Organizations of all sizes are undergoing cloud transformation to keep up with the speed of business today. Cloud services make it easier to efficiently deliver services, engage with customers, and manage other business operations. So, it makes sense that cloud migration is a top priority for most companies around the world.
In this blog, we examine the benefits of cloud transformation, as well as some challenges associated with it. With this information, you can develop a transformation strategy to help your organization reach its strategic goals while also preparing you for the challenges ahead.
What You Need to Know About Cloud Transformation
So, what is cloud transformation?
Simply put, cloud transformation is the process of migrating your business from local servers to the cloud. This can be a lengthy process, as it doesn’t mean simply switching to a cloud-based solution. Cloud transformation involves:
- Migrating apps and software programs
- Moving company data to the cloud
- Transforming your IT infrastructure
The amount of time it takes to accomplish your cloud transformation strategy depends on the complexity of your operation. If your organization has already implemented some cloud technology, migrating the rest of your systems could take just a few months. However, if you’re not currently using any cloud services, the migration process may take significantly longer.
Why Your Organization Needs Cloud Transformation
Cloud transformation isn’t anything new. Back in 2012, Forrester found that 52% of enterprise decision-makers believed developing a cloud strategy was a “high or critical priority.”
Worldwide spending on public cloud services is projected to grow to $1.35 trillion in 2027. Cloud transformation has become a crucial strategy for businesses of all sizes. Across industries, companies are fast-tracking their cloud adoption to stay competitive in an evolving business landscape.
How Cloud Transformation Benefits Your Organization
First and foremost, cloud transformation keeps your organization from becoming obsolete. Technology constantly changes the way business is done; the only way your organization can remain competitive is to adapt to those changes.
But cloud transition doesn’t just protect your organization against market threats. It also provides several benefits to help your long-term business strategy and improve day-to-day operations. Some of these benefits include:
Improved scalability
Scale up and down when needed, respond to demand immediately, and start new projects without spending time upgrading IT infrastructure.
Increased efficiency
Companies that adopted cloud platforms are shown to release new capabilities 20-40% faster than those that still use on-premises technology.
Challenges Associated with Cloud Transformation
Embarking on a cloud transformation strategy can save your company money, while making it easier to keep up with the pace of technology. However, there are also some challenges associated with cloud transition — especially if your organization hasn’t already been using some cloud services.
Here are a few key considerations to keep in mind when launching or accelerating your cloud transformation strategy:
Data security issues
Whether your business relies on on-prem technology, cloud services, or a combination of both, cybersecurity must remain a core component of your strategy
While cloud transformation services are responsible for securing their platforms and adhering to regulations, the security of the systems and data hosted in the cloud falls on the customers. Understanding the shared responsibility model is essential. To minimize risk and protect your company’s data, you must implement a robust cybersecurity strategy tailored to your needs.
Some ways you can protect your systems from cyberattacks include:
- Keep your data encrypted to prevent lateral spread
- Only assign employees the access privileges they need to get their job done
- Conduct routine security audits of access and configuration
- Leverage third-party expertise designed to identify and prevent threats
If you’ll be deploying containers, you also need to have a container security strategy that keeps you protected against ransomware, container privilege escalations, and more.
Lack of expertise
Technology is constantly evolving, and cloud services allow your company to keep up with the rate of change. With that said, if your cloud transformation strategy ignores adequate training in cloud services, your solutions won’t be as effective as you’d hoped. Even worse, you’ll overlook security risks and vulnerabilities, leaving yourself open to attacks. That’s why an effective cloud transformation strategy must include cultivating cloud capabilities throughout your organization.
Compliance challenges
Staying current with compliance regulations and ensuring their implementation across your organization is a crucial aspect of cloud expertise.
Data breaches can be a disaster for your company. Not only are the penalties and lawsuits expensive, but you also run the risk of destroying your brand reputation after an attack. What’s more, if your third-party cloud service providers experience a cyberattack and customer data is compromised, you could be held liable.
Guidelines like PCI DSS and compliance regulation like the GDPR, Sarbanes-Oxley Act, and the NYDFS Cybersecurity Regulation largely exist for two reasons:
- Protect customer data
- Help companies take measures to avoid cyberattacks
For this reason, you want to ensure your IT teams understand the importance of security compliance. They should know how compliance looks in a cloud environment, and how to follow these guidelines and regulations while using cloud services.
The cloud migration process
Many organizations mistakenly assume their cloud transformation will be seamless. This is rarely the case. More than half of companies undergoing cloud transformation admitted it was more difficult than they expected. That’s because the migration process is difficult, and several things can go wrong at any given time.
For example, you could:
- Incur unexpected costs because you didn’t plan your transformation budget accordingly
- Fall behind schedule because you lack the organizational expertise to implement your cloud transformation strategy
- Experience downtime due to incompatibility between your legacy software and cloud services
The transformation process won’t be without challenges. Even minor issues can escalate into costly problems if not addressed early. That’s why careful, phased planning is crucial for your cloud migration. By developing a proactive action plan, you can anticipate potential obstacles and create solutions, ensuring a smoother path forward.
Cloud Transformation Best Practices
Now that we’ve examined some challenges associated with cloud migration, let’s delve into what you can do to minimize setbacks along the way. Following are some cloud transformation best practices to help your migration go as smoothly as possible.
Facilitate your transformation incrementally
The transformation process won’t be without challenges. Even minor issues can escalate into costly problems if not addressed early. That’s why careful, phased planning is crucial for your cloud migration. By developing a proactive action plan, you can anticipate potential obstacles and create solutions, ensuring a smoother path forward.
If you’re concerned about the financial impact of your transformation, consider adopting cloud services in phases. This approach lets you break your strategy into manageable steps, allowing you to prioritize and implement the most critical services first. By doing this, you can spread out costs over time and avoid a large upfront investment.
Get leadership support
Having an executive sponsor who supports (and believes in) your cloud transformation strategy will go a long way in ensuring your success. But how do you secure strong executive support?
If you’re in charge of the planning and implementing your company’s cloud transformation strategy, you’ll likely be responsible for getting leadership buy-in. Your first goal should be to ensure those leaders understand the importance of transformation for the cloud. Explain why your organization needs to migrate to the cloud, cover the strategic benefits of cloud migration, and be upfront about costs and anticipated challenges.
Create a culture that values continuous learning
Understand that cloud transformation isn’t a linear process with a clear start and ending. Instead, look at your transformation as an ongoing endeavor. Even after the migration finishes, your teams will still need to learn how to operate and thrive in a cloud environment.
Becoming a truly cloud-native organization requires you to promote cloud literacy throughout your organization — from top to bottom. This also means staying up to date with changes in technology, so you can adapt and implement new technology as customer needs and preferences evolve.
Maximize Your Cloud Transformation
Cloud transition may be one of the most critical endeavors your organization will undertake. Cloud services can unlock new growth opportunities, allowing you to scale more efficiently to match customer demand.
However, with every technological advancement comes both new opportunities and new security risks. That’s where managed detection and response (MDR) and extended detection and response (XDR) solutions can help. At Fortra’s Alert Logic, you’ll receive 24/7 protection for your cloud, hybrid, and on-premises environments. Key features like vulnerability scanning, security analytics, and log collection not only safeguard your systems but also strengthen your overall security and compliance posture. Schedule a demo today.
