Both minimising data costs, maximising data-driven innovation possible in the multicloud: Report

Today’s multicloud is a mix of clouds that don’t communicate well. As multicloud complexity and related costs are on the rise, the friction leads to data lock-in and the resulting loss of business value. However, it does not need to be that way as both minimising data costs and maximising data-driven innovation possible in the multicloud states a latest report by Seagate.

The report points out that, “there is no such thing as a unified, well-functioning multicloud (yet). There are only multiple clouds — a jumble of clouds that, frankly, have a hard time communicating.”

A majority (82%) of respondents already use more than two public cloud infrastructure service providers (excluding SaaS). This figure is expected to increase to 93% in two years.

A great deal of momentum is taking place among those using more than four cloud infrastructure providers which amounts to 30% of respondents.

The survey showed that this number would more than double in two years, as it was expected to rise to 63%.

The multicloud is sprawling. 87% of respondents think distributed applications will become mainstream over the next two years.

More than half of the respondents (53%) represent organisations that currently manage more than 100 intercloud integrations.

Not surprisingly, 76% of survey takers say monitoring, measuring, and ensuring SLA adherence for applications that rely on intercloud integrations are challenging. 

Both data and troubleshooting intelligence about the data get lost in the multicloud fog. The most frequently reported challenge is the inability to pinpoint the root cause of problems when they are detected (30% of respondents). And 64% of respondents report service-impacting issues on account of intercloud application integration failures at least once a month.

“The global datasphere doubles in size every three years,” said Seagate CEO Dave Mosley. “How we treat all these data matters. It should no longer be acceptable that companies can afford to save and use only a fraction of their data. The more organisation leaders see data as vital business currency, the easier it will be for their companies to find a way to greater business value.”

However, to level up the challenges, Seagate provides certain suggestions.

The report suggests the usage of a predictive third-party cloud cost tool, whereby it says that such tools should be leveraged that help measures the cost of cloud resources for every deployment decision.

Also, prior to deploying applications, “evaluate multiple requirements—such as performance, availability, data mobility, API, and user network bandwidth—to ensure that your application will be able to deliver the expected user experience,” it said.

The report noted that once applications are up and running, “continue to monitor the environment to ensure that the requirements or capabilities do not change over time.”

“To ensure that your organisation continues to effectively manage your cloud costs, invest in the right tools as well as training,” it said.

The report said that digital businesses benefit from the accelerated operations that result from the increased use of automation. It further suggests that processes need to be automated to reduce the burden on personnel as much as possible.

Multicloud-mature organisations are the ones that best manage cloud costs and foster innovation with the cloud and they outperform their peers in business. Among other results, they beat their revenue goals by nearly twice as much as their less mature counterparts; they are 6.3 times more likely to go to market months or quarters ahead of their competition; they are almost three times more likely to report that their organisation is in a very strong business position; and they are more than three times more likely to expect their companies’ valuation to increase fivefold over the next three years.