Demand for cloud technologies has accelerated in recent years. In 2020 alone, approximately 61% of businesses migrated various workloads and processes into the cloud. As of 2023, it's estimated that around 94% of enterprises use cloud services.
The flexible, scalable, and agile nature of the cloud presents a number of potential benefits to evolving organizations, from greater business continuity to opportunities for innovation. In the communications landscape, cloud solutions ensure businesses can keep teams aligned, enhance productivity, and even better-serve their customers.
Unfortunately, while the benefits of cloud migration are significant, there are many challenges involved in the transition to a new technology stack. Embracing the right migration strategy is key to ensuring companies can unlock the full potential of their cloud environment.
The Crawl-Walk-Run-Fly Approach to Cloud Migration
Although, during the pandemic, many companies attempted to accelerate their cloud migration, simply to preserve crucial communications, a successful path to the cloud isn’t a sprint. A step-by-step strategy is necessary to ensure businesses don’t encounter issues with technology integration, security and compliance, employee adoption, and unnecessary complexity.
The “Crawl-Walk-Run-Fly” approach introduced by leading technology vendor, CallTower, presents an effective strategy for digital transformation. It empowers companies to select and implement the right technologies, ensure alignment in their tech stack, and pave the way for transformation.
Step 1: Crawl
In life, we crawl before we can walk. In a cloud communications migration, companies need to ensure they understand their technology needs before they can begin transitioning into the cloud. During the Crawl stage, businesses assess their current voice solution, and determine a plan for transitioning from analog lines into SIP telecommunications.
Effective strategizing starts with gathering as much detailed information as possible about the specific hardware configurations of the current systems, as well as software and code-level dependencies. During this stage, companies can also assess any special considerations or customizations that might be necessary for the future ecosystem. For instance, brands might want to use Microsoft Teams alongside a variety of add-ons for CRMs, ERPs, and other tools.
Step 2: Walk
The “Walk” stage is when businesses can begin to take the first steps towards their cloud future. It involves ensuring your ideal voice solution can be integrated into your ideal platform in a way that’s tailored to your specific company goals.
Leading communications and technology vendors can help brands to develop strategies on a location-by-location, or department-by-department basis, adhering to a range of different requirements. Larger organizations in particular could benefit from a department-by-department approach, as communication workflows can vary from one ecosystem to another.
Some vendors can also offer subsidiary-by-subsidiary integration, accounting for the variance in communication preferences between business units. They may also offer a user-by-user solution for smaller businesses, where each team member has specific challenges to address.
Step 3: Run
During the run stage of a cloud migration, the journey to success begins to pick up speed. Companies can begin to reduce their existing voice services, and complete the journey towards their desired UCaaS environment, such as Microsoft Teams, Zoom, or Cisco Webex.
While it might be tempting to focus on embracing all of the functionality a new platform can offer, it’s important for businesses to take a meticulous approach to disconnecting hardware and service subscriptions. Business leaders should develop a comprehensive plan that outlines the key tasks, resources, and timelines involved in the transition.
