The Cloud is all silver lining

Simply put, cloud computing (which I shall refer to as The Cloud) is computing resources on demand minus the headache of ownership and maintenance, just like your electricity and water.

The Cloud has had great impact across all levels of society. Whether you’re an individual consumer or a business, The Cloud has had an effect on your life in some way. In any case, The Cloud has been growing exponentially with some projections expecting up to US$89 billion (RM267 billion) in spending on The Cloud last year.

Today, however, I’d like to look at that quintessential engine of our economy, the small-and-medium enterprises (SMEs). SMEs contribute about 31 per cent to Malaysia’s gross domestic product, account for 56 per cent of the workforce and make up 19 per cent of our total exports.

As the bulk of these SMEs comprise businesses in the service sector, they are most primed to reap the benefits of The Cloud. Whether big or small, businesses constantly strive to increase efficiencies and streamline costs while trying to grow. The magic of The Cloud is that it helps all three.

Today, a lot of efficiency and growth come from the ability to utilise new technologies and adopt them quickly. In the past, the challenge for small organisations was always the huge upfront cost involved in deploying these new technologies.

The Cloud significantly reduces the upfront costs as the user no longer needs to think about buying boxes, software and the requisite skill sets to deploy these new technologies. Even more importantly, with The Cloud, SMEs will have access to more sophisticated solutions than their information technology budgets could have given them.

A key benefit from being on The Cloud is scalability. Growth is a businessman’s best friend but can also turn out to be a nightmare, if not prepared adequately.

The Cloud allows businesses to manage growth much better through elastic demand. It simplifies the process of increasing end users and can give you extra processing capacity in a matter of minutes when you know or forecast that your business demands require it. A bit like extra housekeeping in a hotel environment, if occupancy suddenly peaks, you outsource these services.

The other big plus of The Cloud is accessibility as it gives you 24/7/365 access to your business. All you need is a connection. Paraphrasing the old cowboy Paladin from Gunsmoke, "have connection, will make money".

In Malaysia, although the uptake is improving, the vast majority of SMEs are still wary of flirting with The Cloud.

My advice to SMEs is simple. It is not about if but when. And when you do, here are three things to think about.

YOUR PLACE OR MINE?

The basic underlying principles for your work requirements are still the same. Regardless of where your data sits and how much processing power you need, it can happen off-site or on-site. It still comes down to the "cost";

I BARELY KNOW YOU

Security is important, but the cloud is not as bad as it’s made out to be. Data today can move across the world hassle-free. Sure there are risks, but good cloud providers are aware of these risks and are doing everything they can to mitigate such risks.

BABY STEPS

Settle in, don’t just jump in. Understand cost benefits, risks and start with less important things. If you see various benefits in outsourcing with less important things, you can slowly start migrating the more critical data and processes.

The IT weather forecast suggests The Cloud for a while. While factors such as security, interoperability, and portability are cited as barriers to broader adoption, these will be overcome with greater critical mass.

The question is, are you going to take the lead and ride The Cloud or be constantly chasing one?