Throughout the pandemic, we noticed a tremendous increase in the money invested in shifting the functioning of many companies from diverse remote locations. It has accelerated the transformation of ‘work from office’ to ‘work from home.’ The digital transformation proves to be cost-effective and thus, leads to company growth on a significant scale. As a result, we can notice cloud computing adoption in every sector.
The Deloitte research suggests that two-thirds of the global organizations are chasing the cost reduction strategies during the pandemic and even in the post-COVID scenario. There is a common assumption that transforming the business to save costs is simpler when there is an instant switch to cloud technology. But, without any correct knowledge and evaluation, the actual process of cloud computing may add expenses.
However, all clouds are not equal in the support and cost-saving they offer to the companies. There are a lot of hidden fees, different complex pricing models, and many other factors that result in the total cost, which may exceed the original contract. Hence, it makes the framework challenging to test and deal with.
Alongside, various other cloud providers in the market are now available. So, it becomes difficult to look ahead to the big brands and decide on the right partner for your company. But, there is no doubt that many brands will strike the traditional costs and the additional savings. It may be challenging to identify these expenses in the first go.
So, the majority of the organizations which aren’t stable first compare features and the capabilities of various cloud tech providers. Factors like the evaluation process, setting achievable expectations, etc., help them choose the best for them.
Technology leaders need to debunk the three significant myths about cloud costs in the initial stage.
MYTH 1: One Size Fits All
The traditional concept, “you get what you pay for,” suits here. Switching to cloud technology is not an easy task. But, switching to the wrong cloud (variant) creates a financial or service or dual imbalance in the business.
- Focus on Business Apps:
Technical leaders of a company need to understand the primary business driver of their company to make cloud computing work. They need to adjust these drivers with the requirements of the business application.
- Balancing Cost, Security & Performance:
Every application requires heavy protection. So, in a “one size fits all” concept, applications become the lowest trait of the platform. Again, you have to look after the maintenance cost, performance, and security. Or, your organization might be paying a lump sum for a single application to unnecessarily make another application a hit. Thus, you may not be able to invest enough in one of the applications only because you invested too much to make the other application a hit. It negatively impacts the performance to make it a fit in your budget.
- Suggestion:
Make sure that you consider multi-cloud types for the requirement of a particular application. It may include a specific cost-sensitive app or some private cloud performance in a critical situation. These multiple approaches help reduce the risk linked to your company’s performance within the desired cost.
MYTH 2: Lesser Price, Lesser Cost!
The biggest myth is roaming globally, and companies overlook it during evaluation. It is necessary to understand the overall costs incurred by the company from a vendor. Again, the price involves the hidden charges which aren’t visible on the front. These costs vary on the cloud’s security, management, other factors, and performance imparted by the security.
For instance, if you think of purchasing a house, the monthly debt will vary and make the price tag look fascinating. However, it is first necessary to remember that utilities, maintenance, and insurance aren’t involved, depending on usage.
- Suggestion:
Make sure to adapt to the cloud’s “Total Cost of Ownership” mentality. This shown price is worth just a single line on the bill, rather than having a long list of costs. Apart from this, understanding certain other expenses on the bill is also necessary. It helps you know what your application requires and what it doesn’t. It ensures to help you meet the budget expectations.
MYTH 3: The Bigger, The Better!
Generally, a company can estimate the mistakes and the probability of overspending while adopting cloud technology. Even organizations like Google Cloud, Azure, etc., try to reduce the costs of the cloud. They try to drop additional and unnecessary services that add along with the required services.
However, it is mandatory to note that you cannot master every service. Hence, it may get difficult for you to focus on your company’s unique needs.
- Suggestion:
Remember that the cloud infrastructure is what matters in the end. Various technologies are present that are superior and have particular business requirements. And at times, a large mass may or may not adopt them.
Thus, with the services, technical leaders need to ensure that they understand the true economics of a cloud-based upfront.
Conclusion:
Further, IT leaders need to find a good fit for their cloud investment which prevents the falling of these myths. They also need to tackle the evaluation process well. Moreover, they have to audit their company’s updated needs to see if it fits the vendor solutions.
Again, the leader needs to consider the performance, cost, security, and management provided. Apart from this, recognizing the cloud need of every single organization is unique. Leaders can hence pace up the evaluation through frameworks and identify the actual cost of investment in the cloud computing. After this, they can deliver an excellent solution to translate the costs into savings for the company.
