In the Press

So, you finally decided to move your organization to the CLOUD. You’ve read all the Microsoft marketing materials and are convinced of all the benefits. If you are like most of our partners, you are about to hit the first major fork in the road: which Microsoft CLOUD environment should you move your organization to? If you just said, “Wait, there’s more than one Microsoft CLOUD environment?” then this article is for you. Read on to learn about all the different Microsoft CLOUD environments and how to choose the right one for your organization.

What is the Microsoft CLOUD?
What is known as Microsoft CLOUD is officially called M365 CLOUD (or Microsoft 365 CLOUD) which comes with the following suite of tools: Microsoft Teams, SharePoint, OneDrive, Exchange (email), and Office apps (Word, Excel, Outlook, and PowerPoint). For the US Market, the M365 CLOUD comes in 4 flavors:

• M365 Commercial (Public Cloud/Commercial Cloud)
• M365 Government Community Cloud (GCC)
• M365 Government Community Cloud High (GCC High)
• M365 Department of Defense (DoD)

Below, you will find descriptions of each of these Microsoft CLOUD environments and a summary of a typical organization that leverages them.

M365 Commercial CLOUD – Public Cloud/Commercial

• Overview:
  The M365 Commercial CLOUD environment is a “public” cloud that any organization can join regardless of company size or need. The environment comes with multiple geographic regions, which helps ensure high availability and scalable environments. In addition, it allows organizations to collaborate by “federating” environments to create a secure and cooperative space. It also offers a “business in a box” offering for organizations that includes the following tools (with appropriate licensing): Microsoft Teams, SharePoint, OneDrive, Exchange (email), and Office apps (Word, Excel, Outlook, and PowerPoint). Lastly, the environment adheres to the appropriate compliance requirements (ISO 27001, GDPR, and HIPAA).
• Is the M365 Commercial CLOUD right for your organization?
  This is an affordable, scalable, and secure environment for organizations of all sizes. It is best for organizations that do not have strict trade and data regulations or data. In addition, this environment is also ideal for organizations that are looking to reduce their technical hardware debts and reduce the amount of time needed to sustain their existing environment.

M365 Government Community CLOUD (GCC)

• Overview:
  The Government Community Cloud (GCC) environment is set up for U.S. government agencies to securely work with contractors to collaborate on Sensitive But Unclassified data (SBU). These data include but are not limited to: For Official Use Only (FOUO), Law Enforcement Sensitive (LES), Sensitive Security Information (SSI), Limited Official Use (LOU), and Critical Infrastructure Information (CII). As a result, this environment adheres to tighter security and compliance standards (FedRAMP Moderate, CJIS, and DFARS).
• Is the M365 GCC CLOUD right for your organization?
  There is a clear guide for your organization when it comes to using the M365 GCC CLOUD (GCC, GCC High, DoD): If your organizations need to collaborate with the government on Sensitive But Unclassified data that is subject to U.S. government regulations or needs to demonstrate compliance with specific federal, state, or local requirements, then you need to leverage the M365 GCC CLOUD.

Government Community (GCC High) CLOUD

• Overview:
  For organizations that need to manage government-sensitive data, there’s the Government Community (GCC High) CLOUD environment. As you may have guessed, the GCC High environment is similar to the GCC environment but with more strict cybersecurity and compliance requirements due to the sharing and collaborating of sensitive US Government data between the US Government and private organizations. Some of the “sensitive” data that resides in this environment includes but is not limited to: Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI), Federal Contract Information (FCI), International Traffic in Arms Regulation (ITAR), Criminal Justice Information Security (CJIS), Cybersecurity Maturing Model Certification (CMMC), and Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP High). Long story short, this environment is highly secure and highly regulated. It is subject to regular audits, security assessments, and penetration testing. As a result, access to GCC High is highly restricted and will require a long vetting and documentation process.
• Is the M365 GCC High CLOUD right for your organization?
  This environment is a must if your organization would like to work directly with the federal agencies. It is usually mandated by the government for organizations that handle sensitive data as part of their contract to work with Microsoft in order to validate their qualification and eligibility to be onboarded on the GCC High CLOUD environment. Due to these requirements, only DoD contractors, aerospace firms and defense agencies are in this environment.

M365 Department of Defense (DoD) CLOUD

• Overview:
  As the name suggests, M365 DoD CLOUD is an exclusive CLOUD environment that Microsoft created specifically for the U.S. Department of Defense to collaborate with the U.S. military and specific defense contractors who collaborate on the most sensitive data. Due to its exclusivity, this CLOUD environment is the most secure environment and requires a user to be invited and go through a strict onboarding process.
• Is the M365 DoD CLOUD right for your organization?
  Due to the target audience, most organizations will never need to leverage this environment unless it is mandated by the U.S. Department of Defense.

Conclusion
For most organizations, selecting the appropriate CLOUD environment can be confusing and complicated. Choosing the right environment will ensure your organization’s ability to provide a secure and compliant space to collaborate and increase operational efficiency. While M365 CLOUD is an excellent choice for commercial enterprises, GCC, GCC High, and DoD CLOUDs provide tailored solutions for organizations with specific regulatory and security needs. If your organization does not have specific regulatory and security needs, we always recommend starting with the M365 commercial CLOUD. If you are unsure how to navigate this decision and need a partner to support your organization, feel free to reach out to the specialists at Bayen Group. www.bayengroup.com/cloud

About the Author
My name is Huy H. Nguyễn, and I am a managing partner at Bayen Group. We specialize in partnering with organizations to plan and implement the Technology Enterprise Modernization Roadmap. If your organization is starting or in the process of its own Digital Transformation, don’t hesitate to reach out to us. We would love to be your guide through the Digital Transformation journey.

Work with Us
Why Bayen Group
Our Projects
Our YouTube Channel