In the digital age where technology reigns supreme, cloud computing is propelling businesses towards unprecedented growth. It’s the secret ingredient that’s transforming business operations, cutting down costs, and scaling services to meet consumer demand. Yet, like any major shift, transitioning to the cloud can seem daunting. If you’re skeptical about a large-scale transformation, remember this: slow and steady wins the race.
Cloud technology is essentially the delivery of computing services over the internet, or “the cloud”. This includes everything from servers, storage, databases, networking, software, analytics, to intelligence. The value of cloud computing is immense – it offers cost-savings, scalability, performance, speed, productivity, reliability, and even security.
While the benefits of cloud technology are clear, taking a gradual approach to cloud migration can be a more manageable and less risky strategy for many companies. This method allows organizations to dip their toes in the water, so to speak, and understand the process before diving in completely.
A great example of this approach is Netflix. The media giant didn’t migrate its entire infrastructure to the cloud at once. Instead, it started with non-customer facing applications and then gradually moved its customer-facing systems to the cloud over several years.
For organizations considering cloud migration, it’s advisable to start small. Begin by implementing cloud technology in a single business unit or for a specific project. This allows companies to experience firsthand the benefits of cloud computing, without a significant upfront investment.
Focusing on return on investment (ROI) during this initial stage is crucial. By starting small, businesses can track and measure the benefits derived from each change, making it easier to optimize costs and avoid falling into the regimen of high bills.
By monitoring and measuring the impact of cloud implementation on business performance and costs, companies can make informed decisions about future cloud investments. This approach can help optimize costs.
Here’s where the philosophy of ‘slow and steady wins the race’ comes into play. A gradual approach to cloud migration allows companies to implement changes at a manageable pace, mitigating risk, and allowing for adjustments along the way.
For instance, a company might start by moving a single application or a subset of data to the cloud. This small step provides an opportunity to understand the process, assess the impact, and make necessary adjustments before moving forward with further implementation.
While the allure of a large-scale transformation is tempting, it often comes with pitfalls. These can include disruptions to business operations, cost overruns, and the risk of failure. On the other hand, a gradual approach to cloud migration can mitigate these risks. Research and data show that a slow and steady transition to cloud technology can result in a more successful implementation, allowing companies to learn and adapt as they go.
Companies like Capital One and GE Aviation have successfully adopted cloud technology using a step-by-step method. Capital One began its cloud journey with a small pilot project and now runs the majority of its workloads on the cloud. Similarly, GE Aviation moved its non-essential applications to the cloud first, before gradually migrating its mission-critical applications.
Capital One, one of the largest banks in the U.S., initiated its journey to the cloud with a small pilot project. The aim was to test the waters and understand the potential challenges and benefits of cloud computing. This cautious step-by-step approach allowed Capital One to gradually familiarize itself with the workings of the cloud.
The results were so promising that Capital One decided to migrate more workloads to the cloud. Fast forward to today, Capital One is one of the most cloud-forward companies in the financial sector, running the majority of its workloads on the cloud.
The bank’s cloud-first strategy has enabled it to innovate at an unprecedented speed and scale. It has also improved its ability to manage and analyze data, enhancing customer experiences and driving business growth.
GE Aviation, a world-leading provider of jet engines, components, and integrated systems, adopted a similar approach to its cloud migration.
The company started by moving its non-essential applications to the cloud. This allowed GE Aviation to gain experience with cloud platforms without risking mission-critical operations.
Once it had successfully migrated these applications and understood the process, GE Aviation began the more complex task of migrating its mission-critical applications. Today, GE Aviation operates a significant portion of its IT infrastructure in the cloud.
This gradual approach to cloud migration has helped GE Aviation improve operational efficiency, increase agility, and drive innovation. It demonstrates how a step-by-step method can mitigate risks and maximize the benefits of cloud computing.
Netflix began its journey to the cloud by first moving its non-customer facing applications. After they were successful, the company gradually migrated its customer-facing systems over several years. Today, Netflix runs entirely on the cloud and has become a prime example of leveraging cloud computing for business agility and innovation.
Pinterest started with a small project, testing the waters with AWS’s cloud services. As the social media service grew, so did their usage of AWS. Now, they run all of their operations on the cloud, handling billions of objects and requests every day.
Intuit, a global technology platform that helps our customers and communities overcome their most important financial challenges, started migrating to AWS in 2013 with smaller applications and services. By 2020, Intuit had moved its core applications to AWS, allowing them to scale and innovate faster.
GumGum, a contextual intelligence company, started with a pilot project on AWS to test machine learning workloads. After seeing the benefits, they decided to go all-in on AWS, migrating all of their applications.
These examples highlight how taking a gradual approach to cloud migration allows businesses to understand the process, manage risks, and leverage the benefits of cloud computing effectively.
Moving to the cloud doesn’t have to be a leap of faith. A gradual approach to cloud migration can yield measurable benefits, allowing organizations to harness the power of cloud technology at their own pace.
As a strategic IT partner and cloud expert, Hicron Software House champions the gradual approach to cloud migration. We understand that each organization has unique needs and challenges, which is why we offer tailored solutions to guide you through a seamless and efficient cloud migration process. Get in touch!
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