More and more customer contact departments are switching to the cloud. Those looking for replacement alternatives for an existing on-premise solution not only come across new contact center applications, but also new ideas, new development methods and new working methods. Cloud-native applications play an important role in this. 

tech update is the Ziptone section on emerging technology relevant to customer engagement. We briefly explain what it is, how it works, why it is relevant, what the pitfalls are and we ask the reader's opinion: Hot or Not?

What is it

Cloud-native is the name for the approach whereby applications are specifically developed based on cloud technology and for use in a cloud environment. In many ways it is the counterpart of traditional software, which is installed as a static entity on the basis of a license agreement on a server in your own computer room and then made available to end users via an internal network. Cloud-native applications (complete applications, but also mobile apps or APIs) are developed in the cloud and are intended for use in the cloud. Cloud here means the public cloud, for example AWS or Microsoft Azure.

How it works

A cloud-native application is usually developed within a cloud-based development platform. Other programming languages ​​are used than with traditional on-premise software – such as HTML, CSS, Java, JavaScript, .Net, PHP and Python. Developers of cloud-native software use modern technologies such as APIs, containers, microservices and kubernetes. These technologies are modular in nature: they work with building blocks that can be present in different places in the cloud.

Cloud-native developers often work according to modern methods such as DevOps (developers and administrators work closely together during development), Agile and Continuous Integration and Continuous Deployment (CI/CD), allowing teams to respond flexibly to changes.

In addition, the cloud-native components and apps run on hardware that is independent of the size of the application's use. When an organization wants to scale up the use of a cloud-native application, it does not affect the underlying hardware on which the application runs. In fact, scaling up and down (by using extra computing power or storage capacity) is often automated. With an on-premise application, an administrator will have to add extra hardware himself. Due to their design, cloud-native apps are also always up-to-date and available, and things such as security are increasingly built-in (SecOps).

Why is it relevant

1. (Rapidly) changing environments such as contact centers benefit from fast development methods. Customer service contributes to the distinctiveness of organizations. New technology must be able to be built and deployed quickly and be available to everyone (customers and employees). Think of new functionality such as payment platforms, employee engagement solutions, new contact channels or analytics applications. Cloud-native apps are also easy to adapt, link and integrate due to their design and construction.

2. During the corona pandemic, contact centers have had to accelerate the transition to working from home. This means that applications must be able to work location-independently. Cloud-based applications are suitable for this 'by design'. It goes without saying that around core applications such as the contact center platform and the CRM suite, other applications must also be cloud-native.

3. Being able to scale up and down quickly is becoming increasingly important for many companies. The volatility and uncertainty in our economy are increasing. Cloud-native apps are pre-eminently designed to be able to respond flexibly to widely varying workloads. Moreover, on-premise applications are no longer being built and sold. The existing on-premise applications – think of traditional large contact center platforms – often already have a cloud variant and will be gradually phased out.

Just pay attention

1. It is sometimes thought that migrating on-premise applications to the cloud is sufficient to achieve a 'cloud-based' application landscape. As mentioned, the languages ​​and architecture of both types of applications are different; so there is no such thing as just moving. For contact center platforms, it is often not the migration to the cloud, but the subsequent integration with other applications (CRM, WFM, QM) takes the most time.

2. Those who want to start with cloud-native software development must realize that this requires several changes. For example, a development platform must be chosen, you ideally get started with new development methods and new development competencies are usually required. A well-known phenomenon is that a cloud-native development team works much faster than the rest of the organization, which causes connection problems and sometimes the development team has to wait for the organization before new functionality can be tested and/or rolled out. It also has to be done in a different way security to be watched; existing security tools not enough safety and the risks are increasing.

3. Common mistake is that 'the cloud' is better, faster and, above all, cheaper. When development teams start working on cloud-native projects, the costs are structured differently and are not necessarily lower than when developing on-premise software. On the contrary, because teams (not always predictably) use all kinds of cloud services in their development work, costs can easily get out of hand.

Hot or not?

Featured, Knowledge base, Technology, tech update Front Line Solutions