Everyone is talking about digital transformation. It may be somewhat of a buzz phrase at the moment as companies around the world navigate the realities of distributed work, but the digital transformation trend is nothing new. Back in 2017, the IDC reported that global spend on transformation technologies – hardware, software, and services – had hit $1.3 trillion. The tech research company also forecast that this figure was expected to almost double by 2021.

So, what is all of this money being spent on?

Well, digital transformation sees digital technologies used to streamline processes and make business operations more efficient or effective. Cloud is increasingly being recognised as a major catalyst for digitalisation because it offers enterprises the opportunity to cut costs, improve services and increase their speed to market. But this doesn’t mean that migrating to the cloud guarantees digital transformation success. For many businesses, it is difficult to tap into the real benefits of cloud and realise its value. Below are a few guidelines to help you overcome these barriers and enjoy the true benefits of cloud.

Recognise the barriers

A 2019 Information Week survey found that 65% of the people cited risk as the key obstacle to their cloud transformation. Other major barriers included more technical issues relating the need to manage legacy infrastructure and/or application sprawl, as well as the complexity of business and organisational change. Before you get started on your cloud journey, it’s critical to sit down and identify any stumbling blocks that could hinder your plans. Once you’ve done so, you can put processes and procedures in place to prevent these issues from having a negative impact on your cloud success.

Create a strong strategy

 Once you understand the potential barriers, you need to develop a solid strategy that takes into account where you currently are on your cloud journey and where you’d like to be. A good strategy includes actionable items with clear timelines and ensures that all efforts are driven toward the ultimate cloud goal. The strategy needs to be clearly communicated to the right people, so everyone understands the role they play in achieving cloud success. Once you have this start and end point, you can hash out how you plan to fill in the gaps.

Enable your IT team

Got a lot of gaps to fill? You’ll need your IT teams’ help with that. As part of your cloud strategy, you must be able to leverage the knowledge, people and technology you need, when you need it. This could mean hiring new staff or offering training to existing staff so that they are properly equipped to guide you along your cloud journey. At times, outsourcing is a simpler approach. Partnering with a trusted and experienced cloud provider means that you will spend less time worrying about the technicalities and more time concentrating on innovation and other business initiatives.

Optimise spend

Runaway costs are common with self-managed cloud solutions. This is because of the ineffective management of resources and approvals. A few years ago, a US tech CEO shared a story about a public cloud server that was accidentally left running over a three-day long weekend, which saw their bill increase from $2 300 to $23 000. Cloud cost management provides visibility of the entire cloud environment. This, in turn, enables optimal performance and reduces the risk of spending more than you can afford.

Today, digital transformation is practically a requirement for modern businesses looking to remain relevant. And cloud computing has quickly become a critical transformation game changer. Need help on your journey to the cloud? We can assist. Sign up for a Cloud Expense OneView Trial via our Azure Marketplace listing, here.