Sam Woodcock, Senior Director of Cloud Strategy and Enablement, 11:11 Systems, on the benefits of cloud infrastructure and the key to digital transformation for organisations to stay ahead.
Whenever a new technology hits the business mainstream, key decision makers try to figure out how it can be incorporated into their existing workflows. This is driven by the need to stay on the cutting edge and not lose out to competitors, as well as the goal of constantly improving efficiency and cutting costs.
The most obvious current example of this is AI, which is the hot new piece of technology that businesses are trying to utilise. The other main technology that exemplifies this is cloud computing.
There are many reasons organisations are looking to the cloud as a business enabler, with scalability, flexibility and cost-effectiveness being only a portion of the long list. Any business that is not currently considering incorporating some aspect of cloud technology into their existing systems will fall behind compared to the rest of the industry, due to the many ways in which it can benefit workflows and help drive revenue.
Cut operational costs
The number one reason for enacting cloud migration that will pique the interest of the C-suite is how it can enable massive cost reductions and increase a company’s bottom line. Before the widespread adoption of cloud, small and medium sized enterprises were at a severe disadvantage compared to their larger competitors. This was due to the high cost of building and maintaining data centres at the enterprise level. For a smaller vendor, investments of this kind were extremely risky, as any chance of underutilisation would result in it being wasted.
However, with cloud-based solutions, much of the guesswork is removed when deciding how much to spend on IT infrastructure. For example, if more capacity is required due to an increase in demand, it is possible to buy the extra space in the cloud.
Achieving the same with traditional infrastructure would require the organisation to buy new physical servers and pay for the installation. Utilising the cloud eliminates these extra associated costs.
Another way in which migrating to the cloud drives down costs is through a reduction in maintenance. The cloud partner or Infrastructure-as-a-Service (IaaS) provider takes on responsibility for the general upkeep of the server space, leaving more time and energy to dedicate to more valuable tasks.
Moving to the cloud also eliminates the need for constant hardware upgrades and the associated costs, as well as security patches and system improvements, ensuring you’re always on the cutting edge without additional effort or expense.
Be flexible and scalable
The cyber landscape is constantly shifting, and there is no way to predict how storage needs will change from one moment to the next. One of the issues posed by traditional infrastructure is how rigid it can be, and what might be a great investment at one time could end up being a hindrance or turn out to be redundant later down the road.
One of the greatest benefits of cloud migration is the inherent flexibility that comes with utilising a cloud environment. The cloud allows businesses to increase and decrease their storage and computing power as and when needed, which enables organisations to be ready for changing requirements or unforeseen circumstances.
A great example of this is during the COVID-19 pandemic when the world suddenly shifted to hybrid and remote work. Many companies were able to ramp up their capacity to meet the surge in demand by tapping into cloud-based infrastructure. This level of flexibility is a great advantage to have and can also assist in the regular, ever-shifting tides of greater and lesser sales.
Cloud infrastructure also allows businesses to grow at a much faster rate, as migrating to the cloud allows organisations to buy as much storage space and computing capacity as they need, which is ideal for rapidly growing enterprises. This also aids expansion into different regions or overseas, which is a huge advantage for any company that has big plans for growth and expansion.
Protecting valuable data from all threats
Cloud platforms have strong security measures, including advanced encryption, robust access controls, and ongoing security intelligence monitoring. The centralised storage of business information in the cloud also provides a higher level of data protection. In the event of physical damage to on-premise hardware, cloud-stored data remains secure and accessible, enabling easy retrieval of the information which remains intact.
Utilising the cloud not only allows greater protection from hackers but also enables greater disaster recovery. By leveraging cloud computing, companies gain access to strong and secure storage solutions, ensuring data safety and quick recovery in case of unexpected events. In the cloud, data is not only backed up continuously but is also distributed across multiple locations. This dispersion of data mitigates risks associated with physical data centres, such as natural disasters or localised system failures.
Digital transformation is at the top of mind for many key decision makers and cloud migration is one of the key drivers in updating systems to be cutting edge.
The advantages of migrating to a cloud environment are numerous and delaying the process may lead to some organisations falling behind.