Research has shown that many IT professionals are still foggy about cloud computing. Some are unconvinced of the financial benefit, others fear that entrusting their company’s sensitive data to a third-party provider may endanger its security and availability. Simon Gautrey, explains why medium-sized companies have nothing to fear and much to gain by adopting this emerging computing model.

‘Cloud computing’ is a much-used term that means different things to different people. Added to which, not all clouds are created equal, so I can only speak for Microsoft’s offerings - but from our experience, I’d say any uncertainty people have about cloud computing is generally because they haven’t done it before - it’s a ‘first time buyer’ experience.

Simple and smart

Cloud computing is quite simply a way of storing information ‘in the cloud’ – i.e. on the Internet. So instead of living permanently on employees’ computers, a company’s data and programs are managed remotely by a hosted service provider. Users don’t notice anything different, except that documents are accessed via the web - which means they can get at them from anywhere, at anytime.

The concept is by no means new - indeed Software as a Service (SaaS) is now commonplace among many large companies. However, what makes Microsoft’s offering particularly smart is that growing businesses actually have the most to gain – because without incurring additional costs, they can have the same quality software and IT services as their much larger rivals.

Software on tap

Cloud computing from Microsoft for medium-sized companies comes in the shape of Microsoft Online Services. These are fully-featured versions of the software you would normally buy, but delivered online. It’s a way of giving our users the programs they need on tap- so that software becomes a utility rather like gas or electricity. I’d single out three online services as being particularly useful to medium-sized operations:

  • The first is Business Productivity Online Standard Suite (BPOS). BPOS offers excellent value by ‘bundling’ hosted online services at a discounted rate, which is ideal for any company seeking to reduce costs. Its online messaging and collaboration tools, including SharePoint Server, Live Meeting and Communications Server, are designed to streamline business communications and deliver a reliable service without the need to invest in physical software and equipment. Employees can use the service securely via any popular mobile device, laptop or internet café, giving them instant access to business-class email, web conferencing, instant messaging, document collaboration and workflow.
  • Then there’s Microsoft Exchange Online, which provides a reliable email service while protecting against spam and malware. Since Exchange 2010 was developed with our Software-plus-Services strategy at its core, it’s among the first in a new breed of programs to offer hard cost savings by providing a choice of either delivering services via in-house IT systems or ‘via the cloud’. It means midsized companies can choose from on-premise deployment with Exchange 2010, a Microsoft-hosted service with Exchange Online, or a seamless mix of the two – all without affecting the experience for employees.
  • Thirdly, Microsoft Dynamics CRM Online works via Office Outlook or an Internet browser to help marketing, sales and customer service staff efficiently automate workflows and centralise customer information.

As you might expect, these online services integrate perfectly with our existing products, so companies can have a mixture of on-premise software, Microsoft Online Services, and solutions hosted by our partners. The balance between these solutions is entirely dynamic – you can mix and match services and per-seat usage numbers as your business needs change, making it ideal for coping with the unpredictable ebbs and flows in a growing company.

Pay-as-you-go eases cash flow

Many companies are finding cloud computing particularly attractive in the current economy because it eases their cash flow. Since you pay per-month, per-user, you can run your software out of operational budgets, rather than incurring capital expenditure. You simply pay for new users as you add them online, which also makes licensing much simpler.

Professional, reliable and scalable

From an availability perspective, service level agreements (SLAs) with customers using Microsoft’s cloud services currently exceed 99.9%. Given that performance and the flexibility for employees to work anywhere are business-critical factors, instead of asking whether cloud computing is up to scratch, medium-sized companies would be better off asking whether they could attain that level of availability and performance using their existing technology. We often find that the answer is no!

In today’s chilly economic climate, there’s evidence that medium-sized companies are warming to cloud computing as a way of cutting their costs and simplifying structure. Research conducted recently by business internet service provider Easynet Connect revealed that three-quarters of firms have long-term plans to use cloud services over the course of the next five years, compared to 47 per cent in 2008.

So my overriding message to decision-makers in any medium-sized organisation is that cloud computing will provide you with everything you need - the very latest versions of our software, slicker communications, 24x7 availability, total security, negligible IT management and lower costs. It not only offers improved efficiency, but also a highly professional, reliable and scalable solution to employee productivity at subscription rates. What’s more, it gives you the freedom to focus on running your business - not your IT systems.

Finally, if you wish to put cloud computing to the test, we offer a free 30-day trial of BPOS, which means you can either walk away after a month, or continue using the service by paying a monthly subscription. You’ll find a Microsoft partner to help you by clicking here.