UK Cloud Adoption: Lessons to take into 2020

No matter where your organisation is on its cloud adoption journey, the New Year presents the opportunity to reflect on the lessons you will now be taking into 2020 and beyond. In this article, we will provide five areas that you may well want to consider

Before the New Year fades too far into the distance, now is a great time to take a step back and think about the cloud adoption lessons you will take into 2020.

For organisations looking to take the next steps on their digital transformation journeys, we see these lessons falling into two categories: the day-to-day practicalities of operating in a world that’s moving further and further into the cloud, and the art of the possible: where cloud computing could take us in the future.

In this article, I will take you through five cloud adoption lessons I feel will benefit any organisation operating in today’s cloud-focused digital landscape.

There is massive potential in cloud computing that we are only starting to tap into

Without wishing to sound too much like an episode of Tomorrow’s World, cloud computing truly does possess massive potential to positively impact so many aspects of our lives. As a global society, we are only at the beginning of understanding the implications of cloud. Healthcare, transport, energy production and so much more will evolve over the coming years – partly driven by the power of cloud computing.

Organisations are at very different stages in their cloud adoption journeys

Their goals may be similar, but during my discussions with organisations, one thing that stands out to us is that everyone is at a different stage in their cloud adoption journey. This diversity isn’t a bad thing at all – organisations need to balance their cloud ambitions with budgets and risk appetites. As long as best practices such as Microsoft’s Cloud Adoption Framework are followed, every organisation can undertake the cloud adoption journey that’s right for them.

Cyber security and governance are key concerns for organisations looking to adopt cloud computing

There may have been a misconception in the past that cybersecurity and governance were inherent in cloud solutions. This situation is no longer the case – organisations I speak to are well aware of the additional threat vectors that cloud adoption introduces, along with the increased governance requirements that come with agreeing responsibilities between multiple vendors and partners.

Skills and staffing are proving to be roadblocks in organisations’ cloud adoption journeys

There’s no getting around it – hybrid cloud solutions require a whole new set of skills to support and maintain. With public cloud offerings continually evolving and taking on new functionality, it’s hard for organisations to assemble the appropriate skills in-house to ensure that cloud ROI is maximised. This crossroads is where engaging with an experienced cloud partner can bring considerable benefits to organisations.

We need to balance agile working with consideration towards mental wellbeing

Mental wellbeing in the workplace is something we should all take seriously. The latest agile working technology offers us so many possibilities to communicate and collaborate in new, dynamic ways. However, the ‘always-on’ working culture that today’s technology facilitates can actually hamper our ability to focus and take the time we need to look after our mental wellbeing. Fortunately, there are steps we can all take to improve our mental health in the fast-paced workplace of today.

Your cloud journey

Wherever you are on your cloud journey, whether it’s using public, private, hybrid or multi-cloud, the most important cloud adoption lesson you should take into 2020 is to focus primarily not on the technology, but on the organisational outcomes it facilitates. Technology is only as useful as the outcomes it delivers, and to over-engineer your cloud infrastructure is to risk introducing more complexity and risk than actual benefits. By partnering with an experienced cloud partner you can leverage their knowledge to get your cloud adoption journey on the right track.