INTELLIGENT BRANDS // Enterprise Security
Research finds IT leaders are choosing hybrid cloud strategies due to flexibility , cost-effectiveness and security
According to a recent study by Citrix , a business unit of Cloud Software Group , 25 % of organisations surveyed in the UK have already moved half or more of their cloud based-workloads back to on-premises infrastructures , or are considering doing so , in a phenomenon known as cloud repatriation .
The survey , which questioned 350 IT leaders on their current hybrid cloud strategies , showed that 93 % of respondents had been involved with a cloud repatriation project in the last three years .
Cloud repatriations : Drivers and experiences
Unexpected security issues and high project expectations , at 33 %, were reported as the top drivers for moving some cloud-based workloads back to onpremises infrastructures . Another major driver was the failure to meet or properly set internal expectations , accounting for 24 %. After reflecting on their experience , IT leaders found that the most common reasons for cloud repatriation projects were security concerns , unexpected costs , performance issues , compatibility problems and service downtime . a mix of ‘ mostly cloud and some onpremises ’ to the CIO .
“ Hybrid cloud infrastructures offer the best of both worlds across both public and private models . Organisations can optimise costs , seamlessly integrate systems and experiment with innovation projects without compromising on agility or flexibility ,” said Calvin Hsu , Vice President of Product Management at Citrix .
Hybrid security : Concerns and strategies
As IT leaders consider utilising a hybrid strategy , a key consideration is whether cloud or on-premises is the most secure for safeguarding sensitive information . In Citrix ’ s study , 33 % of respondents stated that they had fallen victim to the same number of cyberattacks regardless of whether data and applications were hosted on-premises or in a hybrid environment . The experience of security vulnerabilities varied among different organisations , with some reporting fewer incidents on-premises while others experienced more .
Security is a top priority and 77 % of IT leaders agreed that cloud technologies can help prevent cybersecurity incidents . Moving workloads and cloud repatriation projects can pose a risk and IT leaders are worried that these projects could make them vulnerable to a cyberattack . With benefits to both cloud and on-premises infrastructures , 35 % of these IT leaders currently have projects in both cloud and on-premises .
“ It ’ s clear that IT leaders are still trying to find the right balance between cloud and on-premises ,” Hsu added . “ With evolving demands and unexpected changes to priorities , enterprises need a model that allows them to scale resources up or down as required while maintaining security , compliance and business performance .” �
Over 43 % of IT leaders found that moving projects from on-premises to the cloud was more expensive than expected , while 54 % said it was financially predictable . The costbenefit analysis of cloud versus on-premises infrastructure varies greatly depending on the organisation .
Despite previously unsuccessful cloud projects , 67 % of respondents are still encouraged to start new projects in the future . Instead of a complete cloud approach , IT leaders would recommend
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