Free Essay Sample - Background to the Business

AdvancedMD is a software platform that was established in 1999. The platform is a spin-off from the parent company ADP but operates independently. The platform is used by medical professionals to manage workflow, administer practices, and securely share information, among other tasks (Filatove, 2019). The platform offers comprehensive flexibility at a fairly competitive price to the customers. The AdvancedMD software has rich and powerful features that provide clinical care providers with numerous methods of accomplishing their tasks during an encounter with a patient. Thus, the dynamic model enables the platform to adapt to the different workflows of the physicians (Perry, 2018). Additionally, the platform can incorporate customizable templates to facilitate further modifications to the preference of customers.

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AdvancedMd offers its services in several packages that further facilitate the incorporation of practices that have different sizes and budgets. As a result, all methods can select a package that is most applicable to what they want or need. Moreover, the platform supports self-guided implementations as well as one-on-one training sessions that are continuous (Perry, 2018). The platform is also interoperable with systems used in pharmacies, laboratories, as well as hospitals to make the work of the physician easier.

Current System

Before the spin-off from ADP, AdvancedMD stored its data in ADP’s data center. The data center was useful at the time. However, with the decision to operate independently, the platform had to transfer its data to another storage facility that would offer security and availability due to the sensitive and protective nature of the customer’s data (Filatov, 2019). Furthermore, the new storage facility was expected to make data available to the client whenever it is needed. Additionally, they had to identify a storage facility that was easy to manage, affordable. They can be adjustable to fit their customers’ evolving needs while keeping the data available and secure (Filatov, 2019). As a result, the option to transfer their data to cloud services arises due to their issue of data storage for collaboration and file sharing.

Proposed Cloud Service

Identifying a specific cloud service operator for AdvancedMD is crucial as the company has to determine the particular nature that would successfully fit with the needs of the company to avoid creating unnecessary issues. In the case of AdvancedMD, the platform as a Service (PaaS) cloud service hybrid model would be the best option as it would facilitate the portability of the applications provided by the platform. Additionally, the PaaS system will give a full and invisible infrastructure environment for the platform to operate thoroughly. As a result, the PaaS solution will help to save on marketing since the PaaS will be preloaded with the required runtime software (Cook, 2019). Since AdvancedMD is moving to a new storage facility under the least time possible to prevent clients from unsubscribing from their platform, the PaaS solution would be most beneficial in regards to time.

Migrating to the Cloud PaaS system services, AdvancedMD will also gain new capacities such as the ability to reduce storage spend, to trade Capex for a lower Opex, to improve orchestration and operability aptitude. At the same time, the service will also ensure that the client’s data is secure and available at all times, and provide features that are automated and easy to use. PaaS solution will also enable the platform to incorporate an infinity-scalable feature that promotes storage-saving and efficiency, such as de-duplication, compaction, as well as compression (Perry, 2018). The PaaS system will also be beneficial as it will offer AdvancedMD security and simplicity in terms of features as well as clients’ data and encryption of private information.

Overall Timeline and Cost Required to Migrate

Very little time will be used to migrate from the ADP data center to a PaaS cloud service provider since the necessary infrastructure needed to facilitate the migration is provided for by the PaaS system. As a result, the platform would avoid the need to employ in-house storage experts to identify, purchase, and install infrastructure. This notion would mean that AdvancedMD would not have to stop its services to facilitate the transfer, and as such, the clients’ data will continuously be available whenever the client needs it. Filatov (2019) also noted that the platform’s flexibility feature would help to reduce the time required for migration as the quick flex ability will help to accommodate the company’s fluctuating needs. Therefore, since the platform was running on an online data center, it will be easy to use applications such as NetApp’s Cloud services to move the data to Amazon Web Services (AWS).

It is necessary to note that even though cloud services protect the platform’s sensitive data and information, extra steps in ensuring security are advised. Some of these steps may include establishing a strategy that addresses and facilitates additional layers of controls such as encryption, permissions, as well as privacy policies. Additionally, since the PaaS system offers inbuilt infrastructure, the platform will not need to incur unnecessary technology overhead costs since the service will provide cloud hosting services. As a result, AdvancedMD will be able to use the extra time and resources to improve their infrastructures, which will eventually improve their services. Furthermore, Investing in cloud services will help to reduce operation costs since cloud services auto-scale their space. As a result, the company cannot pay more for infrastructure than what they are using, which, in turn, will save them money that will help them ensure customer pricing affordability.

References

Cook, J. (2019, September 17). Cloud migration risks & benefits. Cloud Academy. https://cloudacademy.com/blog/cloud-migration-benefits-risks/Filatov, B. (2019, August 1). 10 useful cloud migration examples you need to know. Distillery. https://distillery.com/blog/cloud-migration-case-studies/

Perry, Y. (2018, June 26). Why AdvancedMD moved their data center to the cloud. NetApp Cloud Solutions Homepage. https://cloud.netapp.com/blog/advancedmd-move-data-center-to-cloud