More and more companies are adopting a multi-cloud strategy and recognizing the benefits of multiple cloud service providers. Agility, fast response times, and the ability to use the best platform for each workload are among the key arguments. However, this brings with it the challenge of ensuring seamless data movement and storage between platforms. It is imperative that enterprises integrate data portability into their cloud security model to avoid potential data loss and data silos.
Advantages of a multi-cloud strategy
Companies recognize the need for a tailored approach as their workflows become more complex. While using products from a single vendor may give the impression that a company has a unified strategy, it can result in teams being unable to complete important tasks efficiently. This is where a multi-cloud strategy comes in, allowing companies to choose from a variety of cloud providers that best leverage their individual strengths and capabilities. In this way, enterprises can select the cloud platform best suited to the workload at hand and ensure flexibility and agility. By leveraging the strengths of multiple cloud platforms, enterprises can optimize performance, availability, and cost efficiency.
In today’s economic climate, companies are also under increasing pressure to optimize their technology investments while minimizing costs. CEOs need to make strategic decisions about where to invest and what to prioritize. In some technology locations, companies based there are already advanced: according to a report by Forrester, APAC regions have one of the largest shares (37 percent) of the world’s cloud data centers, with investment increasing in emerging markets. In Australia, 59 percent of companies already use multiple public clouds.
Furthermore, a multi-cloud strategy offers additional benefits for businesses. An open approach allows teams to use the tools they are most comfortable with, reducing inefficiencies and enabling seamless workflows. The cloud market is highly competitive, resulting in better pricing for enterprises as providers strive to offer the best value.
Hurdles and strategies for successful data portability
One of the biggest challenges of a multi-cloud strategy is ensuring the seamless movement and storage of data across platforms. Legacy applications often struggle to move efficiently across platforms, making it difficult for companies that still rely heavily on them to improve data portability. Lack of infrastructure is also a major barrier to seamless data exchange between platforms, which can be particularly challenging for smaller organizations. They may not have the resources to invest in the infrastructure needed to improve data portability.
To enhance data portability, organizations can take the opportunity to digitally clean up and remove unnecessary applications. Categorization can help; for example, by classifying data as follows: ‘Good’ for critical data that needs to be available, ‘Green’ for data that will be retained for a specific time, and ‘Away’ to summarize unnecessary data that should be removed. Removing unnecessary data reduces data complexity and the risk of data loss during migration. Additionally, it is critical to apply a cloud security model from the outset. This builds platforms around a unified system that enables centralized management. This allows organizations to monitor data across multiple cloud platforms and reduce the risk of data loss or corruption.
Organizations should also strive not only for the “best” data portability but also for sustainable data portability. This can be achieved through a business impact analysis to determine the potential consequences of service disruption and the appropriate level of data portability. The business impact analysis should also identify the risks of data loss, corruption, or compromise during migration. In this way, companies can plan for potential data issues and minimize potential downtime.
Safely navigating the multi-cloud with data portability
Overall, a multi-cloud strategy can bring significant benefits to enterprises. However, to ensure seamless data movement and storage across different platforms, enterprises must integrate data portability into their cloud security model. By removing unnecessary applications, applying a cloud security model, and striving for data-specific sustainability, organizations can improve their data portability, and avoid data silos, and potential losses. With careful planning and implementation, enterprises can reap the full benefits of a multi-cloud strategy.
By Rick Vanover, Senior Director of Product Strategy at Veeam