Thursday, June 17, 2010

4 reasons the cloud's a win for SMB's.

Lately you can find a post about the "cloud" anywhere, and I continually read about SaaSPaaSIaaSlack of compliance, unproven security and a host of other thoughts from IT professionals in the Enterprise world. But, you can also find blogs and information on why the cloud will change computing forever (which is my position!), and why I believe small business owners need to adopt the cloud sooner rather than later.

It is not often the small guy gets a chance to maneuver a competitive advantage  and leap ahead of the corporate giants of the world.  This is an opportunity for SMB's to check their rearview mirrors and watch big companies battle over compliance issuesshadow IT, private versus public clouds and security.  All the while my entrepeneur and small business friends can continue to forge ahead and focus on their business, leverage new technology and utilize trusted partners.

4 Reasons the cloud fits SMB's:

1.  Financial makes all the noise, but don't believe ALL the hype about how "cheap" the cloud is.  What it does: provides the flexibility to pay for only what you use; the elasticity allows you to expand on the fly; it removes the cost and time factor of utilizing traditional procurement methods; and essentially you can have a server in minutes versus days.  With solid measurements of ROI, trading capex for opex dollars in today's small business climate is a definite advantage.

2. Focusing on core business initiatives.  I see small business owners spending more time with technology issues rather than marketing and selling their own products and services.  Utilizing a cloud computing environment allows you to challenge your IT staff. Instead of traditional patching, updating, configuring and networking tasks, ask your IT professionals to develop new applications.  I see the "new IT pro" as one that focuses on developing methods to deliver products in a more timely manner and enhancing service offerings.  The new IT professional will need the expertise and understanding of computing infrastucture, but they will also require a keen understanding of business processes and application development.  We better start thinking about investing in our best assetts too...

3. Security is my favorite point for a small business owner. A cloud provider can often help you meet the needs of compliance agengies like PCI, HIPAA or ISO.  I often ask these questions: "What is your security practice now?" and "How is cloud security any different than Internet Security?". I also point out the benefit of 5 layers and 3 form factors of security to physically access your gear, alerts sent via mobile phones to your team when cabinets are opened, network configurations with best practice routing methods like internap flow control.  Most reputable cloud providers are data centers with A and B power distribution, cooling redundancy, generators and onsite fuel. How many small businesses can boast that kind of redundancy and security?  The big company competitors surely do!

4. Accountability.  The contract and SLA's a business owner will have with a cloud provider is the most compelling reason to consider moving to the cloud.  The small business owner now has the ability to hold someone accountable for delivering their IT resources.  Compare that with the other option...fire the guy who knows every intimate detail about your information systems...I don't think so. 

For small companies, transitioning to the cloud is not a simple flipping of the switch.  It takes time and planning; talk with professionals in the industry, attend local cloud events and most importantly, visit a local provider!

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