I once heard an OT system operator muse about moving his SCADA system into the cloud. Since he had stored his phone data in the cloud, he asked why we couldn't do the same with SCADA.
If only it were that easy.
Moving to the cloud involves decisions that reshape workflow procedures, communication patterns and decision-making processes. But are OT organizations ready? Many struggle to answer basic questions about downtime protocols and backup service capabilities while OT leadership usually doesn't understand the new challenges their cybersecurity teams will face.
Hidden Costs
On-prem systems included automatic backup features that operators could manage through direct access from their facilities. But consider a scenario where the cloud fails. Are your systems backed up? Do you have redundancy? If not, that could mean serious problems on the horizon.
While the failure of IT systems may cause email delivery delays and employee dissatisfaction, OT system breakdowns could lead to the shutdown of the entire company. That’s unacceptable.
Plant operators will encounter cloud architects during a transition to the cloud, perhaps for the first time. At first blush, that might not sound like a big deal. However, the two groups operate in different domains since one handles physical infrastructure and the other manages virtual computing resources. They'll need time to find a common language and build trust if they’re going to avoid `Lost in Translation’ moments.
Meanwhile, younger cloud-native professionals are entering the workforce and bringing valuable new skills. Still, the OT sector requires personnel who link cloud technology to operational needs to transform digital capabilities into operational systems. Such expertise remains rare and will remain scarce throughout the upcoming years.
OT organizations should also understand that their cloud provider does not take full responsibility for managing all their operations. When operational issues occur, the cloud provider will not handle your board inquiries, customer demands or regulatory requirements. That’s on you.
Since responsibility for security still rests with the organization, not the provider, this isn't the time to be passive. Instead of asking suppliers what they can provide, OT organizations should tell them what they expect regarding resilience and governance and hold them accountable. Tell them what you want to achieve from a cybersecurity standpoint and determine whether they can do what you ask.
Change Management Isn't Optional
Technology isn't the hard part — change is.
Your cloud strategy needs more than a few simple tool updates to succeed. In addition to modernizing their technology stack, OT organizations must also implement changes in training systems and roles.
OT management should understand how the changes will affect their regular business activities. Pushing ahead without providing their teams enough support to operate in this new environment is inefficient and risky.
Yet some organizations still underestimate how much the shift impacts day-to-day operations as the traditional boundaries between roles become more ambiguous.
For example, an operator might need to coordinate directly with a cloud architect using a different technical language and frame of reference. That's not a small shift. When frontline workers and engineers don't speak the same language as their cloud counterparts, tension is inevitable. What's needed is a new kind of translator, someone who understands both sides.
This change also demands rethinking responsibilities. This is not just about swapping infrastructure but also reshaping how people work. Access control, authentication procedures and monitoring protocols must evolve.
Change management can't be an afterthought. If cloud migration is on the roadmap, so should organizational transformation. Otherwise, you're increasing the odds of future failure.
I've seen what happens when clients adopt a piecemeal approach. It usually results in a mess. I recall one instance where an organization moved portions of its system to the cloud but never entirely redefined team responsibilities. During a minor outage, there was the inevitable confusion about who had access to cloud consoles, who was authorized to reboot services and who was accountable for escalating.
That 90-minute delay turned what should've been a hiccup into a costly, avoidable failure, not because of the cloud itself but because the organization didn't change alongside it.
Calibrating Your Cloud Schedule
Don't let external factors push you to hurry through the process. Take the time to ask suitable questions such as:
- What are we migrating?
- Why?
- What happens if it fails?
- Who's responsible for recovery?
- What does "good" look like?
This shift is coming; whether it takes five years or 15, cloud services in OT will become predominant over time. Some will remain with on-prem solutions for the foreseeable future, but the cost of on-prem alternatives in critical infrastructure could become unsustainable. This is less about resisting change and more about preparing to meet it on your terms.
Cloud adoption isn't just a tech strategy; it's a leadership strategy. However, it only works when the organization changes with the tech. If you don't control that story, someone else will write it for you — and odds are, you won't like the ending.
