Solving Hybrid Multicloud Challenges With Standardization

In a recent survey of 916 IT professionals entitled Voice of the Enterprise: Digital Pulse, Budgets and Outlook 2019, IBM detected some important trends all pointing to the widespread embrace of hybrid multicloud environments. 62% of respondents said that they were using a hybrid environment with on-premises and cloud solutions integrated, while 17% were embracing a full cloud solution with everything from software to platforms accessed in the cloud.

9% said that they were utilizing both cloud and on-premises solutions but with little or no integration between the environments. While it’s clear that a fully-integrated hybrid multicloud approach is the norm for many enterprises, challenges remain in effectively managing what is far from a uniform solution.

Workload placement in a hybrid multicloud environment is a subjective set of decisions based on a wide range of conditions and factors – from the risk ratio associated with the workload to lifecycle issues and data criticality. It is also impacted by usage patterns and performance requirements. In addition, IT professionals must factor in the offerings from their cloud service providers and their management, deployment, and design models, which are different for each provider.

The Need for Uniformity

As enterprises continue to utilize a model that shifts data, workloads and processes across a hybrid multicloud environment, there’s a need for uniform management. It should solve challenges related to capacity management, performance analysis, provisioning, cost control and others. 

Enterprises will expect platforms that holistically allocate workloads in a streamlined and strategic way that manages continuity across the IT infrastructure. You will likely soon see a host of solutions classified as unified infrastructure management (UIM) platforms. 

UIM Answers Two Important Questions

There are two critical questions that enterprises will be looking to answer through a UIM platform. The first is: where should each workload be placed? Managers will be looking for specific conditions that will help determine the right execution venue for each workload. 

The second is: should the data be moved to the logic or the logic to the data? Enterprises will be looking for insight into how to dynamically and intelligently determine where logic is computed. It may be at the edge or in the cloud, or somewhere in between in the fog, or nodes. They’ll also be looking for ways to minimize data in motion. 

Tackling hybrid multicloud management is a sizable undertaking, but as the survey results indicate, it’s a critical opportunity for enterprises to strategically handle their workloads. For more information about the effective management of your hybrid environment, contact us at One Connect.