After multiple cycles of cloud investment, many organizations now find themselves maintaining sprawling, complex environments that lead to cost concerns, security gaps and governance challenges. To navigate these hurdles, IT and business leaders must focus not only on new migrations but also on optimizing each stage of their cloud journey. The full cloud lifecycle comprises six stages:

Innovation and Strategy, when organizations lay out their goals and conduct an inventory of their existing assets
Design and Architecture, when they map out an infrastructure blueprint
Migration and Deployment, when they push workloads to the public cloud
Management and Operations, when they monitor and analyze performance and security
Optimization and Innovation, when they adopt new features and solutions
Exit or Decommissioning, when they shut down resource environments that are no longer needed

Effective cloud lifecycle management can lead to faster deployment, improved security, lower costs and increased innovation. By partnering with CDW for cloud lifecycle services, organizations can access decades of cross-industry cloud expertise to keep their cloud environments aligned with their business goals.

Learn how to make your cloud environment more efficient, scalable and secure with CDW’s Cloud Lifecycle Services.

CLICK TO LEARN MORE

After multiple cycles of cloud investment, many organizations now find themselves maintaining sprawling, complex environments that lead to cost concerns, security gaps and governance challenges. To navigate these hurdles, IT and business leaders must focus not only on new migrations but also on optimizing each stage of their cloud journey. The full cloud lifecycle comprises six stages:

Innovation and Strategy, when organizations lay out their goals and conduct an inventory of their existing assets
Design and Architecture, when they map out an infrastructure blueprint
Migration and Deployment, when they push workloads to the public cloud
Management and Operations, when they monitor and analyze performance and security
Optimization and Innovation, when they adopt new features and solutions
Exit or Decommissioning, when they shut down resource environments that are no longer needed

Effective cloud lifecycle management can lead to faster deployment, improved security, lower costs and increased innovation. By partnering with CDW for cloud lifecycle services, organizations can access decades of cross-industry cloud expertise to keep their cloud environments aligned with their business goals.

Learn how to make your cloud environment more efficient,
scalable and secure with CDW’s Cloud Lifecycle Services.

CLICK TO LEARN MORE

The Evolving State of the Cloud

Many organizations have already gone through several cloud adoption cycles.

When the public cloud first emerged as a mainstream option, business and IT leaders were often reluctant to move their business-critical workloads out of on-premises data centers, fearful of giving up control over their data. Then, as cloud hyperscalers demonstrated that they could support robust performance and a high level of security, many organizations began to adopt cloud-first policies that encouraged departments to push as many resources as possible to public cloud environments. Soon, IT and business leaders saw that a mass migration of data and applications to the public cloud could lead to sprawl and inefficiencies, and many of these organizations pulled at least some of their workloads back in-house.

Today, most leaders recognize that the public cloud is a powerful tool, but it's one that must be wielded wisely. Rather than go all-in on the cloud or avoid it entirely, these leaders understand organizations must take a strategic approach to their cloud journeys. This applies not only to initial migration, but also to every stage of the cloud lifecycle, from planning and implementation to optimization and decommissioning.

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CDW is one of only five companies worldwide to earn managed service provider (MSP) certifications with all three major cloud hyperscalers.

Although leaders understand the importance of managing and optimizing their cloud environments, many struggle with execution. In the 2024 CDW Cloud Computing Research Report, only half of respondents said their organizations are “very effective” at managing their cloud environments.

Nearly two-thirds cited a lack of cloud governance or strategy as a key factor hindering their cloud management efforts, with more than 60% citing a lack of cloud skills among internal staffers. And more than one-third of respondents said their cloud efforts were hindered by a lack of visibility or by the overall complexity of their cloud environments.

The 2025 State of the Cloud Report from Flexera also speaks to the growing complexity of many organizations’ cloud environments, as well as the accompanying challenges. According to the report, only 12% of organizations use a single public cloud provider; with most of the rest using a mix of private and public cloud environments. According to Flexera’s survey, 84% of respondents cited managing cloud spending as a top challenge, with 77% citing security and 75% citing governance as top challenges.

Taken together, this recent research paints a clear picture: Organizations’ cloud environments are more complex than ever, and this complexity makes it difficult to secure their data, manage their resources and rein in their spending. To overcome these challenges, IT and business leaders must stop treating their cloud journey as a one-time project or a series of disconnected initiatives. Instead, they need a structured, holistic approach that provides visibility, governance and optimization across their cloud environments.

That is the promise of cloud lifecycle services.

