Adopting the cloud is a strategic move for businesses that want to become more agile, efficient, and competitive. According to Statista, cloud computing became the top technology adopted by digital business leaders in 2023. While cloud solutions drive innovation, achieving success requires careful planning, strategy, and a clear roadmap. So, how to design an effective cloud transformation strategy? And how can you avoid the most common mistakes during this journey? Let's find the answers in the article.
Why do you need a cloud transformation strategy?
Cloud transformation is the shift from traditional on-premises systems to scalable, cloud-based solutions. It involves not just migrating data and applications but also adopting cloud-native practices that redefine IT management and operations.
Cloud transformation emphasizes flexibility, cost reduction, and scalability, enabling businesses to leverage advanced technologies like AI, machine learning, and big data analytics. To fully benefit from your business transformation, you need a thorough strategy to outline your objectives and predict results. With a clearly defined plan, you can achieve:
- Alignment with business goals: Your cloud initiatives will directly support your business objectives.
- Risk mitigation: Identifying potential risks at the start of your journey allows you to implement proactive measures.
- Efficient resource utilization: You can allocate resources effectively, balancing costs while maximizing return on investment (ROI).
- Smooth transition: A thoughtful strategy ensures that migration occurs with minimal disruption to your operations.
Step-by-step cloud transformation strategy
Embracing cloud business transformation can be challenging, but with the proper planning, you can address potential pitfalls. Moreover, an experienced cloud consultant can help you design a successful cloud transformation strategy to streamline your cloud adoption. At N-iX, we usually go through these seven steps to achieve success in cloud transformation:
1. Assessing your existing IT infrastructure
The initial step in your cloud transformation journey is thoroughly understanding your existing infrastructure. At this stage, our cloud team usually documents hardware components, software applications, IT policies, and procedures. During this assessment, we also identify the major gaps or challenges that require cloud transformation.
Additionally, we always evaluate the financial impact of adopting a pay-as-you-go model. Comparing the total cost of ownership of your on-premises infrastructure with projected cloud expenses allows us to provide valuable insights for optimizing resources.
2. Setting specific business goals
After completing the assessment, we help you understand your business goals and align them with your transformation objectives. They must address key pain points identified during the assessment. Your business goals can include accelerating time to market, strengthening backup solutions for business continuity, enhancing cost-efficiency, improving customer experience, and others. Setting specific and achievable objectives ensures alignment throughout the process, laying a solid foundation for successful transformation.
3. Selecting the best cloud model
Our cloud consultants can guide you through the cloud models to pick the best for your business goals. Thus, you can achieve them and gain the expected results. There are four main cloud models to select from:
- Public cloud: This is the most common cloud computing model, managed by a third-party cloud provider, which delivers IT services through the Internet.
- Private cloud: This is the model of a cloud environment where all software and hardware resources are dedicated solely to a single enterprise. The main benefit and drawback of a private cloud is isolated access. It can be a perfect choice for organizations seeking greater control over sensitive data. At the same time, it has reduced flexibility, limiting the adjustment of cloud computing resources.
- Hybrid cloud: This option is a combination of public and private models. You can choose which data and applications should stay in your private cloud environment and which workloads should be migrated to the public cloud to achieve greater scalability.
- Multi-cloud: This model enables businesses to use several public cloud providers for different purposes at the same time. Multi-cloud is the best fit for businesses that require uninterrupted business continuity as it enables the distribution of workloads, applications, and data between different cloud environments. The multi-cloud model can be also combined with a hybrid one to achieve greater flexibility. Hybrid multi-cloud enables organizations to use private and on-premises infrastructure with multiple public cloud providers.
4. Cloud migration planning
Before cloud migration, it is crucial to decide which systems to move first. Enterprises often migrate their workloads to the cloud gradually, prioritizing data storage and applications to ensure that essential functions are supported in the cloud.
Partnering with a reliable cloud consulting services provider can ensure a smooth migration process. At N-iX, we support our clients in every transition stage, assisting them in planning, choosing the right migration sequence, and executing a process.
5. Choosing the right cloud provider
Your cloud provider should fit your architecture logic, business requirements, and overall strategy. To choose the right cloud service provider, it is important to consider the following criteria:
- Service offerings: You should compare the relative strengths each provider offers. For example, AWS is a good choice for hosting internet applications, while Azure offers strong SaaS services such as Office 365
- Cost management: Each cloud provider offers its billing model, such as subscription, fixed price, or pay-as-you-go. You can also choose if you want to pay hourly or monthly.
