You’re in the cloud!

Perhaps you own or manage a business and you’re still sceptical towards cloud computing. You might think there are security risks involved that you cannot overlook or even feel frustrated of all the talk about the cloud. Well, it’s time to get over it, because you’re already there, even if you don’t know it!

There is no doubt that you’re using, or have used at times, services such as Gmail, Microsoft Office 365, Dropbox, Skype, etc., or even solutions such as ERP and CRM. If you did not realize it, all these services and solutions run in the cloud. The same stands for VoIP and Unified Communications as a Service (UCaaS). Anything defined “as a Service” is in the cloud. If you use Amazon Web Services, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud, then you need to know that these are all popular services that are obviously provided in the cloud.

If you’re still not convinced, check the icons on your smartphone, tablet, laptop and desktop. You’ll certainly find LinkedIn, Facebook, Google+, iTunes and/or Google Play, which are all cloud-based apps.

By now, you must have noticed at least one cloud-based application that your business is using. Many of these apps are already on your smartphone, your laptop or even your smartwatch. It is also certain that these cloud-based applications are largely responsible for the increase in your productivity and revenue. In reality, there are many business managers who admit they cannot even think of how their daily life would be without these cloud apps. After all, their cost is perfectly realistic and manageable, while there are usually many options for almost all applications any business would require, and for an extensive range of needs.

The value of the cloud

If you try to evaluate the cloud-based applications your business is using, you’ll come to the conclusion that their value is indeed significant. It is truly a wonder how businesses managed to operate before the cloud, when all programs ran on servers or local PCs, forcing businesses to have a fully equipped IT department and specialized personnel for operating and maintaining their systems, and spend significant part of their budget on software, maintenance and project management.

The same obviously applies to ERP and CRM solutions, in which case cloud-based deployment truly released businesses from the restrictions imposed by on-premise systems, enabling them to take advantage of all the important benefits these systems have to offer, and increase their productivity and profitability.