Chances are your organization is already leveraging the cloud to some degree. After all, more than 90% of organizations now use some level of cloud computing to run their business, thanks to its increased efficiencies and redundancies.
But prioritizing the cloud and effectively managing your cloud infrastructure requires a shift in priorities. Done wrong, it’s a skillset different enough to become a distraction from your mission. Rather than a walk in the park, it’s a walk in the clouds. The environment is always shifting, never solid, and businesses that simply want to redirect some existing resources can fall to their doom.
That’s where cloud infrastructure managed services come into play. When you outsource your company’s cloud infrastructure to experts, you don’t have to worry about maintaining in-house expertise or resources. But this also means being strategic about finding the right service provider. Put simply, you need a partner that you can rely on to run your backend infrastructure with experience and confidence.
That’s no small feat. After all, cloud infrastructure-as-a-service revenue continues to grow rapidly, with more and more providers entering the market every day. To find the right partner, you need to ask the right questions and look for the right answers. But first, you need to understand why partnering with a cloud infrastructure managed services provider is worth that effort.
First Things First: The Benefits of Cloud Infrastructure Managed Services
Why outsource services to a company for something that, theoretically, you can manage yourself? First, finding full-time, in-house expertise is hard. The right talent is expensive to both recruit and keep, with cloud engineering now ranked as the third-most in-demand career path. Outsourcing, then, comes with a number of significant benefits:
- Cost-savings, especially because your costs can be more variable. You only pay for the work and expertise you need at any given time.
- Dynamic updates, ensuring that your infrastructure is always up-to-date with the latest standard technology and software.
- Security, ensuring that your cloud data remains protected against data loss as a result of potential breaches or leakage.
- Disaster recovery, thanks to centrally managed backups that ensure business continuity even in worst-case scenarios.
In addition, cloud infrastructure managed services are inherently scalable. As your business needs expand, you can also expand your relationship with your provider. If your needs decrease, the flexibility extends both ways.
It’s like hiring a contractor to get some renovations done. Sure, you could probably try to do it yourself. But if you want to get it done right, up to code, and avoid the renovation site turning into a money pit, the right experts can make all the difference. Let’s consider some key ways to find them.
How to Choose Between Cloud Infrastructure Managed Services
You’ve realized that you need to outsource, so you turn to the many cloud infrastructure service solutions that present themselves. And there are indeed many, making it all the more difficult to find the option that’s right for you. That’s when you start asking questions.
You may be selecting a partner specifically because you don’t have the in-house expertise required to run your own cloud infrastructure. This means asking questions that focus more broadly on ensuring that both the level of expertise and the support you’ll receive meet your company’s needs. Here are six points to consider.
1. Inherent Scalability
The biggest reason for switching to an external cloud infrastructure service provider is, as mentioned earlier, flexibility. Any potential provider you talk to should be specific about the ways in which they can provide flexibility for your business.
Can their solutions scale with your business, growing and becoming more comprehensive as your business does? Can they also scale down as needed, like being able to account for reduced revenue and traffic for seasonal businesses after the holidays? The more scalable their solution, the better fit the provider will be for the needs of your business.
2. Advanced Security and Risk Management
Data security tends to be among the biggest concerns business leaders have when it comes to migrating to the cloud. It’s essential to find a partner who prioritizes the security of your business data as much as they would if their own business and information were at stake.
Ask potential providers how they will keep your cloud infrastructure secure. Ask how they monitor for and detect threats and build an application security architecture that protects your data from every potential risk. Finally, ask how they will prepare for the worst-case scenario to help your business recover should a breach occur.
3. 24/7 Support
At their best, cloud infrastructure managed service providers are a direct extension of your internal team. That means not just helping you build and maintain that infrastructure, but also being readily available should something go wrong.
Of course, many potential partners will tout that level of support on their website. The key is getting specific, with the goal of ensuring that the partnership will hold up to that premise. For example, ask potential providers how they handle incidents that occur after hours, how they prioritize requests, etc. Even examples from other clients can go a long way toward ensuring that you’ll get the cloud support you need.
4. Built-In Transparency
In some ways, cloud infrastructure is like the Matrix: a world built with shiny language and symbols that, to the outside realm, is impossible to understand. The role of the right provider is not just to build that world for you, but to help you understand it without having the advanced technical knowledge you’d need to build it yourself.
In this type of partnership, transparency is key. Consider service providers who offer built-in dashboards and reporting capabilities, so you always know what’s going on. Personal contacts with those who work on your behalf are just as important to build that type of transparency.
5. Services that Align With Your Needs
The right cloud infrastructure managed service providers may include an option for almost any type of business, from startup to enterprise. Find a provider who can match your specific needs and situation.
If you’re running an SMB, that has to be part of your consideration. You need a partner who has experience with businesses the size of yours, including alignment with your growth goals and your seasonality, customers, and industry-specific requirements like HIPAA. Think of the ideal provider as a natural extension of your team that can seamlessly align with your operations.
6. Expertise
Finally, look for potential partners who can back up their claims. Look for testimonials. Ask for references from businesses similar to yours, and be sure to chat with those references about all of the above questions. The more evidence you can find that this is the right partner for your situation, the better.
Find the Right Cloud Infrastructure Managed Services Provider for Your Business
Ultimately, you need external help—but don’t take a shortcut to making sure you find the right partner. Instead, do the due diligence you need to find a partner that can help to grow your revenue and propel your business forward.
Ready to learn more about the potential benefits of an external partner for your cloud infrastructure? Learn how Defiance Digital can help.