Cloud: plan and design
Build secure, scalable foundations with clear governance and a practical roadmap
Cloud can unlock flexibility, resilience and new ways of working — but only when it’s built on strong foundations. Without clear architecture, governance and planning, cloud adoption can increase cost, risk and operational complexity.
We help education and research organisations plan and design cloud environments that are secure, compliant and fit for long-term operation, drawing on deep sector experience and proven best practice.
Start with the right foundations
Whether you are at an early stage of cloud adoption or reviewing existing decisions, effective planning is critical. Institutions must balance innovation with compliance, cost control and operational resilience — often with limited internal capacity.
Our approach is vendor-aware and framework-led, focused on institutional outcomes rather than technology for its own sake.
Our plan and design services help you:
- Establish clear cloud architecture and embedding governance early, supporting compliance and assurance
- Reduce future technical debt and rework with fewer corrective changes later in the cloud lifecycle
- Make informed decisions aligned to sector regulations, funding cycles and operating realities
- Create a practical, deliverable roadmap that internal teams can work that supports long-term sustainability, not just initial migration
- Clearer ownership across IT, security and leadership teams
- Cloud decisions aligned to skills, budgets and operational capacity
Services and capabilities
Explore our cloud: plan and design services.
Cloud architecture and readiness review
Understand where you are today — and what good looks like next.
This structured review assesses your current environment and readiness for cloud adoption or optimisation, helping you move forward with confidence.
It covers:
- Target cloud architecture and design principles
- Identity, access and security foundations
- Governance and policy readiness
- Operating model readiness, including roles, responsibilities and the shared responsibility model between your institution and cloud providers
- Skills, tooling and delivery capability
Outcome: a clear, prioritised set of recommendations that translate directly into delivery — not shelf-ware.
Explore cloud architecture and readiness review
Understand where you are today — and what good looks like next.
This structured review assesses your current environment and readiness for cloud adoption or optimisation, helping you move forward with confidence.
It covers:
- Target cloud architecture and design principles
- Identity, access and security foundations
- Governance and policy readiness
- Operating model readiness, including roles, responsibilities and the shared responsibility model between your institution and cloud providers
- Skills, tooling and delivery capability
Outcome: a clear, prioritised set of recommendations that translate directly into delivery — not shelf-ware.
Explore cloud architecture and readiness review
Cloud roadmap and adoption planning
Turn ambition into an achievable plan.
Cloud roadmap planning helps translate strategy into a phased, realistic plan that reflects institutional priorities and constraints.
This includes:
- Defining short, medium and long-term cloud goals
- Prioritising workloads and initiatives based on value and risk
- Aligning plans to funding cycles, internal capability and existing programmes of work
- Avoiding over-engineering while maintaining governance
Outcome: a practical roadmap that supports confident decision-making and sustained progress.
Turn ambition into an achievable plan.
Cloud roadmap planning helps translate strategy into a phased, realistic plan that reflects institutional priorities and constraints.
This includes:
- Defining short, medium and long-term cloud goals
- Prioritising workloads and initiatives based on value and risk
- Aligning plans to funding cycles, internal capability and existing programmes of work
- Avoiding over-engineering while maintaining governance
Outcome: a practical roadmap that supports confident decision-making and sustained progress.
Intune deployment accelerator
Establish secure, consistent endpoint management from day one.
This service helps institutions deploy Microsoft Intune in a structured, sector-aware way, establishing baseline configuration and policy early — and reducing future rework.
It focuses on:
- Core Intune setup and configuration
- Policy design aligned to institutional needs
- Supporting secure hybrid and flexible working
- Reducing operational overhead through standardisation
Outcome: a faster, more consistent Intune deployment that supports security and manageability as cloud use grows.
Establish secure, consistent endpoint management from day one.
This service helps institutions deploy Microsoft Intune in a structured, sector-aware way, establishing baseline configuration and policy early — and reducing future rework.
It focuses on:
- Core Intune setup and configuration
- Policy design aligned to institutional needs
- Supporting secure hybrid and flexible working
- Reducing operational overhead through standardisation
Outcome: a faster, more consistent Intune deployment that supports security and manageability as cloud use grows.
Microsoft Purview: data governance and compliance
Build data governance into your cloud design.
Microsoft Purview supports information protection, data classification and compliance — but delivers the most value when designed in early.
We help institutions:
- Understand how Purview fits into wider cloud governance
- Apply good practice aligned to education and research requirements
- Balance control with usability, avoiding unnecessary complexity
Outcome: clearer data governance, reduced compliance risk, and stronger assurance as cloud adoption expands.
Build data governance into your cloud design.
Microsoft Purview supports information protection, data classification and compliance — but delivers the most value when designed in early.
We help institutions:
- Understand how Purview fits into wider cloud governance
- Apply good practice aligned to education and research requirements
- Balance control with usability, avoiding unnecessary complexity
Outcome: clearer data governance, reduced compliance risk, and stronger assurance as cloud adoption expands.
Choose Jisc for cloud planning and design
We offer sector-built expertise you can trust.
- Designed for education and research: our services reflect the regulatory, funding and operational realities of UK institutions
- Independent and not-for-profit: our advice is shaped by sector outcomes, not vendor targets
- Joined-up portfolio: our planning and design connect seamlessly into migration, security and managed services when you’re ready
- Built for long-term operation: We're focused on what institutions can realistically run, govern and sustain
Ready to plan your cloud with confidence?
Contact your relationship manager or make a customer enquiry to discuss how we can support your cloud planning and design.