There's this notion that when people move applications and data to the cloud, they must move everything. Fortunately, that doesn't have to be the case.
In fact, it might be better for your organization not to move everything to the cloud. Larger organizations with many legacy applications, like financial organizations, might want to move only some of their systems into a public cloud. Others might prefer a multi-phase plan to eventually move all their applications to the cloud, but not all at once.
If you're considering a hybrid cloud environment at your organization, this post is for you.
There are three questions that you should ask when before deciding on a hybrid system.
How Big Is Our Organization?
This is a critical question. Although it may seem very surface-level, it's important to ask this question first to get a sense of the scale of your organization's data.
How much data does your organization generate?
Knowing these two data points can give you a good idea of how much data you'll be moving into the cloud and is useful when getting quick quotes and estimates from vendors.
What capabilities do we want to move to the cloud first?
Even if you have only a limited number of applications you think should be moved to the cloud, you must choose which capabilities give you the most advantages in using the cloud.
You might have to replace legacy apps with cloud-based solutions (or run the risk of running up your data costs). Factor in possible new cloud-optimized software purchases to avoid sticker shock.
How does this affect our overall costs?
Finally, analysis is only complete with a CBA (cost/benefit analysis) of which applications will go to the cloud, which service(s) you use to manage them, and how.
Once you've answered these three questions about cost, capabilities, and size, you'll be ready to develop your own hybrid cloud environment.
You can build a system that provides the benefits of a cloud environment without upending the systems that you already have in place.
Building any system that fits your particular needs might be more resource-intensive, but a system designed for you and your organization's needs is far better than one that doesn't meet those needs.
Hypershift is a consulting organization focused on SaaS, subscription software, and cloud technologies. We help organizations navigate their shift toward subscription software models. Our mission is to ensure best-in-class security, support, and management to optimize enterprise-level cloud.