Rapid growth in the availability and adoption of cloud services has given rise to a simultaneous increase in complexity. 

The numbers of suppliers, service options, cost models and billing mechanisms have all mushroomed, creating a difficult landscape for IT leaders to navigate. At the same time, a range of different approaches to adoption have been developing in different business sectors and divisions, creating in some organisations a disparate amalgamation of solutions.

IT leaders, no matter where they currently stand on the cloud adoption scale, are faced with numerous questions as they march forward in search of the benefits that cloud promises.

• Is my organisation culturally ready for a continuing cloud journey?
• Will public, private or hybrid cloud solutions work best for me?
• What are the risks in terms of security and stability?
• What are the cost implications today and in the future?
• How will I manage integration with existing infrastructure and apps?
• How do I establish workable contracts and SLAs with suppliers?
• Where will I find the required technical and project management skills?

Businesses face many challenges in their transition to cloud – be that from understanding which services and applications should move to which platforms, through to the different stages of migration. After that they have to content with continuing optimisation and transformation of a hybrid environment in order to ensure they are extracting the most value from their cloud investments.

The first question to address is about the organisation’s cultural readiness. What is driving the appetite for cloud adoption and are the foundational structures, skills and processes in place to facilitate the transition?

The next challenge is to gain a complete view of the existing estate and assess the areas in which action is required. Making the right choices about how to move forward demands consideration of:

• Technical issues such as integration and migration of apps
• Economic factors such as financial frameworks
• Commercial decisions about business growth and innovation 

As an established provider of cloud services with a global footprint, powerful toolsets, a proven track record and a dedicated cloud services team, we are uniquely positioned to help organisations overcome these complexities.

We offer support in five key areas, starting with planning. CloudPlan is a service that helps customers map out their existing position and construct a strategy for further cloud adoption. 

To reduce the burden of infrastructure on internal teams, we created ServiceWorks to provide customers with a hybrid cloud capability that is fully managed.

We also provide a host of other Managed Services depending on the degree of support that is needed. Contracts and SLAs are flexibly designed to evolve, ensuring tangible long-term value is delivered.

CloudCare provides comprehensive support for organisations utilising or planning to utilise the public cloud and sustaining throughout the deployment lifecycle. Our close relationships with Amazon Web Services and Microsoft Azure are central to this offering.

The fifth element of our cloud services portfolio is Cloud Community, which helps customers navigate a global ecosystem of specialist cloud service providers in areas such as connectivity and communication.

The net result is that the complexities of cloud adoption are clarified and made manageable.

CLICK HERE to download for free your guide to the cloud journey.