Cloud Computing Outlook Weekly Brief
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Twenty years ago, most personal computers came with an inbuilt storage capacity in the range of a few hundred megabytes while today’s PC users are unsatisfied despite having one terabyte inbuilt storage and two terabytes of external storage. Undoubtedly with the plethora of information available to end users and enterprises alike, maintaining physical servers to provide for all their storage requirements is becoming increasingly challenging. Cloud computing has completely revolutionized the way organizations store data and operate. A study conducted by Intuit predicts that about 80 percent of businesses in the U.S. will have moved to cloud-based services by 2020. Organizations therefore can be expected to redefine their strategy with an eye on cloud technologies.
The top players in the cloud space, Amazon, Microsoft and IBM have made it possible for all sorts of businesses to shift all their IT needs onto the cloud. Without having to spend on dedicated office space for servers and data centers, companies can save on the expenses of maintenance, manpower, and rent. Besides, with cloud, organizations can access data with relative ease. The cloud allows users to access data from anywhere due to its centralized structure. It allows an organization to control and monitor data in a centralized and systematic way. With trusted service providers, the cloud also acts as a secure location for the company’s sensitive data and provides backup and recovery options.
Cloud computing however is not limited only to storage purposes. With the leaders creating advanced tools, organizations can perform various analytics to gain insights from their data. Business strategies can be developed by harnessing the tools available on the cloud. It can also be used as a platform for the development of software and also testing them. With these tech giants powering the tools, overall business development becomes easier and more effective.
That being said, with the increased shift towards cloud, technology has to improve to accommodate this surge in users. Security, which in many cases provided by cloud service provider or third party companies, should be high on agenda while delving into cloud initiatives. Also bandwidth cost has to be optimized, which is particularly high for large-scale users. Cloud offers a future full of opportunities and has the potential to radically disrupt the way businesses operate.
