The latest trend in global technology is implementing and developing programs that work within “The Cloud.” Even traditional services like online fax and word processors are going virtual. Here are the pros/cons to bringing your business off the ground and into the Cloud.
First and foremost, what is The Cloud? If you are using and web-based services, you are already participating in cloud computing. Simply put, cloud computing is executed through a web-browser, as opposed to client-server computing, which requires someone to download and save applications on one computer system.
The benefits of cloud computing are numerous and convincing:
- More users are able to access programs from diverse locales, allowing for “increased equipment utilization.”
- The flexibility of cloud computing allows users to redesign servers to their benefit, tailoring them to their specific needs and dropping energy costly features.
- The scalability of cloud computing has been frequently cited. If your business grows you can easily order more server space to accommodate the changes.
- By far, the biggest reason companies are switching to cloud computing is cost advantages. A recent analysis by WSP Environment & Energy determined that the per-transaction emission was reduced by an average of 95% for companies that switched to cloud computing.
With the popularity and boom of cloud computing on the technology scene, it’s gained skeptics. Despite its many “pro’s”, plugging into the cloud could have some potential downsides:
- Some contend that the immediate expenses saved with cloud computing don’t always just disappear. The cloud-model requires staff to run databases, answer helplines, and manage applications. Of course, these complications depend on the size of your company and the degree to which you are implementing cloud computing. To minimize these additional costs, be sure to accurately and meticulously gauge how much/little computing you need and adjust from there.
- Outages are inevitable, as clearly exemplified by the notorious Amazon Web Services fall. One way to minimize risk of information loss is to use multiple cloud providers and “backing up” by building redundancies into your applications.
While there are a few downsides to cloud computing, it is imperative for companies to adopt this technology. According to a recent report by Salesforce.com and VCE requested by the U.S. government’s Commerce Department, “cloud computing will become as important as the Internet in maintaining U.S. competitiveness.” Not only is cloud computing essential for revitalizing the economy, it’s essential for you business to stay ahead of the curve.
James Kim is a writer for Choosewhat.com, which provides product reviews and test data for business services and products. Choosewhat.com’s goal is to help small companies make informed buying decisions on business solutions that help their business
