INFOGRAPHIC - Cloud Computing: Answers to Your Why, How & What + Bonus Tips for SMBs

June 25, 2019Homefield IT

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MTS-infographic_Cloud Computing

Cloud Computing in 2019: Answers to Your Why, How & What + Bonus Tips for SMBs

By now you’re probably familiar with the term cloud computing, as it’s been regularly featured in the technology media for over a decade. However, many businesses still aren’t sure exactly what the cloud is or how much it can help them.

The cloud is a method of locating IT software and services in a remote data center and then accessing them across the Internet. By outsourcing the maintenance of your technology infrastructure to a third party, your business saves the expense of buying and managing its own IT hardware while enjoying greater stability and reliability.

Those benefits have led to strong, sustained enthusiasm for cloud computing, with 77% of companies now hosting a portion of their IT infrastructure in the cloud[i]. Despite that interest, many businesses still aren’t clear on the full potential of the cloud.

There Are Many Types of Cloud Computing

Cloud computing comes in several different forms, each with their own optimal use cases. Here are some terms you may have heard, and the differences between them.

Public
Services the public can access through a commercial service provider.
Private
A secure and sophisticated cloud solution hosted on-premise or on third-party data centers that are dedicated solely to your organization.
Hybrid
A customized mix of on-premise and public cloud resources that are configured to your needs.
Software as a Service (SaaS)
Software for end-users that resides in a public cloud and is accessed over the Internet.
Platform-as-a-Service (PaaS)
A software environment that can be rented on a flexible basis – often for software development, and deployment of applications without having to worry about typical hardware or software maintenance.
Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)
Virtualized compute and storage resources that are accessed via the Internet, saving infrastructure costs.

What Can Cloud Do for My Organization?

Cloud computing is popular for enabling a new level of productivity and reliability. Here are the most common reasons companies look toward the cloud.

42% — Providing Access to Data from Anywhere
38% — Disaster Recovery
37% — Better Flexibility
36% — Reducing IT Staff Burden[ii]

With Data in the Cloud, Collaboration Improves

Allowing employees to effortlessly share ideas and data increases their ability to work and innovate.

90% of business leaders who have implemented the cloud say that it’s improved business processes.[iii]

A Financial Case for Cloud Computing

Another reason decision-makers are enthusiastic about cloud computing is that it lowers CAPEX and provide greater financial efficiency.

74% of chief financial officers say of all the emerging technologies, cloud computing will have the largest positive financial impact on their business.[iv]

Rest Better with Your Back-Ups in the Cloud

Disaster recovery as a service (DRaaS) is a relatively new but quickly growing field, which uses the power and flexibility of cloud computing to safeguard businesses against catastrophe.

More than 40% of U.S. enterprises have already adopted DRaaS, while 20% more are planning on using it in the near future. [v]

A Cloud Solution for Any Industry

Cloud computing is no longer just for high-tech companies – there are now reliable, secure cloud solutions for businesses of every size and in every field.

77% of enterprises now have some portion of their infrastructure in the cloud.[vi]

Healthcare – 12% of healthcare workloads were running in the cloud 12 months ago. 39% of healthcare workloads are running in the cloud today [vii]
Legal Services – Adoption of cloud-based services stood at 68% in 2018, up from just 51% in 2015. [viii]
Financial Services – The finance cloud market is growing at a compound annual growth rate of 24.4% and will reach $29.47 billion in size by 2021. [ix]

The Most Popular Cloud Applications

You probably use several cloud applications in your daily personal life without even knowing, like Netflix, Facebook and Uber. But there are many other cloud services, such as Amazon’s Amazon Web Service (AWS) and Microsoft’s Azure, that are growing rapidly.

Amazon Web Services (AWS)
Amazon AWS is the largest provider of public cloud services, with a focus on infrastructure as a service (IaaS) and platform as a service (Paas) resources, such as compute, database storage, and content delivery services. Amazon’s revenue from AWS hit $6.7 billion in 2018, about 40% of the company’s total revenue.[x]
Microsoft Azure
Azure is a large, continually-expanding set of cloud services from Microsoft, including SaaS, PaaS, and IaaS tools. The Azure service provides an attractive ecosystem for companies adopting either public or a hybrid cloud. Azure is currently the fastest growing of the major cloud service providers.[xi] [Beating Amazon, Google, and IBM]

E-mail is the #1 cloud-based business application, after web and general productivity software.[xii]

Office 365
Office 365 is one of the most popular cloud productivity suites available. Over 56% of organizations globally are now using Microsoft Office 365. [xiii]
Google G-Suite
G Suite, another highly popular productivity solution, has been adding approximately 1 million users a year since 2016.[xiv]

Cloud Security

Cloud security was a major concern in the past, but it’s much less so now that vendors have improved upon security protections. Today, the cloud is used to increase the overall network security of organizations.

According to Gartner, companies that setup visibility and security controls for their cloud applications experienced 33% fewer security issues in 2018.

Public cloud infrastructure as a service (IaaS) workloads will suffer at least 60% fewer security incidents than those in traditional data centers.[xv]

Despite the Benefits of Cloud, Migration is Still a Problem

Though cloud adoption has gotten easier – moving services from on-premise servers to the cloud – a process known as cloud migration – still poses great difficulties.

The most significant challenge during cloud migrations:

Data Migration 58%
Security Requirements 56%
Application Optimization 44%
Regulatory Compliance 40%[xvi]

The best way to avoid the difficulties inherent in cloud migration is to partner with a cloud computing expert, who can help you navigate the challenges and make the most of your cloud investment.

Manhattan Tech Support – NYC’s Cloud Expert

If you need help making sense of the cloud, we’re happy to help. For over 20 years, we’ve been one of New York City’s leading cloud experts, and we’re enthusiastic about sharing that expertise with small and midsized businesses in NYC.

Want to talk to a cloud expert with experience in your industry? Contact us at [sales-phone] or [email-address]

SOURCES

[i] https://www.forbes.com/sites/louiscolumbus/2018/08/30/state-of-enterprise-cloud-computing-2018/#649ecc8d265e

[ii] https://www.spiceworks.com/marketing/state-of-it/report/

[iii] https://www.trackvia.com/blog/productivity/increase-productivity-switching-cloud/

[iv]https://www.bdo.com/GETATTACHMENT/022227F4-AA2E-4A8B-9739-B0AD6B855415/ATTACHMENT.ASPX?2017-TECHNOLOGY-OUTLOOK-REPORT_2-17.PDF#page=10

[v] https://www.enterprisestorageforum.com/storage-management/survey-reveals-tech-trends-reshaping-data-storage.html

[vi] https://www.forbes.com/sites/louiscolumbus/2018/08/30/state-of-enterprise-cloud-computing-2018/#609d781265e3

[vii] https://www.truenorthitg.com/cloud-computing-in-healthcare/

[viii] https://www.legalitprofessionals.com/legal-it-columns/65-guest-columns/11267-tips-from-the-trenches-for-a-successful-cloud-migration

[ix] https://www.marketsandmarkets.com/Market-Reports/finance-cloud-market-1053.html?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIj6jqrcal2QIVCx-GCh3lnwi7EAAYASAAEgLG5fD_BwE

[x] https://www.forbes.com/sites/greatspeculations/2018/10/17/how-much-will-aws-contribute-to-amazons-near-term-revenue-growth/#11add3af2a53