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Government agencies can adapt private companies’ reported cloud practices by tying adoption to a clear business case, negotiating measurable service terms, treating security as continuous shared work, and investing in staff skills. These practices are not guaranteed results or one-size-fits-all rules: agencies must fit them to public procurement, authorization, oversight, mission, and cost-accounting requirements.
What the evidence says—and what it does not
The U.S. Government Accountability Office’s March 2025 report identifies 19 leading practices across three management areas, based on a survey of 18 private-sector companies selected as leaders in business and technological innovation. The sample was nongeneralizable, so its findings describe practices those companies reported; they do not establish what all private companies do or prove that a practice causes better results. Academic subject matter experts reviewed and agreed with the identified practices. GAO’s 2025 report provides the basis for the private-sector lessons below.
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Government’s own experience supplies a useful counterpoint. In its June 2026 review, GAO documented persistent federal cloud-procurement challenges and practices at selected agencies. It was not a controlled comparison of public and private outcomes, and its findings should not be generalized beyond the agencies reviewed. Together, the reports suggest practical ways to improve decisions—not a promise that any specific approach will save money or guarantee success. GAO’s 2026 report describes that federal context.
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A cloud migration is a means, not a business case by itself. The surveyed companies reported defining a business case and assessing provider performance against expectations. Agencies can apply that discipline by identifying the operational need, current environment, critical IT requirements, intended service outcomes, and how success will be measured before choosing a solution.
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This matters in federal procurement, where decisions can lean on past purchases instead of a fresh assessment of needs and alternatives. GAO found that officials from 22 of 24 selected agencies primarily relied on historical procurement data for cloud decisions. That finding applies to those selected agencies, not to every government body. A documented business case can help an agency explain why a proposed service fits its mission and what evidence will show whether it is working.
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Service promises are useful only when the agency can measure them and respond when they are missed. Private-sector companies reported negotiating clear service terms and evaluating provider performance. For a government contract, operational detail should cover both the provider’s obligations and the agency’s own work.
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- Define service levels, measurement methods, reporting frequency, and how performance will be reviewed.
- Specify security-breach or incident-notification expectations, including the agency’s response process.
- Clarify responsibility for data and network management.
- Set consequences for noncompliance that are enforceable under the contract and applicable procurement requirements.
GAO’s 2024 review found that, as of July 2024, most major agencies had not established service-level-agreement guidance. Its earlier federal work also identified service levels, breach notification, data and network management, and enforceable consequences as relevant contract considerations. The findings point to a concrete improvement area, but private-sector contracting practices still need to be adapted to public procurement law and agency rules. See GAO’s 2024 review of federal cloud procurement and GAO’s earlier contract-focused work.
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Keep security continuous and responsibilities explicit
Using a provider does not remove the customer’s security work. The surveyed companies reported planning incident response, continuously monitoring security, and clarifying the division of security responsibilities between provider and customer. Agencies can use the same disciplines while aligning them with government authorization and oversight requirements.
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Before service begins, document who detects, reports, investigates, and responds to incidents; what information the provider must supply; and which controls remain the agency’s responsibility. Then monitor the service throughout its use rather than treating security as a one-time approval task. GAO’s 2019 review found inconsistent program use and incomplete implementation at selected agencies at that time. That is historical evidence, not a description of current rates or current authorization counts. GAO’s 2019 review provides that dated context.
Build the workforce and operating culture the service requires
Cloud adoption changes how technical, acquisition, and security work is done. The surveyed companies reported identifying skills gaps, recruiting and retaining staff, and addressing organizational culture. For agencies, that means planning for training and staffing alongside the technology decision, not after a skills shortage has become an operational problem.
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In GAO’s 2026 review of 24 selected agencies, 8 reported training opportunities that supported cloud procurement; 21 said governance structures, processes, and documentation assisted oversight, and 18 reported contracting approaches. These are agency-reported practices in that review, not proof that each practice produced better outcomes. They nevertheless show that governance, contracting, and training are practical parts of cloud oversight—not administrative extras. The 2026 report details the agency findings.
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Track costs and preserve workable options
Cloud adoption does not automatically produce savings. GAO identifies cost tracking and control as ongoing federal challenges, and the cited evidence does not establish a sector-wide, controlled estimate of cloud savings or success rates. Agencies should define how they will track spending, review usage, and compare actual costs and performance with the business case.
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Provider flexibility also has a cost. Interoperability across multiple vendors and the ability to change providers can matter, but a multi-cloud approach may require additional investment. The surveyed companies described multi-cloud as one way to improve flexibility, not a universal recommendation. Consider mission fit, authorization status, service terms, cost visibility, performance, workforce capacity, interoperability, and the practical ability to exit or change providers before committing to a provider or deployment approach.
Quick Recap
A decision checklist for agencies
- State the operational need and intended service outcomes before describing a migration.
- Set measurable performance expectations and identify how the agency will assess them.
- Define provider and agency responsibilities for incidents, security, data, and networks.
- Align procurement and security plans with applicable authorization and oversight requirements.
- Establish cost visibility and regular reviews of spending, usage, and performance.
- Identify workforce gaps and plan training, recruitment, and retention.
- Assess interoperability and credible options for changing providers or services.
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