How to start your cloud transformation journey

Transcription

1 How to start your cloud transformation journey An effective, low-risk cloud transition in manageable steps Cloud services Cloud transformation series

2 When you move some or all of your computing into the cloud, you generally reduce IT administrative complexity, information security risks, and the cost of technology ownership. You typically gain access to systems, expertise, data management and security practices, and infrastructures that would require large investments and significant efforts if you were to bring them into your organization. Thus, while taking to the cloud like most business change comes with a certain level of risk, it is outweighed by the potential benefits. You can plan and prepare the transition in such a way that it is smooth and largely risk-free.

3 Review current systems and processes One outcome you don t want to produce by moving to the cloud is continuing any inefficiencies and productivity obstacles that are present today. Consider your processes and business systems, such as ERP, CRM, productivity software, design tools, and whatever else the company uses. Are business processes still effective, or should some workflows be simplified and made more consistent? Do people work and communicate with the right collaborators in the right sequence, using the best tools and systems to get their jobs done? If you were to deploy, for instance, your financial or manufacturing system again, would you take a different approach? Would you configure roles and functions differently, or avoid customizations and implement the solution closer to the standard? Would you replace any current software tools with better solutions that fit your business more closely? The business impact of moving to the cloud can be much better if you eliminate inefficiencies and outdated practices before you let them continue there. Some of your software concerns may be most easily taken care of by the tools and resources available from your cloud service provider. Why the cloud continues to expand Without the scalability, affordability, and flexibility of the cloud, the applications, digital events, and data streams associated with mobility, social media, the IoT, and big data would come at a much higher cost, a significant resource overhead, and ongoing data center management challenges for most companies. As companies see the advantage of the cloud, spending on cloud computing infrastructures is anticipated to grow 30 percent annually between 2013 and 2018, compared to 5 percent for overall enterprise IT.

4 10 capabilities to look for in a cloud service provider In today s cloud market, you find global, leading enterprises that provide every conceivable cloud service as well as smaller companies that may specialize in certain technologies and cloud strategies. To assess the potential fit of a vendor with your business, request customer references from companies similar to yours and where you can talk to somebody, not just read a case study. Just like making cost savings the exclusive motivation for moving to the cloud would limit the positive outcomes you can achieve, choosing a vendor based on price alone would not be a sound approach. What are the capabilities you should look for in your cloud-services provider? Familiarity with the changes, challenges, leading companies, and technology trends in your industry, and with the ERP, CRM, PLM, or other systems that matter in your business Consulting to assist your immediate and long-term cloud planning, migration of data and applications, integrations between cloud and on-premise resources, and virtualization strategy Support for hybrid and cloud-only deployment scenarios as well as workload-based cloud migrations Ability to access and deploy ERP, CRM, and other enterprise applications, and software tools that add value in such areas as analytics and data management Skills and expertise to help you take advantage of fast-evolving cloud technologies such as containerization, microservices, or serverless architecture, and when to recommend which set of applicable standards for performance and interoperability that apply to them Scalability of cloud computing resources to meet your expected workload and transaction requirements Ability to set up and deliver various managed, cloud-native services to benefit your company, for instance, desktop-as-a-service Collaborative approach that ensures a productive engagement with your on-site IT team and provides users with the assistance they require Comprehensive security measures and tools that combine protection of physical locations with extensive safeguards for the integrity of network infrastructures, data, and applications, and which can support your compliance requirements and information protection policies Service contracts that meet your requirements, fit your budget, and have the flexibility to support growth and changes in your business

5 Benefit from your cloud partner s expertise and resources Closely review the skills and expertise offered by cloud service providers and project how they would complement and extend your own IT team s capabilities. While some cloud solutions are indeed highly standardized and can serve many different companies, others require the expertise to expose data properly and translate your business rules for the cloud. If you can rely on a vendor s existing skills and capacity, that will probably yield desired results much faster and be far more affordable than building your own team of cloud experts. Many cloud providers have budgets and hiring strategies that enable them to bring the industry s most capable practitioners onboard. Most likely, your cloud vendor can provide cutting-edge development and architectural skills that would be too challenging for you to maintain on your team. But in the cloud s sharedresource model, the costs can be most reasonable. It is very well possible that contracting with a single vendor for all your cloud computing needs is not the best route. Companies sometimes find it preferable to enlist one vendor for all infrastructural requirements, which could include servers, networking, storage, and critical applications like ERP, and retain another for more targeted needs, such as collaborative product design with virtual-reality tools. Just like software companies, leading cloud providers have their own partner networks and can ensure interoperability between their own technology and a partner s offerings. Review all available resources and solutions before making your cloud decisions. Extending your in-house IT skills A cloud services vendor can provide cutting-edge development and architectural skills that would be too challenging and expensive for you to maintain on your team. In the cloud s shared-resource model, the costs can be very reasonable.

