At its simplest, the cloud is a network of computers and storage that shares resources to deliver storage services over a network, rather than storing data on a single machine. Cloud Business Solutions are typically accessed over the internet, but some larger organisations also use dedicated private connections. In many ways, the cloud has always been with us since the advent of the mainframe, and today’s offerings are really a mature version of the platforms that started life back in the ‘50s. It was the arrival of reliable high-speed connectivity that opened the door to the cloud services we use all the time today.
Managed IT services is a relatively new term in comparison to IT outsourcing essentially the difference is the approach IT Outsourcing is often handing over an entire function to a 3rd party but the approach may not include specific SLAs or business metrics. Managed services take on all of an IT function or a specific part and they are managed by SLAs and look to deliver specific business value back over and above the economies of scale achieved by outsourcing.
IT Managed services is the appointment of a 3rd party to provide a specific IT function to the organisation measured by SLAs and to deliver specific business benefits.
You should outsource if you feel that IT within your organisation is a distraction to the primary business function and you require a level of depth not achievable with your current resources and investment. According to the Outsourcing Institute’s Outsourcing Index 2000, there are many reasons why companies outsource. Here are some of the top reasons:
IT Outsourcing can often provide a level of depth to the company not achievable with in house IT for the same or similar investment.
IT outsourcing is the use of external service providers to effectively deliver IT-enabled business process, application service and infrastructure solutions for business outcomes.
IT Outsourcing, which also includes utility services, software as a service and cloud-enabled outsourcing, helps clients to develop the right sourcing strategies and vision, select the right IT service providers, structure the best possible contracts, and govern deals for sustainable win-win relationships with external providers.
IT Outsourcing can enable enterprises to reduce costs, accelerate time to market, and take advantage of external expertise, assets and/or intellectual property.
It is the security in place to protect your cloud services. This includes everything from the technology and applications but also the policies and controls in place to ensure the security of your cloud systems
It depends on what cloud service you have. Is it a public cloud or as a service offering. The main focus should be on uptime.
Lumina provide a number of services including private cloud, public cloud and Hyperscaler e.g Azure.
