Cloud Transformation Journey

For most companies, digitalization is now a reality, even a necessity. Almost every organization is therefore either taking steps in the area of digital services, or should be doing do so to remain relevant in the long run. Cloud technology is one of the drivers of the Digital Flow movement because it allows you to focus on business and business innovation, and to insource the basic IT components required for this as a scalable service.

IDC: as more than half the global economy turns digital by 2023, a new species of enterprise will be required to compete and thrive. Over 500 million digital apps and services will be developed and deployed using Cloud-native approaches – the same number of apps developed in the last 40 years. This explosion of new digital apps and services will define the new minimum competitive requirements in every industry.

Cloud transformation isn't just about technology, although obviously the technology component is important. It is actually more about a new way of working that will allow you to use Cloud technology to prepare your business for success in the digital world.

If you want to use the Cloud as a foundation of your digital strategy, this is not only about re-thinking IT, but also about a business turnaround and maximizing shared value across all stakeholders and domains and realizing digital leadership.

Challenges and opportunities

For many organizations, Cloud is a new environment where many aspects can and must be shaped differently in order to make optimal use of the possibilities. Security can and must be different, for example, but even cost management and investments are different. The speed with which the Cloud environment evolves also demands a new approach. Every company has its own activities and objectives and must therefore find a balanced plan. This means that the Journey to the Cloud is unique for each company, and the challenges and opportunities differ:

• Due to market pressure, new digital applications need to be deployed more quickly to keep supporting the digital business, but the IT and business organization cannot match the pace.
   
• This places huge demands on an organization, and specific skills and roles are required to apply Digital Transformation optimally – where many companies encounter a skills gap and a shortage of available talent.
   
• Many companies own Intellectual Property that is unique and often valuable to the competition (software, contracts, recipes, etc.) and therefore needs to be protected as much as possible.
   
• The same applies to data about private individuals and customers, where GDPR and related legislation are important and for which a secure solution must be found.
   
• Other companies need to renew, expand or update their data center. Smoothing peaks and troughs by using applications and infrastructure and targeted scalability can yield significant cost benefits for some companies.
   
• The application landscape also presents many companies with unavoidable challenges. Think, for example, of (legacy) applications and IT systems that have been out of date for years, and where the "technical debt" is one of the biggest stumbling blocks preventing deployment of digital services.
   
• Or think of applications that are no longer supported or in need of replacement, where a Build or Buy decision is unavoidable, also in the area of IT infrastructure and where the innovative services of the Cloud can offer added value.
   
• There are also organizations that envisage IT unburdening, with a shift from a more operational IT focus to better support for the business, through Cloud-managed PaaS and SaaS services and automation.
   
• The Cloud also supports adopting LEAN and Agile practices for business innovation and collaboration.

Three starting points: the right step in the right direction

To support you in the changes that the Cloud implies for your organization, we have defined an approach that considers all your challenges, needs and context, as well as any steps already taken in relation to the Cloud. To define where you are on this Journey and what level your ambition is, the 3 most important starting points are outlined below.

Do you recognize yourself in any of the following?

Discover Cloud

• We are interested in the Cloud, but can't see the wood for the trees.
• We need to define how we deploy the Cloud to achieve our business goals and strategy, so that we bring the key stakeholders on board.
• Everyone is moving to the Cloud, but we have some special applications and requirements that make it more complex for us. How can we resolve this? 
• We have sensitive data, and we work with a lot of personal data. Can this be done securely in the Cloud?
• How much will it cost us?
• Are there ways to integrate the Cloud securely with our existing IT environment?

In this case, Discover Cloud is the right step for you. We help you gain an overview of the possibilities, as well as the limitations. We work with you on your business case for the Cloud, answering the question of why you need it. Depending on the nature and size of your business, the answer will probably vary. However, we believe it is an important first strategic step to have a clear ambition and strategy. To realize what the impact is and to know the steps needed to get there. You can then set incremental, more technical goals for the following phases towards achieving your ambitions.

Enable Cloud

• We have a lot of applications. Which migration strategy should we use for which workload (applications, infrastructure and data)? 
• What are the fundamental building blocks of a Cloud platform?
• How can we manage an agile migration to the Cloud?
• What are some interesting case studies for us?

In this case, Enable Cloud is the right step for you. Together, we will investigate how we can give Cloud a (re)start tailored to your organization. Cloud adoption is a change that requires a clear plan which offers short and long term solutions and ensures that the right steps are taken to enter into the Cloud change as an organization.

Accelerate Cloud

• We have already experimented with the Cloud and want to get started. But where should we start?
• We are seeking a solution to the technical and organizational challenges in the Cloud.

In this case, Accelerate Cloud is the right step for you. We help your organization acquire professionalism in Cloud Architecture and Cloud Management.

Our Approach 

At Realdolmen, we are well aware of the different challenges that that come with a Cloud Transformation Journey. We have the knowledge and expertise to advise and guide you on a successful start of your Journey, and also to help realize the further development of your transformation. End-to-end, regardless of your current maturity level and fully in line with your ambition.

Collecting and processing information is key to a Cloud Transformation. We have a data-driven approach that makes your Cloud Journey reliable, measurable and transparent. In addition to an automatic tool-based inventory, our specialists will organize workshops together with stakeholders from your organization, from both IT and business, in order to analyze your current (technical) situation and business needs in an interactive way.

Together, we investigate how this can be done in the Cloud, or not. We try to look past assumptions and challenge certain situations, in order to achieve new insights and answers. In other words, the Cloud is not a goal in itself, its added value is.

In each of the three phases, we provide a report with findings, conclusions and recommendations, which gives you the necessary insight into what the Cloud can do for you, also serving as the basis for your Cloud business case.

Our Value Matrix

Are you ready for the Cloud?

If you would like to work with our experts to find out more about what the Cloud can mean for your organization, please get in touch with us.