6 Reasons Why Business Are Switching to Cloud Computing

6 Reasons Why Business Are Switching to Cloud Computing

In today’s rapidly-changing world economy, one industry-agnostic truth exists: businesses must continuously adapt and evolve accordingly in order to maintain their edge over their competitors. They must be constantly on the lookout for new ideas, tools, and business models to allow them to do so. Otherwise, they may find themselves being overtaken by the larger competition.

One particular tool that has become increasingly popular, especially to startups and small companies, is cloud computing – the practice of moving your data and business operations to the Internet. Many businesses and enterprises of all sizes are gradually making the move to the cloud, or adopted it for various sectors of their operations.

But what makes cloud computing popular?  What are its benefits beyond having your data and operations hosted on the Internet, rather than in your office premises? More importantly, is it something that your company should look into? To help better explain this particular phenomenon as well as help you come to a decision, here are some reasons why businesses are switching to cloud computing.

1. It greatly reduces overhead costs. A traditional business setup usually involves directly purchasing extensive IT infrastructure in order to store business-critical data and applications within the premises of an office. This can be a very costly affair, and many startups as well as smaller businesses may find their limited resources being stretched thin should they attempt to do the same. By adopting innovative cloud solutions, businesses can forgo such costly investments and reduce their overhead costs, allowing them to devote their resources to key areas in their business (such as employee salaries or growth opportunities).
2. It allows for 24/7 customer support. Due to the hyper-competitive business world today, where the customer experience is just as important as the quality of service or product being provided, the ability to provide immediate support to the customer no matter the time of day is essential. Cloud computing facilitates this by allowing employees to access essential data and applications from anywhere and at any time, allowing for work functions to be performed even outside office premises and hours. All the employee needs is a working Internet connection.
3. It facilitates greater collaboration between employees and outside parties. When business-sensitive data and documents are stored online, this means that employees are able to share them directly with their coworkers. This eliminates the need for costly printouts and document courier services, as well as accidentally sharing outdated versions of the same file. Furthermore, with the file hosted in the cloud, this means that every employee in the company is dealing with just one version of the file, and any updates made to it are immediately accessible to the entire workforce.
4. It allows businesses to store data safely. Storing your data in the cloud means that its existence is not tied to a specific piece of hardware or infrastructure, and it can be considered protected from the usual risks that traditional data storage measures are subject to (such as natural disasters and building fires). This also allows the company to attain a high degree of business continuity, in that they can easily resume normal business operations even in the event that their office premises or IT infrastructure is suddenly and severely compromised.
5. It allows a greater degree of workforce flexibility. By adopting cloud computing, businesses of any size can make their workforce more adaptable and flexible according to their needs. One example scenario involves a company sending an employee to a remote location in order to become a satellite office all on their own. Since the business is hosting its business data and work applications in the cloud, the employee only needs a working Internet connection and a mobile device in order to produce their required work output, without the need for an actual office or expensive IT infrastructure. This can apply to other scenarios such as with part-time and work-from-home employees.
6. It allows for hands-free IT infrastructure maintenance and upkeep. Because cloud computing involves the business’s servers being off-premises and handled by the cloud service provider, the responsibility of securing and updating these servers is basically taken out of the picture. This allows smaller businesses and startups to truly focus on developing and refining their key competencies as well as improving rapport with their contacts and customers.

The benefits of cloud computing are numerous, with businesses of all sizes and industries able to reap them even through the simplest of implementations. If your company or startup relies on IT heavily to facilitate its work processes, then you should definitely look into adopting cloud computing, as its advantages can easily allow you and your employees numerous opportunities for revenue growth.