5 Cloud Management Tips for Complex Business Environments

Much like the weather, life in the cloud is ever-changing and evolving. In fact, cloud environments continue to become more complex as businesses evolve and alter the ways they use the cloud. Most companies use at least one public cloud, while the majority of businesses use multiple clouds. Furthermore, many companies have turned to a hybrid cloud environment, using both public and private clouds simultaneously. In fact, according to a survey from Dimensional Research, as reported by Cloud Computing News, nearly 80 percent of businesses have plans to implement multi-cloud strategies in the near future.

Mastering Your Cloud Management

Recently, another new trend in cloud computing has taken off, as several businesses have introduced “fog”, or “edge,” computing to the mix. Thus, with so many different cloud options operating simultaneously, management of complex cloud environments has proven to be difficult for many enterprises. The key to finding success in managing your cloud environment is to master all your cloud properties, but how does your business accomplish this? Here are five management tips to help you master your cloud management.

Outsource to an MSP. Because cloud management can be so difficult, it makes good business sense to leave this complicated job to the professionals. A managed service provider(MSP) can help you with IT problems and identify and clean up issues instead of just covering them up. In addition, an effective MSP will help your entire operation achieve better success. Even though it might appear to be a completely separate thing, your IT is a vital and integral part of your company’s bottom line and outsourcing your cloud management to a professional and experienced MSP is a smart business choice.

Use only what you need. Even though moving to the cloud is a good idea, businesses need to consider their cloud strategy carefully. While managing your IT on both public and private clouds at the same time makes sense, make sure you don’t use more cloud space than you need. It’s smart to start slowly, and then as your cloud needs grow, along with your business, consider adding more cloud environments, including embracing a hybrid cloud computing strategy. Using too many clouds when you don’t need them could lead to confusion, as well as wasted resources that will hurt the return on your investment.

Use cloud management tools to help with monitoring. There are numerous helpful tools for hybrid cloud management to assist you. It’s important to identify and implement the appropriate tools for your specific needs. Some advantages to cloud management tools:

• Tracking and analyzing cloud expenses.
• Assisting in managing hybrid cloud integration
• Reliable app integration
• Automating repetitive tasks

Stay up to date with security and software updates. No matter the type of cloud infrastructure you operate, it’s vital to keep your security and software updates current. The main reason is to protect your private data from falling into the wrong hands. Hackers are constantly working behind the scenes, and sometimes, all it takes is a lapse in the update schedule for cyber criminals to gain access to your confidential information. Additionally, having the right software updates will ensure you are running the most current programs and applications, thus optimizing your cloud computing management.

Automate management. Automating your cloud management means creating cloud automation services that can duplicate, secure, and quantify your data, as well as utilize your cloud management tools. This is critical for your company to remain competitive. Effective cloud automation allows for more speed, security, and efficiency as it builds repeatable infrastructure, deploys rapidly and securely, and manages your complex cloud environment at any scale.

Find the Right Managed Services

With so many variables now in play with cloud infrastructure, the key to operating a successful environment is having the proper cloud management in place. Understanding and adhering to these management tips can assist your business in navigating cloud management.

Photo Credit: martinlouis2212 Flickr via Compfight cc

This article was first published on New Era Technology.