Are you new to cloud computing? Or maybe looking for some evidence to prove that it’s worth your company’s time?
You’ve come to the right place.
I’ve put together a list of 22 cloud benefits, straight from experts in the cloud computing industry, to help you learn exactly what you can get when your company uses the cloud.
22 Advantages Of Cloud Computing
1. Increased Flexibility
Cloud-based remote servers have a vast capacity, which allows bandwidth needs to be met anytime, anywhere.
“Cloud computing allows your employees to be more flexible—both in and out of the workplace. Employees can access files using web-enabled devices such as smartphones, laptops, and notebooks... In this way, cloud computing enables the use of mobile technology.” —Rick Blaisdell, Technical and Business Strategist
2. The Ability To Work From Anywhere
As long as employees have internet access, they can work from anywhere. This can improve their productivity and work-life balance.
“Try this scenario on for size: you’re working on a Word document at work, and you want to go home and finish there. [Just] upload the file to Dropbox, head home, and that file is there for you to work on. Having your files readily available from anywhere will make your life easier.” —Brett Williams, The IT Blog
For an even smoother workflow, you can work directly from synced files in the cloud, meaning all of your files, applications, and services are integrated into one tool that can be accessed from anywhere. An example of this is our unified cloud experience and cloud aggregation service.
3. Automatic Software Updates
Cloud suppliers do all the server maintenance required with cloud computing, including security updates. This frees up your employees, IT staff, and resources for other tasks.
“Using the cloud means you’ll no longer have to worry about purchasing, installing, downloading, and updating software. Cloud computing suppliers take care of this for you—security updates included—thus freeing up your time so you can focus on other important aspects of your business. Not only does this save you hassle, but it also means you don’t have to worry about hackers exploiting out of date software.” —Alex Gavril, 123-reg
4. Increased Security
According to Alert Logic’s State of Cloud Security Report, on-premise server users actually suffer more security incidents than those of cloud service providers.
“Indeed, I've been finding that clouds are more secure than traditional systems, generally speaking... Moreover, those who build cloud-based platforms for enterprises typically focus more on security and governance than those who build systems that will exist inside firewalls.” —David Linthicum, Cloud Analyst, Cloud Technology Partners
5. More Reliability
Today, cloud-based server platforms are generally more reliable than in-house servers.
“With a managed service platform, cloud computing is much more reliable and consistent than in-house IT infrastructure. Most providers offer a Service Level Agreement which guarantees 24/7/365 and 99.99% availability. Your organization can benefit from a massive pool of redundant IT resources.” —Biren Shukla, CEO, Levelcloud
6. Easier Collaboration
Cloud computing makes collaboration among employees—wherever they are—possible. They can sync documents and shared apps, as well as receive critical updates in real time.
“Cloud computing keeps all the files in one central location, and everyone works off of one central copy. Employees can even chat to each other while making changes together. This whole process makes collaboration stronger, which increases efficiency and improves a company’s bottom line.” —Marc Benioff, CEO, Salesforce
7. A Competitive Advantage
Cloud computing allows even small businesses to compete with large corporations by giving them access to efficient, effective tools.
“The cloud grants SMEs (small and medium-sized enterprises) access to enterprise-class technology. It also allows smaller businesses to act faster than big, established competitors.” —Marc Benioff, CEO, Salesforce
8. Reduced Disaster Recovery
Because all data is stored in the cloud, cloud computing reduces the need for disaster recovery. If something were to happen to a device you use, your data would still be stored safely, and your cloud service providers would know how to recover lost information, if needed.
“When companies start relying on cloud-based services, they no longer need complex disaster recovery plans. Cloud computing providers take care of most issues, and they do it faster.” —Marc Benioff, CEO, Salesforce
9. More Cost Efficiency
Most cloud services are paid on a subscription basis, so capital expenditure is reduced. Cloud computing is also much faster and easier to deploy, so there are fewer startup costs.
“Cloud computing is probably the most cost efficient method to use, maintain, and upgrade. Traditional desktop software costs companies a lot in terms of finance. Adding up the licensing fees for multiple users can prove to be very expensive for the establishment concerned. The cloud, on the other hand, is available at much cheaper rates and hence, can significantly lower the company’s IT expenses.” —Priya Viswanathan, Mobile Devices Expert, AboutTech
One thing to keep an eye on with the cloud is SaaS (software as a service) cost creep. SaaS applications are easy to download and use, so the purchasing of these apps should be monitored in order to prevent unnecessary spending and keep costs low.
10. Automatic Software Integration
Not only does the cloud provide automatic updates, but it also provides automatic integrations. Rather than taking the time to customize your system, the cloud can do it for you.
“In the cloud, software integration is usually something that occurs automatically. This means that you do not need to take additional efforts to customize and integrate your applications as per your preferences. This aspect usually takes care of itself. Not only that, cloud computing allows you to customize your options with great ease. Hence, you can handpick just those services and software applications that you think will best suit your particular enterprise.” —Priya Viswanathan, Mobile Devices Expert, AboutTech
11. A Green Solution
With fewer machines and efficient equipment, cloud computing can reduce a company’s carbon footprint.
“Cloud computing solutions are also generally greener than traditional IT because they require less in-office IT equipment. While huge data centers require a lot of electricity, it's still a lot less than the thousands of office-grade computers it would take to perform the same big tasks. Large cloud computing providers can also optimize their data centers for energy efficiency much more precisely than manufacturers of desktops and laptops can.” —Jim Lynch, TechSoup.org
12. Reduced Support & Hardware Needs
Cloud computing reduces the need for extra equipment and machinery, which lowers your company’s need for IT support.
