Information technology (IT) services are rapidly evolving. And with this evolution comes a shift in how organizations manage their applications, data, and services. Traditionally, businesses relied on on-premises datacenters to host their IT infrastructure, but the rise of cloud computing has made it possible for these businesses to extend their infrastructure offsite. This provides clear advantages over on-premises computing in terms of security and efficiency, but it also creates new challenges in managing and integrating diverse environments.
Many organizations find it difficult to move entirely to the cloud due to security concerns, compliance requirements, or legacy systems. As a result, hybrid cloud solutions have become a preferred approach, offering a way to balance the benefits of cloud computing with the control and customization of on-premises infrastructure.
Hybrid cloud combines multiple cloud platforms, so it’s only natural that some people use the term synonymously with ‘multicloud.’ But the reality is that hybrid and multicloud represent two distinct IT approaches:
- Multicloud
Multicloud involves using services from two or more public cloud providers, often to take advantage of the strengths or unique capabilities of each provider. This approach is also used to avoid vendor lock-in, ensuring flexibility by spreading workloads across several cloud platforms. - Hybrid cloud
Hybrid cloud combines private cloud infrastructure—such as an organization’s on-premises datacenter—with one or more public cloud services. These environments are interconnected and designed to work together, enabling seamless data and application sharing.
In other words, hybrid cloud focuses on integrating private and public clouds into a unified system, while multicloud involves managing separate public cloud services. These approaches can overlap when a hybrid cloud deployment also incorporates resources from multiple public cloud providers.
Hybrid cloud offers a strategic solution for organizations navigating the complexities of modern IT infrastructure. It provides the flexibility to migrate data and applications to the cloud at a pace that aligns with the business, enabling gradual modernization while minimizing risk. This approach is especially valuable for organizations with strict regulatory requirements, as it allows sensitive data to remain on-premises or in private cloud environments while still leveraging the scalability and innovation of public cloud services.
Additionally, hybrid cloud supports edge computing, which allows organizations to process data closer to where it is generated. For industries requiring low-latency operations, such as retail or telecommunications, hybrid cloud promotes faster data processing at remote edge locations.
By balancing control, scalability, and performance, hybrid cloud gives organizations the power to build IT strategies that are uniquely targeted towards their specific business goals and operational demands.
More specifically, hybrid cloud provides several significant advantages. These include:
- Effective application governance
Hybrid cloud enables organizations to determine where applications and workloads reside, ensuring improved privacy and security for sensitive data. This also helps ensure regulatory compliance. - Improved performance and reduced latency
For applications with low-latency requirements, hybrid cloud allows workloads to run closer to end users (whether through private infrastructure or edge computing), enhancing overall performance and user experience. - Flexible operations
Organizations can operate across multiple environments, leveraging containers and orchestration tools like Kubernetes to seamlessly move workloads between public and private clouds. - Improved ROI
By integrating public cloud resources with existing on-premises infrastructure, organizations can scale capacity without incurring the high costs of purchasing, installing, or maintaining physical hardware. - Faster innovation
Hybrid cloud can provide businesses with direct access to technologies like artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning (ML). This allows organizations to innovate and deliver new services without needing to overhaul their existing infrastructure.
By offering a combination of scalability, control, and cost efficiency, hybrid cloud can address a wide range of use cases. Below are some of the most common ways businesses leverage hybrid cloud environments:
For organizations operating in highly regulated industries, hybrid cloud offers a way to maintain compliance without missing out on the advantages of cloud computing. Sensitive data and workloads are kept on private cloud infrastructure or behind on-premises firewalls when necessitated by regulatory requirements, while less sensitive applications and data are run in the public cloud to reduce costs and improve efficiency.
Hybrid cloud helps businesses handle sudden or unpredictable spikes in demand through a practice known as ‘cloud bursting.’ Critical workloads remain on private infrastructure, while public cloud is temporarily leveraged to scale up quickly and handle surges in traffic or processing needs without overprovisioning on-premises infrastructure.
Many organizations rely on legacy applications that may be difficult to replace or migrate. Hybrid cloud allows these applications to continue to operate on private infrastructure while using public cloud services where possible to extend their functionality.
Hybrid cloud is a practical choice for businesses transitioning from on-premises infrastructure to the cloud. Workloads are moved incrementally, starting with non-critical applications. ‘Lift-and-shift’ strategies—where an application is transitioned to the cloud without making any significant changes—are often used to virtualize workloads on public cloud infrastructure.
