There is a widespread misconception in IT that putting workloads in the cloud is the new “nirvana.” The myth promises a modern environment where costs are low and predictable, quality is high, concerns are minimal and choices are plentiful. Ultimately, whether migrating to the cloud is the right decision for you depends on a number of things.

Although I’m going to try to lay out the decision parameters for a cloud migration as simply as possible, there is an inherent complexity that cannot be overlooked. I have learned this by managing many migrations over the last ten years working in diverse industries like technology, financial services and human capital management (HCM).

When contemplating cloud solutions, consider the following:

• Your organization’s size and customer expectations

• The kind of regulatory environment that governs it

• The workloads you are considering for cloud migration

• What your IT team means by “cloud”

• Whether there is confusion between cloud as an economic model and as an infrastructure and whether you have the correct people and tools to manage a cloud infrastructure