Cloud hosting increasingly leveraged for business benefits

Cloud solutions have been increasingly sought out for their storage and collaboration capacities that can yield significant business improvements. As the technology continues to advance, many organisations are adopting the technology for storage and improved productivity benefits. With improved security measures, the cloud has become a more viable option for companies that take in a lot of data. However, there are still some challenges that businesses experience as they implement their solutions.

As a relatively young asset, the cloud is rapidly adapting to user needs as well as incorporating additional measures that will allow the technology to truly stand the test of time. Providers are experiencing some growing pains as offerings continue to expand, creating more as-a-service models and tackling any issues that may arise. According to a recent survey by Alsbridge, 90 percent of CIOs use the cloud, and 70 percent of those respondents have software-as-a-service for their platform, Computer Weekly reported. The assessment revealed that there was a wide gap between expectations and results as CIOs forecasted 74 percent operational cost savings and only achieved 41 percent. Because so many businesses are looking to reduce costs, this adds extra pressure to meet these demands. Meanwhile, organisations are still struggling with privacy, integration and data sovereignty. These obstacles are influencing adoption growth and the effective use of cloud hosting services.

"But in truth there is still caution around its wider adoption beyond SaaS and 'sand-boxed' platforms," Alsbridge head of IT outsourcing John Sheridan told the source. "Cloud may be a good fit for a small to mid-sized business model, but our study reveals that IaaS cloud adoption at a large corporate level is in fact still relatively low."

Using cloud to promote success
With all of the various factors to consider, it can be difficult to maintain a cloud environment and use it effectively. CloudTweaks contributor Brian King recently noted that byaccurately calculating savings, monitoring cloud use and creating policies, the organisation can establish a firm grasp on the technology. Having a view into the cloud will help ensure that data remains secure and deter potential breaches. The policies will similarly benefit the business by setting expectations and ensuring that users understand the implications of accessing sensitive information from mobile devices. Researching the various cloud environments will significantly aid in choosing the right one for the organisation's needs. This will guarantee that all solutions are considered and evaluated to maximize benefits. The information gathering stage will also allow companies to verify the provider's security measures in protecting data and enforcing disaster recovery efforts.

"The cloud has security implications that need to be addressed," King wrote. "Endpoint security can be put in place that monitors information as it travels outside of an organisation to reduce the risk of data leakage. Heavy fines can be levied against data leaks so it's important to take the appropriate measures to reduce the risk."

"The cloud has security implications that need to be addressed," King wrote. "Endpoint security can be put in place that monitors information as it travels outside of an organisation to reduce the risk of data leakage. Heavy fines can be levied against data leaks so it's important to take the appropriate measures to reduce the risk."

Brain Brafton loves and lives technology. To keep in contact with Brain find him on Google+ or on Twitter