Navigating Complexity: A Seamless Cloud Migration for Operational Excellence
Navigating Complexity: A Seamless Cloud Migration for Operational Excellence
REGION
United Arab Emirates
COMPANY TYPE
Holding / Parent Company
INDUSTRY
Insurance
CLOUD SOLUTION
As we moved forward, it became clear that this strategic initiative was about more than just technology ... It was about empowering the client to thrive in an ever-evolving digital landscape while ensuring a seamless transition that bolstered their operational and security capabilities.
THE CUSTOMER
A leading insurance provider in the UAE has evolved significantly through strategic acquisitions and mergers. Following the integration of other companies in recent years, the organization found itself managing a variety of IT environments, including outdated legacy systems that began to impede its operations. As the company continued to grow, the need for a comprehensive and unified infrastructure became increasingly essential for its future development.
THE CHALLENGE
The acquisition and merger significantly transformed the company’s IT landscape. Suddenly, the IT teams were managing three distinct IT environments, each with its own legacy systems and operational processes, creating a complex scenario. This integration came at a crucial time, as an expiring co-hosting contract added pressure to make swift decisions about future IT infrastructure. Compounding the issue, UAE’s data residency laws mandated that any solution must ensure sensitive customer data remains within the country’s borders.
Post-merger, the company’s board set clear objectives for IT operations, prioritizing a leaner, cost-effective infrastructure without compromising service quality. The existing fragmented systems were fast becoming a barrier to growth and innovation, and the company needed to transform its operations swiftly and effectively.
The challenge was multifaceted:
- Unify disparate IT systems from the three entities.
- Migrate from expiring cohosting arrangements.
- Ensure compliance with UAE data residency laws.
- Reduce overall IT costs while improving capabilities.
- Maintain uninterrupted services for clients and internal users alike.
The company stood at a technological crossroads. It could either attempt to patch together the existing systems or take bold steps toward a unified, future-proof infrastructure. The choice was clear, but the path forward was complex and demanding.
This technological transformation needed to be executed swiftly and effectively, balancing immediate operational needs with long-term strategic goals. The company needed a partner who could navigate these challenges and deliver a solution that would set the foundation for future growth and innovation.
THE SOLUTION
Leveraging its status as an AWS Premier Partner, Bespin Global MEA, an e& enterprise company, proposed a comprehensive solution tailored to the insurance company’s unique needs. The solution began with a thorough assessment phase, followed by a carefully planned migration strategy.
Choosing the Right Approach
“Our journey began with the AWS Migration Acceleration Program (MAP) Assess phase, a pivotal step in reshaping our client’s IT landscape,” says Alexander Franzhia, AWS Solutions Lead at Bespin Global. “This comprehensive evaluation provided us with a clear roadmap for migration, revealing potential efficiencies and cost savings at every stage.”
A critical component of this phase was the AWS Optimization and Licensing Assessment (OLA). “To gather the necessary data, we deployed an agentless collector within the client’s infrastructure,” he continues. “This powerful tool offered us detailed usage metrics, giving us an in-depth understanding of the workloads we were working with. The data collected informed our overall MAP assessment, allowed us to analyze licensing positions, and enabled us to perform an accurate Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) analysis to showcase the financial benefits of the migration.”
Bespin Global leveraged these insights to develop a two-phase migration strategy. The first phase was focused on migrating the cohosting environment to AWS, which was crucial due to the expiring cohosting contract. In the second phase, Bespin’s team planned to migrate the on-premises infrastructure, ensuring careful planning to minimize disruption to operations.
To build confidence in this process, Bespin conducted a Proof of Concept (PoC) migration for a subset of the client’s applications. “This hands-on demonstration allowed the client’s team to experience the proposed solution firsthand and identify any potential issues before full-scale migration,” says Franzhia.
A key aspect of the solution included implementing a multi-account AWS architecture. This approach not only enhanced security but also provided better resource isolation and more granular control over access and permissions. By introducing cross-VPC traffic inspection the security was fortified, ensuring the client’s sensitive financial data remained safeguarded.
“As we moved forward, it became clear that this strategic initiative was about more than just technology,” says Franzhia. “It was about empowering the client to thrive in an ever-evolving digital landscape while ensuring a seamless transition that bolstered their operational and security capabilities.”
