As the world continues to adapt in the aftermath of 2020’s global disruptions, it’s clear that recent changes to operations and workplaces (although initially thought to be temporary) are creating ongoing and systemic impacts. Today, we continue to see a fundamental shift in the IT solutions organizations are trusting to manage hyper-distributed, remote users while ensuring ongoing and operational excellence.
Hybrid cloud has proved to be a huge asset in a pandemic-driven world. To explore why this IT framework has become crucial and discuss the potential it still holds moving forward, Involta’s own Enterprise Architect, Ryan Shultz, recently joined JSA’s Virtual Roundtable alongside an esteemed panel of industry experts from Google Cloud, Maven Wave, and more.
Defining the Hybrid Cloud
Despite its growing adoption, the cloud still seems to be a relatively undefined idea rather than an easily understood strategy. To draw value from hybrid cloud implementations, businesses first need to understand what cloud entails. With that said, the Roundtable conversation kicked off with defining exactly what hybrid cloud means today. Panelists noted hybrid, at its core, denotes a mixture — in this case, a mixture of clouds. In practice, this can look like an organization still having an on-prem presence in their own data center while simultaneously allocating workloads in a public cloud. Distinct from multi-cloud approaches, however, hybrid cloud utilizes an orchestration layer that manages the interactions between disparate environments to deliver cross-functional solutions.
As hybrid cloud architecture grows in adoption, its role in the new IT framework is becoming more defined and widely accepted. However, the motivations for adoption among organizations remain varied, as do the ways in which the hybrid cloud is deployed on a case-by-case basis.
So, what do organizations’ priorities look like after a year of ongoing change and adaptation?
A New Business Psychology
A global pandemic has certainly changed the way organizations cater to customers, creating an emphasis on delivering positive results and service excellence regardless of uncontrollable external factors. This is one reason a hybrid cloud strategy has become key — it allows for greater flexibility, scalability, and ease when weathering disruptions to business as usual, in turn helping customer experiences thrive. However, as we look back on the past year, we begin to see how 2020 should also encourage the eyes of the enterprise to turn inward.
Shultz notes, “One of the things that we’ve seen out in the industry is … [organizations] have been extremely focused on the customer. They’ve been making all the improvements they can for the customer, but they haven’t necessarily looked introspectively at their own organization. How can they improve processes? How can they reduce costs? The pandemic has helped turn the visibility inside.”
Shifting technology to be more agile and resilient by looping in multiple IT environments doesn’t just help businesses cater to their customers’ needs; it helps them cater to their own. Businesses need data and insights faster and in more locations than ever before — and this upward trend in demand for speed and mobility shows no signs of slowing down. The cloud has been crucial for businesses that have needed to reinvent the way they manage data and workloads in order to achieve cost benefits, greater reliability, or more powerful IT capabilities.
Easing the Transition
While this discussion outlines the growing importance of hybrid cloud and its applications, it also brings to mind the challenges that come with its adoption. The recent interplay of digital transformation and disruption means that IT complexity can be at an all-time high for some organizations. Changes to technology solutions can seem daunting despite often being absolutely vital for success. As the world continues to distribute, finding new solutions for evolving requirements and building stronger for the future, hybrid cloud applications will continue to be a mainstay of the new IT toolset. Furthermore, the way the hybrid cloud is implemented will likely look different depending on each organization’s needs — so how does a business ensure it’s getting the right IT foundation?
Running parallel to the roundtable insights is the idea that organizations today don’t just need an IT solution that solves their challenges — they need a way to integrate those solutions that doesn’t compromise their existing day-to-day operations while delivering speed to innovation. Business transformation takes the right people, processes, and technology. This is why Involta continues to serve as an ally that helps businesses get the results they need while remaining free to focus on their core business.
To watch the full roundtable recording and learn more about the latest developments in hybrid cloud, click here.
To learn more about what Involta is doing to support businesses throughout cloud migrations and simplify the digital transformation process, visit www.involta.com.
