Thinking about making the switch? Migrating from a legacy on-premise solution is a large task for all departments, but especially for IT. From changing processes, moving data, training staff, and altering the day-to-day operations of your team, it can be hard to keep in mind the end goal. We’ve spoken to our IT team and they’ve come up with the top 5 points you need to consider before taking the plunge:
#1 Consider different IT resources
There's a lot of talk about “needing fewer IT resources” once switching to the cloud, but the idea behind having lower costs and needing fewer resources to manage your environments is not exactly accurate. You will need different resources to manage your infrastructure and updated practices to maximise resource utilisation. To ensure a successful system transition, be aware of the current responsibilities being phased out and the new responsibilities the team will be managing before downsizing your IT department or budget.
#2 Choose the right vendor
If you’re leveraging platform or software as a service, make sure it’s going to be easy to move to another provider, quickly and efficiently. Depending on how entrenched you are in the software, having to move to another cloud environment may not be trivial. If your provider suddenly shuts down or just isn’t working out, you may not have enough time to migrate your solution all over again in a pinch. As best as you can, pick a vendor that is reliable and has a proven track record of success.
#3 Prepare for outages
Accessibility and reliability are big factors for moving to a cloud environment. Power outages and hardware failure occur often, so ensure that there are effective mitigating procedures in place to manage any planned and unplanned roadblocks during migration.
#4 Welcome reduced implementation time
Implementation will take a fraction of the time compared to an on-premise solution, as well as negates the need for procuring costly infrastructure. This aspect is often important to management who have gone through long implementation cycles in the past that have ended up being over-schedule and over-budget.
#5 Relax knowing your data is secure
Security is a big concern for organisations looking to migrate to the cloud. Contrary to what most think, being in the cloud makes your business less likely to become a victim of a cyber-attack – thanks to providers who are continuously applying service patches and fixes as the need arises and strong, constantly monitored security measures.
Interested in learning more about what to look for in an ERP vendor?
Download our ERP Vendor Selection checklist!