Hybrid cloud is particularly effective for organizations managing large-scale data analytics. Public cloud resources are used to process and analyze big data workloads with high computational demands, and sensitive or proprietary data remains secure in private cloud environments.
Hybrid cloud plays a key role in backup and disaster recovery (BDR) strategies. Businesses store copies of critical data in both private and public cloud environments, ensuring resilience in case of data loss, corruption, or outages. With hybrid cloud, organizations can automate recovery processes and improve their overall business continuity plans.
For businesses that require short-term processing capacity, hybrid cloud provides a cost-effective solution. Short-term projects or workloads can be managed in the public cloud instead of requiring investment in new hardware. Once the project ends, these resources can be decommissioned, avoiding long-term costs.
Hybrid cloud enables businesses to quickly adopt innovative technologies, such as AI automation or new software-as-a-service (SaaS) applications. These technologies can be easily integrated into existing workflows without requiring upgrades to on-premises infrastructure.
No two businesses have the exact same needs or goals, so it’s safe to say that no two hybrid cloud strategies are identical. Still, there are certain key steps businesses should consider when implementing any kind of hybrid cloud deployment:
- Define the hybrid cloud vision
Start by evaluating the current IT environment, infrastructure, and business objectives. Develop a vision statement that outlines what the hybrid cloud deployment aims to achieve—cost optimization, enhanced scalability, improved security, etc. This vision will serve as the foundation for the rest of the strategy. - Assess and prioritize workloads
Determine which workloads will be best suited for public cloud, private cloud, multicloud, or on-premises environments. Factors such as security, performance requirements, regulatory compliance, and scalability should guide these decisions. Placing workloads in the right environment ensures optimal performance, while misplacing them can lead to inefficiencies and other complications. - Identify architecture patterns
Evaluate potential hybrid cloud architecture patterns to find those that match the organizational goals and workloads. These patterns provide a framework for structuring the environment for optimal resource utilization. - Choose technologies and network topologies
Select technologies and configurations for connecting the hybrid cloud environments. This may include implementing container orchestration platforms, establishing reliable network topologies, and leveraging tools that enable unified management across public and private clouds. This directly impacts how data and applications will move between environments, making it an essential consideration. - Establish governance policies and roles
Define clear governance policies to oversee the hybrid cloud deployment. Assign roles and responsibilities across teams to promote proper management of cloud resources, workloads, and processes. - Review SLAs
Examine the service level agreements (SLAs) provided by public cloud vendors. Pay close attention to metrics such as system uptime, latency, data availability, and support services. Align these agreements with the organization’s operational requirements to avoid potential performance or reliability issues. - Adopt a zero-trust security approach
Implement a zero-trust model that enforces strict access controls and ensures data protection across all environments. Establish consistent cyber-security protocols, such as encryption and identity verification, to protect sensitive workloads in both public and private cloud settings. - Continuously monitor and optimize
Once deployed, the hybrid cloud environment should be continuously monitored for performance and efficiency. Analytics and monitoring tools can be used to assess workload distribution, resource utilization, and operational effectiveness. Make adjustments where needed, taking an iterative approach to allow the hybrid cloud to evolve alongside changing business requirements.
Hybrid cloud has become a cornerstone of modern IT strategies, offering organizations the flexibility to balance and integrate the entirety of their computing infrastructure in a way that delivers more than just the sum of its parts. That said, to fully capitalize on the benefits of hybrid cloud, companies need tools that provide powerful observability, automation, and IT governance across complex, multi-stack environments. ServiceNow provides the answer, with IT Operations Management (ITOM).
With ServiceNow ITOM, organizations gain full visibility into their hybrid IT estate, spanning on-premises, cloud, and serverless environments. ITOM empowers teams to map services and infrastructure, predict issues using AIOps, and automate resolutions to minimize disruptions. ServiceNow’s Cloud Accelerate further enhances hybrid cloud solutions by simplifying cloud adoption and governance. Automate service requests through the Cloud Services Catalog, migrate workloads with detailed assessment and tracking tools, and identify and remediate cloud configuration violations—all from a single, centralized platform.
Get the most out of the environments that support your business; demo ServiceNow ITOM to see how.