COST EFFICIENCY: Hybrid cloud environments enable strategic workload placement, allowing organizations to host data and applications in the most appropriate, cost-effective environments. Teams must consider multiple factors when deciding where to place workloads, including data gravity (the cost and complexity of moving large data sets), performance requirements, the presence of any existing on-premises capacity and operating expenses. The public cloud often makes fiscal sense for bursting workloads, Software as a Service applications and customer-facing services, but the private cloud is often a better fit for latency-sensitive applications that require data to be stored near where it is processed. To optimize costs, organizations must watch vigilantly for hidden costs in hybrid environments. Without proper architecture and planning, data transfer fees can quickly balloon; without proper visibility, duplicate tools and services across environments can lead to unnecessary licensing costs; and without proper governance, shadow IT can emerge. By carefully tracking their resource use across environments and automatically decommissioning underused resources, organizations can ensure their hybrid cloud environments deliver maximum value without creating unnecessary expenses.

SECURITY AND INTEGRATION: The very existence of the hybrid cloud is due, at least in part, to the desire to keep sensitive information safe. Business leaders have been looking for ways to keep sensitive data in-house since the dawn of cloud computing. Although “safe” is not necessarily synonymous with “on-premises,” many organizations must follow internal policies or government data safety laws that regulate where and how certain data must be stored. The hybrid cloud lets these organizations store those data sets exclusively in their private clouds while leveraging public cloud environments for other workloads. Additionally, hybrid clouds can enable more sophisticated cybersecurity models, with organizations implementing the advanced security capabilities of public cloud tools, maintaining tight control over the data stored on their private infrastructure and applying consistent security policies across both environments. It is important for organizations to take steps to unify their cybersecurity strategies across hybrid environments, as gaps can emerge when security for private and public clouds is managed separately. Identity and access management (IAM) solutions are often key to supporting secure access to resources in hybrid cloud environments.

CLOUD APP DEVELOPMENT AND MODERNIZATION: Often, legacy applications prevent organizations from taking full advantage of the scalability and efficiencies of the public cloud. Cloud-native app development, as well as app modernization initiatives, result in scalable, highly portable applications that can perform well in public, private and hybrid cloud environments. Modernized apps, enabled by technologies such as containerization and microservices, also tend to be more resilient, manageable and observable.

AUTOMATION AND ORCHESTRATION: After years of ad hoc cloud investments, many organizations find themselves managing multiple redundant tools and platforms across their hybrid environments, leading to unnecessary complexity and cost. CDW helps streamline these environments through automation and orchestration solutions that unify management, reduce manual tasks and ensure consistent operations across clouds. These solutions help organizations consolidate and simplify their infrastructure while also improving efficiency and reliability.

DISASTER RECOVERY AND BUSINESS CONTINUITY: The complexity of hybrid cloud environments can make it a challenge to ensure consistent backup and recovery capabilities across all platforms. CDW helps organizations design and implement comprehensive, cost-effective disaster recovery and business continuity solutions that protect workloads regardless of location. Beyond implementing new tools, CDW’s experts can also guide organizations through the process of creating recovery runbooks that lay out the exact steps to take in the event of a disaster.

MANAGED CLOUD SECURITY: CDW can help organizations adopt cloud-specific cybersecurity tools, streamline IAM processes and enable automated detection and response of incidents. Additionally, CDW’s experts can unify visibility into cybersecurity across different hybrid cloud components and provide ongoing monitoring. Through specialized solutions such as security, orchestration, automation and response tools; proactive threat hunting; and continuous assessment of security controls, CDW helps organizations maintain a strong security posture across their entire hybrid environments.

CLOUD LIFECYCLE SERVICES: Managing a hybrid cloud environment requires deep expertise and a specialized set of skills. CDW Cloud Lifecycle Services deliver seamless continuity, minimize outages and automate security monitoring, all while empowering organizations to scale their cloud growth and innovation. An effective hybrid cloud is not an end state, but rather a constantly evolving set of platforms. CDW’s experts ensure that hybrid clouds adapt to changing business needs and the larger IT landscape.