Benefits of Cloud Computing

For some time now, businesses have been talking about 'going paperless'. It generally makes good business sense - cutting down on office overheads such as paper, printers, ink and physical archiving.

More recently, IT businesses like Control and Shift have been talking about 'going server-less' by moving systems, applications and storage to the cloud, rather than having a physical server. Cloud computing enables the delivery of IT systems such as applications, databases and storage over the internet. By managing IT in this was, a business can realise a number of benefits. Take a look at some of the main pros below.

Cost reduction

Cloud computing removes much of the hardware cost associated with running and managing a data centre. Using cloud-based services, your business can purchase the package appropriate to your scale and requirements and cut out excess. This can be notably beneficial to smaller businesses as they can pay for exactly what they need.

Flexibility

Cloud-based services offer greater flexibility and operational agility to businesses that are growing or experiencing fluctuations in their service requirements. Generally, a business can flex its cloud capacity in line with its business needs.

Accessibility

Employees can access their files and systems from any location with a reliable internet connection. This can increase efficiencies, team collaboration and organisational speed, particularly among employees visiting clients or working remotely. It can also reduce the risk associated with lost hardware such as a stolen laptop.

Disaster recovery

Business continuity is built in to cloud computing. Data can be permanently lost or corrupted in the event of a server breach whereas cloud-based storage is generally harder to infiltrate and therefore, more secure.

As with most initiatives, there are some disadvantages that businesses need to evaluate when considering a move to cloud computing. Downtime is often highlighted as the major drawback since outages can occur at any time. As with any strategic change, a business should undertake a risk-based evaluation to assess the suitability however there is broad support for the advantages of cloud computing, particularly for smaller businesses.

So, if you’d like to discuss how your business may improve its digital operations by moving to the cloud, email Control and Shift at hello@controlandshift.com or drop us a line on 0333 344 8443 and we'd be happy to review your situation.