(Adapted from “Why Move to the Cloud? 10 Benefits of Cloud Computing”, www.salesforce.com)

Flexibility

Increased computing resources available on-demand.

Disaster recovery

Cloud Computing providers handle many of the concerns, and they do it faster. Aberdeen Group: businesses which used the Cloud resolved issues in an average of 2.1 hours; businesses that didn’t use the Cloud needed an average of 8 hours.

Automatic software updates

Cloud Computing providers perform server maintenance (including security updates), freeing up their customers’ time and resources for other tasks.

No capital expenses

Cloud service providers buy the equipment, not the customer. Fees charged to customers are more predictable ongoing operating expenses.

Increased collaboration

People can work on documents and shared applications simultaneously, and can receive updates in real time.

Work from anywhere

Remote access to data and applications allows maximum flexibility in staff logistics.

Document control

Cloud Computing keeps documents in one location, and everyone works with the same document. All updates appear in one document, and people can communicate while making changes together. This promotes stronger and more efficient collaboration.

Security

Losing a laptop (or other device) does not mean losing business documents.

Competitiveness

Access to increased and improved computing resources, faster disaster recovery, and improved collaboration helps smaller businesses compete with larger competitors.

Environmentally friendly

Multiple organizations can use one set of servers, resulting in reduced energy consumption and carbon emissions, rather than every organization powering their own on-site servers, and lighting and air conditioning for facilities.