One-third of federal government agencies have already migrated applications to the cloud, and a third are researching or considering their cloud computing options. Choosing flexible solutions that address current and future needs are the keys to making the move cost-effective, secure, and seamless. This infographic from leading systems integrator General Dynamics and government market research firm Market Connections, Inc. gives you the four keys to successful federal cloud migrations, plus the latest research on obstacles and benefits of moving to the cloud.

1. MOVING FEDERAL AGENCIES TO THE CLOUD
Keys to Successful Cloud Migrations
86% Offers a highly secure platform
83% Provides access to technical customer support
80% Experience with federal government
77% Provides customized solutions
71% Cohesive forward-thinking cloud strategy
63% A single technology provider that can fulfill
all of my cloud computing needs
61% Flexible portfolio that offers a blend of cloud services
Important Characteristics
of Cloud Providers
04 Avoid vendor lock-in.
Many unanticipated issues of cloud services revolve around
performance, migration and vendor lock-in.
03
Work with an experienced cloud services provider.
Mitigate risks by finding a partner that has worked with multiple
environments, can identify issues and pitfalls and has federal
experience.
01
Address performance issues.
Bringing in a partner that understands the issues and can help
manage migrations will keep performance stable, save money and
ensure the agency's ability to execute on the mission.
02 Adopt a flexible cloud strategy.
Build in the flexibility to respond to current and future
requirements.
Agencies want
security, technical
support, and federal
experience from
cloud providers.
For more information go to www.gdit.com/cloud
64% Secure infrastructure
58% Provide cost savings
45% Unified management across multiple
cloud types and base providers
41% Application migration services
39% Flexibility to move between
cloud types
19% No technology/vendor lock-in
Top Benefits of
Cloud Services
Security and cost
savings top the list of
cloud services benefits.
Performance-Based
Issues in the Cloud
Less than one-third are concerned about
performance-based issues, but these
areas pose the greatest potential risks.
29% Migration of applications to a
cloud environment (application
readiness)
27% Lack of data segregation among
the provider's customers
25% Difficulty with or inability for
data recovery if we cancel the
service
23% Vendor lock-in
23% Lack of maturity of the technology
Perceived
Cloud Services Risks
Security concerns top the list of
perceived cloud services risks.
69% Unauthorized
access to or leak of
our proprietary data
65% Security defects in the
technology itself
45% Difficulty with or inability
for data recovery if the
provider fails
37% Application performance
30% Unpredictable costs
© 2014 Market Connections, Inc.
ONE-THIRD
No Plans
ONE-THIRD
Researching/Considering
ONE-THIRD
Using/Planning to Use
Cloud Computing
Current Use & Plans
SaaS tops the list of cloud computing
services under consideration. One-third of
agencies have no plans for IaaS, PaaS or
Managed Hosting services, and
one-quarter have no plans for SaaS.