Summary:
While the cloud is touted with bringing greater agility, expanding capability, improving productivity, enabling efficiency and reducing costs, none of these occur by simply implementing a cloud framework or structure. The Cloud itself is not a silver bullet. In fact, without a thorough and well-constructed cloud strategy, implementation plan and a platform in place to monitor and optimize costs and validate assumptions, the cloud can quickly become an albatross overrunning budgets and never achieving the outcomes originally envisioned. This presentation will help CIOs make sure the cloud becomes an effective strategy that delivers on outcomes, what they envisioned, reduces costs and opens avenues for innovation in support of student success.

What we will discuss:
In our presentation, team members will discuss their decision making process in determining the right cloud strategy, the importance of understanding your intended outcomes, how to determine which investments help achieve those outcomes and how to create a plan and framework that carefully considers, not just increased capability, but, also, if and how these will be achieved within proper data governance and a proven financial model.

What attendees will take away:
• Examples of what key outcomes might look like.
• How to define a true business case for change.
• How to maximize activities around cloud decisions to make them more effective, cost-efficient and agile.
• How collaboration at every step is key.
• The importance of pacing your team and including proofs of concept (POC) and key milestones throughout the cloud journey as the means to validate the assumptions and manage expectations.