Google Cloud Digital Leader Practice Exam

How does migrating business applications to the cloud impact operational costs?

1. Increased on-premises hardware maintenance costs

2. Reduced cloud software licensing costs

3. Reduced on-premises infrastructure management costs

4. Increased cloud hardware management costs

The correct answer is: Reduced on-premises infrastructure management costs

Migrating business applications to the cloud significantly impacts operational costs by reducing on-premises infrastructure management costs. When organizations transition to the cloud, they typically eliminate or significantly decrease their reliance on physical hardware, such as servers and storage devices that they would need to maintain in-house. This shift leads to substantial savings since managing on-premises infrastructure often involves recurring expenses such as maintenance, upgrades, energy consumption, and physical space management. With cloud services, these responsibilities are transferred to the cloud provider, who handles the infrastructure's upkeep and scalability. Consequently, businesses can reallocate the funds that would have gone to managing on-premises hardware towards strategic initiatives or operational efficiencies in other areas. Moreover, the pay-as-you-go model commonly found in cloud services allows organizations to scale resources up or down based on demand, further optimizing costs and minimizing waste. This financial flexibility and the reduction of physical infrastructure needs translate directly into lower operational costs for businesses that embrace cloud migration.