Why You Should Move from On-premises Servers to the Cloud
Today, an astonishing 83% of enterprise workloads are hosted in the cloud. While multinational companies have been quick to take advantage of what the cloud has to offer, small and medium sized businesses are slightly slower on the uptake.
Many companies think that the cloud is expensive, confusing and not secure – but this is far from the case! In fact, the cloud can be much cheaper and more secure than traditional on-premises infrastructure. Research indicates that adopting the cloud can be 40x more cost-effective for SMBs than on-premise alternatives.
With so much to gain from adopting the cloud, we wanted to help you understand more about how it works compared to traditional on-premise computing. Let’s take a look!
On-premise vs the cloud
On-premise computing involves storing and managing your company data either on your employees’ local computers or in an onsite data center. With on-premise infrastructure, your company takes all the responsibility for managing your servers, which you will have likely bought outright.
By contrast, cloud computing enables your business to store your data, applications and resources in an off-site data center that a third-party provider manages. You access your resources via an internet connection. Rather than paying for the upkeep of your servers, you pay to access these services. Common examples include Microsoft 365, Box and Google Workspace.
Why is the cloud better than on-premise computing for SMBs?
Deloitte research indicates that SMBs that harness the power of the cloud grow 26% faster than their competitors. There are numerous reasons for this, as we’ll explore below.
- Cost efficiency: For SMBs, balancing budgets and profits is essential to the bottom line. Unfortunately, though, managing on-premise servers is a costly expense. By contrast, cloud computing is extremely cost-efficient. With flexible payment options and deployment models, you can build a cloud plan that suits your unique requirements and budget.
- Enhanced security: Keeping customer data, employee data and intellectual property secure is essential for all businesses. With the cloud, you get access to best-in-breed data security. Cloud providers invest a lot of money in keeping their infrastructure secure, and you benefit from this as a customer.
- Better data security and resilience: If you’ve ever lost a laptop and all the data on it, then you’ll be familiar with the frustration of not being able to access your corporate files. With the cloud, this is no longer an issue! Rather than storing data locally, your information is saved to the cloud. Even if you lose your device, this means that it remains safe and accessible. As long as you have your login credentials, you can access your data from anywhere. This is also great for remote working or working on the go!
- More flexibility: As your business grows and you need more data or additional services, you can quickly and easily scale your cloud usage. On the flip side, if you need to scale down your instance, you can also do this with a few clicks.
- Stay up to date with the latest tech: On-premise servers grow old and archaic. They’ll be outdated after a few years, and you’ll need to upgrade. With the cloud, upgrades happen all the time – and you don’t need to do a thing to benefit. Your cloud provider will regularly push out updates that improve security and the user experience, so you can feel confident you’re using the latest and greatest tech.
- Competitive advantage: The cloud offers the latest and greatest in innovation. By using it across your business, you can unlock new efficiencies, improve productivity and jump ahead of your customers. As such, a recent Verizon study showed that 77% of companies feel cloud technology gives them a competitive advantage, and 16% believe this advantage is significant.
What cloud solution is best for my business?
There is a whole host of cloud solutions out there designed to meet different businesses’ needs. One of the best solutions from end to end is Microsoft Office 365. This cloud-based solution features cloud storage, collaboration tools and Microsoft’s well known apps, Microsoft Word, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft PowerPoint and Microsoft Outlook.
Moving from on-premise infrastructure to the cloud can be complicated, but it doesn’t have to be. We can help you move from on-premise servers to the cloud quickly and efficiently – with minimal disruption.
We also offer managed IT services, meaning we’ll manage and maintain your cloud services for you to ensure that costs stay low and everything runs as secure as possible.
Learn More About Getting Started with Microsoft 365 Business Premium
Skyline IT Management can help your Oklahoma business with any questions about Microsoft 365 and get you started with the plan that’s perfect for your needs.
Book a Call today to schedule a technology consultation.
