Doctrine Cloud at the center: what impact for the public sector?

In recent years, digital technologies have changed the way we work. Now, dematerialization of documents, electronic signatures, teleworking, teleworking, tools and various applications are part of the daily life of a large number of private companies as well as public organizations in France. That's what we call the digital transformation. And the health crisis has only accelerated the digitization of public services in order to ensure the maintenance of government activities and services, but also to offer new services to citizens.

Today, most of these services work thanks to the adoption of cloud technologies that allow both the hosting and processing of government and citizen data. In 2018, the State made cloud computing (or cloud computing) one of the priority areas of its digital transformation. And in May 2021, the government announced its “Cloud at the center” policy in order to encourage all public actors to use cloud computing to develop quality digital services, while protecting the data of French companies and citizens as best as possible.

Learn what the “Cloud at the Center” doctrine is and what it means for the public sector.

What is the “Cloud at the Center” doctrine?

The “Cloud at the center” doctrine is part of the government's national strategy, which aims to “better protect the data of French companies, administrations and citizens”. It is a continuation of the 2018 cloud doctrine, and is based on three major challenges for France: the transformation of businesses and administrations, the digital sovereignty and economic competitiveness.

The “Cloud at the center” doctrine concerns all State actors as well as the organizations under its supervision. Through this doctrine, the government wants the cloud to become the default mode of hosting and producing state digital services. He also wants to set an example when it comes to data protection.

Finally, the transition to the cloud must strengthen the resilience of government digital products in the event of an incident, and thus guarantee the continuity of public service. The aim is to guarantee the confidence of French people in digital public services.

In order to sustainably include the cloud in the digital strategy of administrations, public officials will be trained in cloud computing technologies and the digital services of administrations must be hosted on one of the two internal interministerial clouds of the State or on cloud solutions that meet strict security criteria and are SecNumCloud certified.

What is the impact for public sector actors?

The objective of the “Cloud at the center” doctrine is to ensure that public administrations embark on a quality digital transformation that reinforces the sovereignty of the State as well as the protection of the data of French companies and citizens.

Thus, to implement this doctrine, public sector actors must change their culture, acquire new know-how and adapt their operating methods and practices on a daily basis.

Here is what awaits them.

Think differently

IT teams need to think in the cloud, meaning that for any new digital project, they don't have to work the way they used to, but they need to look for a cloud solution. That means a real change in culture and a new way of thinking.

To do this, the government advises public organizations to be monitored and supported by experts who will help them master the tools and train teams in the best practices of cloud computing. Cloud service providers can also support them and offer them appropriate training.

Recruiting and training

Administrations will have to recruit competent people and set up training programs dedicated to the cloud for agents who are part of IT teams as well as managers who use digital products or manage digital projects. Teams starting out in this field will be able to benefit from specific support from their ministry and from the interministerial digital department (DINUM).

Choosing the right cloud solution

The choice of the most suitable cloud solution depends on the various constraints of the public organization (regulatory and security constraints, software licenses, etc.) as well as the type of data it processes on a daily basis.

For example:

• if the administration processes sensitive data (personal data, financial or banking data, confidential data, etc.), it must use the internal cloud or a trustworthy commercial cloud (SecNumCloud certified), under the protection of European law and which respects the RGPD;
• if it processes medical data, the host must, in addition to the conditions mentioned above, comply with the legislation on the hosting of health data;
• if it manages non-sensitive data, it will be able to use a commercial cloud solution of its choice, as long as it meets strict requirements, i.e. it is SecNumCloud qualified and protected from regulations outside the European Union.

Respect the budget

Public service actors who undertake their digital transformation and adopt the “Cloud at the center” doctrine must be careful not to increase their IT budget under the pretext of following the strategic modernization objectives imposed by the government.

Thus, when choosing a cloud computing provider, public organizations must take into account various criteria such as ensuring a high level of security, compliance with the GDPR, access control policy, data encryption, etc., as well as the price of the service.

To conclude

With the “Cloud at the center” doctrine, the State encourages all public actors to develop a better digital public service, while guaranteeing the protection of the data of French companies and citizens. To adopt this doctrine, administrations will have to change their practices and culture, which will allow them to make the best use of these technologies.

For more information, go to the Government site dedicated to digital technology.