Can you describe your experience with cloud systems, particularly in terms of migration processes and solving technical implementation challenges?

This question seeks to understand your experience with cloud systems, focusing mainly on the aspects of migration and solving technical challenges during implementation. It draws attention to two key areas. Firstly, your knowledge in migration processes- which refers to the shifting of applications, databases and other business elements from an on-premise system to the cloud or from one cloud platform to another. Secondly, it probes your problem-solving skills, particularly those concerned with overcoming technical difficulties encountered during the implementation of cloud systems.

In answering this question, you should:

• Specify the cloud systems you've worked on.
• Describe your experience with cloud migration projects and methodologies.
• Present specific examples of technical implementation challenges you’ve faced and how you addressed them.
• Highlight the results and impacts of your actions/solutions.

Remember, interviewers value direct personal experience over generalized knowledge.

I have several years of hands-on experience working with various cloud platforms including Azure, AWS, and Oracle Cloud. My most notable project was a migration project I oversaw in my former role at XYZ Corp. We migrated a critical application from our on-premise server to AWS to leverage its scalability and cost-efficient features.

One of the significant challenges we encountered during implementation was ensuring minimal downtime during migration since it was a critical app. We opted for the lift-and-shift migration strategy which allowed us to move the application without any changes. To minimize downtime, we set up a reverse proxy switch that helped us maintain availability during the migration process. We performed these operations during off-hours which led to minimal disruption to users.

Also, we faced some issues regarding data integrity and security during migration. To solve these, we involved a dedicated security team from the onset of the planning phase. We also enforced a multi-factor authentication for all service accounts accessing our cloud data which significantly enhanced data security.

Through these actions, we saw a successful migration with great reduction to operational costs and a boost in efficiency.

In my current role as a Cloud Specialist at ABC Technologies, I've worked extensively with Google Cloud and Azure platforms. I have spearheaded a few migration projects where we had to move multiple databases from on-premise servers to Google Cloud.

One notable challenge was the size of the databases- they were quite large, and the risk of losing some data during migration was high. To address this, we utilized Google's Database Migration Service which allowed for continuous data replication between our on-premise servers and Google Cloud. This approach ensured no data was missed or lost during the migration.

Furthermore, we encountered some compatibility issues as some applications required restructuring to run optimally on the cloud. We had skilled cloud architects review and re-configure such applications to fit the cloud's architectural requirements, effectively overcoming the challenge.

These strategies not only led to successful migrations but also a drastic improvement in application performance, cost efficiency and operational flexibility.