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Hybrid IT—the careful intermingling of on-premise and cloud-based platforms—can be a greatly rewarding premise. The local control of on-premise systems, the flexibility and scalability of cloud-based systems…it’s hard not to like. Nothing good, however, comes easy, and hybrid IT systems can represent some real challenges for those who aren’t vigilant.
The Challenges of a Hybrid IT System
The benefits of a hybrid IT system speak for themselves. The challenges, meanwhile, are sometimes much more subtle.
Vision dissonance. The specialists in the IT department generally know exactly what’s needed to carry out IT functions, but the C-suite needs to effectively manage the entire company. Because the C-level and IT may have different opinions about what parts (and expenses) of an on-premise system need to stay and which to switch to cloud, there can be some disconnect. A SolarWinds IT Trends report spells this out, noting that business leadership and IT professionals need to actively collaborate when it comes to IT projects.
Overclouding. The SolarWinds report also noted the potential for moving too many applications to the cloud at one time. For 22% of UK IT professionals, such tasks were necessary, showing that there was cause to be more judicious in cloud migration. Finding out what tasks work well in the cloud and which don’t can take some trial and error; moving too quickly risks poor performance.
Who watches the watchmen? While cloud systems can do a good job at improving visibility into systems, it can make for a problem in terms of authority. When something goes wrong, is it a problem with on-premise material? Or is it a cloud issue? Figuring that out can be a challenge. Failing to overcome it will likely end up with systems that malfunction and blame that gets spread all over the system.
Back to school for you, expert. There are few things worse for an expert in any trade than to be forcibly rendered ignorant. Cloud-based systems require continuous learning for IT folks to keep abreast of emerging technologies. If IT is reluctant to expand its cloud horizons, managing a hybrid environment is not recommended.
How to Beat the Challenges of Hybrid IT
Beating hybrid IT’s challenges can actually be easier than you might expect. Start by getting in touch with us at Access One, where we have a wide range of cloud-based services available. IT, voice, data network, UCaaS and hosted VoIP…we do it all, and with a staff of experts to see you through the challenges above.