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Posted on September 20th 2019
According to the 2018 State of the Cloud Report, 81% of businesses are already enjoying the flexibility and security that a multi-cloud strategy offers. Your business can too by making the switch to a public, private or hybrid cloud management solution.
Cloud solutions offer more than ease of back-up and greater storage options. Here are other key benefits of cloud solutions – and how an MSP like BCN can help. A cloud solution:
Downtime can happen to any business at any time if they haven’t planned suitably in advance. Even giants like Facebook and O2 have suffered from crucial outages, affecting their businesses and subsequently millions of people.
Consider what the impact on your business would be if downtime resulted in you being unable to operate as normal. How could it impact business productivity, financial costs and the potential reputational damage?
A major benefit of moving to the cloud is that the entire disaster recovery process is made simpler. With a cloud solution, data is much easier to recover and you won’t need regular assistance from third-party providers as you’ll recover back to the cloud, rather than on-premise hardware.
The most efficient way of preparing for a possible period of downtime is by working with an MSP, like BCN.
An MSP is a safety net that allows you to stay in control. We implement processes and procedures, such as following ISO:9001 and the ITIL framework, to ensure that your business can cope with network outages so that you stay up and running, without suffering a drop in productivity.
The way businesses work is changing. No longer are innovative organisations sticking to the traditional 9-5. Instead, we’re seeing a rise in remote working. This allows staff to work wherever they feel most productive and when it suits them best.
Outside of work, staff are generally used to the latest technology on their smartphones and other devices. It would help boost efficiency if they can access the same innovative technology on their work devices too.
On the other hand, legacy tools can result in staff being inefficient as it can force them to visit the office outside the usual 9-5 to access important documents. It can also force them to use a sluggish VPN or remote access software, or even repeatedly email work to themselves, just so they can continue at home. All this becomes massively inefficient. And risky.
This is where the cloud can help.
The cloud allows staff members to work quickly and productively. For instance, it offers a greater sense of freedom as staff can collaborate with the rest of the team in real-time, in shared documents and so on, without physically being in the office. That means the same files, software and applications can be used without any limitations so that those all-important projects can be completed on time.
Traditional solutions, such as on-premise infrastructure, can affect the scalability of your business. With legacy systems, for example, it’s difficult for many businesses to move away from them, especially if they’re tied to these applications.
If you need to shift to meet changing consumer demand, not being scalable can leave your business with greater costs when you realise that the heavy investment that was put into the IT infrastructure is no longer required.
A cloud solution can fix this issue. By making the switch, your business only needs to invest in the business’ exact requirements. You can enjoy greater flexibility, such as adding or removing users from Office 365, for example, for when you need to adjust numbers.
This also cuts out the high costs of hardware needed. By simply paying as you go through a subscription or consumption-based model, you have less capital expenditure to deal with.
Work on the cloud and with an MSP like BCN, and you’ll finally have greater control of your entire IT infrastructure. This is what will help you make the right business decisions in the long-term.
It’s no secret just how time-consuming it is to regularly maintain the IT infrastructure to prevent breaches. To combat these vulnerabilities, you need to spend time installing the latest security updates to keep cyber criminals out.
The fact is, developers eventually stop working on and releasing patches so they can focus on their own future projects. So, no patches mean no security features to keep your infrastructure safe. Sometimes, cyber criminals might wait for a piece of software to reach end of life, such as Windows 7, before attacking which can put your network at risk.
Alternatively, your data is more secure in the cloud.
Public cloud solution providers like Microsoft have invested enormous amounts of resources into their cyber defences. Cyber security is now a full-time job that requires around-the-clock management, something these companies with huge resources can afford to provide. They also have to, as a secure cloud solution is their product.
When your security is supported by the leaders in the industry and using their latest, innovative tools, you can be sure that your network will stay safe.
Work with an MSP and you avoid all of the complexities associated with implementing cloud solutions. The complexity comes from how many people will be using the cloud and how sensitive the data is. These are things you need to consider.
At BCN, we analyse existing environments, make the actual switch and train staff members so they’re up to speed. This is all completed based on our best practices and what each unique business requires as we never implement a one-size-fits-all approach. We’ve successfully done this for years with a number of businesses, such as Fairway International Travel.
This leading golf specialist needed to upgrade and futureproof their IT servers and systems to keep their files and data securely backed up. Their team of dedicated travel specialists are on-hand 24/7 so that they can create bespoke solutions for the world’s golfing elite.
They needed to have an IT system that could facilitate their service, especially since the organisation had a single office with 15 users and remote workers connecting from outside of Europe.
BCN was tasked with exploring replacement solutions and we extensively assessed their IT servers and systems to formulate the best possible solution.
The answer was to replace their current server, like for like and on-premise, and offer a fully-integrated cloud solution. The project involved the BCN team moving the on-site servers to the cloud and hosting them on the secure Microsoft Azure platform as virtual machines.
The cloud-based Azure platform now also makes it easier for remote users to access the Remote Desktop Gateway faster and more securely. For a more in-depth look at the business challenges Fairway International Travel faces and how the BCN solution helped, take a look at the case study below.
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As helpful as cloud solutions are to driving your business forward, it’s not the only thing an MSP can help you with.
By outsourcing your IT to experts like BCN, you can finally focus on what’s important to your business. We’ll provide you with the tools and resources you’ll need to maintain a healthy IT infrastructure so that you can keep up with ever-changing demands.
You can do all this without ever relinquishing control. We’ve created an eBook that details why outsourcing is the right step for your business and more information on the IT support that BCN offers. To get your free copy, use the link below.
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