Granitit's experienced project and initiative manager Camilla Kjerin shares her views on cloud migration and what a successful transition to the cloud requires
The starting point for cloud migration is always business needs and goals. Organizations often seek better cost predictability, risk management, scalability, or clarity of maintenance from the cloud. Clarifying goals early on helps make informed decisions throughout the project and also guides technical choices in the right direction. It is also important to realistically consider project costs and prepare for uncertainties so that the whole thing remains under control even when unexpected situations arise.
Planning a cloud migration is significantly easier when you know the current environment well. Up-to-date documentation of the system architecture, dependencies, and technical debt gives a realistic picture of the scope of the work and helps identify critical points even before implementation. A cloud migration also provides a good opportunity to take a broader look at the system requirements and assess which parts need to be revamped and which can be migrated as is.
Alongside technical issues, regulatory, security and privacy issues need to be considered. It is important to determine whether the data being processed is regulated and whether its geographical location imposes restrictions on cloud solutions. Data security requirements must be clearly defined and approved by management, and the division of responsibilities with the supplier must also be reflected in contracts. Cloud migration often requires updates to data protection statements and internal guidelines, especially when personal data is processed.
The new environment brings changes to maintenance, capacity management and user support. Cloud service management tools and operating models require expertise, and for this reason, training needs must be identified early. At the same time, it must be ensured that processes correspond to the new operating environment and that responsibilities are clearly defined.
It is also important to note that other development work and system maintenance often continue alongside cloud migration.
In practice, migration planning starts even before the technical implementation. It is necessary to assess whether the migration will be done all at once or in stages, for example, one system at a time. The amount of data and the time it takes to transfer it affect schedules, and for this reason migration exercises are often necessary. The actual rollout requires a precise, minute-by-minute schedule that takes into account both the technical stages and communication with users.
It is equally important to prepare for exceptional situations, plan return procedures and agree on communication during the migration. After the migration, a monitoring period is needed and readiness to react to potential problems is needed. After the migration, decisions must be made about shutting down the old environment, archiving data and possible cleanup to avoid unnecessary increases in storage costs.
During the project, costs may temporarily increase as both the old and new environments are in use. This must be taken into account in budgeting, as well as any temporary integrations and connections. It is a good idea to find out what kind of project-time cost arrangements the cloud platform provider can offer and how long they can be utilized.
At this point, it is also worth exploring the scalability options in the cloud. If there are times when less capacity is needed, capacity can be reduced for that time to achieve cost savings. For example, a test or development environment can be shut down if no development is being done.
Legacy systems often pose additional challenges to cloud migration. They may require more development and testing to ensure they work reliably in the new environment. Integrations with external actors also need to be carefully considered, as testing them during the cloud migration may require separate arrangements and additional resources. Testing planning also needs to take into account situations that cannot be fully simulated in advance, such as infrequent production events.
Moving to the cloud is a significant effort. When carefully planned and implemented, it brings scalability and enables more agile operations in development and testing, and is seen as more flexible operations for end users. A well-optimized environment and leveraging scalability also brings cost savings when used correctly.
Extensive change projects require experience and determined leadership. At Graniit, cloud migrations are familiar entities, and we help our customers carry them through in a controlled manner, supporting business goals. Ensure the success of your digital development project
