Do You Know A Cloud Skeptic? Everybody does…

The cloud can bring a multitude of benefits – no installation, anywhere access, no hardware costs, resource sharing, scalability, etc. Often, bombarding the cloud skeptic with all the benefits is the first place we start when trying to change their mind, but I wouldn’t recommend this tactic.

When attempting to convince a cloud skeptic that the cloud is a viable option for IT services, you must start at the core of the issue and build your case from there. Here are four key steps to dispel the skeptic’s fears, and enable your organization to begin taking advantage of the cloud’s many benefits without all the pushback and fighting from the cloud skeptic.      

At the core of the skeptic’s argument lays the lack of knowledge about why this thing called “the cloud” exists in the first place. Those lobbying against the cloud ask, “Why change operating models when the one in use seems to be working?” A quick answer to this statement is, “Perhaps it‘s not working well enough,” or “How current is your environment, are you taking advantage of the latest technology to make your company the most efficient?”  Winning the skeptic debate doesn’t start by arguing over products, services, features, or security. The first requirement is to establish respect in the big picture view.  

Step 2: Assert the Cloud’s Evolution to Trust Itself

With a solid foundation in the cloud’s reason for being, your second step in beating the skeptic requires an agreement on trust itself. That agreement is simple: embracing the cloud means embracing a change to what we trust. What a person trusts constantly evolves, and that evolution is most impacted by familiarity, peer approval, and a desire for convenience. Chances are the cloud services you adopt could be more secure than what you have today.  Do you do SAS 70 audits on your datacenter today?  Every reliable cloud provider does.  Appeal to those core values first, before moving on to specific examples.

Step 3: Crystalize the Cloud’s Definition

Step 1’s goal is for the skeptic to recognize that the cloud is already all around them, and its service delivery model isn’t likely to go away. That recognition leads directly into Step 2’s goal, which is for the skeptic to admit that trust can evolve. Only once these initial notions are agreed upon does it become useful to start discussing specific examples. IT is there to provide services to the business.  If it’s more efficient and cost effective, and you trust your cloud providers, why not switch and provide the most current technology to the business, all the time.  

Step 4: Deflate the Instinctive Response

This is a critical step to combat the skeptic’s understandable reaction to new information not yet fully assimilated. If you’ve done your job well, by this point, you’ve locked your skeptic into a logic structure that’s not easily escapable. The services are there. Others are using them. Others trust them. And the categories and delivery models available are beginning to crystalize. The cloud is absolutely a disruptive force, and, as a consequence, everyone is thinking the same thing. Expose the elephant in the room, and you can begin to work intelligently towards finding the cloud’s fit in your organization.  

Don’t feel that you have to take on everything at once.  Start where you are most comfortable and take advantage of a hybrid model, where some users and workloads remain on-premise, while others move to cloud services.  A big advantage from Microsoft’s approach with Office 365 is the flexibility to implement this hybrid method so companies can adopt the cloud at their own pace.

If you are interested in learning more about this subject, check out this recently released whitepaper from Quest.

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About the Author
Michael Tweddle of Quest Software is the senior director of product management, and solutions architect responsible for supporting Windows management solutions and products that migrate to Office 365 from on-premises Exchange, Google, Notes or GroupWise. He is an expert at delivering complete solutions and managing to a business unit’s P & L. Michael has a strong history and proven strength in understanding business and technical requirements for successful inclusion into products. He has extensive experience with consulting engagements, and in presenting to a wide range of audiences including C-Level, non-technical sales people, and technical pre-sales resources. He also participates as a technical expert panelist.