On May 3rd, 2017, Founder of Sun Microsystems Scott McNealy delivered a keynote address at Gateway to Innovation 2017 in St. Louis, MO. Here’s what he shared.
Sun Microsystems – founded in 1982, went public in 1986, and acquired by Oracle in 2010 – without question, left its mark on the world. Sun’s slogan, “the network is the computer”, is particularly poignant in today’s world of cloud computing. Scott McNealy, Founder and CEO of Sun Microsystems, reiterated this message at Gateway to Innovation 2017, and stressed the critical role of cloud computing as a part of every organization’s innovation strategy.
Which Cloud to Choose?
There are, in essence, three cloud platform providers: Google Cloud, Amazon Web Services (AWS), and Microsoft Azure. If you are considering a move to the cloud, McNealy’s advice is to get bids from all three. Then,
- Put 60% of your enterprise on the least expensive cloud platform.
- Put 30% on the 2nd most expensive cloud platform.
- Put 10% on the most expensive cloud platform.
Following this strategy, you gain all the benefits of the cloud and factor in ultimate flexibility. You can scale up for peak loads on any or all of the clouds; if one cloud is disrupted, you can fall back on the other two.
A Word of Caution
Under no circumstances, according to McNealy, should you use any of your cloud provider’s proprietary plugins or features. This “free crack” locks you in and restricts your freedom of movement between cloud providers. These bells and whistles may sound great and look cool, but see them for what they are – future handcuffs – said McNealy.
Today, AWS and Microsoft Azure are leading in terms of market share. But, according to CIODive and Forbes, Google is predicted to surpass AWS to become the largest cloud provider in the world within the next 5 years.
If you don’t have at least part of your enterprise on the cloud, it’s time to take steps in that direction. Contact OCI today to discuss your 60/30/10 cloud strategy.
