For most UK businesses, the matter of adopting a cloud solution is not a question of if, but rather which one. Research by the Cloud Industry Forum predicts that by the end of 2015, 90 per cent of UK enterprises will be using two or more cloud services.

To prepare your organisation for a successful transition to a cloud environment, it’s important that you know what to expect and make sure potential cloud providers can meet your goals.

By following the the six steps outlined by Matt Kingswood, Head of Managed Services at ITS, below, you can minimise the likelihood of unwelcome surprises and transition smoothly to the cloud.

1. Review your BC/DR plan and prepare your environment

Before moving forward with a cloud solution, look at your business continuity and disaster recovery (BC/DR) plan, specifically the business impact analysis, to see if it’s up to date. Evaluate whether your business functions are lined up appropriately with systems and applications interdependencies. Also make sure you’ve assigned the appropriate recovery time objectives (RTOs) from business, client and compliance perspectives.

SOURCE: cbronline.com