12-27-21 | Blog Post
Moving to the cloud is often a top-down initiative. Your boss’s boss reads an article on cloud computing and tells your boss to make cloud part of your 2022 strategy, and you become tasked with finding your company’s cloud “sweet spot.” When this happens, it is important to take a step back and ask your management team what they mean by “cloud.” These days cloud is a very vague and broad term, and in their haste to stay abreast of key businesses practices, c-levels don’t really get it either.
Before your company jumps head first into the cloud, take the time to consider what you may need to put into place prior to shifting to the cloud. For the most part, preparing to shift to the cloud is simple and just requires you having a Cloud Service Provider handle the transition. However, there are certain considerations that should be made during the planning process. Take a moment to consider the following:
As mentioned above, cloud is a vague word that can mean a lot of different things. Its important for executives and decision-makers to be on the same page when it comes to cloud computing. To make the shift to the cloud more streamlined, your company should develop a cloud strategy. Your cloud strategy will compare your existing IT state with your desired state and identify gaps in capabilities. Thus, your team will gain a solid understanding of what areas of business that will benefit from implementing a cloud solution.
As companies rush to implement cloud solutions, they often do not take the time to consider their underlying network. However, one of the biggest obstacles to an effective cloud solution is your network bandwidth. With the strain put on local internet connections from cloud computing, you may consider upgrading your bandwidth or investing in SD-WAN to increase connectivity.
Making the move to the cloud should not require intensive work on the part of your business, but you should consider hiring an in house cloud expert. Cloud Service Providers will handle the majority of the hassle, but having a designated cloud champion can help make the transition more smooth. You cloud champion will help determine your optimal cloud footprint and work with service providers to put the solutions into place. The cloud champion will also be responsible to educating your employees on how to use your new cloud solutions.
Moving to new technology is exciting, and can also be a little daunting — but don’t stress! Working with an expert cloud service provider can help make the process easy! And if you aren’t sure where to start, they can help to ensure your company is prepared for the transition.
