Technology evolution will underpin the next wave of enterprise cloud migration, with demand for emerging tech solutions on the rise.

This is according to new research from Colt Technology Services, which reveals that 54% of respondents cite technology evolution as a key enabler of their plans.

With the last 12 months having seen a surge in cloud migration, driven by COVID-19, enterprises are now ready to take migration to the next level, engaging with a new era of cloud possibilities and embracing a whole new generation of cloud-centric compute and connectivity.

With large budgets backing the next wave of cloud projects, there is evidence of a renewed focus on overcoming barriers and delivering goals.

Approximately 33% of respondents are setting aside between 251,000 and 500,000 to fund their next cloud move.

There is also recognition of the importance of forging the right partnerships to develop cloud plans and turn them into reality, the research shows. Furthermore, tried and tested relationships with existing cloud service providers and network service providers are especially valued.

With legacy technologies increasingly unsuited to solving the complex challenges of the multi-cloud era, enterprises are looking for newer solutions built with the cloud in mind.

Application programming interface (API) technology topped the list of essential tools for meeting cloud goals, with 56% of respondents citing it.

Edge compute (47%), AI (43%), on-demand networking (40%), uCPE (34%) and SD WAN (32%) were also deemed critical, with high confidence expressed in all.

The study also found that customer relationship management (CRM) topped the list of applications for the next phase of cloud migration.

Improving the customer experience and finding better ways to map the customer journey are clearly of growing importance to enterprises, suggesting an intimate connection between enterprise objectives for the cloud and a desire to improve customer experience through effective transformation.

According to the survey, approximately 57% said CRM applications would be the focus of their next cloud migration project while 54% said ERP.

Colt CEO Keri Gilder says, “From our research last year, we saw an increase in cloud migration projects. This new report deep dives into what enterprises are moving, how they're doing it and why. It's no surprise that tech evolution and emerging technologies are being increasingly used for these projects.

"The connectivity that underpins them is critical. To ensure cloud migrations happen smoothly, enterprises need to focus on flexible, high bandwidth, low latency connectivity. To do that, they need the right partners.

"They need an ecosystem of partners working together to deliver for them and their end customers."

Gilder says, "At Colt, we work closely with the major cloud service providers to deliver and enable cloud migrations for enterprises. Colt strives to take what's always been in our DNA to create an environment of constant transformation that puts enterprises in the best possible position to tackle today's business challenges.

The research, carried out by Censuswide, asked 400 senior IT decision-makers from organisations with over 500 employees about their upcoming cloud projects. The research focused on cloud decision-makers, as well as executives with C-level responsibilities.