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Cloud Assessment SOP

Sub-procedure for Innovate pillar digital transformation

Overview

This sub-procedure defines the systematic approach for evaluating an organization's current infrastructure, applications, and data assets to determine cloud readiness, identify optimal migration strategies, and establish baseline metrics for measuring transformation success.

Scope

Pillar: Innovate (Digital Transformation) Service Area: Cloud Architecture Parent SOP: Cloud Migration SOP

Prerequisites

  • Client engagement letter signed and project kickoff completed
  • Access credentials to infrastructure systems (read-only)
  • Network diagrams and existing documentation (if available)
  • Stakeholder availability confirmed for discovery interviews
  • Assessment tools provisioned (discovery agents, scanning tools)
  • NDA and data handling agreements in place

Procedure

Step 1: Discovery Kickoff

Objective: Align stakeholders and establish assessment scope

  1. Conduct kickoff meeting with business and technical stakeholders
  2. Review and validate assessment objectives and success criteria
  3. Confirm scope boundaries (in-scope vs. out-of-scope systems)
  4. Establish communication cadence and escalation paths
  5. Distribute discovery questionnaires to stakeholders

Duration: 1-2 days Owner: Engagement Lead

Step 2: Infrastructure Discovery

Objective: Create comprehensive inventory of current state

  1. Deploy discovery agents to capture infrastructure inventory
  2. Scan network for active hosts, services, and connections
  3. Document server specifications (CPU, memory, storage, OS)
  4. Map network topology and connectivity requirements
  5. Identify storage systems and data volumes
  6. Catalog virtualization platforms and container environments

Duration: 3-5 days Owner: Cloud Architect

Step 3: Application Portfolio Analysis

Objective: Catalog and classify all applications

  1. Enumerate all applications in production and development
  2. Identify application owners and business criticality
  3. Document technology stacks and frameworks
  4. Map application dependencies (upstream and downstream)
  5. Assess current SLAs and performance baselines
  6. Classify applications using 7 R's disposition model

Duration: 3-5 days Owner: Cloud Architect

Step 4: Data Assessment

Objective: Understand data landscape and compliance requirements

  1. Inventory databases and data stores
  2. Document data volumes, growth rates, and retention requirements
  3. Classify data sensitivity (PII, PHI, financial, public)
  4. Identify regulatory compliance requirements (HIPAA, PCI, SOC 2)
  5. Map data flows between applications
  6. Assess backup and disaster recovery current state

Duration: 2-3 days Owner: Data Architect / Security Lead

Step 5: Cloud Readiness Scoring

Objective: Quantify readiness for each workload

  1. Apply cloud readiness criteria to each workload:
  2. Technical compatibility (architecture, dependencies)
  3. Business criticality and risk tolerance
  4. Compliance and regulatory constraints
  5. Operational complexity
  6. Cost optimization potential
  7. Score each workload on readiness scale (1-5)
  8. Identify blockers and remediation requirements
  9. Prioritize workloads for migration waves

Duration: 2-3 days Owner: Cloud Architect

Step 6: Assessment Report Compilation

Objective: Document findings and recommendations

  1. Synthesize discovery data into executive summary
  2. Create detailed inventory appendices
  3. Document dependency maps with visualizations
  4. Compile cloud readiness scorecard
  5. Develop preliminary migration roadmap
  6. Identify quick wins and risk areas
  7. Present findings to stakeholders

Duration: 3-4 days Owner: Engagement Lead

Deliverables

Deliverable Format Owner
Infrastructure Inventory Excel/CSV Cloud Architect
Application Portfolio Excel with 7 R's disposition Cloud Architect
Dependency Map Visio/Draw.io diagram Cloud Architect
Data Classification Matrix Excel Security Lead
Cloud Readiness Scorecard Excel + narrative Cloud Architect
Cloud Assessment Report Word/PDF (15-25 pages) Engagement Lead
Executive Presentation PowerPoint Engagement Lead

Quality Gates

  • 100% of in-scope infrastructure documented
  • All applications classified with 7 R's disposition
  • Data sensitivity classification complete for all data stores
  • Dependency map validated by client technical team
  • Cloud readiness scores reviewed and justified
  • Executive summary reviewed by engagement manager
  • Client stakeholder sign-off on findings

Tooling

Tool Purpose License
AWS Application Discovery Service Infrastructure discovery AWS
Azure Migrate Azure readiness assessment Azure
Flexera One Multi-cloud assessment Commercial
RVTools VMware inventory Free
Nmap Network discovery Open Source

Last Updated: February 2026