The Strategic Benefits of Cloud Migration Consulting Service for EdTech

Authored By:

Rishi Raj Gera

SVP - Ed Services

Cloud solutions are a powerful tool in education technology development, thanks to their ability to create scalable and secure commercial products at an accelerated rate. They eliminate the need for on-premise infrastructure and ultimately reduce costs.

Edtech companies have been leveraging cloud data migration for some time now — with platforms like Google, AWS, Azure and IBM offering cloud hosting platforms as a dedicated business service for edtech developers. From the shift to remote learning to the hybrid model of today — the significance of cloud computing in edtech development has only driven up and with the emerging technology trends of AR, VR, AI, and machine learning — the imperative of cloud-native platforms is strengthening further.

Cloud Data Migration: Addressing Lack of Thought Before Action

Cloud-based products have numerous benefits in the context of a truly inclusive and accessible edtech space. For example, in the case of immersive learning, cloud VR makes learning more accessible for users who may not have access to high-end VR hardware. Similarly, cloud AI systems are facilitating personalized learning by enabling the analysis of large chunks of student data. AI can discover student behavior patterns and find weaknesses to tailor learning experiences.

Despite modernizing edtech solutions, cloud-based platforms are not optimized to reduce costs and secure data by themselves. In recent years, companies have ventured too far into deploying cloud-based solutions straying from their core missions – to drive cost optimizations. 94% of enterprises have overspent on the cloud. Under usage of resources is the top reason for overspending followed by overprovisioning and lack of skilled manpower to utilize cloud infrastructure. Edtech companies also depend on a single vendor for all their tech needs and this limits the product’s ability to adapt quickly.

Additionally, although information is stored in the cloud, and vendors have to abide by data protection regulations, the risk of non-compliance and data leaks prevails. Tightly connecting cloud platforms to online services is a much-needed move. In the edtech space, that means employing an effective platform migration strategy that optimizes performance in areas including application modernization, cybersecurity, financials, and required skill sets. This also happens to be the type of solution customers want.

In such a scenario, cloud migration consulting service providers can anchor your strategy in reality and help you build an optimized cloud-based platform for scalability. If you want a cloud-based solution, then they might have the code to get you there. Let’s see how.

Assess data architecture and develop AI models

One of the most compelling arguments for cloud migration consulting service providers is their ability to conduct a thorough assessment of the edtech company’s existing infrastructure, data architecture, and business objectives. Accordingly, they develop a cloud migration process for AI and ML integration on the cloud, highlighting the resource requirements and potential gaps to be fulfilled.

This involves preparing and cleaning the data off silos and biases that can affect the training model. The consultant then collaborates with data scientists and ML engineers to develop and train AI models based on their specific use cases.

AI in the cloud has multiple capabilities including predictive analytics, natural language processing, recommendations, anomaly detections, chatbots, and content creation among many other uses. Accordingly, the consultant builds recommendation systems to personalize learning experiences, natural language processing (NLP) models for automated grading and feedback, or computer vision models for object recognition in educational content.

Evaluate cloud providers and negotiate SLAs

Often edtech companies migrate to a cloud platform but face challenges with expansion. For instance, an edtech company may start with a low-cost entry-level plan on AWS but find costs escalating as usage increases, especially for services like data storage or database management. Similarly, an edtech platform on a cloud provider might need to handle sudden spikes in user traffic during exam periods. If the provider doesn’t offer adequate auto-scaling, this could result in poor user experience or additional manual configuration.

Cloud consultants can help evaluate multiple cloud providers and identify the most suitable platform for hosting AI and ML workloads based on factors such as innovation, scalability, performance, security, and cost-effectiveness. They can help create design architectures for portability and scalability, and negotiate flexible service level agreements to mitigate the risks of vendor lock-in and remove barriers to exit.

Immersive technology infrastructure deployment

The immersive technology industry is still evolving and there is a lack of compatibility between different devices and platforms. Relying on specific cloud platforms that are not interoperable can lock edtech companies in a particular ecosystem limiting their flexibility. Cloud consultants suggest the optimal use of cloud services like AWS EC2 for compute power and AWS S3 for storage, ensuring the architecture supports low-latency, high-performance needs.

A cloud consultant can help execute the VR software directly on the cloud servers while adopting the best practices for minimizing latency and optimizing bandwidth usage, such as deploying edge computing solutions and using CDNs (Content Delivery Networks). Additionally, they can help design user-friendly interfaces and host training sessions to manage immersive content on the cloud.

Optimize content management and delivery

Cloud consulting providers help edtech companies set up and optimize cloud delivery networks (CDNs) to ensure fast and reliable content delivery globally. For example, they can assist in configuring AWS CloudFront or Azure CDN to cache content at edge locations, reducing latency and improving access speed for students worldwide.

Additionally, they can help integrate and customize content management systems that run on cloud platforms to manage educational content efficiently. For instance, an edtech platform that needs a robust CMS for organizing courses, tracking content updates, and managing user permissions can benefit from a tailored CMS solution that supports seamless content updates and user management.

Furthermore, they can help set up disaster recovery plans to quickly restore services and data in case of a catastrophic event.

Adopt security features and achieve compliance

The security compliance of cloud solutions is an issue that cannot be ignored. Consultants offer a path forward that marries the potential of the cloud with the urgent need to secure data. For instance, for an edtech platform storing student data in AWS, a consultant can set up AWS Key Management Service (KMS) to encrypt data at rest and use AWS Certificate Manager to secure data in transit with SSL/TLS certificates.

Additionally, consultants can help implement comprehensive IAM solutions to ensure that only authorized personnel have access to sensitive data and enforce data privacy policies that comply with international standards. Finally, by integrating security into the software lifecycle, consultants contribute to the training of employees on security best practices.

As the education technology landscape stands on the cusp of technological breakthroughs, edtech leaders need to question their cloud migration strategies and the capacity of their IT teams. Because cloud migration consulting service providers engage with multiple edtech companies, they create a collaborative ecosystem that benefits all the parties involved. By partnering with dedicated cloud consultants, edtech companies can benefit from advanced capabilities and customized solutions.

Written By:

Rishi Raj Gera

SVP - Ed Services

Rishi Raj is a seasoned consultant with over 25 years of experience in edtech and publishing. He brings a unique blend of strategic thinking and hands-on execution to his role as Chief Solutions Officer at Magic. Rishi excels at managing a diverse portfolio, leveraging his expertise in product adoption, student and teacher experiences, DE&I, accessibility, AI solutions, market expansion, and security, standards & compliance. As a thought leader in the field, he also provides advisory and consulting services, guiding clients on their journeys to success.