Define cloud governance policies and procedures: Establish clear policies and procedures for cloud resource management, including resource allocation, access controls, and compliance requirements.
Establish clear roles and responsibilities for cloud governance: Make sure that roles and responsibilities for cloud governance are clearly defined in a consistent and frameworked documentation (ideally a company has its knowledge base set up already), and communicated to all stakeholders.
Ensure compliance with applicable regulations and standards: Stay current with relevant regulations and standards, and cross-reference that your cloud resources are compliant with all necessary requirements.
Implement access controls to limit access to cloud resources: Implement access controls to ensure that only authorized personnel can access cloud resources, and limit access based on user roles and responsibilities.
Monitor cloud usage and enforce cost optimization measures: Monitor cloud usage and costs, and implement measures to optimize cloud spending based on actual usage and needs.
Establish a backup and disaster recovery (DR) plan for cloud resources: Develop and maintain a backup and disaster recovery plan for cloud resources, and test these plans on a regular schedule to test that they work as planned. Make sure these tests are budgeted in the year.
Monitor cloud resource utilization and implement optimization strategies: Monitor cloud resource utilization and performance, and implement optimization strategies as needed to improve efficiency and reduce costs.
Perform regular security assessments and audits: Conduct regular security assessments and audits of your cloud resources to identify potential vulnerabilities and address security risks.
Develop incident response and escalation plans for cloud-related incidents: Develop and maintain incident process flows and escalation plans for cloud-related incidents, and train helpdesk and related personnel on these plans. Document, document, document!
Ensure SLAs of Cloud providers are being tracked and met: Ensure that cloud service providers are meeting contracted and paid-for service level agreements (SLAs) and providing the necessary level of support to meet your organization's needs. Have it clearly documented where company support ends and cloud provider support starts/ends.
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