According to Flexera’s research, the number of enterprises with a hybrid strategy, combining public cloud and private infrastructure, grew to 58% in 2019 from 51% in 2018.
This confirms that companies are still dealing with two complex questions:
Underneath these questions are the more tactical concerns governing whether a solution ends up on-premise or in some form of the cloud. In particular, there’s the issue of how closely or loosely coupled a specific system is to its supporting applications and data sources.
This is a particular challenge for those without a mature Software Asset Management function. Teams can struggle to map out co-dependencies and elaborate connections that both directly and indirectly influence core solutions. The challenge can prove difficult enough when all systems are housed on-premise; it grows by orders of magnitude when cloud and hybrid environments enter the picture.
On the surface this can look rather complicated, as you need to account for on-premise and potentially multiple cloud infrastructures to find the ideal way to arrange contracts and subscription models, and to reconcile cloud subscription and consumption. In addition there’s the need to keep an eye on consumption peaks and how these relate to business peaks. And that’s before you look at questions of license mobility—moving existing on-premise licenses to the cloud—which Oracle SIA’s Cloud Sizing service can support.
Mohit Singh is senior director for Oracle Software Investment Advisory in the Japan Asia Pacific region, and has a broad-ranging background that includes leading customer success teams. He has a unique perspective on the kind of consulting relationship that customers need when tackling complex challenges such as optimizing the value of investments across hybrid environments.
“When you have 20 to 30 years of a corporate-wide relationship between two organizations [Oracle and a customer], to be able to get a fresh look at that relationship and to be able to appreciate the time and money invested in that relationship, I think that is really valuable to bring to our customer.”
When looking for the optimal way to license hybrid environments, having the right source of advice to help decide what areas to focus on is key, as these three examples show.
1) Map all co-dependencies in detail
This will require an analysis of the historical deployment footprint, along with in-depth product knowledge, to uncover all related dependencies. A typical discovery workshop with a cloud provider is not going to be enough. You will need active dialogue with the product vendor to map needs and eligibility before identifying the specific licenses that need to be moved or repurposed.
2) Get a complete handle on usage
Doing this requires a comprehensive view of all assets owned and trusted insights into who’s using what, where, and when across the extended business. Only once this view is available can you confidently determine the most appropriate way to deploy applications and to find the best supporting license structures.
3) Focus your licenses around solution requirements
If the end goal is to turbocharge a certain application by spreading its ecosystem of capabilities across on-premise and cloud, think through what’s needed to help reach its fullest potential. Map through the variances to ensure you’re aware of all possible costs in advance, as well as the license metrics that come into play.
Translate and leverage past on-premise investments for future benefit in the cloud with our Cloud Sizing service.
Align Oracle investments to your business’s technology roadmap with our Licensing Solutions.
Rationalize your current Oracle deployment for cost and performance benefits by using our Deployment Optimization services.