When you read about cloud computing these days, it seems as if most companies are already migrated and operating in the cloud. It is true that cloud adoption has increased quite a lot over the past several years. However, a multi-cloud or hybrid approach is still the standard among many organizations.
This should not be a surprise because, despite the relatively low cost of getting started with the cloud and the convenience it provides, the migration process can be very challenging when dealing with training, security, and lag time.
Training Is Crucial
One of the toughest challenges of migrating to the cloud is training your IT personnel. The skills needed for cloud computing are not necessarily the same as the skills your IT department currently possesses. One way to overcome this challenge is to leverage your cloud provider’s consultants. This will not only make your transition smoother it will likely speed it up.
Address Any Skill Gaps
You are likely to discover that your personnel may have some gaps in their skills that will be necessary for operating workloads at scale securely and efficiently in the cloud. There are many software architectures, virtualization tools, and security concepts that can be difficult to learn and understand, but these very skills are all vital components of a successful migration. You should be prepared to invest in the necessary skills gap analysis and training so your IT team is up to speed and ready to tackle some of the most challenging aspects of migrating to the cloud.
Deployment Strategy, Integration, and Adoption
How you decide to market your organization’s move to the cloud, how to integrate your current infrastructure with your cloud infrastructure and apps and how you deploy the migration are all principal challenges every company faces when migrating to the cloud. It is important to prepare a deployment strategy to ensure you can leverage the new technology being installed, and that includes much more than simply implementing software. It’s planning how to effectively integrate processes, software, and business activities. Much of your effort will need to focus on helping your organization adopt the cloud.
Internet Connections
Once all your services are migrated to the cloud, your internet connection becomes even more critical. When your entire organization is working through a single connection to a cloud server, you need to think carefully about how much data is moving back and forth across the connection and make the appropriate preparations to ensure you have adequate bandwidth.
Security Maintenance and Management
Security is often cited as the single greatest challenge of migrating to the cloud. If you are using a hybrid cloud, it becomes even more complicated because you must protect on-site data and the data in the cloud. You also must manage all compliance issues for many organizations and enterprises, that can include international compliance and regulatory requirements.
Data Backups and Encryption
There is a reason for concern about data security when you choose to migrate to the cloud because you must entrust a third party to manage at least some of your data. While some fears may be over-exaggerated, the reality is you need to depend on yourself to manage and protect your data. It is crucial to back everything up regularly, including all cloud providers you utilize on-site and any additional offsite data storage locations. You should also ensure that all data is encrypted regardless of where it resides.
