The importance of committing to a definitive cloud strategy

Podcast host Simon Hobbs welcomes Rick Claus, Cloud Advocate Team Lead, Microsoft, and Tim Rehac, EY’s Cloud Strategy Lead for the Americas. They discuss the importance of committing to a definitive company-wide cloud strategy to secure success.

Organizations will soon be spending $1t annually on cloud services, according to the International Data Corporation. Choosing the correct cloud strategy is critical, but this can be a challenging decision as there is no one-size-fits-all approach. 

Some organizations opt for a single-cloud solution, while others adopt a multi-cloud approach so they can leverage different vendors’ expertise and avoid vendor lock-in. To avoid corporate paralysis, however, organizations must ensure they agree internally on a clear rationale from the outset. Cloud strategy should be published publicly and reiterated at every opportunity to ensure compliance. 

The benefits of single-cloud strategies include reduced complexity and skills requirements. Hyperscalers are launching hundreds of new services, so the rationale is to choose one vendor and go deep. The downside, however, is the risk of vendor lock-in. Organizations should have confidence not only in the technical expertise and longevity of a provider, but also in their wider partnership credentials.

Conversely, the multi-cloud approach enables companies to choose the best services from different vendors. Adherents to the multi-cloud approach face increased skills requirements, operational cost and complexity around data flows. 

Whatever route is chosen, organizations are advised to select the approach that best suits their workflows, and have a solid and well-publicized rationale for their strategy. 

Key takeaways:

• It’s no longer enough to migrate workstreams to capitalize on increased agility and scalability. The ultimate play is to consider how to leverage value-added services offered by cloud vendors.
  
  
• Cloud migration is not a destination; it’s an ongoing journey. It pays to continually review and re-evaluate how workstreams are performing, how cloud services are being optimized and whether a clear return-on-investment continues to be achieved.
  
  
• It is easier to start by hosting new projects on the cloud rather than migrating existing workstreams. Starting with a new, smaller project gives you the opportunity to familiarize yourself with a cloud provider’s service.

For your convenience, full text transcript of this podcast is also available. Read the transcript.