Taming the Cloud Beast: A Friendly Guide to Surviving the Chaos

If you’ve been anywhere near the tech world recently, you’ve probably heard how multi-cloud is the new normal. It’s where your data lives, your apps run, and—let’s be real—where your IT team spends most of its waking hours, hop-scotching between portals, telemetry, flow logs, and a spaghetti web of API calls. But managing the cloud isn’t all rainbows and unicorns. In fact, it can feel more like herding cats … in a thunderstorm … with one hand tied behind your back.

Gartner’s Market Guide for Cloud Management Tooling paints a clear picture of the headaches you’re likely to face. But don’t worry—this isn’t just another list of problems. We’ll also talk about what’s being done to solve them and how Kentik’s got your back when it comes to surviving the wild world of multi-cloud environments.

The multi-cloud headache: Where’s my data?

So, you’ve got your stuff spread across AWS, Azure, Google Cloud, and maybe a private cloud thrown in for good measure. Sounds great, right? But here’s the catch: keeping track of everything is like trying to find a needle in a stack of needles.

Gartner and other smart folks, like the crew at Enterprise Management Associates (EMA), point out that this multi-cloud strategy can lead to some serious visibility issues. A study by GigaOm even found that many companies end up using a messy patchwork of tools to keep everything in line, which, surprise surprise, doesn’t always work.

EMA Network Management Megatrends 2024

See how IT professionals responded to the EMA survey about their approach to managing, monitoring, and troubleshooting their networks.

Get your copy

Cloud-native confusion: Microservices and mayhem

Remember when apps were just one big thing running on one big server? Those days are gone. Now we’ve got cloud-native architectures—fancy talk for apps broken down into tiny microservices, running within containers or serving serverless functions. It’s all very efficient but leads to complexity that can get out of control quickly.

The Gartner report warns that traditional tools aren’t up to the task here. They’re like trying to use a magnifying glass to look at a picture made up of a million tiny dots—it just doesn’t work. Forrester backs this up, saying that cloud-native apps generate way more data than old-school ones, making it harder to see the big picture​. Some folks are even worried that we’re drowning in data to the point where we can’t make sense of it. We can all see companies turning to AI to help sift through the chaos, but it’s still early days for these tools​.

The observability shift: Seeing the forest and the trees

With all this complexity, it’s no wonder Gartner is pushing for something called “observability.” Basically, it’s about not just collecting data but actually understanding it. Think of it as upgrading from a regular TV to one with HD and surround sound—you see and hear everything in way more detail.

The Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF) has seen a big jump in the use of observability tools like Prometheus and OpenTelemetry. These tools help you keep an eye on all those microservices and containers we talked about​. But Gartner and IDC point out that observability isn’t a magic wand. It takes time, effort, and money to set up, and getting everyone on board is not always easy​.

Security and compliance: The cloud’s not-so-silent killer

Let’s face it: security in the cloud is a bit like a horror movie—just when you think you’re safe, something jumps out at you. Gartner mentions that as more companies move to the cloud, keeping data secure and compliant with regulations becomes more complex.

The Cloud Security Alliance (CSA) found that a whopping 84% of companies are sweating over security in a multi-cloud context​. They suggest making security a part of your observability strategy, so you’re not just reacting to problems after they happen but preventing them before they start. It’s like putting up a fence before the zombies attack rather than waiting until they’re banging on your door.

AI and automation revolution: Robots to the rescue

If all this talk of complexity makes your head spin, don’t worry—help is coming. AI and automation are stepping in to do the heavy lifting. According to McKinsey & Company, AI will be a game-changer in IT, helping to manage all that data and keep things running smoothly​. But even McKinsey says to keep an eye out for potential pitfalls—AI isn’t perfect, and you still need smart people to keep an eye on things.

Kentik to the rescue

All right, enough doom and gloom—let’s talk solutions. This is where Kentik comes in, and it’s about time. Kentik’s observability platform unifies cloud tooling, analysis, and action without trade-offs or compromise. Need to see what’s going on across multiple clouds? Check. Want to keep your network running like a well-oiled machine? Check. Worried about security and compliance? You guessed it—check.

Kentik’s platform pulls together all the data from your network, cloud services, and apps into one easy-to-use platform. Plus, with AI-powered tools, Kentik helps you spot issues before they become problems, giving you peace of mind that your cloud environment is under control—and unlocking cloud traffic insights across all teams and stakeholders.

Whether you’re dealing with a small cloud setup or a sprawling multi-cloud beast, Kentik scales with you. And let’s not forget about security—Kentik’s got your back there, too, making sure your data is safe and sound, and that you’re not running afoul of any regulations.

Conclusion: Surviving the cloud jungle with Kentik

Gartner’s Market Guide for Cloud Management Tooling outlines the challenges of managing modern cloud environments—complexity, visibility issues, security concerns, and more. But with the right tools, these challenges become a lot more manageable. Kentik’s observability platform is just the kind of tool you need to cut through the noise and get a clear, actionable view of your cloud operations.

So, if you’re feeling like you’re lost in the cloud jungle, don’t panic. Kentik is here to help you find your way, keep your data safe, and make sure your cloud journey is a smooth one. Because let’s face it—the cloud isn’t going anywhere, but with Kentik, you’ll be ready for whatever comes next.