A Survey Reveals What Makes Cloud Efforts Successful Enterprises might be interested in this new study, which examines what makes cloud deployments successful. CloudHealth Technologies Inc. conducted a survey of 388 senior executives and managers in IT, security, and infrastructure operations to determine the characteristics and best practices that distinguish cloud pioneers from cloud failures. The new Secrets of the Cloud Leaders report is available for free PDF download after registering. CloudHealth identified cloud leaders who achieve a higher ROI from their cloud deployments. It found that these leaders had significant differences in terms their vision, governance, and discipline. CloudHealth’s survey report stated that respondents were asked about the transition from a traditional build approach, where apps are run on datacenter infrastructure, and to a cloud first philosophy, where they deploy production applications to the cloud. “The trailblazers or ‘cloud leaders’ were 10 times more likely to claim that they had a crystal-clear vision of how they would make the transition. One in five companies that did not realize their full cloud potential said they had no idea or only a vague idea of how to do it. To make that vision a reality, you need to have the discipline to create a role for cloud management. Another form of discipline is the commitment to optimize cloud workloads as an ongoing process, rather than a one-time event. CloudHealth stated that trailblazers who follow this model are more likely:

Cloud computing service-level agreements (SLAs), 87-91 percent versus 56-62 percent
Monitor and alert for unusual cloud behavior (92 percent versus 63%).
A comprehensive and clearly defined strategy to manage cloud costs (94 percent versus 37%)
Pricing strategies for cloud providers that leverage leverage pricing are based on predicted use by workload (90 percent versus 61%).
Learn the benefits and differences of different cloud options and choose the right platform (91 percent versus 59%).
Define instance utilization thresholds based on workload (90 percent versus 49%).

The governance factor is reflected in the strict control of deployments following an enterprise strategy. This includes the use of reference architectures as well as configuration rules to ensure that enterprise standards are met. Cloud leaders are able to deliver greater value from their deployments, can roll out new apps quickly, and avoid cloud chaos that can lead to poor performance and security risks. CloudHealth based on its survey data provided five steps to becoming a cloud leader.

Take responsibility and empower ownership

For success, set metrics

Cost is not just a function dollars and cents.

Centralize governance

Automate, automate, automate.

CloudHealth concluded that “our survey shows certain organizations are achieving significantly better outcomes from cloud deployments by excelling in vision, discipline, and governance.” Cloud management is a subject that can be achieved by any organization if they learn from the pioneers. According to the company, it provides IT service management for cloud computing. Its fourth quarter 2016 survey included 388 senior executives who were asked about organizations with more than 500 employees in North America.