and tailor their infrastructure to the specific needs of each of their target markets worldwide. Service providers, which often have regional availability on every continent and numerous data centers, have a noticeable edge in this domain.
• Security: With security being such a significant issue in the cloud, you should ask specific questions about your industry, use cases, legal requirements, and other concerns. Though opting for a vendor that provides free security features could be tempting, you should prioritize third-party security integrations. Keep in mind that with security and performance assessment solutions, the choice to host applications on the cloud is becoming a strategic decision. You must opt for a vendor that is receptive to your security requirements and has flexible, convenient options to cater to them.
• Manageability: Every cloud services provider offers services for a unique set of orchestration tools to bring together all of the related services. For a smooth integration with the selected cloud provider, it is essential to define the services that are crucial to your organization clearly. Before settling on a solution, you must calculate how much time and energy the team will devote to managing the cloud’s more extensive infrastructure.
4. Involve All Departments
There is no getting away from the fact that cloud implementation is an IT-centric process. As a result, organizations typically make their IT teams responsible for everything from transferring relevant data to acquiring a cloud solution customized to corporate requirements. It is a flawed tactic.
Since cloud implementation is a challenging task, you are better off involving all departments. It will keep the IT team from getting overwhelmed. Apart from that, cloud adoption will inevitably affect how employees operate. So tapping into their expertise and needs will make the transition even smoother.
To ensure that employees make the most of your cloud solution, they should be well-versed with its advantages. Consequently, taking stock of the necessary cultural shifts is crucial to set realistic expectations. Keep in mind that familiarity with cloud processes fades with time. It is because staff come and go and unexpected problems crop up. To counter this, engage in employee training and make sure that everyone, from veterans to newcomers, has a firm grasp of the system.
5. Consider Costs
Costs are going to be one of the significant factors. When it comes to cloud implementation, there is no one-size-fits-all price. Different architectural styles will have varying price tags.
For example, compared to a single instance deployment, the cost of deploying your programs with active-active high availability architecture across many data centers is likely to be higher. Also, you may get a price break for signing a more extended contract. In other words, the cloud’s economic viability depends on your requirements.
6. Leverage Automation
As mentioned earlier, the process of moving to the cloud can be lengthy and complicated. A company can speed things up by automating as many of its processes as possible. It will cut down on both costs and labor. Industry experts recommend automating the tasks such as provisioning, setup, and maintaining cloud-based infrastructure. It will make up for more efficient use of resources, reducing the likelihood of disruptions.
7. Deploy A Cloud Steward
One of your employees should be named “Cloud Steward” and oversee all of your company’s cloud-related endeavors. Cloud operations like optimization, governance and security are part of this job description, along with planning and migration.
A strong background in both IT and business is essential for a Cloud Steward. A competitive steward understands how to put the cloud to work for businesses, not just how it works in theory. The Cloud Steward may also be in charge of negotiating terms with your cloud provider.
Conclusion
Moving workloads from on-premises data centers to the cloud leads to a lot of advantages for businesses. Unfortunately, cloud implementation often becomes unorganized and expensive. So it would be best to stick to the detailed cloud implementation practices outlined above before going further.
Infographic created by HotWire Networks, a web hosting company.
Founder Dinis Guarda
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