Learn how to make your cloud environment more efficient,
scalable and secure with CDW’s Cloud Lifecycle Services.

CLICK TO LEARN MORE

The Evolving State of the Cloud

Many organizations have already gone through several cloud adoption cycles.

When the public cloud first emerged as a mainstream option, business and IT leaders were often reluctant to move their business-critical workloads out of on-premises data centers, fearful of giving up control over their data. Then, as cloud hyperscalers demonstrated that they could support robust performance and a high level of security, many organizations began to adopt cloud-first policies that encouraged departments to push as many resources as possible to public cloud environments. Soon, IT and business leaders saw that a mass migration of data and applications to the public cloud could lead to sprawl and inefficiencies, and many of these organizations pulled at least some of their workloads back in-house.

Today, most leaders recognize that the public cloud is a powerful tool, but it's one that must be wielded wisely. Rather than go all-in on the cloud or avoid it entirely, these leaders understand organizations must take a strategic approach to their cloud journeys. This applies not only to initial migration, but also to every stage of the cloud lifecycle, from planning and implementation to optimization and decommissioning.

Although leaders understand the importance of managing and optimizing their cloud environments, many struggle with execution. In the 2024 CDW Cloud Computing Research Report, only half of respondents said their organizations are “very effective” at managing their cloud environments.

Nearly two-thirds cited a lack of cloud governance or strategy as a key factor hindering their cloud management efforts, with more than 60% citing a lack of cloud skills among internal staffers. And more than one-third of respondents said their cloud efforts were hindered by a lack of visibility or by the overall complexity of their cloud environments.

The 2025 State of the Cloud Report from Flexera also speaks to the growing complexity of many organizations’ cloud environments, as well as the accompanying challenges. According to the report, only 12% of organizations use a single public cloud provider; with most of the rest using a mix of private and public cloud environments. According to Flexera’s survey, 84% of respondents cited managing cloud spending as a top challenge, with 77% citing security and 75% citing governance as top challenges.

Taken together, this recent research paints a clear picture: Organizations’ cloud environments are more complex than ever, and this complexity makes it difficult to secure their data, manage their resources and rein in their spending. To overcome these challenges, IT and business leaders must stop treating their cloud journey as a one-time project or a series of disconnected initiatives. Instead, they need a structured, holistic approach that provides visibility, governance and optimization across their cloud environments.

That is the promise of cloud lifecycle services.

Learn how to make your cloud environment more efficient,
scalable and secure with CDW’s Cloud Lifecycle Services.

CLICK TO LEARN MORE

The Power of Partnership

400

With 400 Microsoft certifications, including credentials for Azure infrastructure and Microsoft security solutions, CDW is positioned to help organizations optimize their Azure environments and leverage tools such as Azure AI Services.

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An Amazon Web Services Premier Tier Partner, CDW is one of only two partners in North America (and one of seven worldwide) authorized to deliver AWS Managed Services directly. CDW’s experts have 170 AWS Certifications and 2,550 accreditations.

250

CDW is a Google Cloud Premier Partner and has been recognized as a Google Cloud Platform “Partner of the Year” in both the public sector and education categories. With over 250 Google Cloud Platform certifications, CDW has in-depth knowledge of and expertise in the hyperscaler’s infrastructure offerings.

The Power of Partnership

1 of 5

CDW is one of only five companies worldwide to earn managed service provider (MSP) certifications with all three major cloud hyperscalers.

2,550

An Amazon Web Services Premier Tier Partner, CDW is one of only two partners in North America (and one of seven worldwide) authorized to deliver AWS Managed Services directly. CDW’s experts have 170 AWS Certifications and 2,550 accreditations.

250

CDW is a Google Cloud Premier Partner and has been recognized as a Google Cloud Platform “Partner of the Year” in both the public sector and education categories. With over 250 Google Cloud Platform certifications, CDW has in-depth knowledge of and expertise in the hyperscaler’s infrastructure offerings.

Managing the Full Cloud Lifecycle

When IT and business leaders make decisions about where to place their workloads and how to manage them, they must consider the entire lifecycle of the cloud, not just the initial migration. The cloud lifecycle encompasses the process of moving to, managing and eventually decommissioning cloud services.

Assessment and Strategy: When leaders are eager to get started on a cloud initiative, they may skip or rush through assessments of their workloads, dependencies and business requirements. This is a mistake, leading organizations to begin their cloud journeys with only a partial understanding of their existing IT environment. Missteps may include failing to plan for hybrid or multicloud architectures, overlooking security and compliance, overcommitting to a single provider and ignoring data egress fees. A strong cloud strategy should define not only where workloads should live but also how they’ll be secured, monitored and paid for over time.

