Johannesburg, 30 Mar 2020
Data storage providers need to start delivering the ‘public cloud experience’ by ensuring that fast, reliable data storage is provided via private cloud solutions. Moreover, these private cloud solutions need to be made readily available even in times like we are facing now due to COVID-19. The public cloud has set a ‘gold-standard’ for user experience. Unfortunately, although the public cloud has the advantage of being extremely agile it can prove extremely costly on a three-year comparison. Conversely, the private cloud is far more cost effective but lacks the agility that makes the cloud appealing in the first place. In order to get the best of both worlds, a hybrid approach is deemed necessary and according to IDC’s IaaSView 2019 findings,52% of respondents report that they currently have a hybrid cloud infrastructure already in place. With intelligent technology it is possible to obtain a public cloud-like experience on a private cloud with multiple benefits.
The reality is hybrid
There are unique values in the public cloud that are a difficult ‘sell’ when talking about private cloud storage. For example, Artificial Intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML) or data lakes cannot be cost effectively achieved on premise. You need to move these functions into the public cloud because it is the only cost-effective way to obtain the processing power required. Other areas such as internal websites and simple technology environments often have no place in the cloud. However, the ‘no brainer” answer mostly applies to the ends of the complexity-spectrum. For approximately 80% of the applications it is possible to place them either in the private cloud or the public cloud.
Simplistic ‘lift and shift’ of entire IT infrastructure into the cloud has proven to be very expensive and is in fact the equivalent of business suicide. But with some values uniquely offered in the cloud, a hybrid approach is the only logical reality to balance both cost and benefit.
Tactical versus strategic planning
Deciding what to move into the public cloud and what to keep in a private cloud requires an in-depth understanding of business requirements. Often, when a new product or service needs to be launched, the agility and speed of the public cloud are its main drawcards. It is also useful for short-term projects where obtaining infrastructure is too time consuming or expensive.
Nevertheless, while these are both legitimate use cases, the long-term impact needs to be considered. When new products are launched, time to market is critical. Businesses compete on agility, and the ability to launch instantly is what results in the cloud winning. However, taking this decision tactically on an ad hoc basis often results in greater expenses down the line. Strategic planning is critical, including having an exit strategy from the cloud in order to migrate data to a more cost-effective platform later.
Creating that balance
If public cloud is fast and agile, whereas the private cloud is more cost-effective and more easily secured – this begs the question, can we make the private cloud more agile, so it can be a true alternative to the public cloud?
Private cloud agility is mostly limited by their traditional procurement processes. These processes may further be impacted by the increased risk of delayed shipments due to COVID-19. Conversely, public cloud services can be consumed instantly, billed after the fact and scaled dynamically, whereas the procurement process for physical infrastructure are not yet instantaneous.
Organisations therefore need to rethink procurement, process and automation whilst working with a storage provider who has made provision during the current pandemic thereby ensuring that inventory is available and that minimal disruptions occur in the manufacturing supply chain. Additionally, if IT organisations are to provide a more cost-efficient alternative to their business units, they must introduce agility to their private cloud. As a result, organisations need to make use of modern storage technologies to deliver Capacity on Demand (COD) or pay-as-you-grow models, shortening the procurement process from months to a few hours and making the private cloud a far more attractive option in terms of business agility.
A simple way of thinking about a change such as this is by asking whether or not the business unit will be willing to pay 20% more for a public cloud solution that gets them what they need in minutes, if their private-cloud solution would take a day? Private clouds don’t necessarily have to be as on-par with public clouds, only good enough to help their business units get to market quickly and cost-efficiently.
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