A Hybrid World
Over the past 16 years, I’ve been through five auto leases (I’m currently in my sixth) and, as end of lease approaches, I spend ridiculous amounts of time researching and reading about what to get next. At the end of the day, regardless of what vehicle I choose, it’ll have four wheels and an engine… a gas engine. And, potentially, an electric motor. However, you know what it won’t have? Battery-only operation. To understand why, you’ll have to think hybrid…
There are finite limits on battery electric vehicle (BEV) range that allow you to get from A to C but not without stopping at B for a charge.
Stopping is a momentum killer.
On the other hand, hybrid electric vehicles combine both combustion engines and electric motors, shifting between the two, with the gas engine habitually recharging the electric batteries. Momentum is easier to maintain in a hybrid vehicle where stops are limited to gas refueling (instead of lengthier charging windows).
The point here is to maintain the highest amount of momentum along your journey.
In the world of information technology, momentum is key. As we discussed, technology nimbleness is the key to maintaining competitive advantage and meeting today’s increasing demands, both from your workforce and consumers alike. Being able to change on demand requires momentum, and to maintain maximum momentum, businesses must be nimble. To be nimble, businesses must adopt a hybrid approach to technology investments.
Enter hybrid cloud.
Hybrid Cloud is the blending of two (or more) cloud computing environments that work in unison to deliver IT services. Typically, hybrid includes the use of private and public cloud services.
Private Cloud is the traditional (some would say legacy) IT computing platform that has been designed and is used exclusively by your business – meaning it is not a shared environment. Depending on your size, one may call this “on-premises”, “co-located”, “data center” or “server room”. Bottom line, whatever the naming convention, this is your infrastructure, used by you and you alone, and in a tangible space where you can see, feel, and hear the gear.
On the other hand, Public Cloud is a platform made for your consumption by another organization providing technology functionality entirely “as-a-service”, in a location that you will likely never visit, let alone know the location of. Public Cloud is traditionally offered as one of three services – Software-as-a-Service (SaaS, think Office 365), Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS, think Azure SQL), or, the most commonly used, Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS, think Azure Virtual Machines).
Gas + Battery = Hybrid.
Private + Public = Hybrid.
Hybrid = Momentum.
Momentum = Nimble.
Hybrid = Nimble*
*When done right… our topic for next week.
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