36 Shades of Hybrid IT

April 29, 2017 / G C Network / Comments Off

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Leading Federal Integrators Address Tactical Cloud Computing

By G C Network | October 7, 2009

Yesterday during the first annual Government IT Conference and Expo, tactical cloud computing was cited as a critical component within this new paradigm. Joining me to address the issue were:…

Carpathia Creates Government Solutions Business Unit

By G C Network | October 6, 2009

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INPUT FedFocus 2010

By G C Network | September 30, 2009

Please join me at the 7th Annual FedFocus Conference, November 5, 2009, at the Ritz Carlton in McLean, VA. This conference has been designed to provide crucial information on upcoming…

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By G C Network | September 25, 2009

I’m proud to announce that representatives from Lockheed Martin, SAIC, and Unisys will join me in a Tactical Cloud Computing “Power Panel” at SYS-CON’s 1st Annual Government IT Conference &…

GSA, DoD and NCOIC to Collaborate on Government Cloud Computing

By G C Network | September 22, 2009

Yesterday, during the NCOIC Cloud Computing Workshop, collaboration seemed to be the focus as Katie Lewin, GSA Cloud Computing Initiative Program manager, and Dan Risacher, DoD Cloud Computing Storefront project…

FederalNewsRadio Highlights Government Cloud Computing

By G C Network | September 20, 2009

Last week’s Apps.gov announcement was the latest steps in the government’s “at the quick step” march into cloud computing. FederalNewsRadio, a Washington metro area media fixture, highlighted the event with…

NCOIC Officially Launches Cloud Computing Working Group

By G C Network | September 14, 2009

On Wednesday, 9 September 2009 the Network Centric Operations Industry Consortium (NCOIC) Technical Council formally approved the creation of a Cloud Computing Working Group (CCWG). Organizationally this new working group…

1 Billion Mobile Cloud Computing Subscribers !!

By G C Network | September 10, 2009

Yes. That’s what I said! A recent EDL Consulting article cites the rising popularity of smartphones and other advanced mobile devices as the driving force behind a skyrocketing mobile cloud…

NCOIC Holding Full-Day Cloud Computing Workshop

By G C Network | September 4, 2009

The Network Centric Operations Industry Consortium will be holding an all day Cloud Computing Workshop on September 21, 2009 in Fairfax, VA. Open to the public, this workshop will focus…

Pentagon Reviews Unisys Stealth

By G C Network | August 31, 2009

According to a Newtworkworld.com article, the United States Joint Forces Command (USJFC) is currently evaluating Unisys Stealth technology at the Joint Transformation Command for Intelligence (JTC-I) in Suffolk, Virginia. “Unisys…

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Photo credit: Shutterstock

Everyone has heard of the 50 Shades of Grey. But do you know the “36 Shades of Hybrid IT”? These shades are a new way of describing the 36 point solutions across a hybrid IT environment. Enterprises looking to transform the way information technology is leveraged should evaluate their options by analyzing a transition across three specific high-level domains and their relevant sub-domains, namely:

IT Implementation Model
- Traditional
- Managed Service Provider
- Cloud Service Provider
Technology Service Model
- Infrastructure-as-a-Service
- Platform-as-a-Service
- Software-as-a-Service
Deployment Model
- Private
- Hybrid
- Community
- Public

Combinatorically (3 IT Models x 3 Service Models x 4 Deployment Models = 36 options) these components are used to identify the “36 Shades of Hybrid IT”. These domains and sub-domain outline a structured decision process that aims to place the right workload into the most appropriate IT environment. It is also important to note that this is not a static decision. As business goals, technology options and economic models changes, the relative value of these combinations to your organization may change as well. Another critical truth is that the single point solutions identified by this model are rarely sufficient to meet all enterprise needs so a mix of two, three or as many as 10 variations of these specific point solutions may be required. This is why hybrid IT and cloud service brokerage are such important skillsets to the modern information technology team.

The IT Implementation domain addresses, at a high level, the three implementation strategy options most companies look at when digital transformation is the goal:

Continue a status quo strategy that uses a traditional enterprise data center to address requirements;
Select and contract with a managed service provider (MSP) by running a traditional acquisition that dictates requirements and operational processes through the RFP/bid process; or
Satisfy requirements through the use of standard offerings from one (or more) cloud service provider (CSP).

The primary drivers in an implementation model selection is enforcement of enterprise IT governance processes (status quo and MSP option) or acceptance of CSP IT governance processes (CSP option). These choices are also strongly influenced by capital investment plans and long-term business model changes. Decisions within the Technology Service Model domain should typically reflect staff skillsets and training targets. IaaS reflects the broadest range of skillsets and training requirements. It also delivers the greatest amount of flexibility and choice. The other end of the spectrum is represented by SaaS which demands the minimum level of technical staff but may also act as guardrails to your business processes and models. Overall control of data security and technology choices are reflected by deployment model preferences. In the Private model, the organization retains absolute control over all aspects of the information technology platform. Choosing this option, however, would also lead to the highest levels of capital and staffing investments. Public sits at the other extreme, requiring strategic alignment with the cloud service provider in exchange for lower capital and staffing investment requirements. Hybrid and Community deployment options lie between these extremes and usually offer unique operational and economic capabilities.

Your digital transformation team should discuss and debate what these “36 Shades of Hybrid IT” mean for your company’s future. The team should also avoid leaving these important decisions to opinions and guesswork. Comparisons and options should be considered using real data. This is where tools like IBM Cloud Brokerage can be important to your digital transformation efforts. Organizations should carefully consider which business applications should be migrated to which “shade”. While some apps run best on traditional, physical servers, others are cloud-ready, but need the security of private clouds or enterprise-grade public clouds. There are even other applications where lower-priced commodity clouds will prove to be a viable and money-saving option. In addition to migration plans and cloud choices, the best hybrid IT strategies also take into account provisioning of the necessary migration skills and technology management capabilities. After deciding the target environment for each of your business processes, the team may still need to do some application re-architecting.

If you and your team are dealing with Digital Transformation, a cloud brokerage platform can help by using real data to profile your workloads. It will also enable data-driven decisions on best-fit architectures, technology choices and deployment models. In addition, these platforms aid organizations in designing production solutions and in estimating costs before transformation even begins.