What shape is your cloud? Part 1

Almost every child has looked at a cloud and said, “That cloud looks like a _____.” The filled-in blank often becomes the point of highly subjective argument. In much the same way, IT professionals continuously seek to fill in the blank with an understanding of “cloud computing” and we’ve learned that what you see in your cloud has a lot to do with what’s important to your company. However, the general concept of “the cloud” does not have to lack a defined shape or be complicated.

FAQ: Cloud computing demystified

This is part one of two columns on this subject intended to help you consider the options. In this column we address specific opportunities and benefits hosted and managed cloud services. In the second column we’ll discuss the signals and inflection points to help you determine the most appropriate time to begin addressing cloud options within your organization and present strategies for how you can make it happen.

Simply put, cloud computing is a dynamically scalable set of computing resources available from outside your network. It is a virtualized computing environment in the broadest sense of the term, “virtual.” It often includes online applications from a service provider, but can also include hosted and managed infrastructure services, which are an often-overlooked but viable option for many SMBs.

Much of the discussion around cloud computing is appropriately focused on accessing sophisticated applications (for example CRM) that can be prohibitively costly for a small or mid-sized business to either develop and manage itself or to purchase and customize. But consider your company’s non-proprietary infrastructure as well. After all, every IT manager would prefer to tackle strategic, high-value computing issues, so look to a partner for assistance with your core infrastructure and platforms, such as:

 Microsoft Exchange service and capacity.

 Cisco network infrastructure.

 Voice/data platforms.

 Storage.

Small and midsized businesses typically cite purchase and transition costs as the main deterrent to adopting a new technology, but that is precisely the attractiveness of moving your infrastructure to the cloud. You will realize several immediate business benefits: You’ll convert what has previously been a capital investment into an operating expense. For your finance department these recognizable benefits include simpler accounting, more accurate matching of current cash flow with actual use and life of the computing resource, and freed investment capital for other organizational uses. Infrastructure operates 24/7, and internal staffing necessary to support it means added cost and the nagging headaches of dealing with on-call-overnight coverage. The staffing challenges are two-fold; not only do you need to find qualified staff, you need to keep them happy and, in the ultra-competitive market for IT experts, this can be easier said than done. In addition to finding the staff, you need somewhere to house them and with that comes the expense of a dedicated on-site or remote facility. Put your infrastructure in the cloud, and those headaches dissipate. Basic infrastructure upgrades often consume entire SMB IT staffs, competing with and impeding the other vital support services they provide users. Moving those infrastructure components to the cloud avoids the disruptions that system-wide upgrades can cause.

1. Your CFO will approve:

2. You’ll alleviate some headaches:

3. Your users will approve:

Cloud or bust?

Do you need to make a headlong leap into the cloud? No. In fact, that very notion contributes to the technology adoption deterrence discussed earlier. There are strategies available to get your feet wet before making the dive. For instance, you can easily move your less critical items to a “public cloud” – over the Internet – and you may do so one application or service at a time. With more care and thought, you can just as easily move more critical items to a “private cloud” – a hosted or managed approach – that is more secured and appropriate for company-confidential or sensitive data and functions. You can also employ a hybrid approach and dip into both pots if you wish.

The beauty and simplicity of the cloud allows you to pick and choose a solution that works best for your SMB by presenting a vantage point from which you can identify the “best of breed” solutions for multiple areas of your infrastructure rather than going with a monolithic solution from one vendor.

Pursuing infrastructure in the cloud puts your organization in good company. Consider a couple of examples that have forged their own path and realized substantial benefits from doing so:

Cloud-based Web site infrastructureIndustry: Electric power utility

Challenge: Needed to update to new e-commerce site while existing site stayed live

Solution: Adopted utility computing infrastructure (Hosted Enterprise Infrastructure) in multiple data centers to quickly roll out new Web site and add enhanced disaster-recovery capabilities.

Benefits: Reduced capital costs, capacity on demand, enhanced hardware failure recovery

Cloud-based e-mail marketing response infrastructureIndustry: Marketing agency

Challenge: Needed short-term (three months) server capacity for marketing promotion

Solution: Added utility computing infrastructure (Hosted Enterprise Infrastructure) to existing dedicated infrastructure to handle campaign overflow traffic

Benefits: Reduced capital costs, capacity on demand, overall cost savings

In our next column, we’ll discuss the clues and indicators that you might be ready to make the next step into the cloud.