6 Define your goals You go into a cloud initiative fully informed and with a good idea of the cloud s potential for your organization. But what are you hoping to accomplish? Of the many advantages that are possible in cloud computing, which will really make a difference? For example: Once you have defined and documented your goals for moving to the cloud and the company s IT and business leaders have signed off and them, there will be considerably less ambiguity in deciding which computing workloads you want to move to the cloud. Do you want to take advantage of advanced business analytics tools available through the cloud? Are you anticipating greater numbers of transactions or a business expansion that current IT resources could not accommodate, but the cloud s scalability can easily support them? Are you connecting machinery, products, or facilities systems to the internet of things (IoT) and expect to store, manage, and analyze the resulting data streams in the cloud? Are you looking to increase efficiencies and cut costs by moving ERP and CRM systems into the cloud and outsource IT support? Do you want to rely on more advanced, stringent, and multi-layered information protection measures available in the cloud for your company s intellectual property and applications, so you can meet compliance and security goals?

7 Perform a proof-of-concept When, where and how to start taking your business into the cloud? Often, the most manageable and lowestrisk approach is a proof-of-concept (POC) project. Pick a relatively uncomplicated and not necessarily businesscritical application or usage scenario that does not impact customers a new self-service function for a group of employees to submit vacation and parental-leave requests, for instance, or a software development and testing process that is well-isolated from other business operations. Commit that to the cloud and run it, making adjustments in collaboration with your cloud provider. The test project will offer valuable insights and help you define best practices for migrating larger and more vital applications to the cloud. In the worst case, if the POC does not work out at all, you can simply discard it and re-evaluate your strategy, vendor, and resources.

8 Hybrid scenarios have the highest success potential Once you are satisfied with the results of the POC, you can move computing workloads into the cloud. For very few companies it makes sense to simply shift everything to the cloud immediately. For most businesses, it is more productive to transition some workloads and processes into the cloud and leave others on-premise. Companies realize that hybrid cloud and on-premise environments can combine the best features and benefits of both realms. You will need to analyze the advantages of moving to the cloud for all your user groups and each of your applications and workloads. If you need many integrations between systems, connecting and managing them as cloud services may be a more standardized and manageable practice than keeping them on-premise. When your on-premise environment includes legacy software with extensive customizations or systems that were created within the company, it might not make sense to transition them to the cloud. Instead, you could perform a reset by means of one of the many best-in-class solutions that are available in the cloud. If, for example, standard cloud solutions provide the warehouse management system or maintenance scheduling capabilities you need, you might want to adopt them, thereby replacing your legacy on-premise software tools. You can then save the effort and expense of keeping these systems updated and available. Fast growth of the hybrid cloud According to an article in the Wall Street Journal, the hybrid cloud is set to maintain an annual growth rate of 27 percent between then and 2019, accelerating past the overall IT market.

9 One workload at a time Many companies keep their cloud migrations controlled and predictable by moving one workload at a time and making adjustments before adding the next one. Begin by moving workloads that are less complex and risky than others. There are probably some applications that don t have a significant risk exposure. Your HR and benefits administration is important to everybody who works at the company, but the risk in moving it to the cloud is probably quite low, and there is a potential advantage in increasing the self-service capabilities that employees can enjoy. Even much of your financials are likely to be comparatively low-risk, and you can probably streamline some finance and compliance processes in moving to the cloud. That makes finance a good early shift to the cloud. On the other hand, the manufacturing software that interfaces with your robotic production line, which has to run around the clock to deliver the throughput you promise customers, should transition into the cloud later, when you can be certain the move will be free from issues. Modern, cloud-based ERP and CRM systems take advantage of the modularity encouraged by cloud computing. Instead of deploying them all at once, you can take the same workload approach, implementing such areas as warehousing, manufacturing, or sales in the cloud at the right time. You can surround them with other cloud solutions, for example, productivity software or EDI communications, to provide deep and broad functionality to your users. Spending patterns promote cloud-native trends Efforts are underway to ensure that the notion of cloud-native applications remains meaningful and continues to translate into real-life business advantages. The Cloud Native Computing Foundation brings together a number of leading cloud technology companies to standardize and harmonize containerized application development. Current spending trends in IT clearly favor cloud-native applications both because of the cloud economy as well as because of their close alignment with business objectives.

10 From improved efficiency to business transformation When you move computing workloads into the cloud, you don t automatically begin generating great results. Those are the outcome of your strategizing, planning, and preparation. It really depends on your goals and ambitions whether you take to the cloud as part of your digital business transformation and with a fully articulated change management strategy, or if you simply want to take advantage of the cloud s superior economy, scalability, and resilience. Whatever your goals are for computing in the cloud, you can act on them now. We are here to assist you. Together, Columbus technology and expertise, Microsoft Dynamics 365, and the analytics resources available on the Microsoft Azure cloud make lasting, controlled business growth in the cloud practical, fast, and affordable. Before, during, and following your move to the cloud, we help you optimize processes, increase efficiencies, and reduce costs. We offer proven, practical solutions and approaches within an affordable subscription model that eliminates distractions and lets you focus on results. To take the next step e-book: Why Columbus and Dynamics 365

11 At Columbus, we help our customers digitally transform their businesses and improve the value realization of their business application investments. We mitigate the inherent risks associated with implementing, upgrading and replacing legacy ERP systems. We lead our customers with best-practice consulting services we have refined over thousands of engagements. We take care of our customers and aspire to keep them for life. To learn more about how Columbus can help you get the most out of your Microsoft solution, contact your local Columbus office.