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In today’s modern digital landscape, there aren’t too many people that don’t use cloud technology on a daily basis. Media streaming sites like Netflix use cloud technology to provide unlimited access to TV shows and movies while streaming services like Spotify bring any type of music to your personal devices.
For businesses, cloud technology has transformed the way they manage their day-to-day operations. This is especially true in 2024, as companies have begun leaning more and more on cloud services and solutions that allow them to function more efficiently during a global pandemic. Below, we’ll address a number of areas of how cloud tech has been and will be continuing to impact businesses in the rest of this year and beyond.
More Flexible Working
One of the most significant ways cloud tech has changed business as of late has been the facilitation of remote working arrangements. Thanks to the availability of cloud computing solutions, it’s now easier than ever to work anywhere in the world while still remaining connected business teams and the company’s digital assets. Staff members don’t need to be in the same office or boardrooms as other others and are still able to handle their day-to-day tasks.
Cloud technology has become even more essential during the COVID-19 pandemic. As staff has been forced to stay home and quarantine, they’ve been able to access everything they need through the cloud and the connected services that utilize it. More than just during the pandemic, however, cloud technology will continue to open up many opportunities for businesses even when the threat is over. Reduced overhead from increased remote working arrangements, more accessibility for staff members unable to use certain forms of transportation, and larger talent pools when sourcing new employees are all long-term benefits that cloud technology provides.
Changes To Data Security
As the cloud becomes more prevalent in modern working environments, it also changes the way businesses think about and secure their networked data. In the past, most organizations would store their data on-site, making it easier to keep their information secure, although requiring additional resources to manage. Today, however, cloud computing has created a lot of questions and concerns about the safety of storing data digitally and making it accessible both on- and off-premise. Many of these concerns result from large-scale data breaches still rampant in the healthcare sector and other industries where public information is stored in the cloud.
Due to these concerns, businesses have learned they need to utilize strict authentication processes when storing and accessing their data in the cloud. This has led to significant changes in healthcare systems, for example, and other industries that rely on connected technologies, ensuring only approved members of their organizations have visibility to digital assets and are able to gain access.
Cheaper Costs
As cloud tech becomes more ubiquitous, the costs to maintain it are coming down drastically. This is opening up the technology to even smaller businesses, who can now take advantage of cloud benefits without significant upfront investments. With costs becoming much more affordable, it’s easier for companies to start using it to make their work more mobile and accessible from anywhere. This is thanks to the many service models available, whether SaaS, PaaS, or IaaS. In the next few years, we’ll likely see nearly every business use the technology in some capacity. This will change the way they operate, and the way customers interact with businesses as a whole.
Changes To Customer Support
Another interesting way that cloud tech is changing business for the better is with new customer service improvements. Cloud technology allows customers to get more out of business solutions and services they subscribe to, putting much less demand on customer support teams. For example, how-to videos can be hosted online and streamed directly to customers, helping them set up new products or access, or creating self-service portals where they can find answers to common queries.
Cloud technology allows businesses to be more productive, reduce wait times for customers, and enable support teams to devote more time to other mission-critical priorities. On the customers’ end, this technology reduces frustration and minimizes negative feedback that can lead to long-term consequences for the brand.
More Efficient Disaster Recovery
Though many organizations don’t like to think about the negative consequences of long-term outages and system compromises, the reality is they happen all the time. Thankfully, cloud technology has made disaster recovery efforts much more streamlined, with many different solutions available to organizations when backing up critical data.
In the past, the loss of computers and servers meant a devastating loss of data while also leading to regulatory compliance issues. Today, though, cloud technology allows business servers to house their data in different locations other than their own mainframes. This allows organizations to minimize their attack surface and ensure their data stays safe and protected.
Cloud technology continues to evolve how modern-day businesses manage their operations and maximize their productivity. As technology continues to advance, and more organizations rely on the flexibility and affordability of cloud-based services, cloud tech will continue to drive innovation in our society, leading to even more possibilities for businesses of all shapes and sizes.
