The last several years have seen quite a significant hype about cloud business intelligence. With this comes the assumption that a majority of businesses have already migrated to the cloud. Even if the trend seems to concur that the use of cloud services has increased dramatically, there is still a large population of companies that have yet to adopt the system.
Considering the many benefits of cloud storage, why do some companies hesitate to adopt it? Here we identify the everyday challenges presented by hybrid cloud storage migration and what businesses can do to resolve these concerns.
Getting the IT department ready for the move
Cloud storage is convenient and easy to use. Despite this, it is undeniable that the IT department of a company may not have the necessary skills to transition to Azure services seamlessly. Before adopting cloud service, these IT technicians have managed in-house servers exclusively. To help them acclimate to the cloud, cloud storage solutions providers may provide consultants to orient IT members with the transition.
Effective strategies for deployment, integration, and adoption
These are the main challenges encountered by companies migrating to the cloud. Relocating to the cloud takes more than just a simple software implementation. Depending on the current infrastructure, some companies may need to redo their IT architecture. Herein is the need to employ effective strategies. Once the integration is complete, the entire organization should focus on adoption.
Addressing possible skill gaps
Companies need to have realistic expectations about skill gaps. Skill gaps may not only apply to the IT department but the whole organization. Some aspects of cloud business intelligence that employees may struggle with include new software architecture, security protocols, scaling techniques, and virtualization tools. As such, the company need not be intimidated by these challenges; instead, steps should be taken to eliminate these gaps effectively.
Maintaining and managing security
Security is an important consideration when migrating data to cloud computing services. Information transfer from a legacy infrastructure into the cloud needs careful management. Data may be vulnerable during this stage, hence, exercising due diligence is a must. The company should remain in compliance with protocols and security measures prior, during, and after data migration.
Ensuring data encryption and back-up
Another hesitation stems from the fear of trusting a third party with sensitive company information. Experts recommend that even if these fears are generally unfounded, it is still best to retain a back-up of company information before cloud migration. Back-up has to be performed regularly along with encryption.
An overhaul of company practices
Companies dependent on legacy systems may find it difficult to overhaul the entire company culture to accommodate migration to Azure services. A complete change in processes may result in hesitation and resistance from the workforce. It is essential that company management employs strategies to help employees appreciate the benefits of migrating to the cloud. When the administration relays a clear rationale for the adoption of cloud services, employees will be more receptive to the change in processes and business model.
