If COVID-19 has taught us anything, it’s that organizations can no longer ignore how technology is fundamentally changing core business functions. Here are 5 ways the cloud has delivered exponential ROI and sustainable growth for small and medium-sized companies.
- Flexibility and Scalability
There is no denying the cloud’s ability to keep organizations agile on multiple levels. Businesses with cloud infrastructure already in place were able to quickly and securely add both users and servers. Manufacturers, such as Mars and Nestlé, have emphasized how their cloud environments delivered a key advantage over their competition by allowing them to increase packing and shipping of orders by 400% in just two days. As companies look to redefine their business models to adapt to outside conditions, this type of agility will continue to be crucial to growing and succeeding.
- Remote Workstations
With social-distancing becoming a new reality in the workplace, organizations are starting to look at how to reconfigure their office spaces to keep employees safe. Cloud infrastructure offers the ability to keep business moving with a full workforce. The majority of employees can work remotely, but simply connecting their own devices to the network through their own broadband sources, while a small number of employees can work onsite to align with social-distancing recommendations. Ensuring your cloud environment is right-sized for your company is a critical component to how flexible and scalable you can be. Partnering with AWS-certified cloud architects, like Protelligent®, to design, build and deploy your cloud infrastructure, as well as deliver ongoing management can provide extra peace of mind.
- Collaborative Workstreams
Online meetings during the pandemic have become a vital part of nearly every industry. Video conferencing and other collaborative tools for everything from education and telemedicine to internal work meetings require cloud applications to function. Services such as collaborative digital workspaces are designed to take the agility of cloud computing one step further by allowing people to immediately share things like files, messaging and notifications remotely and in a private setting. This will work to empower teams to work more productively, efficiently and transparently to fuel innovation and other core business competencies.
- Contactless Contact Centers
Customer-service call centers have been absolutely instrumental in conducting business during the pandemic. Cloud computing enabled agents to work from home, so organizations could still provide care to their customers. With the cloud’s flexibility and scalability, companies going forward will likely see additional advantages including: the ability to quickly hire and transition as many remote employees as necessary to meet increased demand. There is also the opportunity to choose from a larger pool of potential employment candidates, increase market share or cost-effectively expand into other markets.
- Reactive to Proactive Culture
As we’ve mentioned before, one of the most critical aspects of successful cloud computing is a required shift in company culture. Through the initial impacts of COVID-19, the very nature of the cloud delivered tangible ROI the C-suite was able to see in the bottom line, while workers were able to experience the value of cloud computing in their day-to-day roles. The ability to quickly adapt to any unforeseen scenario means businesses can start to make the switch from being reactive to proactive and place more focus on growth strategies and innovation.
As cloud computing grows and technologies continue to advance, security and privacy implications will undoubtedly become areas of particular concern. However, these should not stop organizations from adopting new technology. By using best security practices and having certified experts you can rely on – from planning, migration and utilization to ongoing management and support – you can maximize your cloud-computing ROI, while reducing costs. Contact us now at (855) PRO-TELL to ensure your business can adapt and grow under any circumstances and in any situation.