CAIRO, Egypt, 20th March, 2015: Technology has
fundamentally changed the way business is done today; from employees expecting to
be able to access personal or business data from any location or device, to the
emergence of new business models like managed services or sharing economies. Cloud
computing has played an integral part in this change, offering a huge potential
for firms of all sizes to enter new markets and survive in the new digital
economy. It allows organisations to rapidly scale their computer resources, manage
and process a myriad of data, and help control their IT spending.
Yarob Sakhnini, regional director, MEMA at Brocade says that with data growing at 40% a year, there’s an increasing
imperative for businesses in Egypt to invest in cloud solutions because of its
potential to tackle data explosion. The challenge for many of today’s business
leaders is understanding what type of cloud solution makes the most sense for
their organisation, as one size does not fit all.
Understanding the options
Cloud computing
has traditionally broken down into two models: public and private. The
difference between the two lies in who maintains control and responsibility for
the data centre and is ultimately responsible for ensuring application service
levels are met.
In public cloud
computing, some or all aspects of operations and management are handled by a
third party service provider. Public clouds offer a number of advantages; such
as low costs and scalability. They can be extremely useful for companies needing
to deal with large amounts of data or for those that don’t have the resources
to manage their own infrastructure. However, concerns have been raised about
how secure these public clouds are, and where the data they hold is physically
stored; something that can be a major issue from a regulatory perspective. As a
result, public clouds are often thought of as being suitable primarily for
non-sensitive data or applications.
On the other
hand, private cloud offers a very different set of benefits. The private cloud
model is based on the data centres being owned and maintained by the
organisation using them. What that means is businesses have the ability to
create a virtualised IT infrastructure that prepares them for the future, is
built on an organisation’s own terms, and still maintains the flexibility and
scalability of cloud-based applications. Unlike the public cloud, private cloud
computing does require an organisation’s own IT team and sufficient resource, which
can sometimes prove impractical for small companies.
Private and
public clouds bring their own unique advantages and disadvantages and many companies
may require elements of both. As a result, we are seeing a third option become
increasingly popular that combines the best of both models; hybrid clouds.
Hybrid clouds fuse
the qualities of both public and private clouds, allowing companies to take
advantage of both cloud models in a way that works best for their business, now
and in the future.
What to consider: business goals vs. resource
According to Gartner at least 80% of business data is unstructured. As
small firms mature, the right cloud solution can help ensure that number only
decreases. Finding the right balance
between the businesses long and short-term goals and resources available can be
a challenge. Here are some of the key considerations businesses need to think about
before investing for the first time or boosting their current offering:
·
Resources and skills: One of the most crucial
questions is; does the business have the resources to effectively implement a hybrid
cloud approach? Hybrid clouds require not only time and financial resources,
but also an in-house technical expert with knowledge of the cloud
infrastructure – both public and private elements – if it is to be effectively
managed.
·
Reliability: Data is the lifeblood of any business, so ensuring
that IP is safe is imperative. Companies
therefore need to consider how to deploy a reliable cloud structure so that
mission critical applications and data are always available.
·
Shift in IT mindset: If your business has a
designated IT team, it’s important that they believe in a service-oriented
approach, rather than the traditional infrastructure-oriented thinking. This
will ensure any technology implemented now will ultimately prepare the business
for the future.
·
Security: At a basic level, security measures need to balance
the probability of a threat occurring, the impact of a security breach, and the
cost of implementing countermeasures. To avoid putting your company’s data at
risk while keeping costs low, find a middle ground and establish what data
needs to be placed in private clouds versus public clouds. Most importantly, vet
your public cloud suppliers rigorously, as privacy and security issues around data can impact the
location you physically store your data in.
With all of
that in mind, businesses in Egypt shouldn’t clamour to completely overhaul their
existing infrastructures and jump into the cloud with both feet. A well-thought through strategy takes time
and understanding of where the business is now and where it would like to be in
5-10 years. This should play a significant role in guiding cloud investment
levels. The data explosion isn’t going away, but cloud offers firms a unique
opportunity to level the playing field against businesses of all sizes and
deliver a real competitive advantage.
