Cloud Strategy
When evaluating a move to the Cloud, there are many questions that need to be addressed at the outset:
- What is the definition of Cloud -- Public Cloud, Private Cloud, What is the Cloud anyway?
- Who should decide what applications to move to the Cloud?
- How do I know what applications and business functions belong in the Cloud?
- How do I understand Cloud transition and ongoing costs?
- How do I integrate Cloud and on-premise applications so they work together?
- What do my employees and customers need to know when I move to the Cloud?
- Where do we begin?
Effective Cloud roadmaps begin with a balanced assessment of all stakeholder needs. When determining your Cloud strategy it’s important to use an objective framework that weighs the needs of IT, Finance, Executive Sponsors, and Business Process Owners, and that defines the benefits of the Cloud for each stakeholder. In addition, an enterprise Cloud strategy defines the optimal mix between Cloud and onsite applications, optimizing cost and efficiency gains without potentially sacrificing mission critical applications and data.
Problems and Their Symptoms
- Applications outsourced to the Cloud without a clear evaluation and Cloud strategy, leaving business critical applications outside the firewall
- No agreement of the definition of Cloud across the organization
- Shallow cost modeling erodes the actual ROI with respect to the theoretical ROI
- Insufficient modeling of interfaces between solutions hosted by various partners leads to difficulties when troubleshooting system issues down the road
- Poor change management leaves end users confused about how to access Cloud applications and where to turn for help after go-live
- No plan is developed for Cloud management -- user support is not defined
- No integration of Cloud and on-premise applications planned, creating data silos
Edgewater’s Cloud Services
- Develop strategic roadmaps to guide future-state Cloud initiatives
- Align Cloud strategy with business needs and constraints
- Implement Cloud solutions that transform your business
- The benefit of Cloud integrates people, process, and technology change to reduce costs, improve processes, and increase revenues
- Optimize enterprise Cloud approach
- Strike a balance of on-premise and Cloud to build a hybrid approach that meets the unique needs of your business services
