Migrating to the cloud can save your company money and help you scale as your workloads grow. But it can also be daunting to move your data applications, resources and systems from on-premise infrastructure to a cloud-based platform, especially when so many things can go awry.
Here are nine ways you can ensure a smooth transition:
Develop a governance plan
To make the most of your cloud migration, develop policies that ensure you collect and manage vital data. Many companies ignore duplicates or neglect to cleanse the data they transfer to the cloud, leading to outdated information and incomplete files that impact business functions and diminish systems. With the proper governance and stewardship plan, you can protect your data and establish lasting success.
The most effective governance plan ensures you retain critical data while finding a proper balance between set procedures and flexibility. A well-structured plan encourages users to fulfill their roles in stewarding data, ultimately maintaining long-term effectiveness and scalability.
Create an implementation strategy
Cloud migration is not a simple upgrade to your existing technology. The process requires you to transform your business operations, making it necessary to develop a sound strategy for execution. Establish a set of clear business goals, outline the concerns you or other team members have, and determine how the migration can affect the company as a whole.
Choose an optimal time
Some organizations feel a sense of pressure to migrate to the cloud and move entire workloads without adapting them. The problem with this approach is that it can disrupt vital applications, leading to increased operating expenses once the migration is complete. To avoid this, wait to alter or replace your applications until they reflect a more cloud-friendly structure.
Prepare for cost fluctuations
Cloud migration can be challenging to budget for because it often incurs indirect transformation and residual expenses. While these hidden costs are necessary, they may not be apparent when initially estimating how much this project will cost. But it’s not just under budgeting that’s an issue. According to Gartner, organizations overspend up to 70% when they rush into cloud investments, further highlighting the difficulty of budgeting for such a broad initiative.
Communicate a change management plan
As change is difficult for many people, everyone on your team must be on board with the cloud migration. If you don’t establish a plan for managing change before starting the process, you may encounter low employee adoption and engagement. Ensuring a smooth transition for your team is just as important as ensuring a smooth system migration.
Test, test, test
You must test your cloud migration tools before pushing forward with the process. Most cloud providers will supply quality assurance (QA) testing to ensure the entire operation works as you envision. Don’t assume the migration will go smoothly and skip testing, as it can lead to costly errors that may otherwise be preventable.
Evaluate each application
Every application serves a unique purpose for your company, so consider taking a different approach to migrate each one effectively. Review the workloads you are moving to determine what migration strategy is best for each application. This precaution helps avoid issues with cloud requirements and unexpected costs.
Identify a method for measuring success
It is crucial to measure this transition and ensure it fulfills business goals. Without a way to gauge how the process impacts your business, it will be more difficult to determine if it benefits your company as a whole. Before, during, and after the migration process, find ways to analyze the user experience, performance level, and security aspects of your new initiative to find out what worked and where there's room for improvement. If you want to learn more, here are several metrics to consider.
Choose the right partner
Partners can leverage their experience and relationships to help your organization save money and migrate efficiently. You may be inclined to choose a vendor based on affordable prices or brand recognition, but expertise outweighs these criteria. On the same note, try and avoid giving the cloud migration responsibilities to an internal team unless you are fully confident in their abilities. You can experience better results and greater peace of mind during the process by consulting a cloud migration partner.
Protect your data with Own
Taking the proper steps helps ensure your cloud migration is as smooth as possible. When you partner with Own, you give your data a safety net during your migration through our automatic, stress-free backup and recovery services.
Request a demo today and learn more about how we can protect your mission-critical data during your organization’s transition to the cloud.
