Migrating to the cloud has been a crucial step in moving forward for most organizations.
When you are moving your operations to the cloud for the first time and have no prior, concrete experience of switching over to cloud technology, some mistakes will surely be made.
Many of these mistakes can be rectified over time, but in the process, they might incur some losses for your organization as well.
So you should be vigilant about the migration process and make sure you avoid making as many mistakes as possible.
We have curated a list of mistakes that corporations commonly make when making the switch over to the cloud and how you can avoid making those mistakes.
Hopefully, this list will help you gain some insight into the situation.
Not Being Vigilant About SLAs
Service Level Agreements or SLAs are written agreements between the cloud providers and the consumers of the service.
When you are not vigilant about the SLAs being concrete and in place, you run the risk of developing discrepancies between your agreement with the cloud provider.
Having SLAs in place will ensure that the consumer understands their roles as cloud users, understand their requirements for security and compliance, understand their insurance plans for data recovery if it is ever needed, and how to get off board cloud computing if it is ever needed.
The agreement will ensure that all of these agreements are understood and that no points of conflict arise between the cloud provider and the consumer regarding the use of their cloud processes.
Consumers will also know how to function within the terms that have been set, and therefore, it is ensured that no points of conflict that can be detrimental to the organization arise at any time.
Not Looking Into The Benefits
A mistake most new organizations make when migrating to the cloud is that they do not look into the benefits of their new cloud system.
Cloud systems are different from on-premises legacy systems in many ways, and therefore, the benefits are also different.
For example, it is much easier to keep track of the resources being used, and the system can be accessed from anywhere in the world, from any device, as long as there is an internet connection present.
Organizations that do not take advantage of the benefits of cloud computing often end up at a disadvantage because the system is new for most of the workers in the organizations.
Often, companies have to start from scratch when moving to the cloud.
This way, a lot of redundancies in the old, on-premises system are eliminated and the workers are left with a cleaner system that offers a lot more advantages.
Of course, the staff needs to be thoroughly trained as well when it comes to the system to fully utilize the benefits as well.
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Not Moving Past The Lift And Shift Approach
The Lift and Shift transition is probably the simplest cloud transition to exist and one that many organizations make use of in the beginning. It takes shifting everything from the on-premises system and shifting it as in on the cloud infrastructure.
The advantage of this approach is that there is not much of a learning curve when your staff is getting used to the new system.
Everything is exactly how it used to be, and there are a few added benefits that you come across every now and then.
However, this approach has many cons to it as well. In the long run, it could be much costlier to run your operations using this approach than it would be to start from scratch and train your team to get used to the new system.
The main problem with this approach is that it refuses to take advantage of the scalability of a cloud system, which is one of the biggest advantages of cloud computing. The resulting system is bulky, full of bloatware, and misses the point of cloud migration for the most part.
The best way to avoid using the lift and shift approach is by letting your developers come up with a new system from scratch and then continuously develop it to optimize it.
The staff and the owners should be able to learn the mechanics of the new system and take full advantage of the cloud platform.
Making Use Of The Previous Directory
Every organization has an identity system in place for its employees and other personnel involved in the business.
There is a wide misconception that a new directory will have to be set in place from scratch when you can easily make use of the previous one directly and migrate it to your new cloud system.
Of course, for the perfect transition, the organization has to ensure that its directory is updated and fully optimized so that too many changes don’t need to be made when the migration is in effect.
Keeping Track Of Resources And Management
Another of the biggest advantages of using a cloud system is that you can track and manage your resources.
Of course, you need a developer in your workplace who can handle the resources that are used by the company and switch them on or off as needed, as well as ensure that the scalability of the operations is also not compromised.
Many people, especially those who are inexperienced in cloud computing, often lose track of the resources they make use of during their operations.
This can be very heavy on the company financially since you only get charged for the resources that you are using.
So if you have switched on resources that you are not really using, it will only weigh down on your organization financially.
To keep track of resources, you will need a developer who has relevant experience in cloud computing and will therefore ensure that you are not incurring any losses by using resources you don’t really need.
Not Thoroughly Delving Into Security Needs
Since cloud systems are mostly automated, many organizations make the mistake of assuming that security will automatically be taken care of by the cloud service provider.