“As you move more business-critical applications into the cloud, you'll likely find that you don't need to upgrade computers as regularly, and many employees can make do without higher-end computers. That's because the actual computing isn't happening on the computer: A $200 tablet can access your Salesforce and Google Apps accounts just as quickly as a $2,000 premium laptop can. Similarly, you may find that a cloud computing infrastructure requires a smaller IT staff than a traditional IT setup does because your organization won't be managing the software anymore.” —Jim Lynch, TechSoup.org
13. Increased Storage Capacity
Cloud computing eliminates the worry and hassle of increasing your current storage capacity.
“The cloud can accommodate and store much more data compared to a personal computer, and in a way offers almost unlimited storage capacity. It eliminates worries about running out of storage space, and at the same time spares businesses the need to upgrade their computer hardware, further reducing the overall IT cost.” —Ilias Tsagklis, Senior Software Engineer & Co-Founder, Java Code Geeks
14. Quick Deployment
If you choose to use a cloud server, your entire system can be fully functional within a matter of minutes, depending on the specific technology you use.
“A cloud system can be up and running in a very short period, making quick deployment a key benefit. On the same aspect, the introduction of a new user in the system happens instantaneously, eliminating waiting periods.” —Ilias Tsagklis, Senior Software Engineer & Co-Founder, Java Code Geeks
15. Better Scalability & Performance
Because cloud servers constantly perform updates automatically, they very easily scale with the needs of your company’s IT department.
“Scalability is a built-in feature for cloud deployments. Cloud instances are deployed automatically only when needed, and as a result, you pay only for the applications and data storage you need. Hand in hand comes elasticity, since clouds can be scaled to meet your changing IT system demands. Regarding performance, the systems utilize distributed architectures which offer excellent speed of computations.” —Ilias Tsagklis, Senior Software Engineer & Co-Founder, Java Code Geeks
16. Device Diversity
Because cloud services can be accessed from anywhere with an internet connection, there is no limit to the devices you can use.
“Cloud computing services can be accessed via a plethora of electronic devices that are able to have access to the internet. These devices include not only the traditional PCs, but also smartphones, tablets, etc. With the cloud, the “Bring Your Own Device” (BYOD) policy can be easily adopted, permitting employees to bring personally owned mobile devices to their workplace.” —Ilias Tsagklis, Senior Software Engineer & Co-Founder, Java Code Geeks
17. A Smaller Learning Curve
Because the cloud is popular and easy to access, most people today are familiar with how to use it (at least from a personal standpoint).
“Cloud applications usually entail smaller learning curves since people are quietly used to them. Users find it easier to adopt them and come up to speed much faster. Main examples of this are applications like Gmail and Google Docs.” —Ilias Tsagklis, Senior Software Engineer & Co-Founder, Java Code Geeks
18. Less Training
With a smaller learning curve comes less of a need for employee training.
“Less personnel training is needed [because] it takes fewer people to do more work on a cloud, with a minimal curve on hardware and software issues.” —Laurel Delaney, Founder, GlobeTrade.com
19. The Ability To Try New Ideas
Most companies who want to pursue new ideas are held back by time and money constraints. With on-demand cloud resources, new configurations can be up and running in a matter of hours or minutes with minimal costs associated.
“Even within the largest enterprises, innovation springs from constant experimentation, the ability to keep trying new ideas, and being willing to fail. On-demand cloud resources provide the way to try out new ideas without extreme investments in supporting systems. And a shift in business focus can be made fairly quickly.” —Joe McKendrick, Researcher, Speaker, Forbes Contributor
20. Smoother Mergers & Acquisitions
When companies consolidate, it can take months (or even years) to bring data and records from one system into another. Cloud computing makes this much simpler.
“There are agencies today that have workers manually coding information from one system to another. It still takes a lot of time and work. With systems in the cloud, however, the transition is much faster. End users in the conjoined organizations can readily and rapidly access cloud-based systems.” —Joe McKendrick, Forbes Contributor, Researcher, Speaker, Forbes Contributor
21. The Ability To Adopt New Business Processes
Cloud computing gives you the ability to duplicate or adopt successful business processes others have hashed out.
“One of the fears about cloud services is that they’re homogenized, built to the lowest common denominator, and thus leveling the playing field for all business customers. At the same time, cloud services are based on the collective learning and input of customers, and new customers immediately are exposed to processes, formulas, and interfaces that are well-tested and proven to deliver the best business results.” —Joe McKendrick, Forbes Contributor, Researcher, Speaker, Forbes Contributor
22. More Tech-Savvy Executives
In today’s competitive global economy, the advantage goes to organizations that are adept at leveraging the latest technology. To get there, they need the leadership and guidance of their CIOs, CTOs, and other executive leaders. The cloud allows this to happen.
“[The] cloud frees up IT executives to think and act strategically. IT leaders provide the insights needed to select the right technology resources for the business, be they from the corporate data center or from an outside service provider.” —Joe McKendrick, Forbes Contributor, Researcher, Speaker, Forbes Contributor
Reap The Benefits
Obviously the cloud has a lot to offer, which is why tons of companies are making the switch to cloud-hosted servers and applications. When these services are properly managed, they can make your company more efficient, more advanced, and more profitable.
Further Reading:
What is Cross-selling and Up-selling and Why Does it Matter for SaaS?