Design and Architecture: A properly designed cloud environment will meet an organization’s current business and IT needs while being scalable and flexible enough to easily accommodate shifts in strategy. By contrast, inadequate or improvised cloud architecture can lead to long-term inefficiencies. During the design and architecture stage, cloud teams will create a blueprint that outlines the infrastructure, network and security requirements needed to safeguard the organization’s cloud deployments, resulting in an environment that is scalable, protected and resilient.

Migration and Deployment: During the migration phase, organizations and external support teams move applications and data from on-premises infrastructure into the public cloud. This process can be complex, and it requires careful planning to minimize downtime and ensure data integrity. It’s also critical that teams take the time to carefully map out the dependencies between different workloads and modernize applications to take advantage of the cloud’s benefits. When these steps are skipped, the result is often a like-for-like, “lift and shift” migration that preserves inefficiencies and leads to unexpectedly high operating costs.

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Management and Operations: Even when cloud migrations are based on carefully designed architecture and thorough assessments, organizations must continuously monitor and analyze their cloud environments to make sure they are performing as needed and are not sprawling out of control. This stage includes monitoring performance, managing resources and ensuring compliance with security and regulatory requirements. Many organizations lack unified visibility across cloud environments, making it difficult to track usage, enforce policies and respond to incidents. These scenarios can lead to operational silos, especially in hybrid setups where teams must manage both cloud and on-premises infrastructure.

Optimization and Innovation: Cloud optimization is an ongoing process that requires IT leaders to continuously analyze and improve their cloud environments. This includes leveraging new features and solutions introduced by cloud providers to enhance performance and reduce costs. This stage also requires IT leaders to constantly re-evaluate their tools and practices to keep their environments secure, efficient and compliant. Without ongoing innovation, organizations will miss opportunities to use the cloud to drive business growth.

Exit or Decommission: It is rare for organizations to prioritize decommissioning when they begin their cloud journey, but ignoring this stage can be costly. Many organizations continue to pay for unused applications, redundant environments or orphaned storage volumes for years after these resources stop being useful. To retire cloud workloads, organizations must migrate or archive data, securely shut down systems and account for dependent services. Without a structured decommissioning process, organizations may lose out on savings, introduce unnecessary security risks and carry technical debt that can undermine long-term efficiency.

How Cloud Drives Business Outcomes

The ultimate goal of cloud lifecycle management isn’t to optimize technology but to enable business outcomes. By strategically managing each stage of their cloud journey, organizations can hasten time to value, improve security and governance, trim costs and support ongoing innovation.

Accelerated Time to Value: Organizations that engage in early cloud lifecycle processes such as assessment, strategy and design aren’t delaying their cloud journey. Rather, they are shortening the time it will take to attain real value from their cloud investments. Poor planning often results in workloads that are merely lifted and shifted to the public cloud, with many remaining inefficient and tied to expensive legacy systems even after migration. By contrast, organizations that embrace cloud lifecycle management maintain flexible, scalable cloud environments that can adapt to changing needs. This means that teams will be able to rapidly deploy emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence and machine learning workloads and automation tools, without needing to pause their innovation initiatives to redesign their systems.

Improved Security and Governance: Security can be a major challenge in cloud initiatives, and this is only exacerbated by emerging technologies such as AI. According to the 2024 CDW Cloud Computing Research Report, security is the top reason organizations cite for keeping an application on-premises rather than moving it to the public cloud. And more than half of organizations that aren’t using AI say their reluctance to adopt the technology is due to data privacy and security concerns. However, security can also be a strength of the public cloud. Hyperscalers enforce stringent security standards, and their native dashboards help IT leaders quickly determine whether systems are in compliance with security mandates. In the CDW report, 48% of respondents cited improved security as a business benefit of the public cloud.

Optimized Costs and Efficiencies: The public cloud is not always less expensive than an on-premises environment. However, organizations that strategically plan their cloud investments and manage their environments to avoid sprawl do often find that the public cloud can be a source of significant cost savings. Much of this calculus comes down to the tools and processes that organizations use to manage their environments and track their spending. According to the 2024 CDW Cloud Computing Research Report, only 47% of respondents are “very confident” in their ability to track the costs of their private and public cloud systems. Cloud lifecycle management should include an embrace of FinOps practices that bring together finance, operations and engineering teams to align spending with business goals.

