We have crossed a threshold: Majority of company workloads now happen it the Cloud. So, instead of our campaign to bring companies into the Cloud, we will concentrate on how to take advantage of the Cloud, and how to manage the Cloud.

Cloud-based Contact Centers: This seems to be a logical first project for the Cloud. Customer experience and revenue (capital expenditure higher than operating expenses) means cost of ownership  of Cloud versus premise-based contact centers will be lower. There is a favorable impact on the customer experience when using cloud versus premise-based contact center platforms. There is a need to address rapidly changing workloads by optimising contact center agents. Scaling allows allocating more Cloud resources in busy periods; resources can be dropped as demand decreases.

Types of Cloud Service that might be utilized are private, hybrid and public. Private and public are easy. Hybrid Clouds are a composition of two or more clouds (private, community or public) that remain unique entities but are bound together offering the advantages of multiple deployment models. In a hybrid cloud, you can leverage third party cloud providers in either a full or partial manner; increasing the flexibility of computing.

 

Augmenting a traditional private cloud with the resources of a public cloud can be used to manage any unexpected surges in workload. Hybrid cloud architecture requires both on-premise resources and off-site server based cloud infrastructure. By spreading things out over a hybrid cloud, you keep each aspect of your business in the most efficient environment possible. The downside is that you have to keep track of multiple cloud security platforms and ensure that all aspects of your business can communicate with each other.

The CIO should of course be integrated into company business strategies and must serve as a broker of internal and external  IT services to build hybrid clouds. Cloud brokers can work internally or through outsourcing. A cloud broker must manage supply to keep ahead of demand in terms of acquiring services that the enterprise can then use. IT has always been a service provider by looking for the best products at the best prices.

Keywords of importance are agility, flexibility and scalability. Technology and organizational strategies could mean a hybrid data center  with Cloud, collocation and managed services.

Applications next in line for transition to cloud must be categorized by criticality  but it's also important to consider application lifecycles, how it fits into existing infrastructure and corporate strategy in general. Freely translated: don”t spend on something that is going to go away. Any old timers out there? Remember how we used Accounts Payable as a test case always.

Understanding what it costs to deliver services internally and then using the financial information to optimize whatever your solution, whether it's private, hybrid or public, is well worth the time spent and investment.