Especially since organizations mainly use cloud providers who work with all kinds of companies that use their platform for sensitive information as well, there is an assumption that security will no longer be a conscious concern.
This is a huge mistake on the organization’s part because even though the cloud system will usually have the most thorough means of security present, you will have to be the one to put proper security practices in place.
You need well-developed software that needs to be properly maintained and upgraded, and you need proper security policies as well. Only then will the cloud provider’s security measures be of any use to you.
As a rule, you should never pretend not to notice to security since any breach that occurs could be a result of just a second of no vigilance on your part.
Neglecting Backup Requirements
Another feature of cloud services that many organizations could neglect is the backup requirement.
There is an assumption that cloud computing will take care of the backup on its own.
While there is a fair amount of automation in terms of backup, most organizations need to add an archiving package to their cloud system and use it as an active resource to ensure that everything has a proper backup.
Yes, most cloud providers do include archiving solutions and backup processes in your package. But there is a significant chance that these solutions do not match up with the industrial standards required for most organizations to have ample backup.
So you need to figure out what are the archiving solutions that you need for your organization and then make use of them when shifting to the cloud.
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Assuming Migration Is A One-Off Thing
This is a big one, and it is something many organizations are still guilty of.
We learn in one of the fundamentals of cloud computing that it is a journey and not a one-off thing.
This is exactly why the lift and shift approach also falls short of usual cloud standards.
The cloud space is an ever-evolving platform, and anyone who wants to integrate their systems into this space needs to show a lot of consistency in keeping up with new cloud standards, understanding the upgrades, and figuring out the shortcomings in their system.
The cloud space is always striving toward efficiency.
So, eventually, most resources in your system actually weigh it down, pile up the costs, and prevent your system from working at its peak efficiency.
And this is confusing because these are the same resources that you would have deemed essential for your system at one point.
This is why it is essential to upgrade yourself to the system.
Consistently maintaining your cloud computing services, keeping an eye out for newer resources and developments, and not letting go once you have shifted to a cloud platform.
The only real way to benefit from the cloud is to go along for the journey.
Not Knowing The Level Of Skill Required
Cloud computing is a separate skill on its own.
We cannot assume that most developers who know other skills are also well-versed in cloud computing.
There is also a learning curve involved, and sometimes, you need more than one person in the cloud computing team to be able to work properly.
So when you do make the shift to a cloud computing system, you should be well aware of the level of skill your developers will need, and you will need to ensure that you do not lag behind just because you don’t have the necessary skills.
Limited Knowledge of Cloud Economics
Cloud systems are highly cost-effective for people in pretty much all organizations.
You need to have ample knowledge of cloud economics to be able to reap all the cost benefits from a cloud system.
You need to really get into the cloud platform you are choosing and figure out what benefits suit your interests the most.
So make sure you know everything about the cloud service provider you choose and how their cloud economics model will benefit your organization.
Only then will implementation of the model be of proper use to you.
Relying On Automation
There is no doubt that automation is one of the most advantageous features of cloud computing.
Your labor can focus on using their skills for other things since the system will have automated a lot of the menial tasks otherwise.
But relying on and putting all your faith in the automated scripts may not be in your best interests.
Yes, you will still see a lot of efficiency when you rely on automation, but it is highly likely that the automated scripts do not work in your best interests at all times.
Maybe your system will start utilizing resources that it will not need.
Other times, automated processes are not well-written, and these scripts could cause your company to go into downtime. All of these scenarios incur a lot of heavy losses for your organization.
One of the best ways to mitigate the risks with automated scripts is by running tests in a controlled environment.
When you are certain that the scripts will mainly be an asset to you, only then should you allow them to help your business.
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Conclusion
The journey of migrating from an on-premises system to cloud computing is long and interminable.
Every organization will make some mistakes pertaining to their cloud systems in the beginning, but eventually, they will be able to understand how to make the system work in their favor and find the best use of their new-formed systems.
Ultimately, cloud computing for every organization should be efficient, cost-effective, accessible, and easy to use.
If any of these factors show discrepancies, it might be time for some re-evaluation on your part to help the system recover.
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