Welcome back to our blog series on successfully migrating to the cloud. In our last entry, we discussed the pros and cons of switching to the cloud and the importance of understanding your current business needs and goals (including your remote work strategy, compliance needs, number of sites, and more).
If you’re new to this series or would like to refresh your memory, feel free to go back and review the first step before we move on to step two: considering your future business needs and goals.
Just like it’s important to have a solid sense of where you currently are before you begin the transition to the cloud, you have to know where you’re going and ensure that your cloud solution can help you get there. Here are a few key factors to keep in mind when you contemplate your organization’s future.
1. Growth. When you choose cloud-based tools and solutions, you’ll want to make sure they can expand with your company if you aim to expand in the coming years. Figure out how many locations and employees you expect to have in a few years.
2. Target markets. You’ll also want to ensure that your cloud solutions have the capabilities you need to effectively reach prospective clients in not only the markets you’re currently targeting but also any markets you plan on selling to in the future.
3. Remote sites and workers. If you anticipate any changes in the number of remote sites and/or workers your company currently has, that’s an important factor to consider before you migrate to the cloud. You’ll need to plan ahead to accommodate those changes (e.g. determining how to extend cloud-based technology to new locations).
4. Certifications and compliance. Maybe your business plans on getting certified in the near future for PCI, HIPAA, ISO, or other regulations relevant to your industry. These certifications can be a great way for your organization to attract new clients. If you’ll need to consider compliance needs in the future, that’s definitely something that comes into play when orchestrating your move to the cloud and ensuring all of your needs are met.
If you’d like some help figuring out your future needs and goals before you begin the transition to the cloud, our experts at Stratosphere Networks can answer any questions you might have and provide insight into making the migration as smooth as possible. Feel free to contact us at sales@stratospherenetworks.com or 877-599-3999.
Keep an eye out for the next post in our series to learn more about how to carry out a successful migration to the cloud.
