Rather than tinkering with outdated equipment to keep the lights on, CIOs are now sitting at the strategy table, determining how to harness the latest cloud technology to help drive business goals. The role of the CIO is changing, and much of their job is equipping the CEO and other key business stakeholders with the technology they need to gain a competitive edge without allowing too much risk.
For most enterprises, cloud solutions are necessary for keeping pace in a market where the end user experience is driving sales. While CEOs typically aren’t interested in hearing a detailed analysis of various cloud providers, they lean on their CIOs to deliver the agility and performance that business processes require.
In today’s environment, this often results in CIOs choosing a hybrid cloud or multi-cloud solution in which optimal performance and visibility are achieved through a mix of on-site and hosted services. Here are the areas every CIO needs to watch in order to keep the CEO on board with cloud:
Controlling costs: The big draw of cloud technology often rests on the promise of extensive cost savings, from reducing maintenance costs to the ability to implement the solution without purchasing hardware. A significant gain comes from the ability to categorize the subscription model of purchasing cloud services as operating expenses rather than capital investments.
The cost fluctuations inherent in a “pay only for what you use” type of investment sometimes emerge as problematic. Depending on the seasonality of the business, the activities of the IT development team, and activities related to accessing cold data storage, the enterprise can receive bills that are wildly different each month. CIOs need to be sure that spending is running alongside the annual budget and be ready to put some parameters in place where possible.
Shadow IT: Where it used to be necessary to petition IT for a software installation, apps are now easy to install, and the enterprise could have hundreds downloaded each day with nothing more than a corporate credit card. While line of business managers appreciate accessing the newest tools for their needs, it can create some security and broadband issues for the IT department.
Have clear policies in place for placing a new application on the network, and use employee training sessions to teach staff about the security concerns and broadband stress that are placed on resources when applications are not procured using the right protocols.
More and more businesses are adopting cloud solutions to become increasingly operationally efficient. Access Tech helps you identify the cloud services that could most benefit your company (and make your CEO happy). We can locate the carrier that will fulfill your specific cloud service requirements. Contact us today to learn more.