August 1st 2024
WHAT SHOULD YOU CONSIDER WHEN MIGRATING COMMUNICATIONS TO THE CLOUD?
Migrating to the cloud is the first step in any business’s digital transformation journey. These applications benefit stakeholders at all levels, too. For IT teams, you can cut costs and time spent on hardware, while employees can work flexibly no matter where they’re located.
The move to cloud-based communications is an ongoing process, with many businesses still relying on legacy systems. But this is all changing. The ISDN Switch Off has encouraged businesses to focus on future-proofing their communications.
To do this effectively, businesses should first factor in the five major considerations when preparing for a cloud migration. Let’s go through each of them below.
5 Factors to Consider When Moving to Cloud Communications
1 - Business Needs & Goals
Like any big investment, you must evaluate your business needs and goals first. These are major factors for determining whether a cloud solution is right for you.
Discover what your existing communications infrastructure is missing: Does it enable hybrid working? Can your phone system keep up with busy periods? Is your team struggling to collaborate? These questions will help you realise what your business needs to succeed.
2 - Application Upgrades
Cloud technology serves many purposes - your existing technology stack probably doesn’t. If your existing systems (such as CRM and analytics tools) can integrate with the cloud, you’re in luck, but most often, you can replace it with something much better.
Collaboration tools like Microsoft 365 and Google Workspace allow you to combine chat, video conferencing and document sharing in one place, eliminating the need for siloed modes of communication.
If you’re switching to a hosted VoIP phone system, you can use your old landline phone, but you’ll need a VoIP adapter to make it work. We recommend upgrading to a VoIP hard phone to access all the features. VoIP even works on mobile or desktop, so as long as your existing devices are updated, you’ll be fine.
3 - Data Security and Compliance
Businesses that handle personal data must comply with data protection laws set out in the UK GDPR. Cyber threats are becoming more sophisticated, putting Unified Communication (UC) platforms at risk of attack.
Before migrating to the cloud, you must prioritise solutions that offer advanced privacy, data protection and security controls. Your business should also have similar security measures to ensure your team works safely online.
Implement a cloud governance framework and ensure data remains secure by following the controls set out in Cyber Essentials.
4 -Network Connectivity
Can your Wi-Fi handle bandwidth-hungry cloud solutions? Your existing business broadband needs great download speeds and bandwidth to support data transfers and access between the cloud and on-premise systems.
Poor connectivity is detrimental to customer experience, productivity and daily operations. You must consider fibre broadbands like FTTP and SoGEA to power your cloud communications.
5 - Business Continuity
Migrating your business communications is no easy task. A Managed Service Provider, like Lily, will have a plan to make your migration seamless, with next to no downtime.
Don’t forget about post-migration. You should prepare a business continuity plan now, along with disaster recovery procedures, should outages occur. As your chosen Managed Service Provider, we’ll ensure you’re ready for change and provide additional helpdesk support.
Upgrade Your Business Communications with Lily
At Lily, we’ve helped businesses nationwide improve operational efficiency and collaboration with award-winning IT and communication systems. Contact our team to find out how we can support you.