Unparalleled Benefits
Working in the cloud has become part of everyday life, both professionally and personally. For example, we store files in OneDrive or Dropbox because it’s easy, secure, flexible, and often inexpensive. Working in a cloud environment offers unprecedented benefits for every business. In this blog, we’ll discuss the benefits and security aspects of a business cloud and how you can make the switch.
What is working in the cloud?
Working in the cloud is simply another way of saying “working online.” At Alistar, we define “working in the cloud” as having your files, data, and software stored and accessed online from a location other than your company’s premises. This means you don’t need your own infrastructure to do your work.
The Benefits of Working in the Cloud
A cloud-based workspace offers your company a number of significant advantages. It is fast, scalable, flexible, and secure—but above all, it can be used from anywhere. This provides the following benefits:
1. Work anytime, anywhere
All you need to work is a working internet connection and a laptop or tablet. That’s because you access the cloud through a browser. No internet access? Just keep working offline, and when you’re back online, your work will automatically sync to the cloud. Employees always have access to all the software, data, and information they need. Ideal for remote work.
2. Effortless scaling up and down
Businesses are constantly changing: employees come and go, new software is purchased, and there is sometimes a need for more storage capacity. Working in the cloud provides ultimate flexibility. You pay monthly based on the number of licenses, storage, and users you use. This keeps costs transparent and performance consistent.
3. No more maintenance
Maintaining servers and software on your own is a thing of the past. When you work in the cloud, the cloud provider handles infrastructure maintenance. If you use cloud software (for example, Exact Online or Microsoft (Office) 365, your software is automatically updated by the provider.
This is not always the case with traditional ERP software deployed in the cloud. In that situation, it’s a good idea to coordinate version management with your cloud provider.
4. Focus on Security
Cloud providers have had a strong focus on security for years. Microsoft, for example, invests €2 billion every year in securing its Microsoft Azure platform. Nearly every cloud provider has robust security measures in place and is periodically assessed against international information security standards, such as ISO 9001 and ISO 27001.
In addition, cloud providers offer ample options for two-step verification when logging in via multi-factor authentication (MFA) and robust protection against cyber threats, such as ransomware or phishing, using Endpoint Detection & Response (EDR).
5. Total Solution
You can consolidate all the software your company uses into a single cloud workspace. This allows you to bring together disparate elements, applications, or processes within your IT environment. Even graphics software (such as Photoshop or AutoCAD) and legacy software can be integrated into a cloud workspace.
6. Online Backups
Files in your cloud workspace are available anytime, anywhere. Even if a server catches fire, your files will be quickly transferred to another server. The combination of online and local backups offers the strongest protection; this way, you can be sure your files will always remain accessible.
7. Ready for the Future
The world of work is changing. Employees want flexibility in where, when, and how they work. Standard office hours will become less and less the norm.
By leveraging all the benefits of the cloud for your business, you can facilitate these changes. You’ll be flexible, able to quickly integrate applications, and support your employees in the way they work. This ensures tremendous future-proofing, as you can effortlessly adapt to changes.
How secure is working in the cloud?
We often hear that working in the cloud is supposedly unsafe. There are indeed cases reported in the news, though these usually involve public clouds. As a counterargument, we ask: How secure is your current IT infrastructure, really? For example, are you adequately protected against fire, theft, and system crashes?
Working in the cloud isn't necessarily unsafe. How secure the cloud is depends largely on the cloud provider. You can assess the security of a cloud based on the following points:
- Choose a private cloud when working with sensitive data; this is the safest way to work in the cloud.
- Does the cloud workspace have antivirus or EDR software, and do you manage it yourself, or does the cloud provider manage it?
- Are patches applied and maintained for you, or do you have to do this yourself?
- In most cases, systems are set up with redundancy (duplicate components), which ensures that any server or connection failures have no impact.
- Where is your data stored? Is it stored in accordance with Dutch law, or is it stored abroad?
- Is your data stored via automatic backups? And how often does this happen?
You can use these points to assess the security of the cloud. In addition, it’s crucial to train employees to recognize and prevent threats. After all, it’s often a malicious link or an infected document in an email that leads to a system being hacked.
How do I switch to the cloud?
More and more organizations are making the move to the cloud, but what steps do they need to take along the way? The path to the cloud is full of challenges and is different for every organization. Along the way, you’ll ask yourself questions such as: What costs will I incur? Which technology is best suited for my organization? And how will I set up my security and backup? Ultimately, the transition comes down to the following steps:
- Taking Inventory of Necessary Supplies
- Develop an action plan (how, what, when)
- Setting up the cloud environment
- Migrating Your Data to the Cloud Environment
- An extensive testing phase
- The Move to the Cloud
