Modern businesses that want to get the most out of their team’s efficiency and their profit margin migrate to the cloud.
More than ever before, being “on the cloud” is the automatic choice for companies in every industry.
It’s highly secure. It’s highly flexible. It gives you easy access to all of your company’s data. It’s much easier to collaborate when working remotely or in the office. And that’s just the start.
Perhaps more than anything else, cloud computing professionalises your business. Taking you to the next level of what you can achieve.
But what do you need to consider when you’re planning to migrate to the cloud?
The key points when migrating to the cloud
1) Consider your reasons for migrating
It’s easy enough to think that cloud migration is a decision for your IT department. But migrating to the cloud has the potential to transform almost everything about how your business operates.
This means you need to consider how your business as a whole will benefit from being on the cloud and your goals for making the move. Ask yourself:
- What do you want to get out of migration?
- How does that help you achieve your business’s overall objectives?
- Where do you see your business in the future using the benefits of being on the cloud?
2) Plan how you’re going to migrate properly
The change from your old-fashioned legacy system to being on the cloud can be a complex one.
You might be lucky. You might be able to migrate your existing system essentially as it is. You may also be taking the sensible step of starting your business on a cloud computing model or migrating soon after start-up.
On the other hand, you might be faced with an incredibly complicated existing system. There may be a mishmash of leftovers from several administrators. You may have key applications which your company relies on which simply aren’t ready to migrate.
- Create a plan. Detail what and how you’re going to migrate rather than “if” you’re going to migrate.
- Review everything. Sometimes, you may be able to adapt an existing app or solution. On other occasions, the best approach will be to completely replace your existing solution with one that is naturally cloud-based.
- Plan a timeframe. A phased approach where you migrate the processes and applications which are easy to handle first and build up to the more complex moves can be a smart plan.
3) Communicate changes clearly with your team
One of the keys to ensuring you get the best out of what cloud-based computing can give you is properly informing your team about the changes you are planning.
This is about more than feeding them technical skills or training them to use your new package. Of course, that training is vital. But perhaps equally important is the cultural shift of working mindset that the cloud is how things are going to be done from now on.
Always, always stress the benefits not only to your organisation as a whole but to the daily working experience of every member of your team that being on the cloud will bring.
4) Put ongoing management in place
Deciding on in-house or external management is a key consideration for both your initial migration to the cloud and the ongoing support any system needs.
The majority of businesses in most sectors don’t have this kind of technical expertise in-house. Most don’t want to pay to have it either.
Using outsourced managed services is the way most businesses choose to save their resources – including staff time and expensive salaries – for the things which they do best.
A managed service isn’t just about getting the kind of rapid response in an emergency that old-fashioned “IT support” services used to give you.
For example, in Dial A Geek’s case, it’s about consulting with you on the future of your business’s use of technology. It’s about creating an IT roadmap. Handling device management. Making sure your business’s data is protected and your organisation is Cyber Essentials-certified – vital if you want to secure many major contracts or work with the UK government.
(OK, it’s also about getting fast onsite support in an emergency like a data breach.)
5) Regularly review your strategy
Just like any of your business processes, your migration to the cloud calls for careful, considered review of your process at regular intervals.
Are you complying with regulations? Are you achieving what you set out to do? Are you on schedule? Is your team on board?
As most business leaders know all too well, it’s never a good idea to start a process and simply assume it’s going to be completed perfectly.
Your business and cloud migration
Gone are the days when only the largest organisations could benefit from the latest technological advantages.
Today, SMEs and start-ups around the world use cloud computing to get ahead in whatever industry they happen to be in.
If you want to get ahead in yours, it’s time to start considering when not if you’re going to migrate to the cloud.
Need to discuss your business’s cloud migration with an expert?
Dial A Geek has already helped businesses in every sector in and around Bristol migrate to the cloud.
Set up a commitment-free consultation with our Chief Geek Gildas Jones today (click here for his booking calendar). Let’s talk about making cloud computing work for you.
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