The costs of cloud computing may not be as affordable as many businesses expect. The reason for this is heavily due to the elasticity and dynamic nature of cloud computing technologies. According to the Wall Street Journal, businesses should be more concerned about the future costs of cloud computing.
If you’re considering moving your organization’s infrastructure to the cloud, you should be aware of hidden expenses you may incur along the way. Switching from a managed computing data center to a cloud solution isn’t always the cheapest solution, but it certainly has its share of advantages. Understanding the various factors that affect your organization’s computing solution can help you prepare for these unknown costs.
Training
As with any new technology, migrating your business to the cloud can require a significant amount of training staff to understand the new systems. This requires time, as well as an IT person to administer the training. Organizations may need to pay their employees to learn the new systems. Regular cross-training may be necessary as new providers or platforms are implemented. You may also need to pay the cloud service’s personnel to train your IT staff on certain technologies.
Hiring
New technology requires new knowledge. Cross-training isn’t always the most efficient method to conquer a new system. You may need to hire staff that specialize in the skills required to administer your organization’s cloud solution. Since cloud technology is constantly changing, it’s important to have knowledgeable IT staff who are capable of addressing the dynamic nature of the industry. For example, if you choose a Microsoft cloud computing solution, you may want an IT person familiar with that particular system.
Migration
While the price for cloud service providers can be less expensive than on premise computing, cloud computing migration has its share of hidden costs. According to Forbes, these costs make up the least of the hidden expenses involved in cloud computing. For example, a legacy application that is ported to the cloud often “gets left alone, no matter how inefficient the architecture might be”. Important systems should still be maintained even when they reside on a new platform.
Elasticity
While cloud computing migration is a mostly predictable expense, the cost of cloud computing can shift very regularly. The inability to predict these changes poses risk to any organization. Since cloud computing is so elastic there are many hidden changes that may affect the overall expense. Cloud computing enables you to shift resources across multiple platforms; however, this often leads to new unexpected costs.
Multiple Providers
A common hidden cost of cloud computing is integrating multiple cloud provider platforms. There are many popular cloud providers available. Some offer services that enhance your existing platform which costs your organization to implement. Traditional computer infrastructure may also be needed to connect to the cloud systems which can require additional services, providers or subscriptions. You or your organization should budget for these unexpected add-ons as they are difficult to predict but may be beneficial.