Is it Time to Rethink your Cloud Presence

Innovation has transformed the way businesses operate, with cloud computing at the forefront of this evolution. Initially, many organisations embraced the public cloud for its scalability and flexibility, but a shift is underway. According to a Citrix survey, 42% of companies have moved at least half their cloud-based workloads out of the public cloud.

So, what’s driving this change? Why are businesses opting for hybrid or on-premises solutions? The key factors behind this shift include cost optimisation, data privacy, and performance.

Cost Optimisation: Managing the Rising Expenses

The number one reason companies are moving away from the public cloud is cost—but not just in terms of price. The technical complexity of cloud pricing models can make it difficult to predict and control expenses.

On the surface, pay-as-you-go models from providers like AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud seem cost-effective. A platform might advertise storage at £1 per GB, but a deeper look often reveals additional costs such as ingress (data moving into the cloud) and egress (data leaving the cloud). Egress charges, in particular, can quickly escalate as businesses scale, especially when large amounts of data need to be accessed or transferred frequently.

Beyond these fees, many organisations also face challenges optimising cloud resources. Unused or underutilised services can silently rack up costs, and complex pricing structures make it difficult to budget accurately. Additionally, businesses risk vendor lock-in—where moving away from a provider becomes prohibitively expensive or technically cumbersome. For these reasons, many organisations are reconsidering their cloud strategies and exploring private or hybrid solutions that offer more predictability and control.

Data Privacy and Security: Gaining Greater Control

Cybersecurity isn’t just a concern for large enterprises—small and mid-sized businesses (SMBs) are often targeted precisely because they are perceived to have weaker security measures. Many SMBs turn to cloud-based solutions to simplify their IT operations, assuming that providers handle all aspects of security, including backups. However, this assumption can be risky.

While cloud providers do offer some level of data redundancy, they are not necessarily responsible for backing up customer data in a way that protects against accidental deletion, ransomware attacks, or insider threats. If a critical file is deleted—whether by mistake or malicious intent—it may not always be recoverable. This is a common blind spot for businesses that rely on cloud solutions without implementing their own backup strategy.

By adopting a hybrid cloud or private infrastructure approach, companies gain more control over data security and backup processes. Ensuring that cloud-based data is properly backed up—whether through third-party backup solutions or on-premises storage—provides an additional layer of protection, reducing the risk of data loss and strengthening overall business continuity.

Performance: Keeping Up with Business Demands

For many industries, performance is critical—not just in terms of speed but also in ensuring seamless collaboration and workflow efficiency. Consider architecture firms or TV production companies handling large design files, 3D renderings, or high-resolution video footage. These businesses rely on fast, uninterrupted access to massive datasets, often involving multiple teams working across different locations.

Public cloud infrastructure can introduce latency and bottlenecks, particularly when large files need to be frequently uploaded, downloaded, or synchronised in real time. The physical distance between users and cloud data centres, combined with shared network resources, can slow down transfers, disrupting workflows and deadlines.

By moving latency-sensitive workloads to private data centres or hybrid cloud environments, organisations can keep critical data closer to users, ensuring faster access and more consistent performance. This shift enables smoother collaboration, reduces downtime, and allows creative and technical teams to work without unnecessary delays.

Is It Time to Reassess Your Cloud Strategy?

If your organisation is looking to regain control, reduce costs, and improve performance, it may be time to re-evaluate your cloud strategy. Conducting a thorough review of public cloud spending, performing a risk assessment, and exploring private or hybrid cloud options can help determine whether a shift away from the public cloud is the right move.

Cloud computing remains a powerful tool, but success lies in choosing the right approach for your business needs—not just following the trend.