Common Pitfalls to Avoid When Migrating to the Cloud

Your company has decided to switch to cloud computing. You may be doing this in part or in full. You’re excited about the cost savings and the potential for better business practices, but are you truly ready to migrate to the cloud?

Migrating to the cloud can be a great step for your business, giving your company more flexibility, faster response times, and cost-efficient budgeting. However, it can be much more complex to set up than one might think.

If you stumble into a common pitfall while you are migrating, you could end up slowing your business down, frustrating employees and customers alike.
By being aware of common mistakes, you can avoid these issues while migrating to the cloud. Look at the pitfalls below and you’ll be able to avoid them. This will make sure that the migration process runs as smoothly as possible, keeping everyone from your IT department to your end users happy.

Not Looking at Your Individual Business Needs

Every business is different. Every cloud provider is different, too. There are no one-size fits all solutions. If you try to make something work when it doesn’t meet your business needs, you will regret migrating to the cloud. Having to switch everything around is not much fun.

One of the best ways to avoid this pitfall, however, is through a thorough analysis of your business at the start, before you even sign on to cloud services. You should understand what your business needs in terms of cloud computing: is it more space, faster services, a lowered cost for technology, or something else? Make sure that the cloud service you choose meets all of those needs before you begin the process. Consider the space available on the cloud service you are researching. Will it meet your needs? Will it scale easily? Find a balance. There is no point in paying for unused space, but you also don’t want to sign up for a service that is not robust enough to handle your data.

Not Choosing the Right Type of Cloud

There are many cloud services, and they come in different forms. Does your business need a public cloud service, or can you run a private cloud on site? How much will this cost? What are your security concerns?

Make sure that you consider a hybrid approach, because it may be advantageous for your business to benefit from both public and private cloud services.
To choose the best cloud service for your needs, consider a custom service, designed and built for your company. This is the ideal way to migrate to the cloud. You will be able to rest assured that your data and applications will be placed in the best cloud services for your company, without having to dig through countless options on your own.

Migrating Everything All at Once

Particularly if you are new to cloud computing, you may want to consider a slower migration rather than switching everything all at once. It may not be an issue of whether or not you can handle the migration, but that other staff might not see the value in cloud computing if your company has never done it before.

Test the waters with one app or a chunk of data. See how it works. When you are able to show the rest of the company that it went well and that your business is seeing a return on investment, you can go ahead and plan to migrate the rest, knowing that everyone can understand the benefits.

Not Considering Security Issues

Migrating to the cloud can be a stressful time when it comes to data security. You need to be very careful to ensure that you are not inadvertently leaving any doors open to your sensitive information while migrating.
Consult with the experts to ensure that the migration process does not leave you vulnerable, and that your chosen cloud solution is secure enough for your needs.
Once your business has migrated to the cloud, you should update any security processes and protocols to reflect the new environment.

Not Planning the Migration Process Properly

There are various ways migrating to the cloud can fall apart as its own process.
For one, have you considered the full cost of migration? Many IT departments or C-level executives may underestimate the true cost of switching to the cloud, from the cost of the cloud services themselves, to the cost of the work hours the department will have to spend on preparing for migration, and completing the process.

The time expenditure of migrating to the cloud should also be considered. Does the IT department have the hours, and the staff, to spare? Who will maintain regular IT duties with the migration happening?
When you take the time to plan out a migration to the cloud properly, you can identify potential issues before they occur. One good way to handle a migration without impacting your regular business operations is to outsource the migration, leaving it in the hands of experts who have completed this process many times in the past.

With outsourced migration services your company will have all of the benefits of switching to the cloud, without losing out on regular hours, and when you consider the cost of paying the IT department to switch, plus potential lost business while their focus is on migration, it can actually be quite cost-effective to outsource.

What to Do if You Experience a Problem

If you run into one of these common pitfalls, or another issue, don’t panic! Even the most experienced IT professionals have problems migrating to the cloud. You can always call in expert advice and cloud migration services for help, taking the pressure off your in-house IT department and getting another perspective.

With good planning, and experts on call to help with migrating to the cloud, you will have your company’s apps, resources, and data on the cloud and ready to use in no time at all.