The federal government’s move to cloud technology is now more than a decade old. Spurred by modernization efforts and accelerated by the pandemic’s push to remote work, agencies invested in cloud technology at a record rate, which allowed them to provide higher value services faster and cheaper.

As agencies move into the next stage, they are wrestling with decisions on scoping their cloud needs, hybrid or multi-cloud environments, as-a-service options, privacy and data security. They must choose acquisition and deployment strategies and ensure adequate staffing

Additionally, as cloud computing has evolved, so has pressure to secure the network, as cyber threats become increasingly aggressive and potent. Zero trust environments are now the default for federal networks, which are a larger attack surface as remote work continues.

The 2022 FCW Cloud Summit explored how agencies have effectively managed cloud migrations to leverage new services for cloud-native mission support, as well as how to accommodate and capitalize on new technologies such as 5G, artificial intelligence and machine learning. It  also provided a look ahead to GSA’s plan to offer cloud services through blanket purchase agreements.

Cloud Summit participants came away with a better understanding of:

• How leading agencies manage their cloud ecosystems in a constantly changing global environment
• Business drivers for different types of cloud
• A risk-based approach to cloud security
• Ways to manage network complexity
• How Zero Trust and cloud work together
• Lessons about sharing data when working across clouds
• How to determine what workloads are appropriate for which types of cloud
• The continuing importance of recruiting and training cloud talent
• How 5G, ML and AI are changing the game