Before a Move to the Cloud, Consider a Readiness Assessment
A readiness assessment can mean a smooth move to the cloud for your St. Louis business. Consider your organization’s processes, staffing, tech and security.
Moving your IT operations to the cloud involves more than simply switching servers. A full cloud implementation requires a thorough review of various aspects of your business.
Before making a change, consider a cloud readiness assessment, which can provide you with clear objectives and a concrete action list. What steps can you take to help ensure a smooth transition?
Review Organizational Processes and Procedures
A move to the cloud encompasses your operations, people and processes — and a comprehensive evaluation of your business provides a vital foundation for your cloud implementation.
As the first step in your readiness assessment, meet with key stakeholders — including members of your leadership team, employees from various departments, vendors and clients. What is the expected benefit of a move to the cloud for each of these constituencies? By speaking to people with different views of your organization, you can determine the challenges they face and set goals for your cloud implementation.
You’ll also want to closely review current processes and procedures throughout the organization to determine which may experience an impact from your move to the cloud. Discovering the potential effects of your cloud implementation can help you create transitional processes to minimize any disruptions to operations.
Evaluate Staffing Capabilities
The skills and knowledge of your IT team members will play a key role in the success of your cloud implementation. As part of your readiness assessment, consider evaluating the education level and capabilities of current staff members to uncover any potential shortfalls or areas of potential benefit for additional training.
With so many organizations adopting cloud strategies in 2020, qualified architects and engineers have become harder to attract as traditional technology roles may no longer meet your IT needs. If you find your staff lacking in key skills critical to your cloud implementation, you can attempt to hire to fill the shortfall, or you can work toward retraining of existing staff. In addition, consider seeking assistance from an experienced IT services and support organization as you move to the cloud.
Plan for Needed Tech Upgrades
In addition to your team members, your current technology will play a key role in your cloud transition. As you assess your technology readiness, take a look at your infrastructure, data and applications to gain a thorough understanding of the needs of your organization.
Consider which of your applications can migrate to the cloud easily. If your organization relies on any outdated applications, you may want to consider replacing them as part of your cloud move.
Lock Down Security With Armada
Despite frequent coverage in the media, cybersecurity continues to elude many people — including some of your employees. In fact, half of internet users click on malicious links each year, introducing potential security risks for businesses.
As you move toward a cloud implementation for your organization, security should play a primary role in your readiness planning. When you work with Alliance Technology Partners, you benefit from Armada, our cost-effective and reliable solution for small businesses throughout the St. Louis metro area.
With Armada, you gain protection for your sensitive data as well as the assurance of continued productivity as your network remains up and running. To learn more about incorporating Armada into your cloud transition, please contact Alliance Technology Partners.
