Now that you understand what hybrid IT is, how it can transform your business, and you have a firm grasp of what you need to consider before starting your hybrid IT journey, it’s time to talk about next steps.
Overhauling your IT infrastructure can be a huge undertaking and one that requires a fulsome understanding and well-thought-out plan. Often the most challenging aspect of the overall process is understanding your workload and workflows, both today and going forward, to determine what should stay on-prem and what should migrate to the cloud. This will enable you to be most adaptive and agile for existing and future business needs. Doing so also ensures you’re maximizing efficiency with both costs and resources, avoiding over-provisioning or unintentional hoarding of resources.
To help you with this process, I’ve compiled a list of the top three things to consider with your workload/workflow analysis.
1. Consider hyperconverged versus traditional three-tier architecture.
Three-tier architecture – that which is comprised of servers, network and storage – can be cumbersome and difficult to manage on-prem. Having multiple bits of infrastructure that need to be patched and managed is onerous and resource heavy. But there will be things that you really want agility for, but just don’t feel comfortable putting in the cloud. For those apps – and ideally your entire on-prem infrastructure – hyperconverged architecture is definitely worth considering. Taking a hyperconverged approach means collapsing your servers and storage into the one appliance, thereby simplifying your infrastructure for ease of administration: you only have one appliance to manage, and manual patching is eliminated, providing a cloud-like experience on-prem.
2. Identify opportunities for automation.
Automation refers to putting into a code or script what would otherwise be a sprawling array of manual processes and mouse clicks executed by an IT team member over the course of days or weeks. Identifying where and how you can automate core functions streamlines the day-to-day tasks and increases cost and resource efficiencies. Further, once you’ve incorporated automation you can then orchestrate – tie together your various bits of automation, like instruments in an orchestra – to take your processes to the next level. Imagine the possibilities if you could orchestrate between your networking, server, storage, operating system and database. Automation can help transform your business, free-up resources and alleviate a lot of heavy lifting for your in-house pros.
3. Regulate your IT spend by using a consumption-based solution.
Consumption-based cloud is just what it sounds like – only paying for the cloud space you use. Organizations that are used to a capital expenditure model (versus an operational expenditure model) may be concerned about transitioning to cloud. In a hybrid model, you still leverage your existing IT investment for on-prem applications but apply a subscription model for your cloud apps. This can provide tremendous cost savings. In a consumption-based model, you see clearly what you’re spending and where, and can make informed decisions around workflow; switching easily between on-prem and cloud depending on the needs of your business – and your budget. One option to consider is HPE’s GreenLake solution that offers a suite of tools to help improve day-to-day visibility and ongoing management in a consumption-based cloud model.
There’s a lot to consider when transitioning from an exclusively on-prem environment to a hybrid IT model. But the good news is, there’s plenty of support and expertise to help you along the way. Underpinning that entire journey is governance, ease of ongoing operations and management, which are often overlooked when first starting your journey. It’s tempting to focus on the trip towards the destination, but what are your plans for once you’ve arrived? Tapping into a team of experts who have a fulsome understanding of best practices can help ensure you avoid the unforeseen costs and hurdles that are often mentioned when transitioning to the cloud.
If you’re looking for help, Compugen can perform an exhaustive review of your current IT infrastructure with our Compugen & HPE GreenLake Assessment. At the end of the assessment, you’ll have greater visibility into your current environment and, based on the results, we can help you transition to new solutions and provide ongoing support once implemented
If you’re looking to start your journey and want advice along the way, we’re here. We’ll offer you an informed opinion and tailored suggestions. Or we can just share a (virtual) coffee. Please reach out, I’d love to discuss it with you.
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