Cloud Platforms: Is It Time for an Exit Strategy?

Cloud platforms have been a key driver in the digital transformation of Norwegian businesses. While Microsoft, Google, and AWS offer powerful and flexible services, today’s geopolitical and regulatory landscape introduces new demands for preparedness, control, and operational autonomy. What would your business do if its access to these cloud services was suddenly limited?

For Norwegian businesses, cloud platforms like AWS, Google Cloud, and Microsoft Azure have been a crucial driver for digitalization and becoming more data-driven. This momentum has accelerated everything from automation and analytics to the development and use of artificial intelligence.

In 2025, questions surrounding where our data is stored and who controls the infrastructure have gained new relevance in a changed geopolitical context. Rising protectionism, and a Europe aspiring to establish alternatives to US tech giants, are impacting Norwegian companies’ risk assessments, as well as their technology and vendor choices.

The fear: A political decision, international crisis, or legal conflict that severs ties with American cloud services.

Many are now asking: What happens to our data and services if global politics affect our cloud providers? What is our exit strategy?

Flexibility, not flight.

An exit strategy isn’t necessarily about switching providers today; it’s about conducting thorough risk assessments, maintaining clarity, ensuring flexibility, and having an actionable plan. This means possessing the technical and legal capability to:

• migrate data and services to an alternative provider
• adapt your architecture to meet future requirements or mitigate emerging risks

This is especially crucial for organizations managing sensitive information or critical infrastructure – a common scenario in sectors such as energy, healthcare, finance, telecommunications, and public administration.

Fundamentally, a so-called exit strategy is about maintaining a comprehensive overview: understanding exactly how your systems interconnect, and having evaluated which architectural components can potentially be relocated, where to, and what such a move would require.

“It’s about preparedness – not just on a technical level, but also organizationally and legally. And it’s about architecting solutions that provide you with strategic flexibility in an unpredictable future,” says Filip Van Laenen, Director of Application Development at Computas.

To prepare for the unlikely

A so-called exit scenario – whether triggered by regulatory changes, political actions, or cyberattacks – can have significant repercussions for an organization.

“If you migrate from a hyperscaler like Microsoft Azure or Google Cloud to a European provider, you should probably anticipate some initial decline in quality. You might not receive the same level of functionality, integrations, or performance. However, in the context of preparedness, this might be a price you’re willing to pay. A thorough evaluation and a solid plan for alternatives offer peace of mind and can be crucial for business survival in a crisis. Meanwhile, European cloud providers are also competing on price itself,” says Filip Van Laenen.

Portability is more than technology

Portability is a critical success factor for an effective exit strategy. To date, many organizations have built solutions that are tightly coupled with and locked into a single cloud platform. This can make migration both technically challenging and financially prohibitive.

This particularly applies to services that utilize a provider’s proprietary APIs, databases, and analytics tools.

The solution lies in actively managing platform dependency.

“You need to understand what’s possible and the associated costs. Furthermore, those within the organization who work with cloud platforms must be knowledgeable about how to maximize the platform’s benefits while simultaneously preventing vendor lock-in for the business. This provides greater freedom – both technically and commercially,” says Van Laenen.

Exit strategy consulting: what does it involve in practice?

Computas has experience building solutions across both American and European cloud providers. An optimal combination and cloud strategy will always depend on an organization’s specific needs and risk profile.

“In some cases, it might also be appropriate to combine various platforms – or to develop certain services within a parallel European cloud. An agnostic approach. Simply put: there needn’t be a conflict between effective digitalization and responsibility. Every provider has its strengths and limitations, and the key is to leverage the best from each,” says Filip Van Laenen.

“The clearer your overview, the stronger your negotiating position – and the more secure you’ll be, no matter what unfolds.”

Filip Van Laenen, Director of Application Development at Computas.

Time for action?

Many organizations today rely on systems that function well but were built in an era when the threat landscape and approaches to risk assessment were different from today’s. Perhaps it’s time to conduct a fresh review, asking:

• Do we have a clear overview of our data assets?
• Do we truly know which parts of our infrastructure are critical?
• Do we have practical alternatives if the situation suddenly shifts?

Van Laenen believes there is a distinct advantage for those who start this work now: “The clearer your overview, the stronger your negotiating position – and the more secure you’ll be, no matter what unfolds. Furthermore, a review can offer the business short-term gains such as cost reduction and service optimization,” he says.omheten kortsiktige gevinster som kostnadsreduksjon og optimalisering av tjenester, sier han.