Evaluate cloud modernization readiness

Once you've envisioned your cloud modernization possibilities, you can evaluate whether you're ready to modernize in the cloud.

Evaluating your readiness for modernization has two components. You should assess your financial readiness and then your technical readiness.

  • Financial readiness - helps you determine if you need more time to review your applications.
  • Technical readiness - helps you determine if you're ready to modernize or need to explore a different path.

Step 1 - Evaluate the financial readiness of each workload

A financial readiness assessment helps you determine if it makes business sense to modernize your workload. Financial motivations are the key drivers of cloud modernization. Cloud modernizations can improve margins through efficiencies and generate new revenue streams. To realize those benefits, you need to evaluate the financial aspects of the effort.

For each workload you want to modernize, answer the following questions to assess your financial readiness.

  • Can you quantify the business value of modernizing the workload?
  • Do you know what your modernization cost will be?
  • Are these workloads business-critical?
  • Does the cost of modernization meet your desired cost savings?

Answering yes to all questions means you're likely ready to modernize. If you answered no to any of the questions, we recommend you conduct an Azure Well-Architected Review of your workload

Step 2 will help you determine if you're ready to modernize or need to explore another adoption path.

Step 2 - Evaluate the technical readiness of each workload

A technical readiness assessment helps you determine if your workload is ready for modernization or is better fit for a different cloud adoption strategy.

For each workload you want to modernize, answer the following questions to begin assess your technical readiness.

Question Yes No
Do you have enough control over the workload to modernize it? Modernize Migrate
Is your business actively investing
in these workloads?
Modernize Replace
Will these modernized workloads
need to operate in hybrid or
multicloud environment?
Modernize Migrate
Are your workloads portable? Modernize Migrate
Do you plan to keep the current architecture? Modernize Conduct Azure Well-Architected Review

If you answered yes to all the technical-readiness questions, you're likely ready to modernize the workload.

Next steps

You've envisioned and evaluated. It's time to commit to a modernization path.