Cloud Technology has fast become the perfect fit for many
small businesses. By virtue of computer resources shared over a network, the
cloud has opened up the door to more efficient and cost effective ways for the
small business owner to effectively manage business processes, cut costs and
streamline their business structure. By moving all or part of your key
resources into the cloud, more time and money is available to invest in your
company’s growth.
The “Green” Aspect of Cloud Computing
With less hardware to buy and fewer applications taking up
local resources, many businesses utilizing the cloud produce up to 65% less
carbon than comparative businesses using similar data centers in-house. In
addition, asset disposal is no longer an issue when equipment would normally
end its usefulness. By initiating some simple procedures, even such things as
paper waste can be reduced in the cloud.
Business Applications and the Cloud
For the small business owner, the cloud is a pool of
computing resources accessed through the internet that you don’t have to set up
or support. Running your business applications on these multi-tenant platforms
means you could literally limit your in-house network to a few mobile devices.
They also minimize the costs of hardware and the subscriptions for your
business application are less expensive than purchasing multiple licenses for
desktop software.
Even as the selection of online business applications
continues to expand rapidly, many of the programs needed by the average small
business owner are already available. Accounting applications that manage
payables, receivables, billing and payroll are available now in subscription
and pay-per-use formats. In today’s mobile-centric business world even budget
planning, forecasting, sales management and marketing can all be done in the
cloud.
