March 8, 2022
Global spending on cloud computing is expected to exceed $480 billion this year. A Gartner senior research director, Henrique Cecci, pointed to the hugely disruptive Covid-19 pandemic as a central catalyst that’s driving adoption. “This is especially true,” he noted, “for use cases such as collaboration, remote work and new digital services to support a hybrid workforce.”
But as Mindsight Solutions Architect Nick Stover explained late last year, full or even partial cloud migration is far more complicated than it might seem, requiring organizational acumen, the ability to determine application dependencies and the know-how to properly configure and design environments—among other highly specialized skills.
“You often have departmentalized engineers who are able to focus on a certain area,” Stover said at the time. “But you really need someone who has a solid foundation across the board in order to properly assess things and determine which solutions may or may not be the right fit. Most organizations have solid players, but they don’t have that level of technical expertise. It’s a different ballgame when you’re focusing on just one vertical within your own business versus trying to develop a plan for the entire infrastructure, understanding where each piece is going to fit, and how you’re ultimately going to deploy it.”
On April 5, 2022, Stover will serve as the SME for a Mindsight-hosted hybrid event on Cloud Cost Optimization. Whether your organization has already invested in cloud technology or is thinking of doing so, his insights will cover a wide range of issues related to cloud modernization, implementation and optimization—with a focus on controlling costs.
Here’s a handful of the topics he’ll explore more deeply in this session.
The State of Midmarket Cloud Adoption
It’s definitely ramping up in general. Not only are companies becoming more familiar with the cloud, but the pandemic has accelerated its adoption because cloud environments are fluid — you can spin up or down depending on your needs at any given time. With things changing so rapidly these days, from data storage needs to remote work, it has become a more crucial tool than ever. Whether you’re supplementing an on-site data center with PaaS offerings or taking advantage of infrastructure servicing within the Azure environment, the cloud’s value lies largely in its versatility. And it’s not an all-or-nothing proposition: while start-ups might adopt a pure cloud strategy, many enterprises and SMBs opt for a hybrid solution that complements on-prem infrastructure. It all depends on what sort of technology is best suited to their type of business. And, of course, cost.
Technological and Financial Challenges of Cloud Adoption
Planning for the short-term is fairly simple, but less so for the long-term. Determining which cloud provider and services to use can be complicated. And if you choose the wrong services or too many of the right ones (for example, when determining a baseline of “seats” as part of a locked-in annual license for Microsoft Azure), it can be insufficient to handle workload or unnecessarily expensive. Optimization, therefore, is key. What’s best for your business now and how might it be altered in the future with minimal impact on workflow? There are different subscription models to suit nearly every need, but you have to know which one is best. Security is always a concern as well, though cloud services have default security protocols that satisfy many if not all compliance requirements. That’s not to say security is secondary for cloud users, but to a large degree it’s built-in and requires less attention on the front end. Monitoring activity and overseeing regular upgrades, however, is still crucial and best left to a dedicated expert or team of experts—whether they’re in-house or contracted through an MSP like Mindsight. And that goes for more than just security. Once your cloud migration is complete, it needs constant monitoring and tweaking, not least of all to reduce costs when and where possible. It’s not a set it and forget it type of thing.
How MSPs Can Help
An MSP can build and implement cloud systems for businesses of nearly any size by choosing the correct cloud provider as well as the specific services that both meet your current needs and help you quickly adapt to future ones as your organization expands or downsizes. An MSP can also provide 24/7 monitoring to make sure your subscription model stays relevant, security is air-tight and all necessary upgrades are made in a timely manner. With trusted specialists handling that complicated and time-consuming work, you can run the rest of your business with renewed focus and peace of mind.
About Mindsight
Mindsight, a Chicago IT services provider, is an extension of your team. Our culture is built on transparency and trust, and our team is made up of extraordinary people – the kinds of people you would hire. We have one of the largest expert-level engineering teams delivering the full spectrum of IT services and solutions, from cloud to infrastructure, collaboration to contact center. Our customers rely on our thought leadership, responsiveness, and dedication to solving their toughest technology challenges.
Contact us at GoMindsight.com.
About The Expert
Nick earned a Bachelors in Computer Science with a core focus on Network Security from Northeastern Illinois University. With nearly 10 years of comprehensive experience in designing, supporting, and administering IT system infrastructure, Nick has a vast amount of experience in migrating production workloads to the cloud in addition to designing cloud solutions for clients based on business needs.
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