When it comes to data protection, simple is always better, even as remote work and hybrid offices makes things more complex.

Even as endpoints flourish, you should continue to streamline your systems by leveraging cloud backup and combat complexity—the more systems you have in place, the more likely something will go wrong. You must balance redundancy with simplicity.

Even before the pandemic and the massive proliferation of remote endpoints, there were already many different applications and systems needing backup as lines of businesses spun up their own Software-as-a-Service (Saas) applications such as Microsoft Office 365 and Salesforce. Even worse, they assumed data is automatically backed up by the vendor. But in addition to those applications, you need to keep track of your servers, physical and virtual machines, and multiple endpoints that include workstations and laptops, satellite offices, and of course, remote workstations, which may even be an employee’s personal device.

The attack surface has expanded since the pandemic but having multiple data protection systems isn’t the answer. Instead, consider a single cloud backup service with built-in redundancy. As with any application, a data protection system has its own maintenance requirements and processes, so it’s best to have one that’s well-managed and reliable that makes verification simple. That way, you can be confident all your data, regardless of application, server or endpoint, is being consistently backed up. Having as single cloud backup service is also better for your IT budget.

However, depending on your environment, it may not be realistic to have a single cloud backup solution; your best approach is to implement a select few data protection systems to meet user requirements so that your IT team isn’t overwhelmed by too many backup tools as the resulting complexity will lead to misconfigurations and ultimately, a data breach that leads to a business disruption.

Having confidence in your cloud backup isn’t just important for your IT team. Data protection plays a strong role in maximizing business uptime, so you’re not only trying to keep senior IT management happy—the CEO has a stake in data protection, whether they realize it or not.

Like any application you implement to realize business goals, not all data protection and cloud backup systems are created equal. In addition, IT environments are more dynamic than ever thanks to digital transformation efforts, the emergence of the hybrid office, and the persistence of remote work. When selecting a cloud backup solution, be sure they meet all your data protection criteria including compliance, security, and restoration windows.  You might want to consider taking the opportunity to replace legacy systems that can be difficult to back up, rather than keeping them going because it will reduce maintenance costs, add data management capabilities, and improve your overall data protection effectiveness.

Remember that data is more portable than ever, too, especially when fewer people are working in the office behind the corporate firewall. If applications and data are spread cross multiple clouds, as well as endpoints and workstations, then your cloud back solutions must consider that your data is distributed across many platforms, as well as understand the built-in data protection of SaaS productivity applications—not just what they can do, but also what they don’t do.

A dramatic increase in the number of remote workers and the emergence of the hybrid office are great reminders that the need for robust data protection is never going to go away. As the year ends, take the opportunity to revisit the cloud backup solutions you have in place and implement a strategy to modernize it as needed to reflect the world of work with the help of an experienced managed services provider.