Cloud services are changing the way businesses are run today. Vital operations like fulfilling orders, delivering services, and interacting with customers are made more efficient thanks to cloud programming.
Moving your organization to the cloud could be one of the best things you can do for your business. In this article, we’ll look at some of the benefits of cloud transformation and how your business can take advantage of it.
What Is Cloud Transformation?
To understand the benefits of cloud transformation, we first need to understand what it is and why it’s important.
Cloud transformation is the process of migrating your business from local devices or network servers to a hosting in the cloud. It isn’t simply a matter of transferring data files from one location to another. It’s a process that involves transforming your company’s IT infrastructure, as well as migrating applications and programs to be hosted, managed and accessed from the cloud.
How long it takes depends on a number of factors:
- The complexity of your system. Simpler operations won’t take as long to migrate to the cloud.
- State of your existing cloud infrastructure. If your business doesn’t use any cloud services, it can take longer to run a cloud transformation. Already having some cloud technology in place will help speed things up.
Transferring your business operations to the cloud can take as little as a couple months, or much longer depending on the complexity of your business. But with the large number of advantages of cloud transformation, you can expect to see a high rate of return on your initial investment to migrate.
6 Key Advantages of Cloud Transformation
Cloud transformation makes a lot of sense for nearly every business. Here’s why.
It Future-Proofs Your Business
Technology changes at a rapid rate, and if your business doesn’t keep up with it, you risk losing market share when customers switch to a more convenient or efficient brand. Cloud transformation improves both customer experience and employee productivity (see below), giving you a competitive edge and helps you stay relevant with your customers.
The longer you put off adopting cloud technology, the more likely it is that customers will move to a brand that can meet their needs.
Efficiency Can Skyrocket
One of the key benefits of cloud transformation is the improved speed and agility of business operations. Several processes can be sped up, or even automated, saving time and allowing business owners to focus on other important aspects of their business.
It Reduces Overhead
Moving to the cloud is a surefire way to reduce the costs associated with business operations, and can give your brand as much as 3.2 times the ROI. Once you’ve made the switch to the cloud, all your data and processes become easily accessible and manageable online. If you choose to leverage a public cloud platform (such as AWS, Microsoft Azure or Google Cloud Platform), you can reduce the need to hire additional IT staff, resulting in lower costs and increased efficiency.
It Improves Scalability
Business operations become more flexible thanks to cloud transformation. Having a cloud architecture in place allows for better scalability since there are no longer physical servers to limit operations. This means operations can scale up to meet greater demands, and also scale down if resources go unused.
Improved Mobility
Cloud computing allows you to access corporate data and apps on any smartphone, tablet, or other device (provided the user has the proper privileges). This allows for customers and employees to always stay up-to-date and connected with what’s going on no matter where they are. Cloud transformation also improves convenience for employees and freelancers who work remotely, offering them better job satisfaction and work-life balance.
Better Security
Many business owners don’t realize how vulnerable their data, apps, and programs actually are. Cybersecurity is a full-time concern, and keeping it in-house divides the attention of IT professionals between maintaining normal operations and protecting the system. By switching over to the cloud, you have the flexibility to outsource that security to a service that will monitor threats around the clock, keeping your business safe from data breaches and other threats.
[Related Reading: How Secure is the Cloud?]
Get the Most from Cloud Transformation Advantages
Cloud transformation can be one of the most beneficial changes you can make for the future of your business. It can improve the way your business is run, and open up new doors and opportunities.
As you choose to migrate your business over to the cloud, Alert Logic will work with you to protect your cloud network and assets. Our Managed Detection and Response (MDR) is a solution that will increase your digital security and protect your systems 24/7.
Request a demo with us and find out why businesses trust Alert Logic with their cloud security needs.
