When it comes to cloud, there are 2 kinds of businesses out there. Ones that have adopted cloud and ones that don’t yet know they have. A plethora of services from emails, media and file storage to various mobile apps are cloud based in some form.
From a business point of view these services bring great deal of advantages at shockingly affordable prices. These advantages, however, come with their own perils. We have complied a list of top 5 pitfalls of using cloud that should be actively avoided.
Don’t go cheap
With global price wars between industry giants and smaller players, going cheap should not be an option. In the end only the fittest will survive. Given the relatively low differentiation in product offerings it would certainly be wiser to choose a well-established service provider irrespective of the price. Ultimately you will get what you pay for.
Don’t lock yourself in a contract
Small and medium sized organisation should avoid contracts where ever possible as a general rule. Cloud services is a rapidly changing industry. Even a 2 year contract could become very restrictive and stop you harnessing the full advantages of ongoing innovations.
Don’t allow free access
One of the biggest advantages of cloud computing is its ease of use and accessibility. It opens up a range of possibilities like accessing emails on your smartphones and files on multiple devices anywhere, any time. While it may have been main reason to go cloud, without a well formed IT governance policy and security strategy, it will quickly and easily turn into a nightmare.
Don’t ignore ongoing monitoring
Another huge selling point of cloud services is that need for maintenance is little to none. While there may not be any need to maintenance, ongoing monitoring of services should not be overlooked. Every service has its own variables, thresholds and limitations. They need to be monitored regularly to ensure optimal usage, avoid cost blow-outs and in some cases service outages.
Don’t forgo local backups
Most cloud services run from multiple data-centres with multiple backups and fail-safe technologies which ensure that you will have your service up and running even if one of the data-centres were to go down. Some offer additional backup services as well. Which is all well and great until you suddenly lose your internet connection or in a worst case scenario the service provider’s entire operation is hacked and rendered inaccessible. Always work on the philosophy that there can never be too many backups. Having a local backup solution will keep you and your team going no matter what.
While innovative technologies bring a great deal of improvements in our live and businesses, they do come with their own pitfalls. What other pitfalls have you come across while adopting cloud technologies? Feel free to leave us a comment below.
From a business point of view these services bring great deal of advantages at shockingly affordable prices. These advantages, however, come with their own perils. We have complied a list of top 5 pitfalls of using cloud that should be actively avoided.
Don’t go cheap
With global price wars between industry giants and smaller players, going cheap should not be an option. In the end only the fittest will survive. Given the relatively low differentiation in product offerings it would certainly be wiser to choose a well-established service provider irrespective of the price. Ultimately you will get what you pay for.
Don’t lock yourself in a contract
Small and medium sized organisation should avoid contracts where ever possible as a general rule. Cloud services is a rapidly changing industry. Even a 2 year contract could become very restrictive and stop you harnessing the full advantages of ongoing innovations.
Don’t allow free access
One of the biggest advantages of cloud computing is its ease of use and accessibility. It opens up a range of possibilities like accessing emails on your smartphones and files on multiple devices anywhere, any time. While it may have been main reason to go cloud, without a well formed IT governance policy and security strategy, it will quickly and easily turn into a nightmare.
Don’t ignore ongoing monitoring
Another huge selling point of cloud services is that need for maintenance is little to none. While there may not be any need to maintenance, ongoing monitoring of services should not be overlooked. Every service has its own variables, thresholds and limitations. They need to be monitored regularly to ensure optimal usage, avoid cost blow-outs and in some cases service outages.
Don’t forgo local backups
Most cloud services run from multiple data-centres with multiple backups and fail-safe technologies which ensure that you will have your service up and running even if one of the data-centres were to go down. Some offer additional backup services as well. Which is all well and great until you suddenly lose your internet connection or in a worst case scenario the service provider’s entire operation is hacked and rendered inaccessible. Always work on the philosophy that there can never be too many backups. Having a local backup solution will keep you and your team going no matter what.
While innovative technologies bring a great deal of improvements in our live and businesses, they do come with their own pitfalls. What other pitfalls have you come across while adopting cloud technologies? Feel free to leave us a comment below.
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