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Across industries, geographical areas, business types and sizes, and even internal departments, the cloud continues to transform the way business gets done. 90% of businesses are now on the cloud – not just for storage, but for operations – as they seek greater efficiency, scalability, security, enhanced real-time data, and cost savings from a cloud transition project.
However, there are a few issues businesses commonly experience when transitioning to the cloud. It’s important to be aware of these potential pitfalls before and during the cloud adoption process.
“While the cloud offers a multitude of benefits that businesses can no longer live without, moving to the cloud isn’t as seamless and efficient as many make it seem,” says Joe Unger, VP of Business Development at Vaultas. “There are challenges that businesses need to be aware of, so they can plan for and address them – before beginning a complex migration project.”
In this article we’ll go discuss the top 6 cloud transition challenges including:
- Security and data protection
- Compliance
- IT infrastructure
- Time and Money
- Talent shortage
- Risk of project failure
Why Move to Cloud Computing?
By adopting cloud solutions, companies gain significant operational efficiency and scalability, allowing for rapid adaptation to market changes. This technology enables cost-effective access to enterprise-level IT resources without the need for heavy upfront investments-–crucial for enabling agility and innovation.
Additionally, the cloud enhances collaboration across global teams, ensuring continuous availability and security of data. Ultimately, leveraging cloud computing not only reduces operational costs but also positions businesses at the forefront of technological advancements and market trends.
| Cloud Computing Facts: 80% of companies see operational improvements within the first few months of cloud adoptionMedium-sized businesses find using third-party cloud platforms 40% more cost-effective than maintaining in-house systems 67% of all enterprise infrastructure was cloud-based at the end of 2021 |
Top Cloud Transition Challenges Businesses Face
1. Security Risks and Data Protection
There are several concerns related to the security of data placed in the cloud. The number of cloud security breaches have surpassed on-premise breaches, according to Verizon’s DBIR report. Just as alarming, 80% of companies experience at least one cloud security event each year.
When transitioning to the cloud it’s critical to adopt the necessary security measures needed to protect your data, infrastructure, and keep you in compliance with security regulations.
How are so many businesses being breached? Well, several studies indicate that misconfigurations during cloud migrations are a leading cause. These are human errors that occurred during the transition process. Some examples of misconfigurations include:
- Unsecured data back ups
- Insecure data transit
- Missing logs
- Lack of monitoring
- IAM misconfigurations
- And several more
2. Compliance
Compliance requirements are growing in volume and rigidity. Businesses must follow these strict compliance rules or face severe financial penalties. Meta (Facebook) was slapped with a fine of $1.3 billion for violating GDPR protocols.
While Meta’s record-breaking fine is an extreme example, it’s not uncommon for companies to be fined thousands and even millions of dollars for non-compliance violations. Since GDPR’s inception in 2018 until 2023, a total of 1,576 fines have been issued.
However, there seems to be some confusion about whether companies or cloud service providers are responsible for protecting the personally identifiable information in the cloud. For instance, if a healthcare company stores patient data and personal information in a public cloud, such as Microsoft Azure, who is responsible to meet relevant regulations such as HIPAA?
Ultimately, even when working with a public cloud, it is always the company’s responsibility to protect its customers’ information and bring itself into compliance with compliance regulations.
3. IT Infrastructure
IT infrastructure is increasingly becoming convoluted for businesses as they add more applications, vendors, and complex digital synapses to their digital environments. Moving a multifaceted system isn’t simple in the best scenario, and shifting to a completely new environment, such as moving from on-premise to the cloud, takes care, precision, and thoughtful planning.
An added layer of difficulty in cloud transitions and IT infrastructure is that companies are increasingly opting for a hybrid cloud and infrastructure. Hybrid infrastructures—a blend of on-prem, private cloud, and public cloud environments—are quickly becoming the new normal. 56% of companies with revenue above $500 million use a hybrid cloud approach.
Your Cloud Solutions Should Drive Results
4. Time and Money
Cloud transformations are extensive undertakings that require time and financial resources. Depending on the complexity of the transition, a cloud migration project can cost anywhere from $5,000 to well over $100,000.
From the pre-migration analysis to the post-migration support, experienced, knowledgeable engineers and professionals are needed to plan the project and ensure the final result is a cloud-based infrastructure that’s secure, efficient, available, and meets the needs of the business and its people seamlessly.
In addition to money, these processes require significant investments of internal labor resources. The size, complexity, and scope of the project will determine how long a cloud transition will take, however, teams should be prepared for it to last anywhere from 2 months to 2 years.
5. Additional IT Department Work
While migrating to the cloud can save a company time and money, that savings often comes with a trade-off: an increased burden on IT departments, especially for those working with multi-cloud environments and private clouds.
IT teams report spending more time on managerial tasks after moving workloads to the cloud. This can mean less time to spend on improving data security and on general IT projects. Finding enough skilled, experienced IT professionals to support the increase of work is increasingly challenging and a serious IT talent shortage exists in the USA.
This Gartner study from 2021 found that 64% of IT executives felt the current tech talent shortage is keeping them from adopting emerging technologies. And, according to a report by the IMF, the current tech talent shortage could lead to more than 85 million unfilled jobs around the globe by 2030.
6. Risk of Project Failure
A large percentage of cloud transition and migration projects fail or stall out. Some reports say that 80% of projects fail and others report that only 50% of these projects fail.
While the real number is unknown, industry insiders are keenly aware that cloud transitions and transformations are unsuccessful.
| More expert insight on cloud technology for business goals: The Difference Between Hyperscale and Colocation Here’s How to Protect Your Backups From Ransomware Colocation vs. Managed Hosting vs. the Cloud |
Cloud Transformation Best Practices: Start with a Trusted Partner
So how can businesses overcome these burdens to realize the efficiencies that come with transitioning to the cloud? Start your project on the right foot and get the right people involved in your cloud transition plan.
At Vaultas, we’re experienced in cloud migration, complex or hybrid data center solutions, data security and much more. We can help businesses gain maximum efficiency while maintaining compliance and security.
Contact us today to get started.