- Integration with existing technologies: You may also choose the provider that integrates more easily with your existing toolset. For example, Azure aligns well with Microsoft technologies, while AWS works well with technologies such as RedShift.
- Compliance and security factors: You can learn which certifications each cloud provider complies with and pick the one that fits your industry requirements.
Cloud experts at N-iX can help you make the right choice as we partner with three leading cloud service providers: AWS, Azure, and GCP. Our cloud engineers also have relevant certifications to consult you on the services public clouds provide.
6. Building a secure cloud environment
To make a safe cloud environment, we apply best security practices like network segmentation, regular vulnerability assessments, or continuous monitoring. We implement identity and access management (IAM), user authentication, role-based permissions, and encryption for data in transit and at rest. Integrating cloud-native tools can significantly enhance your cloud protection as well.
Partnering with a cybersecurity consultant can let you leverage advanced security measures. At N-iX, we offer a comprehensive suite of cybersecurity services, including cloud security, DevSecOps, vulnerability management, penetration testing, and others.
7. Optimization and monitoring
Performance management and optimization are crucial for delivering a consistent user experience. You can use monitoring tools to gain insights into application performance, identify bottlenecks, and optimize resource allocation. Auto-scaling is a key technology in a cloud environment that automatically adjusts resources based on demand, enhancing cost efficiency. By configuring policies for automatic scaling, you ensure you only pay for the resources you need.
Read more: Enterprise cloud transformation: benefits, strategy, best practices
Overcoming the most common challenges on your cloud transformation journey
Any major change in business operations, such as cloud transformation, can cause challenges that must be addressed efficiently. Our cloud experts identified the most common difficulties companies face while moving to the cloud and ways to mitigate them.
Lack of expertise
Organizations often lack the in-house skills and expertise to effectively manage and optimize cloud resources. Additionally, as cloud technology continuously evolves, companies must adapt to new trends and implement best practices.
Tip from N-iX: Partnering with a cloud consulting company can help you fill skill gaps and leverage the necessary expertise, especially if you don't have an in-house cloud team. At N-iX, cloud consultants can also help you evaluate and assist with a skills improvement plan for your in-house team.
Data security issues
Data security and compliance with regulatory requirements become increasingly complex in a cloud environment, mainly as data is potentially distributed and processed across multiple locations and jurisdictions. The dispersion of data can lead to privacy concerns, requiring businesses to navigate a maze of industry-specific compliance standards.
Tip from N-iX: To strengthen data security, you can leverage advanced security protocols and tools offered by cloud providers. Regular cloud security assessments and scanning should also be key components of your cloud transformation strategy.
Financial hurdles
Although cloud transformation services can significantly lower costs, poor management of cloud resources can result in unexpected expenses. Companies often spend too much on redundant services, underutilized resources, or ineffective scaling strategies.
Tip from N-iX: Utilizing cloud cost management tools can be the answer to the control spending issue. Regular reviews of cloud usage can help optimize costs and ensure efficient utilization of cloud services. You can also plan your budget beforehand with a cloud consultant to avoid unforeseen expenses.
Integration issues with existing systems
Legacy systems might not be compatible with cloud environments, posing risks of data loss or corruption during migration. Compatibility issues can arise since these systems were not originally designed to work with modern cloud platforms.
Tip from N-iX: To avoid integration issues, it is important to use specialized middleware or extensive system refactoring to ensure a smooth transition. A comprehensive cloud transformation strategy with proper assessment and planning can also help you address these issues.
Read more: Developing a winning cloud strategy for your business
Start your cloud transformation with N-iX
If you are considering a cloud transformation, N-iX is ready to help. With over 21 years of experience, N-iX has successfully delivered more than 200 cloud projects. Our team of over 400 cloud experts can support you in designing a comprehensive cloud transformation strategy, streamlining cloud migration, and effectively planning your budget. We partner with leading cloud providers, including an AWS Advanced Tier Services Partner, a Microsoft Solutions Partner, and a Google Cloud Platform Partner. Additionally, N-iX adheres to strict data security standards, such as PCI DSS, ISO 9001, ISO 27001, and GDPR, to help you build safe cloud environments.
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