Whether you are reading tech articles online or leafing through your favorite printed tech journal, journalists are covering the importance of cloud-based technologies in light of the coronavirus pandemic. According to the CRN article, “COVID-19 has ravaged the global economy, but the pandemic looks to have boosted public cloud providers as their customers rapidly adopted remote work environments and automated back-end IT systems.” “Cloud giants including Amazon, Microsoft, Google, and IBM recently released financials showing strong sales in the first quarter for their Infrastructure-as-a-Service, Platform-as-a-Service, and hosted private cloud offerings.”

The logical question that follows is during this time of uncertainty,”Why are business leaders and IT executives revising their plans for cloud usage and adoption for applications, data, and storage?”

Flexera conducted a survey and provided some likely reasons for the change in plans:

“Some of the increase is a result of the extra capacity needed for current cloud-based applications to meet increased demand as online usage grows. Other organizations may accelerate migration from data centers to cloud in response to reduced headcount, difficulties in accessing data center facilities, and delays in hardware supply chains. As the pandemic runs its course, some organizations may also find that public cloud providers offer a more reliable option for business continuity.”

Another key takeaway from the CRN article is related to artificial intelligence. They provided an AI example, that cited that, “Companies that have already implemented AI saw an uptick in revenue, and 44% experienced a reduction in costs.” The explanation is for executives to use AI technology effectively, and given current logistical barriers, the only option is to have it run out of the cloud. Boiled down, if you aren’t in the cloud, then you and your company are missing out, and the others who are moving to the cloud with AI are eating your lunch.

Now that you are equipped with critical stats, compelling reasons, including AI- getting started, takes planning. Moving to the cloud isn’t something you do on a whim or something you can buy off the shelf. Depending on your systems and data, there are various approaches to pull off a successful migration.

At OpenArc, we have cloud experts that can walk you through a comprehensive checklist to determine if your needs require a lift-and-shift migration strategy or if your needs are more focused on adding capabilities, which then requires a refactor cloud migration strategy.

We’ll address your concerns relating to security, compliance, and workflows, and your step-by-step cloud strategy is designed to provide you a competitive advantage in your space. Through training and expert resources, you’ll be able to leverage the improvements in productivity and business agility the cloud has to offer.

To learn more about strategies, approaches and unique resources, connect with us by requesting a complimentary initial assessment. Get in touch with an OpenArc Cloud Expert.

Sources:
Coronavirus Crisis Having ‘Mildly Positive Impact’ On Cloud Sales: Synergy Research, Retrieved, June 10, 2020 by Joseph Tsidulko
https://www.crn.com/news/cloud/coronavirus-crisis-having-mildly-positive-impact-on-cloud-sales-synergy-research

Enterprise cloud usage post-COVID-19 – more necessary, more prevalent and more costly, Retrieved, June 10, 2010 by Kurt Marko
https://diginomica.com/enterprise-cloud-usage-post-covid-19-more-necessary-more-prevalent-and-more-costly