Cloud Migration Questionnaire

My name is Dave Kluger, and I am the CTO for Storcom, an information technology solution provider located outside of Chicago in Lombard, Illinois who specializes in cloud migrations.  I have compiled this list of questions to help you make informed decisions when considering a cloud migration project.  Cloud computing is an extremely complex endeavor, and if done incorrectly then it can be a costly nightmare. Use this cloud migration questionnaire as a checklist to ensure a smooth transition to cloud computing. If you need any help with your cloud migration projects, then Storcom is here to help. 

Technology Considerations 

– What services are you planning to migrate to the cloud?

– Do you have a cloud strategy and how will it define your plans to move to the cloud?

– How dependent will your employees be on using cloud services?

– Do your cloud applications need to meet any regulatory requirements or compliance standards?

– What is your current tech stack?

– What applications are you planning on migrating to the cloud? 

– Are you keeping any applications or systems on-prem?

– What sort of dependencies do your applications have?

– How portable are your applications?

– Do you have multi-tenant applications?

– How are these tenants isolated today? 

– Do you have a cloud vendor preference or are you looking to avoid vendor lock-in?

– Are you interested in a public, private, hybrid, or multi-cloud platform?

– Please describe your SDLC.

– Do you have any specific architecture requirements?

– Do you have any pipeline/automation that exists today?

– What is your deployment process?

      * Does it possess any automation today?

– How do you currently monitor infrastructure and services?

– What level of flexibility and scalability do you want your cloud services to have?

– What are your RTO and RPOs for the services you want to implement?

– Will your current bandwidth handle the requirements to support a multi-cloud structure or will you need enhancements?

– How will you plan to protect your employees or customers?

– Do you have a budget set aside for IT updates and infrastructure on non-cloud computing infrastructure?

Business Objectives 

– Is there a timeline or event that is driving your decision to move to the cloud?

– What are the reasons behind why you are thinking about moving to the cloud?

– What goals do you wish to achieve?

– What is your budget?

– What experience do you have with cloud migrations? 

– Have you ever embarked on a cloud migration project in the past?

– What sort of cost savings, return on investment, and revenue generation are you expecting by implementing these changes?

– How does your company handle disaster recovery, backups, and business continuity?

– Where will these services be delivered (internal platforms, mobile devices, public internet, etc.)?

– Who are your customers?

      * Internal or external?

      * Visual or transactional use of the system?

– What are the non-functional requirements (e.g., SLAs)?

– Which networks must these cloud services connect with?

– What are your business-critical applications?

      * How often do they change?

      * What are the life cycles of these applications?

Employee Considerations

– Who will use this service?

– How many users will you have?

– Are your workers remote or on-prem?

– Are your teams siloed or are they self-sufficient?

– Is your organization prepared for a deployment?

– Describe your project management and development processes. Are they traditional, agile, etc.?

– Do you have any personnel with cloud migration expertise and experience?

– Will you need to hire additional staff or would you like to outsource services to Storcom?