From file sharing and collaboration to customer relationship management and productivity, cloud applications have transformed how — and where — we work. And these days, they’ve become more critical than ever as millions of people around the world find themselves working remotely, and relying on cloud applications to power both their personal and professional lives. It’s one of the trends driving Gartner’s prediction that, by 2022, cloud spend will total more than $330 billion.
Another reason for the trend? The ease of implementing in the cloud. But with that ease of implementation comes an inclination to over-provision resources. The evidence: According to recent research from APM Digest, 69% of respondents surveyed reported over-spending their cloud budget by 25% or more. Left unchecked, this kind of over-investment can translate to massive inefficiency across both IT and the business. But there is hope: Businesses can take back control of the cloud with the right approach.
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Taking Control of the Cloud
In the second episode of the Shifting Left podcast, I sat down with one of our resident cloud experts, Vikram Parmar, to get his take on how IT leaders can avoid the often-times spiraling cost of cloud investment.
A few of the steps Parmar recommends for how IT can take control of the cloud to minimize costs include:
#1 – Align IT and business stakeholders.
Most IT teams want to do more with less, opting for a “lift and shift approach” to migrating to the cloud. Problem is, this approach doesn’t typically reflect the actual investment of time and resources required for success. Ultimately, says Parmar, this can have negative consequences for IT teams trying to prove value to the business. That’s why, he says, IT stakeholders need to be upfront with business counterparts about what’s required for a successful cloud migration, and align on a strategy that’s realistic and right-sized for their business.
#2 – Start with on-demand instances.
While reserved instances can provide you with a significant discount compared to on-demand instances, that’s only if you’ve properly forecasted cloud usage. Although reserved instances may appear to cost less upfront, you’re also committing to a specified level of usage ahead of time. And reserving the wrong size instance can cost you more in the long run.
Parmar advises starting with on-demand or spot instances for a few months to assess utilization and understand your baseline before moving to reserved instances.
#3 – Implement APM early in the cloud journey.
While the journey to the cloud looks different for every organization, the point at which to implement an application performance monitoring (APM) solution is more straightforward. Like baking the perfect cake, Parmar says, a successful cloud migration is all about adding the right ingredients, in the right order, at the right time. And the time to acquire an APM solution is before workloads start moving to the cloud.
Are you in control of your cloud environment?
While the cost of over-provisioning cloud resources can have expensive consequences, it doesn’t have to be that way. With the right approach, IT teams can align business and technology stakeholders to avoid hidden costs, mitigate risk, and take back control.
Listen to the full episode of the Shifting Left podcast
Listen to the full episode for more actionable insights from special guest Vikram Parmar on how IT teams can overcome monitoring challenges and maintain control in the cloud.