Engineer Fahad A. Alhamed, Chairman of the Board, Saudi Cloud Computing Association, one of the speakers at Enterprise Cloud & Data Centre Forum 2021, spoke to Datatechvibe on how IT leaders need to change the way they look at cloud.
On-demand, scalable cloud models offer cost-efficiency, yet many organisations seem to be underfunding the cloud. Why is that?
CIOs and technology managers need to understand the benefits of adopting the cloud while avoiding comparing it to the traditional way to host their workload on-premise. Moving to the cloud requires changing their mentality regarding how the technology works in the cloud and accepting that some changes need to be done to use it efficiently.
Proper investing in the cloud can help lower the cost of IT in the short and long terms. Still, it’s a decision that needs rethinking how you currently work in terms of architecture, security, and privacy, which are the main reasons why organisations hesitate to adopt the cloud.
WFH accelerated the migration from geographically concentrated IT services to cloud-based solutions. What challenges will we see in 2021?
As Covid-19 hit the world by surprise, technically prepared organisations that adopted cloud computing were the first to stabilise their work and adapt to the need to make their employees work remotely and provide them with the required tools to continue their tasks with minimal interruption. Those organisations were ready and prepared their technical environment for these kinds of scenarios. This was possible not only by allowing remote access but also by implementing the necessary measures for a safer remote work environment while ensuring their environment is secure and private.
Also Read: How the Role of Data Scientists evolved amid COVID-19
Adopting Cloud computing was one of the main reasons many organisations were able to minimise the catastrophic impact on business during the pandemic caused lock-down in many vital areas worldwide.
I believe the biggest non-technical challenge for non-prepared organisations will be deciding to get out of the legacy IT environment’s comfort zone and embrace the “mysterious” cloud-based solutions and tools.
How will the speed and connectivity that 5G offers impact cloud adoption?
As working on Cloud-hosted files requires access to the Internet, companies that produce large files (e.g. video production companies) need a faster communication method. The high speed provided by 5G networks can make work in such cases more efficient.
Is edge the new cloud? Will companies shift their cloud strategies toward the edge to become more connected?
Edge computing and the cloud are complementary architectures, and together they can provide highly effective IoT platforms. Edge computing can’t replace the cloud, as Edge computing can help process data closer to the source in real-time. However, the cloud provides the capability to process limitless IoT device-generated big data and provide a warehouse to store it.
Also Read: CIOs, Control Your Cloud Budget
A shift to the cloud expands the digital perimeter and increases risks. How can organisations be better prepared?
As mentioned before, technology leaders need to change their mentality while deciding to shift to the cloud. In some cases, they need to change their IT architecture to make it Cloud-native and make sure to properly use the security tools provided by the Cloud Service Provider to enable a safe migration and eventually a safe Cloud-based environment.
What key insights can you share from your session at Enterprise Cloud & Data Center Forum?
Part of my keynote on Cloud Computing covers the following:
- Mapping the rapidly changing enterprise cloud landscape in the region at the back of a cloud-first approach
- Discussing the change in IT spends across businesses in the Middle East and what it means for cloud implementations.
- Enabling enterprises to accelerate their digital transformation using cloud-based applications.
