The importance of a well-defined cloud strategy

Cloud technology has fundamentally transformed the way we approach IT. But that doesn’t mean the cloud is always the best solution for every problem. Having a clear cloud strategy is essential.

“Moving to the cloud” encompasses more than just downsizing on-premises infrastructure. For me, cloudification is a broader concept, and having a clear cloud strategy is essential: Why are you moving to the cloud, what advantages does it bring you, and how do you ensure you still meet your business needs?

In defining your cloud strategy, you need to consider some extra elements, such as the security and reliability of your data, the flexibility of the cloud, the rapid time-to-market, and the scalability. You also need to be aware of the potential pitfalls of the cloud. For example, the switch to the cloud needs to be properly managed, as cloud consumption can escalate quickly.

Experimenting with AI

As a strategy, cloudification involves not only cloud services but also other components, like IoT and AI. The significant attention paid to data and AI today provides a new opportunity for the cloud. The average company doesn’t have sufficient on-premises infrastructure to experiment with AI because keeping a huge volume of data locally involves a great cost. Additionally, it’s difficult for businesses investing in on-premises infrastructure to predict what they need five years down the road. This question is much less relevant in the cloud, which makes it possible to move to AI sooner.

I see this trend emerging: when defining strategy, the focus is no longer on the infrastructure but on use cases. How and for what specific need do we use the cloud? From there, companies can start outlining their strategy. A good example is the digital energy meter. Previously, there was an annual manual meter reading; today, the energy supplier knows the situation in real-time.

Focus on Sustainability

Sustainability is climbing higher on the cloud agenda. It’s part of the company strategy, and the carbon footprint is especially important. I’ve noticed this evolution in the market. The time when, for example, FinOps only looked at the financial picture of the whole cloud story is slowly passing. Green FinOps also make decisions based on the carbon footprint of the cloud’s analysis, management, and optimization. AI requires a lot of energy. You must take that into account for those use cases.

In conclusion, while the cloud offers immense opportunities and supports digital transformation, a well-thought-out strategy is essential to navigate its complexities and maximize its benefits.

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