Why digitisation must be done right from the start
‘Right from the start’ sounds obvious and logical, but what exactly do we mean by ‘right from the start’ and why is this so important for SMEs?
‘We have to work in the cloud’, we often hear. That's true, but do you know why or how? In this blog, we explain how the cloud and cloud services can help you.
Because what exactly are the advantages of software in the cloud? We build on our previous blog, where we talk about the IT infrastructure and initiating digital transformations within SMEs.
When you say IT infrastructure, you soon think of computer servers and the countless cables that connect these servers with each other and the outside world. In the past, these servers were often located in a server room on site. These servers had to be purchased and regularly renewed and contained operating systems that had to be manually installed, managed, maintained and, of course, secured. Expensive and a lot of hassle. Is there a better way? We distinguish between three levels:
An important advantage of working in the cloud is its flexibility. A physical server has a fixed capacity. If it is too busy, the server gets overloaded and problems arise. It also works the other way around: when it's quiet, you still pay the full price for that server. After all, you can't just unscrew the server and sell it if you need it again a few hours later. Such fluctuations in load are common. For example, a web shop or supermarket where people mainly order in the morning and evening, making it extra busy on the server at those times, but quiet for the rest of the day. When you work in the cloud, you can withstand those varying loads. You can easily scale up or down the available capacity.
Another advantage is that you have fewer worries. You don't have to worry about your IT infrastructure as much as you used to. When using servers in the cloud, you already get rid of lots of expensive management work, and with a serverless setup, you're completely unburdened. Supply and demand are then automatically balanced. You can also easily arrange good emergency services such as backups and servers distributed across different locations, so that you are less prone to disruptions and your data is safe. In short, all the preconditions for a good IT infrastructure are facilitated for you, so that you can focus on what is really important: developing software applications that offer added value for your organisation.
The great thing is that companies like Microsoft and Amazon have already developed all kinds of ready-made cloud services that allow you to quickly build complex applications. For example, a video service that you can use to automatically create thumbnails for each newly uploaded video, or powerful search algorithms that can rapidly search your data stored in the cloud. Previously, this had to be programmed and a lot of code had to be written and maintained. By using cloud services and cleverly combining them, you don't have to do all that anymore. The cloud not only provides a flexible and maintenance-free IT infrastructure, but also offers opportunities to develop software faster.
Hopefully, the cloud and the digital transformation are a bit clearer now. In future blogs, we are going to give you the tools to make the digital transformation as smooth as possible.
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