As a public sector organisation, getting to the Cloud can sometimes feel like an uphill battle.

For one thing, you’re faced with the task of having to transform legacy apps that currently are not suitable for cloud – perhaps because of data sovereignty issues or security concerns – into cloud-ready applications.

Clearly, the wholesale adoption of cloud isn’t always an option, especially when it comes to managing apps that represent a critical part of the national infrastructure.

But what’s the alternative?

For many the big task in hand right now is plotting a phased path to the Cloud. In most cases the idea is to transition less sensitive data and apps first, before embarking on transformation projects for those apps that need to be made Cloud ready. Making the transition to the cost-saving Cloud model one step at a time.

Making this happen, however, represents a significant investment in time and development. Plus, development teams need to have the ‘road testing resources’ in place to ensure each newly cloud-enabled app functions exactly as expected before being released.

Given that there’s a finite amount of development and test resources, there are only so many project time slots available each year – and that creates a problem. What to do with legacy apps in the meantime, while they await the ‘Cloud’ treatment?

That’s exactly the challenge that Crown Hosting Data Centres can help public sector organisations resolve. Now you have a low-cost way of supporting and maintaining legacy apps and infrastructure while you grapple with the challenge of embarking on the long term transformation task.

Crown Hosting Data Centres make it easy for you to go at exactly the right pace you need. There’s no tie in or complex contracts to manage – you simply ‘drop’ and go, and then release as soon as you complete the next phase of Cloud enablement. Think of it as a low cost-way to maintain and support your legacy estate in the interim.

The location of legacy apps and infrastructure alongside your Cloud infrastructure offers significant advantages. Allowing you to proceed with transformation and enable new services as you locate different departments under the same campus. What’s more, with everything in one geographic location, you’re able to take approaches that previously would have been out of the questions because of the distances and security issues involved. All in all, that represents some significant ‘quick wins’ that are worth having.

It goes without saying that, because we understand the transformation challenge government and public sector organisations face, we’re on hand to enable you at every step of your journey to the Cloud.

Steve Hall