Considering DRaaS as a First Step for AWS Cloud Migration

It’s all too common for companies to have a cloud-first strategy these days, especially as so many are looking to gain a competitive edge in a tight market landscape. In a recent Pulse/InterVision study, most IT executives (92%) said that their organization expects IT to be operating with a cloud-first approach. And since AWS is currently the majority market’s choice, it is often the end goal for company production workloads and application hosting. However, simply having an AWS cloud migration goal doesn’t ensure that the IT team will successfully leverage AWS for business objectives. This is why many organizations are starting to look at Disaster Recovery as a Service (DRaaS) to AWS first as a first step to jumpstart their cloud journey.

The cloud migration process often makes or breaks spending goals, efficiency, and indeed, successful operations in AWS immediately afterwards. This is because if your company culture isn’t yet onboard with the potential benefits of the AWS cloud, migrating there will be one hurdle after another. Plus, if your existing IT team lacks the intricate skills or familiarity with AWS environments that are needed to operate there successfully, there’s a good chance you could get stalled trying to get to the cloud. Indeed, in the same Pulse/InterVision study, most respondents (41%) shared that their stalled cloud migrations were a result of IT skills gaps.

Why DRaaS to AWS May Be the Solution to Cloud Hesitancy

For CIOs and other IT leaders who must demonstrate early cloud wins to help gain wider stakeholder buy-in needed for a full migration, Disaster Recovery as a Service (DRaaS) makes an ideal candidate for demonstrating that the cloud can be a successful driver for the business. It also encourages cloud-hesitant IT members to learn the ropes of the AWS environment in a non-production scenario, thereby giving them the confidence that if the business migrates there fully, it won’t be their jobs on the chopping block.

Here are some of the key benefits of using DRaaS to AWS as a first step toward a wider cloud migration:

  • Allows IT team members to gain familiarity with AWS environment (DR testing, etc.) prior to full cloud migration planning
  • Allows IT executives to demonstrate early AWS success to stakeholders, both in the business and outside of it
  • Reduces overall DR program costs significantly, which allows IT team to put more budget toward the full migration
  • With data already in the AWS cloud, it’s easier to move those same assets into another AWS environment for production workloads

Not convinced? Learn more about selecting the right target for DRaaS in our blog post here.

And once your organization is ready to begin planning for a full production migration to AWS, check out InterVision’s proprietary program, Cloud Migration Lifecycle Assurance (CMLA), that provides midsize, enterprise and public sector organizations a comprehensive approach to cloud migration, operation and optimization. As an APN Premier Consulting Partner with AWS Migration Competency and 25 years of experience supporting clients in their datacenters, we eliminate the knowledge gap between legacy and cloud systems that stalls most cloud initiatives while mitigating the risk of poor cyber hygiene and cost sprawl. Learn more here.

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