Use of cloud services is becoming increasingly popular with one of the key benefits being that they are available to authorised internet users anywhere in the world on demand. Cloud service providers deal with all infrastructure details and users only need to be involved with the service output and can utilise the service in any location. Microsoft O365 is one example of a cloud service provider, but there are also private service providers who can offer cloud solutions dedicated to meet more specific client requirements.
Develop a business strategy for the cloud
Any business considering adoption of the cloud needs to think about their goals and motivation prior to signing any kind of service level agreements. Some likely goals and motivations to move to cloud services include:
– A requirement to accelerate the delivery of applications in order to gain a competitive advantage
– Improvements to IT efficiency, both in terms of staffing levels and IT infrastructure
– Increased flexibility of investment leading to optimal returns
– Moving to expanding markets in new geographical areas and requiring the provision of new capabilities
– Reducing risk with added control and continuity for all critical applications
If you can identify with two or three of the goals and motivations above, then it’s highly likely your business is ideally situated to profit from a move to cloud services.
The first step in moving to a cloud provider is to match up application requirements to the features, technical requirement and services provided by cloud services.
Cloud providers generally offer flexible services, with opportunities to increase or cut down levels of service, depending on current business requirements. Making best use of this ability does, however, require an understanding of likely minimum and maximum levels of service required, so they can be incorporated into any service agreement.
is an important feature of all cloud services, but should not be taken for granted. Cloud service providers offer a high level of security but application security is not provided and this needs to be a consideration for business applications teams.
You should expect a highly stable service level from your cloud prov00der, however, you will need to work out the levels of support you might potentially require from your cloud services provider. There could be occasions when urgent technical support is required even if cloud services are all working fine. For example, where users experience performance problems there could be a requirement for performance, storage, database, networks or applications analysis from your provider, and these details need including within any service agreements you are drawing up with cloud providers. Recognising and clearly defining all potential future support requirements from your cloud services provider in advance helps ensure any potential problems are addressed in a timely manner.
Consilium provide IT support and a variety of cloud services solutions from leading providers for businesses of any size. We can advise on the right cloud solution for your business and work with all our clients to maximise IT resources and improve business profitability. Contact us for more information.
