How I came to trust Google Cloud
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21. April 2021
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3. May 2021
BY LENA VOLLMANN, ACCOUNT MANAGER
HOW I CAME TO TRUST GOOGLE CLOUD
Wabion’s Account Manager Lena Vollmann takes you on her personal journey to Wabion and Google Cloud – and the reasons to stay there for both Wabion customers and employees.
Cloud is here to stay. Two years ago, a public cloud strategy was for many companies at best at the far end of the 10-years road map. But the pandemic has largely switched IT infrastructure priorities and accelerated the migration toward the cloud. Not only because cloud solutions allow your staff to work from home, simplify scalability or optimize IT costs, but also because some innovations, just like the rapid development of vaccines, are simply not possible without cloud computing.
AWS AND AZURE AS FIRST THOUGHTS
My personal cloud journey took me beyond changing working habits, videoconference overdosis and hybrid events. When considering my next career move, Wabion got onto my radar. As a leading Google Cloud Premier Partner in the DACH region, Wabion prepares and supports small and large organisations on their cloud journey. Due to Wabion’s “Google Cloud only”-approach, I started discovering Google Cloud from my perspective as somebody from the corporate side of the business.
Even though public cloud was rather a green field for me, my working experience enabled me to understand the concerns IT and business executives have when it comes to picking a cloud provider as part of a fundamentally new, cloud-based IT strategy. Typically, a person with my or a similar professional background would think of AWS (first mover with years of a head start) or Azure (because your company is already using Microsoft products) in the first place.
GOOGLE CLOUD AS MATURE APPROACH
It is a fair question why Google came rather late onto the public cloud market. On the other hand, that gave Google Cloud the opportunity to challenge the limitations of its “faster” competitors. Today, Google is still no. 3 in the public cloud market, but is also the fastest growing public cloud provider. A major reason for this impressive development is Google’s unique infrastructure – the same global infrastructure with shark-prove submarine cables that it has built for products like YouTube and Google Search and that handles over 25% of the global internet volume. More cloud is simply not possible.
Another legitimate question is: “Can I trust my data to Google Cloud?” The answer is likely to surprise you: as a Google Cloud customer you don’t have to! When it comes to privacy and security, Google Cloud developed a unique “Zero Trust” approach, the so-called cloud trust paradox:
The essence of this approach is that Google enables you to have as much control over your data as you need. And if you still decide to keep some highly sensitive customer or financial data on-premise, Google Cloud will offer you a number of tools to support your multi- or hybrid cloud infrastructure. Its open-source DNA embraces multiple ecosystems, instead of competing with them.
NOT ONLY SECURE, BUT ALSO SUSTAINABLE
So far, so good. While I was heavily impressed by the scale and security of Google Cloud infrastructure, I was still wondering: What about sustainability? Considering the amount of energy such an infrastructure consumes, isn’t it a planet killer? It is not.
Not surprisingly, Google uses its own AI/ML expertise to improve sustainability and reduce carbon footprint.
Naturally, Google as the “data company” has unmatched skills and possibilities in terms of big data and machine learning. Google Cloud provides its customers with this unique know-how to innovate its IT infrastructure, build cloud-native software and conduct data analytics for better business decisions. Moreover, Google also invests a lot of effort to turn its skills into easily accessible and intuitive functions for its customers.
CLOUD DNA TO DELIVER ADDED VALUE
Once I was convinced by Google Cloud and its unique technology, there was still a crucial question left: if I join Wabion, how do I convince potential customers not only of Google Cloud, but also Wabion as an integration partner? Why should potential customers trust me and my new colleagues to do the job to help them leverage Google Cloud for their specific cloud initiatives?
As a “Google Cloud-only” partner, Wabion has cloud thinking in its DNA just like Google. Covering the whole Google Cloud universe from VMs to Google Maps, Wabion was one of the first Google Cloud Partners in the DACH regions. Through projects and long-term collaborations with customers such as Delivery Hero, KAESER KOMPRESSOREN, AXA and TX Group we have refined our expertise and reinforced our trust and expertise to Google Cloud.
As a member of the great Wabion team, I benefit from our great collaboration culture. Despite the fact that I had my first day at Wabion in my home office, I never felt isolated, and none of my questions stayed unanswered. Our cloud DNA enables this openness, flexibility and reliability, on which our customers count on, in particular during these challenging times.
As one of the 60 Wabion experts, I serve my customers both as account and project manager. At Wabion, we consistently follow this hands-on approach, because we consider this the best way to deliver customer-specific solutions and establish the basis for a sustainable and successful collaboration. Typically, we start our joint cloud journey with a Cloud Foundation, a great starting point for shaping your cloud journey and turning it into your competitive advantage. Are there still questions you want to ask? Let’s talk.