Will AI help in Cloud modernization thereby increasing adoption rate?

As a result of the pandemic’s many changes, there has been a surge in the use of technology in the post-COVID world. Enterprises are waking up to the fact that technology provides the foundation for a competitive advantage and dictates how quickly they can adapt to changing conditions and pivot to new market opportunities. Artificial Intelligence (AI) is one such technology

While some large companies have successfully implemented specialised software-as-a-service (SaaS) solutions or chosen a cloud-first strategy for new systems, many are still struggling to realise the full benefits of transferring the majority of their business systems to the cloud. This is because businesses frequently confuse just shifting IT systems to the cloud with the transformational approach required to get the full benefits of cloud computing technologies. Lifting and shifting legacy applications to the cloud will not inevitably result in the benefits that cloud infrastructure and systems can deliver. In other circumstances, this technique can lead to IT architectures that are even more complex, laborious, and expensive than the earlier model.

Lifting and shifting is insufficient

Organizations are now prioritising growth, speed, and innovation over cost in order to stay relevant to the ever-changing trends of technology. As a result, many firms are increasing their digital investments to achieve operational excellence, accelerate business performance, and become nimbler. Moving the existing business applications that were created for the traditional IT model to the cloud as plug and play will not award the potential benefits of the cloud.

The true benefit of the cloud engineering services can be experienced only by a holistic approach towards a transformational digital strategy. With CIOs viewing cloud technology as a driver for technology modernization, many organisations are adopting cloud platforms to shift their workloads, increasing their expenditure on technology infrastructure to build a more robust cloud-enabled/high-availability environment. According to a study done by global research firm Gartner, there has been a dramatic increase in the technology deployment of more than 80% of firms, owing to fewer alternatives for cost optimization.

The Next Big Thing is Intelligent AI and Hybrid cloud

Businesses are rapidly altering as artificial intelligence (AI) reinvents ways of working and reduces the need for human interaction. According to the International Data Corporation (IDC), global spending on AI technology will exceed $79 billion by 2022. Artificial intelligence is having a significant impact on every industry and element of every company, from strategy to IT architecture, including cloud usage.

Cloud and AI synergy is resulting in faster adoption of both. Intelligent AI technology and hybrid cloud technology, when combined, provide precise, economical computing as well as a route for leveraging enormous amounts of data. Their technological collaboration enables businesses to effectively manage their data by streamlining the data management process and scalability (on a large scale), highlighting patterns and trends in data, delivering strategic insights and recommendations, improving customer experience, and optimising workflows.

Key aspects of hybrid multi-cloud

Cloud Modernization of applications through the use of containers, microservices, orchestration tools such as Kubernetes, standard Application Programming Interfaces, and open-source technologies is an important consideration. They must standardise and automate their processes, as

well as create new organisational structures that are compatible with DevOps and Machine Learning Operations (MLOps). Portability, interoperability, and management should be prioritised. Another crucial feature for enterprises to consider is a single pane of glass view for monitoring, provisioning, administering, and securing all clouds. Above all, they should integrate their public and private clouds, as well as legacy data centres, into a hybrid multi-cloud structure. Finally, businesses must realise that data is at the heart of today’s digital economy and enables AI.

The Advantages of Cloud-Based IT Process Automation

Companies that enable firms to better manage their infrastructures can not only save money but also reduce time to market and improve service levels.

Adoption of cloud computing is a huge enabler of essential standardisation and automation. Companies can use the cloud to:

• Reduce your IT overhead expenditures by 30-40%.
• Assist in scaling IT operations up and down as needed, optimising IT asset utilisation.
• Improve IT’s overall flexibility in addressing business demands by releasing business features more frequently; cloud providers are now delivering far more complex solutions than basic computing and storing, such as big-data and machine-learning services
• Improve service quality by leveraging the “self-healing” feature of standard solutions, such as automatically allocating more storage to a database. We’ve seen organisations cut IT incidents by 70% by leveraging cloud computing to reimagine their IT operations.

Many steps that organisations can take have proven beneficial to early adopters of cloud-enabled next-generation infrastructure. Among these includes, but are not limited to:

• Taking a look at the present IT portfolio: Before starting any cloud development or migration, take a critical look at your current IT portfolio to see what is suitable for public cloud platforms.
• Choosing your transformation strategy: Include all essential stakeholders in deciding whether your company will be an aggressive or opportunistic transformer.
• Defining IT and business objectives: In accordance with your methodology, develop a well-defined set of outcome-oriented ambitions for both the short and long term.
• Obtaining buy-in: Ensure top management commitment and investment, particularly from finance leaders, who must support the transition from the capital to operations and maintenance investments/accounting.
• Taking care of change management:Significant changes in IT practises and mindsets will be required for a heavily automated agile operating model. Invest in change management as well as cross-functional skill development across infrastructure, security, and application environments.

THE WAY FORWARD

Companies that use cloud computing as a starting point for IT automation may be able to achieve scalability, agility, flexibility, efficiency, and cost savings. However, this is only viable if both automation and cloud capabilities are developed.

Hybrid cloud has shown to be a valuable ally for businesses, allowing for smooth remote working. CIOs will now take cloud technology and artificial intelligence more seriously than ever before to de-risk their business operations, enhance profitability, reduce expenses, and develop new channels of consumer contact, all while ensuring security and compliance.