Cloud-First Strategy: Staying Ahead in Digital Age

The cloud-first strategy has been promoted in almost every industry. Moving to a cloud environment has become necessary for companies looking to thrive during the pandemic as they increasingly work remotely and lack access to data centers.

With the new trend, more companies than ever have adopted a cloud-first strategy. These include many companies from established manufacturing, retail, and healthcare industries. This approach gives them greater flexibility and efficiency at a time that has been extremely uncertain for the world and, by extension, for the economy. 

Cloud-first strategy advances regulated industries.

Healthcare is a great example of an industry capable of transforming society. At the same time, however, it is often hampered in its efforts, partly due to the sensitivity of the data it processes. This is where the cloud comes into play. It can help healthcare leaders balance progress and change with efficiency and safety.

In India, for example, the government has launched a new project, eHealth Infra, to provide the underprivileged in the country with access to public health insurance. In the past, concerns about regulation and privacy would have hampered such efforts. However, private cloud services have eclipsed many of these concerns. As a result, 26 states have joined the project, covering 45 to 47 percent of India’s population, allowing citizens to sign up for the service reliably.

The financial sector is another industry that often struggles with strict regulations and outdated technology due to the sensitive data it handles. However, since digital fintech began using their cloud-born speed to offer their customers next-generation services, incumbent financial institutions have had to rethink their strategies in favor of cloud-first. This allowed them to work with a higher level of efficiency and safety. And offer their customers the same high-quality experience that the new generation of cloud-born fintech offers.

Physical companies go virtual for more efficiency.

Even in the extremely physical manufacturing world, companies are finding new ways to adopt a cloud-first strategy. Manufacturers must keep track of many moving parts, from assembly on the factory floor to the timely delivery of raw materials. And while some operations are off-site, in the case of manufacturing execution, the workloads need to be closer to the factory floor.

So in these cases, a distribution channel of technology platforms is required to leverage edge computing. And at the same time, bringing cloud technology closer to on-site use. By using cloud tools to streamline operations and bring all of these disparate measures together into a single view, a manufacturer can dramatically improve the efficiency of their operations and reduce production times, helping both businesses to expand sustainably.

Implement a cloud-first strategy in practice.

The benefits of a cloud-first strategy are numerous. But it’s also important to see how companies work with the cloud to reap these benefits. A good example is the case of a large retailer specializing in designer fashion, accessories, and furniture. The company sought a solution for the growing number of data and applications. These occurred both physically and digitally in the course of the rapid expansion of the company.

The company also wanted the flexibility to handle spikes in traffic during discount sales, festivals, and holidays. At the same time, the system’s security should be maintained, and the costs for operation and maintenance should remain under control. By moving most of its processes, including critical workloads, to a private cloud, the retailer could meet all of these requirements and achieve increased performance, security, and instant scalability.

Adapt cloud solutions to specific requirements.

In addition, with the help of a partner who tailored the cloud solution to the company’s specific needs, secure high-speed IP and VPN connections were created between the retailer’s various locations, enabling fast data archiving, billing, and real-time backup. Enable services to protect against data loss.

Since its implementation, the retail company had a high-performance, secure, private environment with a 99.9 percent uptime guarantee. They can immediately provide additional resources to open new branches quickly if necessary. And thus better cope with the associated exponential data growth. And thanks to the 24-hour maintenance and support that the cloud provider offers 365 days a year, another benefit that derives from this service, additional resources can be easily sourced to handle seasonal traffic peaks when needed.

Implement the paradigm of a cloud-first strategy.

One of the most powerful factors driving organizations to change is their customers. Today we live in a world where the Internet has to come first for reasons of accessibility. And that affects all companies and institutions that the public interacts with in any way. However, companies looking to make this transition must know that there is no one-size-fits-all strategy for established industries. That’s why every business needs to look inward to see how they can benefit from a cloud-first approach. And look outward to find a partner to help make the transition as seamless as possible.

We all know that cloud technology will be part of the future of every business. However, the true winners of the coming years will be those companies that not only figure out how to optimize their current operations with a cloud-first strategy but also begin to lay the foundations for exponential growth in the future.