Some companies leverage cloud advantages better than others. Which cloud strategies provide a competitive edge today and why? What factors drive success or failure (people, processes, tech)? How do successful cloud strategies impact businesses?

Having directed several cloud-based projects – including Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), Platform as a Service (PaaS), and Software as a Service (SaaS) implementations for sizable organizations – we’ve seen firsthand the contributors to success and the challenges of cloud strategies.

The primary drivers for considering cloud solutions are the scalability, flexibility, and cost-effectiveness that such solutions offer. In order to realize those benefits, any cloud project must begin with solid planning. Not just enumerating what it takes to be successful but also planning for what it takes to avoid being unsuccessful. We have a somewhat lengthy article providing detail of this “Foundation First” approach, but here are a few things to consider:

Companies that are better at realizing the advantages of cloud computing understand what processes, products, and/or people already make their organization unique, and then create systems that bolster those existing advantages. Additionally, successful cloud implementations take a very modular approach – with each module performing a fairly specific function – while overall data and security policies govern the individual modules.

On the topic of modularization, there's a misconception that microservices lower costs. With many tools, finding the right one becomes challenging. Microservices do allow for smaller, potentially cheaper, cloud processing; however, without strong organization and control, confusion can arise when multiple systems use the services. Without discipline, a great idea can turn into a problem.

In short, the organization that views cloud services as a way to fix problems by throwing them into the cloud hoping for accelerated performance is going to find themselves in a worse storm. Successful cloud implementations start with identifying what they are already doing right/best and how they can further improve those areas with the help of the cloud – proceeding with a modular mindset and firmly established policies for data and security.