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SMB Decision-Makers Have Varying Cloud Demands

Friday, December 14th, 2012 by Dr. GoGrid

Small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) are doing everything in their power to gain a competitive advantage over rival enterprises that often have more exhaustible resources. In many cases, SMBs are adopting cloud computing services to achieve these goals, as the technology is now well known for its ability to reduce costs and drive innovation.

A recent report by Spiceworks highlighted the growing trend among SMBs to migrate to the cloud, noting that 36 percent of SMBs are already using cloud servers. Another 9 percent said they plan to be using the cloud within a year, while another 28 percent of SMB decision-makers are actively looking for the right provider and services to cater to specific needs.

SMB decision-makers have varying cloud demands

To complicate matters for cloud vendors, not all SMBs are looking for the same thing. While the majority of companies require a highly scalable environment that is capable of supporting high-volume and long-term storage at an affordable cost, each executive has his or her own specific demands. As a result, Spiceworks narrowed down the list to five specific categories that most cloud users fall into.

The ‘nuts and bolts’ buyer
These individuals are usually the nitty gritty decision-makers that ensure the cloud solutions are functional and within a specific budget, Spiceworks noted. In many cases, these executives will ask questions about monthly expenses, maintenance costs and other practical financial questions in regard to specific services and applications.

The defensive purchaser
While getting down to the fine financial points is important, many organizations need to ensure cloud environments support a firm’s ability to meet compliance requirements. For this reason, some decision-makers are classified as the “CYA” buyers, as they are more focused on asking providers questions regarding data protection, audit support and other security aspects, Spiceworks noted. In general, cloud computing environments are highly secure, as this is a major competitive point for vendors, InfoWorld said in another report.

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Cloud computing in 2013

Thursday, December 6th, 2012 by Dr. GoGrid

Although cloud services have been gaining momentum and garnering a lot of attention during the last several years, next year’s adoption strategies will be different. In 2013, enterprise executives will get real about cloud computing and finally understand what it takes to make effective strategic decisions, according to a blog report by Forrester Research analyst James Staten.

Cloud computing in 2013

While there have been many early adopters of the cloud, the technology has primarily hidden in the shadows, largely because IT departments were still relatively unsure whether the hosted solutions would truly deliver any benefits. Next year, however, IT executives will no longer deny the existence of the cloud, Staten noted, as 2013 will be a shining year for when the cloud truly takes off.

No more mindless deployments

In the coming year, decision-makers will be smarter about implementing cloud services. The once common thought of “everything will move to the cloud” will no longer encourage executives to blindly launch cloud computing projects without planning ahead, Staten said. As a whole, the private sector now has enough knowledge of the cloud to recognize the subtle differences between varying virtual architectures, enabling managers to make sound decisions toward launching an effective strategy.

Cloud computing is not a commodity

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Small companies should consider cloud-based disaster recovery programs

Thursday, November 29th, 2012 by Dr. GoGrid

In the past, every new technology implemented by a company needed to have a positive return on investment or reduce costs in some way for it to have a sound impact on an organization. While saving money is still important today, it is not necessarily the main reason companies are deploying innovative solutions.

As new cyber dangers and natural disasters pressure small organizations to be prepared with robust disaster recovery and business continuity plans, decision-makers are turning to cloud computing for scalable and automated environments, according to a study by InformationWeek Reports. Since the cloud comes in a variety of forms, enabling executives to leverage on- or off-site structures to host mission-critical information, small companies can use the services to promote long-term safety.

Small companies should consider cloud-based disaster recovery programs

The study revealed that the cloud is also raising awareness of the importance of businesses continuity and disaster recovery programs, as 67 percent of respondents said they currently have a plan in place, while another 23 percent have a strategy to launch an initiative within the next 12 to 24 months. Only 10 percent of respondents lack any plans.

The survey also found that 17 percent of decision-makers are using cloud-based services to enhance disaster recovery programs, while another 26 percent are considering doing so.

