It is hard to keep up with the pace with which cloud technology has grown over the past decade.  The global cloud service market may already be worth over $200 billion, according to a projection by Forbes. This means it’s swelled to ten times its size in 2010.

Businesses large and small have latched on to it. About 83% of companies across the world are expected to have their workloads on the cloud by 2020. Flexera, a US-based software company, says that up to 94% of enterprises already interact with the cloud in one way or the other.

Organizations adopt cloud technology in a variety of forms, and for many different reasons. They use cloud-based applications to process client and employee data; they host content on cloud platforms; and store large trawls of data in data centers run by cloud service providers.

There are several reasons why companies the world over have taken to the cloud. One obvious reason is that it improves efficiency and flexibility across several organizational processes. In this article, we’ll discuss how the cloud can make this happen, and how it could work for you in similar ways.

1. Flexible Work Models

Cloud-based applications make remote file sharing and editing possible. Workers can carry out accounting and payroll, spreadsheet calculations, documentation, and other operations on cloud applications designed for these tasks, from wherever they are.

Many companies can now afford to have their employees work from outside of their physical offices. Tasks can also be dealt with at times other than traditional working hours, so employers can be more flexible with times allotted to staff.

2. Improved Team Collaboration

With cloud applications, team members can work together on a single project from different locations at the same time. This means that they can collaborate on work regardless of where they are.

3. Data Backup

Businesses can back up their data with remote cloud servers. This lets them lodge their data in multiple locations or data centers; if data stored in one backup location gets lost for any reason, it can be retrieved from another center. This reduces the chances of permanent loss of data for businesses and public sector organizations that may need to call such information up at some point.

4. Business Process Continuity

When servers get disrupted (by bad weather, malicious attacks, or other causes), they may not resume proper functioning for a while; it may take a while to retrieve the data lost during the disruption.

However, cloud disaster recovery systems make it possible for operating systems can resume functioning just seconds after being disrupted. This is because they can continue running with virtualized versions of the original material that’s been lost, while efforts continue to get the backup data or server running. System users can then switch back to the backup data or server when it has been brought up.

5. Greater Data Security

Content uploaded to the cloud by cloud users is typically held in secure data centers. The better cloud service providers are also particularly keen about data security, so they provide their clients with high degree encryption and updates to security provisions that allow them to stay ahead of the cyber threat curve.

6. More Control Over Data

Organizations can access their material as they wish, modify, and erase records as the need arises. While they may require cloud service providers to help manage the supporting infrastructure, they can still decide on the degree to which they are involved with this management.

If they opt for a Virtual Private Server, they can create a network that’s only accessible to staff that they have authorized. Third parties won’t be able to gain access to company data held within the network.

7. Outsource IT Functions

Cloud hosting providers can take on the responsibility of managing a company’s cloud infrastructure and servers. This reduces the workload on the IT teams o such companies and allows them to focus on their organizations’ core business.

8. Capacity Can Be Scaled as Demand Changes

A big benefit of cloud computing is the ease with which it can be scaled up or down. Sometimes, companies will have to handle more data and requests than they usually do. When this situation arises, the may need to increase their storage and processing capacities. They can do this quite easily on the cloud. They can also scale back down if demand falls.

9. Flexible Financial Requirements

This comes along with the ease of scaling. When companies sign up for cloud hosting services, they typically have to pay on a fixed periodic basis- essentially a subscription (or pay-as-you-use) model. If they want more capacity, they can get it if they can pay for it. In simple terms, they can increase their cloud use as they grow, and pay more as their budget expands.

10. Cost Savings

If businesses only spend on the cloud space they use, they can be more deliberate about only using services that they really need. They are more likely to be efficient with the data they generate and ensure that they only use cloud resources where necessary.

If businesses are consistent with this, they could cut down on waste, and reinvest the resources saved in this manner in other aspects of their set up.

Final Words

Enterprises and public sector organizations in Nigeria are learning of the many benefits they can derive from the cloud. A growing number of them are leveraging it to enhance their performance and achieve greater efficiencies.

Layer3Cloud is helping these local businesses and government agencies make the transition to the cloud. It also assists those already on it to maximize its many benefits. From virtual data centers and remote backup to managed security and disaster recovery, we have a full range of cloud-based offerings that Nigerian organizations can rely on to accelerate their growth.

If you would like to find out more about the cloud and how it can improve your business processes, you can get in touch with us here.