Increased Agility and Innovation: One of the most powerful promises of the public cloud is that it can help free internal IT staffers from the daily demands of “keeping the lights on” in the data center, giving them time to focus on strategic projects that drive innovation. However, when organizations neglect certain parts of the cloud lifecycle, their public cloud environments can become unwieldy, inflexible and difficult to manage. By carefully architecting their cloud environments and then proactively monitoring and optimizing those environments over time, organizations can both increase capacity for their internal teams and maintain cloud environments that can rapidly absorb new, innovation-driven workloads. These use cases may include AI models, real-time analytics and next-generation applications that demand scale, speed and simplicity.

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AI and the Cloud

Organizations are now leveraging AI for IT operations tools and processes to help them manage and maintain their IT infrastructure. In an AIOps environment, operational tasks such as performance monitoring, workload scheduling and data backups are all automated via AI tools.
AI is enhancing cloud security by enabling real-time detection of threats and anomalies that traditional tools might miss. These solutions continuously analyze vast amounts of data, flagging unusual behavior or potential breaches as soon as they occur.
As organizations modernize their applications to run on cloud environments, AI tools can automate repetitive development tasks such as code generation, debugging and testing. This can accelerate development cycles and keep migration plans on schedule.
As they adopt AI applications, organizations look to the cloud to support these new workloads. From training large language models to real-time inferencing, cloud environments offer the compute power and storage capacity required by AI.

CDW Services for Cloud Optimization

By working with a trusted partner like CDW, organizations can accelerate their cloud journey, lower the burden on internal staff and drive desired business outcomes.

Cloud Assessments: Early assessments can help leaders better understand their on-premises and cloud infrastructure, how these existing investments align with their business goals and what future investments may be needed to close any gaps. In a cloud readiness evaluation, for instance, CDW’s experts will assess an organization’s existing environment to set goals, identify potential stumbling blocks and determine which resources to migrate first.

Cloud Migrations: CDW’s cloud experts can help organizations develop a migration strategy based on their business needs, accelerate application rationalization and provide post-migration support to ensure that cloud initiatives deliver long-term value. In a Migration Wave Planning engagement, CDW’s experts help an organization’s leaders build out a migration wave strategy that maximizes end-of-life asset migrations while driving business value, application modernization and AI adoption.

Cost Optimization: Many organizations struggle with visibility into their sprawling cloud environments, where resources may be underutilized. CDW’s experts bring fresh eyes to help design cost-effective cloud environments and then keep costs under control over time. CDW’s FinOps Accelerator workshop gives IT leaders, CIOs, finance teams and engineering professionals the tools and knowledge they need to control cloud costs, maximize efficiency and optimize cloud investments.

Managed Cloud Services: The cloud is not a one-time investment, but rather a dynamic environment that requires ongoing management to optimize performance and cost efficiency. CDW’s managed cloud services help simplify the complexities of cloud management for organizations, allowing internal IT teams to focus on higher-order strategic tasks that bring value to the business. CDW’s cloud-certified consultants, architects and engineers and its Cloud Solutions Center give organizations access to reliable 24/7/365 support.

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Application Modernization: For organizations that have struggled to take full advantage of the benefits of a public cloud environment, legacy applications are often the limiting factor. When teams perform a lift-and-shift, or like-for-like replacement of their legacy on-premises environments in the public cloud, they rarely see performance improvements or cost reductions. With CDW Amplified™ Development Services, organizations can rapidly refactor their applications to leverage modern development principles such as containerization, microservices and event-based architectures.

Multicloud Services: Leading partnerships and certifications with Microsoft Azure, AWS and Google Cloud Platform make CDW uniquely positioned to help organizations design, optimize and manage multicloud environments that leverage resources from more than one hyperscaler. CDW’s deep relationships result in unfettered access to technical specialists at these cloud providers, as well as the ability to create seamless integrations between disparate cloud environments.

Elastic Engineering Services: CDW offers elastic engineering services that provide businesses with the additional resources they need, when they need it. For an hourly rate, with no upfront costs, CDW’s engineers can help organizations with cloud architecture assessments, security reviews, foundational planning, migration, end-user computing, and FinOps and DevOps services. For organizations working on special cloud projects, elastic engineering services can provide tailored solutions.

Talent Orchestration: CDW’s Talent Orchestration Services enables swift business adaptation with unparalleled access to top-tier tech resources. By working with CDW, organizations can instantly increase their IT capacity and gain new skills and expertise without adding to their permanent headcount. Organizations can leverage Talent Orchestration Services to create flexible, scalable infrastructure; keep cloud environments secure; accelerate innovation; and find new opportunities to create value with their data.