For IT systems, cost optimization is never an easy process. So how does one optimize it when it comes to a cloud infrastructure? Here are a few tips from Kimberly Bloomston, SVP of product, LiveRamp, for improvements to your overall investment.
The great debate currently waging in IT departments is around which tech investments can weather a volatile market. Global cloud spending is projected to increase 17.5% this year to surpass $830 billion, yet new findings from KPMG report that 67% of U.S. tech leadersOpens a new window are yet to see a significant return on their cloud investments.Â
There is no denying cloud migration has helped with marketing and operational efficiency, though questions remain around how to streamline cloud strategies as enterprises look to recession-proof their business. With economic forecasts in doubt, business leaders are under pressure to identify technologies that will yield the most bang for their buck.Â
Enterprises have put significant capital and resources towards adopting cloud services and tools to store their data, but their cloud strategy should not end there. Taking better advantage of cloud spend will be a key element of the future of sound data architecture, making it critical to take steps that optimize this investment.Â
To grow and remain competitive, enterprises must be able to extract business value from this data, maximize its potential through privacy-first collaboration with partners, and granularly measure results.Â
See More: DRaas Leads Companies Into The World Of Cloud
Step 1: Align Your Cloud Strategy to Your Business Strategy
Data has proven to be a source of significant value for businesses but can be a complex and intimidating asset to manage. Disorganized data and disjointed tech stacks are usually the root cause of inefficiencies across the enterprise. Absent alignment between data collection, utilization, and collaboration, departments within an organization can easily become disconnected from business goals.
To help bridge business strategy with a relevant cloud strategy, brands must ensure that each business unit’s tech stack connects back to the entire enterprise. Companies can begin to align internal teams by sharing ownership of cloud strategy, inviting all stakeholders to scope out cloud-based features needed to deliver strong outcomes.
The underpinning of this is a “modern data strategy,†which is comprised of four key elements: foundational identity, connectivity, collaboration, and the ability to enrich consented customer data.Â
Step 2: Leverage Foundational Identity That Is People-based
Cloud environments require durable foundations of identity that can connect disparate data across the entire enterprise to create a unified customer view and seamless omnichannel experiences. Without the proper identity solutions in place, it becomes next to impossible to execute cohesive omnichannel campaigns and measure their outcomes, resulting in more waste and less revenue.
As businesses evaluate which identifiers to embed in their cloud, the goal is to find those that are people-based, which by nature of being consented to, first-party insights are privacy-first and can safely connect customer data. Identity long relied on tools such as third-party cookies and device identifiers, which we now know to be intrusive and lack granularity. Encrypted or encoded category identifiers have arisen as the frontrunner alternative. This is because encrypted IDs are responsive to controls, allowing for secure transmission only to intended parties. They have also proven effective at translating between other identity solutions and authenticating audiences by capturing customer touchpoints beyond browser-based ecosystems, providing a more complete picture of consumers.
By integrating people-based identity into their cloud ecosystem, enterprises have the foundation to build and enhance customer data infrastructure and protect consumer privacy by removing personal-identifiable information (PII) from the equation.
Step 3: Realize More Value Through Data Collaboration
Once a people-first identity foundation is in place, data collaboration tools can take initiatives to the next level. Many companies have already started to leverage data collaboration internally to break down silos within the enterprise and connect data sets that were previously separated. These collaboration techniques not only make use of untapped assets to enrich customer profiles but also indicate to forward-thinking business leaders what is possible with trusted external partners.
Companies that have already experimented with external collaboration, placing first-party data in data clean rooms and other tactics, have improved campaign planning, data activation and measurement processes by activating audiences seamlessly across partners without needing to send hashed or raw PII downstream. Google Ads Data Hub was one of the first data clean room pioneers, where major retailers like Amazon, Walmart, Carrefour and others have found success by launching retail media networks.Â
See More: Cloud Native Upturn Amid Economic Downturn
External data collaboration only works if the underlying technologies are privacy-conscious and preserve the non-movement of data. This explains the rise of privacy-enhancing technologies (PETs) in marketing and other enterprise sectors that enable permissioned teams to access data without having the data exchange hands or move it from its original location.Â
Once enterprises adopt the right collaboration features for their cloud, they can unlock customer intelligence while advancing from aggregate to person-level measurement.Â
In our new privacy-centric world, data-savvy businesses face a daunting challenge: how to safely connect their diverse collection of customer data to generate more performance insights and more accurate customer modeling. The answer is to build a modern data strategy that ensures connectivity across the modern tech stack rooted in the cloud.
By aligning business and cloud strategies, embedding people-based identity, and leaning into one’s network of trusted partners, enterprises can stay in control of their data while making the most of every customer touchpoint. By maximizing cloud investment, enterprises drive transformative digital workflows in a streamlined manner, accelerating data innovation and time to value from the cloud.
How are you optimizing and maximizing your cloud investments? Share your thoughts on FacebookOpens a new window , TwitterOpens a new window , and LinkedInOpens a new window .
Image Source: ShutterstockÂ
MORE ON CLOUD COMPUTING
- Is Your Organization Ready to Secure Your Cloud Operations?
- Key Questions to Ask Before Selecting a Cloud Database
- How Cloud Automation is Changing the Developer Experience
- Interoperability: Why the Metaverse Needs to be Cloud-native
Â