How SMEs can Exit the Big Cloud and Save with Managed IT Services

The C-suite is on the horns of a dilemma: just as life and business seem to be returning to normal, if not picking up, there’s talk of a world recession in 2023/4.

Your challenge is to find ways to ensure your business’s sustainability so it can ride a recession. That means tackling elements of at least three of the six dimensions of resilience: financial, IT (digital and technology), and then, last, but by no means least, the operations. Right now, you have the Big Cloud in your sights, and that contract is killing the business. The question now begging to be asked: how SMEs can exit the Big Cloud and save.

Checking Out of Big Cloud Hotel California

Realistically, when your journey into the cloud began, to bastardize the lyrics of that iconic 70s classic, it was such a lovely place, but now you can’t kill the beast. The services have become too complicated, and you’re tied into an expensive, long-term contract. Here are more reasons why mid-sized businesses are dumping the Big Cloud. 

So, can you check out of Hotel California? According to The Eagles, yes, but then, “you can never leave,” they croon. The same applies to the Big Cloud, or does it?

But I’m getting ahead of myself because it’s important to understand that checking out of and leaving Hotel California comes with layers of complexity. 

The Human Dynamic – People Ahead of Technology

Enterprises in the Big Cloud had come to recognize that they still needed in-house IT talent and had re-employed IT specialists. Looking to move from your current cloud provider is likely to unsettle your internal IT staff, and one of two things (or both) could happen: They actively obstruct the change. They get anxious about losing their jobs since companies like Google, AWS, and Microsoft are laying people off in droves. Either way, that doesn’t help you.

Recessionary Challenges

The recessionary challenges are bigger than just the business. Confronted by the prospect of budget cuts and other changes, IT staff could also be looking to jump ship. They would take with them a deep understanding of your business and how it interfaces with your IT systems and digital strategies. If they do leave, you’re losing valuable institutional depth – again.

You’ve Checked Out But Cannot Leave

Assuming you can check out, remember how you got into the cloud in the first place – with “help” from a consultant? It’s a road you don’t want to travel again. You know they’ll give you a great report (for which you pay), a slew of recommendations (which you may or may not understand), and then there’s the cost to implement. The grapevine says this route could take you back into the Big Cloud. Then you face the prospect of the consulting team either walking away, leaving you and your internal team to “do” the plan, and/or expecting you to fork out for a raft of affiliate services. Or both. Oh dear, it’s Hotel California all over again. You’ve checked out but can never leave.

So, it’s complicated, but based on a combination of what you really need and our wealth of experience, CenterGrid can help you down that dark desert highway. We have successfully decoupled several enterprises from the cloud – sorting out their systems and saving them money.

The Big Cloud Exit Plan

As I mentioned, CenterGrid has successfully helped several businesses to exit the Big Cloud. We are experts in crash migrations. That’s not all: we work with you to develop the best-managed IT services solution for your business.

Any good exit needs a plan. First, we do a deep dive into your business – we look at what you need – the systems and managed services that best suit your needs. We know that moving providers is much more than lifting and shifting from one cloud to another.

Because of this, we devise a roadmap. Then, either within a single day or not longer than four weeks, we extract you from that Big Cloud contract and start saving you money.

1. Deep Dive Discovery Project

As I said, we begin with that deep dive: the Discovery Project. Yes, you pay for it, and assuming you like the roadmap we come up with, you claw those costs back: you don’t end up spending money to save money.

2. Connecting With Internal IT Team

We put the people before the technology – that means the C-suite exec and the internal IT team. If you think your systems are a challenge, they probably are. We hear you. Remember, we’ve done it before. That said, we need your internal IT specialists as much as you do: the combination of our experience and their understanding of exactly what makes your business tick is a vital part of the strategy.

3. Clean House and Shore up Security

When enterprises rolled into the Big Cloud, their technical debt went with them. It’s like Grandma’s meatloaf or when you move house, and ten years later, you still need to unpack those boxes.

When CenterGrid migrates you to our flexible cloud services, we utilize the inevitable downtime to clean house and shore up your security.

We take cyber security seriously – yours and ours. So seriously that we have our own cyber fusion center. This is not a security operating center (SOC) but rather the next-generation approach to cyber security that integrates all the various functions, from threat intelligence, automation, response, etc., in a single department. This department looks after all our clients and CenterGrids’ security. It is a service we are only too happy to embed in all our contracts – it’s in all our interests.

While we use AI, our on-site human team also personally investigates any identified potential threats to your business. If they’re concerned, they don’t email you; they call you. Together you decide whether the threat is real or not and how it should be dealt with. All this happens in real-time.

The Service Level Agreement – Your Ticket Out of Big Cloud Hotel California

Discovery done, and a road map established for exiting the Big Cloud and into the future, it’s time to move to a better place. CenterGrid recognizes that business ebbs and flows, which is why, if times are tough, you have the option of reducing what you pay to 80% of the contracted fee.

In addition, each quarter, we review – not just the SLA, what’s working, and what’s not – but your infrastructure and what needs to be addressed in the next quarter. The constant conversations with you and engagement with your business mean we can tweak our offering to serve you better.

We value your IT team’s input, and through CenterGrid, they (and your business) have access to a wide range of experience and expertise to solve problems quickly. Your team will also have learning opportunities, further adding value to the business.

That’s a win-win for your business and for CenterGrid. Ready for your Big Cloud exit or in the process of considering your options? Let’s talk – contact us.