Questions to ask when considering cloud
Now that the technologies have changed, and many of the previous issues have largely been addressed, it’s easy to jump right into the cloud, but Lieberman says you still have to ask smart questions when considering your options.
First, it’s important to carefully consider the security approach that a cloud provider takes before you sign on with them.
“The quality of security varies widely from one vendor to another,” he says. “Most of what they do is opaque. They don’t explain much other than they just say, ‘Trust us — we’re insert your name — Amazon, Microsoft, Google — and we know about security, so trust us.’ When it comes down to the gory details, it’s not as transparent as would be available for a large enterprise.”
Lieberman says you should ask a provider how its security actually works and request a copy of its SAS 70 report and be willing to sign a nondisclosure agreement so you can look at how the security actually works.
“By God, you should actually read it and compare them from one company to another or find someone with a long attention span and a lot of coffee and expertise in understanding how to read it to read it and understand if you want to go all-in with this provider,” Lieberman says.
He also says to make sure that you are comparing services and don’t go with the first cloud provider you come across.
“The fundamental mistake that most small and medium-size businesses make when they outsource to cloud providers is they don’t read contracts,” Lieberman says. “They do not negotiate. They don’t try to get competitive bids. They simply take the first thing they see and do it.”
He says you can’t take this approach because some of the largest companies may not best fit your needs, and some of the smallest companies may not have the security you need — small and large businesses alike have been known to go under.
“You have to be careful, and you really have to have your eyes open,” Lieberman says. “It may, in fact, be a good idea to engage somebody in IT or with expertise who can help you get competitive bids and guide a better decision.”
Along that vein, if you decide to start using cloud technologies, you also have to recognize that you can’t rid all of your IT staff in doing so.
“Even if you have the cloud, you have to have someone to interface with them because they will ask technical questions, so you can’t rid of all your IT, but you will need someone to assist you with making this happen,” Lieberman says.
It’s also important that you don’t become so reliant on your cloud technology that you haven’t thought about what to do in case your provider doesn’t work out.
“What’s your Plan B if this doesn’t work out?” he asks. “You better have a Plan B. Always have a Plan B when it comes to this. Even if you’re going to host it yourself, what happens when that hard disk crashes? You have to have a Plan B — not, ‘Let’s call the IT guy.’”
Lastly, Lieberman says you ultimately have to make a decision based on your business and not on what’s cool. He uses the example of buying an iPad versus buying a laptop — the iPad may look really cool, but your needs may actually require you have a laptop.
“Sometimes cloud, in many technological solutions, are fashion decisions rather than business decisions meaning that you may pick technology that sounds sexy and compelling, but you really haven’t thought it through from your own business perspective,” he says.