Why use the cloud for disaster recovery?
In addition to the scalable and financial benefits associated with incorporating cloud computing into a business continuity strategy, executives can also ensure their initiatives are on pace with evolving demands through frequent testing programs, InformationWeek Reports said. While legacy disaster recovery tools often enable companies to check operations every so often, the cloud provides decision-makers with the ability to ensure sensitive applications and data are recoverable at any time.

InformationWeek Reports said cloud-based business continuity programs enable small firms to have end-to-end backup orchestrated for their entire data center. This lets executives migrate massive volumes of records to the public or private cloud on demand.

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A cloud is a cloud is a cloud

Friday, November 9th, 2012 by Dr. GoGrid

There is no longer any doubt that the cloud is rapidly gaining momentum in the private sector as companies try to deploy technologies capable of enhancing efficiency without dramatically increasing expenses. While many decision-makers agree that cloud computing yields a number of benefits, the extent of these advantages often corresponds to which model is chosen: public, private or hybrid.

Cost reduction is usually one of the primary drivers for companies that move to the cloud, especially in today’s economic state. However, some cloud models may deliver greater opportunity for savings than others, and decision-makers need to balance the pros and cons of each option, according to a report by Virtual-Strategy Magazine.

A cloud is a cloud is a cloud

“A growing number of organizations worldwide are seeing the value of cloud computing as a way of increasing IT flexibility and lowering in-house infrastructure costs,” said Kyle MacDonald, cloud expert at Canonical, according to the news source. “However, achieving the right blend of security, control and cost efficiency depends on choosing the right public or private infrastructure – or the right balance of both.”

The private cloud
Security is one of the most controversial topics regarding the cloud, as many skeptics are unsure whether the hosted environment can keep confidential resources safe. For this reason, many companies responsible for managing highly sensitive information implement a private cloud structure, as IT departments can keep data and solutions within dedicated servers protected behind a specific firewall, Virtual-Strategy Magazine noted.

Furthermore, private clouds, unlike their public counterparts, only host a single tenant. As a result, decision-makers can customize the environments and even incorporate unique disaster recovery and business continuity strategies.

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Cloud security misconceptions impeding progress

Thursday, November 8th, 2012 by Dr. GoGrid

Although the cloud is a major disruption to the IT landscape, it is not the first and it won’t be the last in this regard. With that being said, companies neglecting the cloud are likely falling behind rivals that have already adopted the technology, as the cloud promises to reduce IT expenses and enhance operations – both of which are critical in today’s unpredictable economy.

Even though these benefits are well known throughout the private sector, cloud computing adoption rates are not as high as they should be. Although there are several reasons for this, some have more of an impact than others.

Cloud security misconceptions impeding progress

Chris Weitz, a director at Deloitte Consulting, recently spoke with TechTarget and said that data security and privacy in the cloud are the leading inhibitors. This is largely because the cloud enables companies to extend their customer base, potentially reaching into previously untapped markets. At the same time, however, decision-makers are forced to deal with varying compliance regulations and privacy laws that can impede an organization’s progress.

“One huge problem, of course, is that data is not physically stored in any one computer in a cloud computing environment, it’s spread across thousands of them, so there’s no one physical place to check,” Weitz said. “It’s all done by software, and software by definition is not directly observable, so you need other software to observe that software.”

Keeping cloud environments protected
Just because security is a common concern in the cloud doesn’t mean decision-makers cannot take things into their own hands and protect the virtual environments. By learning about the technology and speaking with service providers, IT executives can guarantee their cloud services are safe enough to manage mission-critical information and applications.

According to a separate report by American Banker, executives need to speak with vendors and create a robust service-level agreement that guarantees multiple layers of security. In doing so, small and large businesses alike can leverage a cloud infrastructure with greater confidence and not worry about inadvertently exposing confidential information.

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