Moving business operations to the cloud presents a long-term strategy for companies who want to remain competitive in an increasingly digital world. It’s estimated that over 95% of new digital workloads are already being deployed on cloud-native platforms and the cloud will become a business necessity by 2028. This continuing trend reflects the demand for reduced costs and improved business agility, innovation, and resilience, as well as agility and scalability in application development.
Enterprises are increasingly migrating to cloud-native IT environments because the complexity of traditional and hybrid infrastructure has surpassed its practical capacity. Legacy environments accumulate technical debt, making it harder and costlier to maintain, secure, and scale systems for new business requirements. Modern business applications — particularly AI, collaborative office tools, and quantum computing — all require significantly more power, scalability, and integration than legacy platforms, or private data centers, can handle.
New tools designed to enable customers to deliver production-ready AI agents at scale were introduced at the recent AWS Summit in New York. Innovations like this illustrate how agility in technology usage and strategic innovation can be embraced as a competitive edge, especially when empowered by the cloud.
Companies adopting cloud-native architectures are better positioned to centralize and standardize operations on a global scale and deliver seamless user experiences. A thorough assessment of the current enterprise landscape is the imperative first step for a successful migration, which will inform the development of a detailed cloud strategy and migration roadmap which drives migration and modernization decisions of existing applications.
Heading to the Cloud (a guide to help answer any remaining objections)
1. Growth. The very nature of the public cloud makes it easier to scale. Whether a company is growing within its existing footprint or expanding to new markets or via M&A, a well architected cloud infrastructure ensures business applications are accessible to everyone in the organization regardless of where they are working.
2. Standardization. With a modern infrastructure in the cloud, all employees have access to the same technologies, the same data, and the same resources, globally. Multiple vendors in different locations are no longer needed to host a company’s digital infrastructure. This also significantly reduces application and technology redundancy, which is a major cost driver in historically grown on-premises IT landscapes.
3. Savings. If built correctly, the public cloud is cheaper than alternate digital infrastructures. Some companies see an immediate 20% cost reduction compared to traditional data center setups. Additionally, the value cloud generates from enabling businesses to innovate is worth more than five times what is possible by simply reducing IT costs according to McKinsey estimates. The cloud also automatically eliminates any risks and unnecessary spendings caused by tech debt and outdated software products.
4. Security. Most company IT leaders cannot build and continually update robust security policies to keep data secure. However, cloud providers have dedicated teams of specialists who are constantly updating layered security architectures for their networks, keeping data secure in transit and at rest. Cloud providers are continuously bolstering their security offerings. Advanced security measures like confidential computing, zero-trust architecture, and quantum-safe encryption are becoming standard. These security teams are available to customers to support their specific security needs and to avoid breaches due to misconfiguration or other human error.
One cleaning equipment manufacturer took five years to migrate its entire application landscape to AWS, but after migrating and modernizing 70% of its IT landscape over the first 7 months saw a 20% immediate cost reduction compared to its previous server and data center setup.
As AI continues to increasingly dominate the conversation, public cloud providers continue to expand and mature. Hyperscalers like AWS, Azure, and Google are investing in AI model quality and increasing GPU firepower to drive the new AI services, as they continue to build their native cloud workload security (CWS) capabilities.
Whether leaders are looking to expand their business into new markets, connect disparate global operations, or reduce operating expenses, the decision to invest in technology to evolve a company’s digital infrastructure must be founded in business goals. A holistic approach to understanding the issues at hand and the business objectives should come first, before defining the specific technology solutions that will get the job done. Enterprise transformation needs more than top-notch technology — it needs clarity, strategy, and structure.
Navigating the complexities of public cloud migration requires a strategic approach that balances speed with thorough planning. Leaders should leverage the business drivers to propel the cloud strategy and set clear expectations among executive stakeholders. Balancing a people-centric view with a focus on cloud for access to innovation and providing adequate training are integral to a successful implementation of any new technology.
Despite advancements in cloud technology, the demand for skilled professionals in areas like cloud architecture, DevOps, and cybersecurity outpaces the talent supply. Some analysts suggest as many as 87% of organizations face a skills gap in cloud computing. Training programs, certifications, and upskilling initiatives are needed to bridge this gap. Alternatively, working with a trusted, cloud-native partner can provide not only required skills but also broad and long-term experience.
By laying a solid foundation built on business objectives, avoiding common cost traps, and implementing effective governance and training, organizations can reap the benefits of cloud technology while minimizing risks.
