Assessment Services and Training Simplify Your Journey to the Cloud

"With so much media coverage and exuberance about various Cloud computing benefits and options, it is a humbling experience to realize that we don't know where to start" was a recent comment from one of our clients. Undertaking changes of any magnitude can be a challenge, however, embracing a new paradigm shift, like transitioning to the Cloud, adds another dimension.

By most accounts, the adoption rate of the Cloud has been phenomenal implying somewhat easier start with the Cloud. For businesses to start offering Cloud services, they need to leverage or acquire a minimal set of technologies and partnerships before they can offer a sustainable and competitive set of services to the fast evolving marketplace. Users ability to start using the Cloud depends on  two main factors: i) workload requirements that are potential targets for the Cloud and ii) Cloud expertise within their organization.

Whether you are a business, providing services, that is planning to add Cloud Services or a user preparing to transition your current IT environment into a future architecture that includes the Cloud, you most likely offer a range of services based on older technologies and solutions. This represents a dual challenge for you, i.e., adopting the Cloud while insuring uninterrupted business operations and data security. In addition, navigating through internal and external competing forces in offering or adopting new services can be hard.

You can simplify your journey to the Cloud by starting with training and use of some well defined services. Purposeful Clouds' Building Cloud Business services, targeted at service providers, and Assessment Services, targeted at users, will help you get started and will deliver value at every step of the engagement.

Arrow's Purposeful Clouds Cube

Let me share some insight on how we simplify our clients' journey to the Cloud. We use the above cube to put our arms around various Cloud Services and Models. We find the right place in the cube for each workload. Using 3-tier application as an example workload, we determine if the whole workload or parts of it are suitable for IaaS, PasS or SaaS, Then we look at sensitivities as they relate to Service Level requirements and map them on to the right Cloud model such as private, community, public or hybrid cloud.

Arrow Enterprise Computing Solutions, a business segment of Arrow Electronics Inc., for example, offers many cloud services to choose from, for their VARs and for end-users. Purposeful Clouds in strategic alliance with the Arrow Fusion (SM) team of Arrow ECS, has added a robust new set of Assessment and Migration services that help Arrow ECS VARs and end-users to start taking advantage of the cloud with greater ease. These services are complemented with the Cloud Business Imperatives training from Purposeful Clouds Academy.

Our client referred to in the beginning of this blog, is working on offering training and assessment services as part of their ever-evolving portfolio to their end-users. Please share with us your thoughts and experiences as you start or navigate your journey to the Cloud.

You can get more details about the  assessment services by replaying our recent Webinar.

Happy New Year!!!

Cheers!!!!!!
Chander Khanna