Why business should not ignore cloud computing

All of the technology and business people I regularly talk to keep telling me cloud computing. But what is it, what does it really mean for business and what are the economic and physical upsides?

Cloud means Internet. The computing occurs on the Internet – instead of the software you use being installed on your desktop pc, it’s hosted on the Internet on a server located in a data centre usually staffed by people who are proficient in managing technology. This type of “cloud” software is commonly known as “on demand” or Software as a Service (SaaS).

Some shining examples of well established Software as a Service are:

Web based CRM Software (Customer Relationship Management) – Salesforce.com pricing approximately $9 per user/month.
Small business management and accounting software (small business ERP) – Salesorder.com pricing $45 per user/month.
Medium sized business ERP software – NetSuite pricing about $99 per user/month.

There are three substantial benefits for every business here:

Time, cost savings and reliability

Businesses don’t need a dedicated systems expert to help them choose, bed in and manage the technology platform thus decreasing operating expenses and time to implement. The task of regularly backing up data is removed as this is almost always an inherent function of the “cloud” software. Cloud software “operators” normally have stand by systems that can be turned on in instantly should a significant issue occur.

Easier selection and wider choice

With just a web browser, businesses now have immediate access to a massive choice of software packages they can in the majority of cases immediately appraise and quickly work out if the software fulfils their needs at no cost. This makes it effective for people in large enterprises to by pass the normal information technology purchasing processes and easily test and justify their business proposal.

Better user experience

The cloud provides rapid feedback to software vendors and has led to significant progress in user interface design resulting in easier to use systems thus improving learning times and increasing user satisfaction. This of course means quicker adoption and higher productivity.

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