Balancing Efficiency and Security
The execution of the migration process was meticulously structured in distinct phases, starting with a focus on the cohosting environment. Addressing the on-premises infrastructure was planned for a subsequent project, but beginning with the cohosting environment was essential.
During the Mobilize phase, we established an initial version of the AWS Landing Zone. “As migration commenced, this Landing Zone was fully developed, incorporating all necessary third-party network virtual appliances,” Franzhia explains. “This comprehensive setup ensured we had a secure and compliant foundation for the migrated workloads.”
The migration of the cohosting environment was executed across multiple waves to ensure minimal disruption. “We adopted a strategic approach: non-critical test environments were migrated during regular working hours, keeping the impact on day-to-day operations to a minimum,” Franzhia elaborates. “For critical live systems, we scheduled transitions during weekends, allowing us to reduce disruption to essential business processes.”
Post-migration, robust backup and disaster recovery solutions were implemented using AWS services. AWS Backup was deployed for all workloads, with backup frequencies tailored to match the criticality of each environment. For disaster recovery, AWS Elastic Disaster Recovery (AWS DRS) was utilized to support the client’s critical systems, ensuring business continuity and data protection in the new AWS environment.
Integrating Managed Services for Growth
Bespin’s Managed Services (MS) team played a key role in the migration strategy. Before the initial migration wave, the MS team held an onboarding session to introduce the client to their ITSM service catalogs, ticketing procedures, communication channels, and support structures.
“After each migration wave, the workloads were handed over to the MS team for ongoing support,” explains Franzhia. “They ensured workload functionality, developed automated health checks, set up monitoring tools, documented the client’s operational processes, identified infrastructure risks, and created escalation protocols. This comprehensive approach facilitated a seamless transition and effective ongoing management of the migrated environments.”
Looking ahead, Franzhia emphasizes, “With the cohosting environment successfully migrated, we are now poised to execute plans for the subsequent migration of the on-premises infrastructure, leveraging the valuable experience and insights we gained from this initial project.”
RESULTS & BENEFITS
“The impact of the migration has been profound,” reflects Alexander Franzhia. “We’ve established a more secure, scalable, and efficient cloud environment that aligns with the client’s operational goals and compliance requirements. The cohosting environment was transitioned seamlessly to AWS, with minimal disruption to the business, and the security improvements have been remarkable. The cross-VPC traffic inspection alone has significantly bolstered data protection, ensuring we meet all regulatory standards.”
Bespin Global’s role in this project was pivotal, offering a tailored, end-to-end solution that addressed the complexities of migrating critical workloads while maintaining operational continuity. From the AWS Landing Zone setup to the implementation of FinOps strategies through OpsNow, every phase of the migration was executed with precision. The introduction of managed services enhanced the organization’s ability to monitor and manage workloads continuously, further optimizing cloud resources while implementing strong security measures. The introduction of AWS Backup and Elastic Disaster Recovery has also ensured that critical systems remain protected and available.
Looking ahead, the integration of cloud-native technologies such as Amazon EKS and AWS Glue has already started to reshape the client’s application development process, creating opportunities for further innovation. Bespin Global’s expertise has not only streamlined operations but has set the foundation for the client’s future infrastructure modernization efforts.
About Bespin Global, an e& enterprise company:
Bespin Global established a joint venture with & enterprise, making it the largest public cloud managed and professional service provider in the Middle East. We serve as your strategic ally in the digital landscape, adeptly navigating complexities and unlocking opportunities with precision and foresight.
Our services encompass cloud migration, integration, and management, empowering businesses to scale efficiently and adapt dynamically in an ever-evolving market.
Bespin delivers the tools, expertise, and support needed to ensure a sustained future.
Bespin is committed to elevating the clients’ technological capabilities, emphasizing continuous improvement and proactive engagement. Our holistic, customer-centric approach ensures that every solution not only meets but exceeds expectations.
Bespin forges lasting partnerships and creates enduring value. It is the go-to partner for expert cloud integration and strategic guidance.
Address: The Offices 4, #138-139, One Central, Dubai World Trade Center (DWTC)
Telephone: 800 BESPIN (237746)
P.O. Box: 340729
