CLICKS AND MORTAR

Let me start by repeating myself. SaaS / Cloud computing is still in the adoption phase and as with any other new technology there is a list of issues that need to be addressed first. Even so, I feel more positive writing this post than writing the previous one. Perhaps my personal biases towards a more virtual environment.

In a more generic view, CC (cloud computing) is not really a new invention, but a phenomena sequential to of the desire of making information more accessible to the relevant mass; economically and logistically by leveraging our ever increasing computing power. Outsourcing information services to the cloud only makes them more scalable, flexible and affordable while keeping them much simpler, and I would argue, equally secure. No I am not being much ambitious here. And here is why:

First off, by embracing CC, all enterprises big and small evergreen their technology and IT infrastructure. The coming year is expected to be significant for the enterprises and professionals who are in anyway associated with CC, while for the rest it is going to be a year where they can certainly standby but surely cannot ignore this shift. My empathies.

Like most disruptive changes, this is going to take most of us (read them) by surprise. The shift has gathered pace and the ones to adopt it early are at an advantage over the others who have not. Whether it is about technology ever-greening or enjoying reduced costs and hitting a higher return on capital.

For starters, any CC app is much easier and faster to implement and equally easy to modify per the changing business environments. Most would agree (and feel sorry) that the traditional IT development and deployments are much time consuming and mostly a continuous affair inducing a need to maintain a complete IT department in-house.

While some of the (currently) popular traditional applications are much more comprehensive than their corresponding CC apps, they take a severe beating when it comes to utility of their comprehensive features. Most enterprises end up using a small percentage of these suites but continue to pay for the rest of the shelf-ware. With CC you pay only for what you use and there is mostly no shelf-ware. Plus CC is mostly elastic and can expand as and when required. This, by making the IT dollar go farther than ever, makes more economic sense for the huge dollar outlays on IT spending. Again, making it possible to reduce the IT staff and their incidental expenses; and replacing large up-front financial outlays with smaller, streaming yearly payments. Easily, Microsoft applications - Office and Exchange - cost 5 - 6 times more than Google Apps on a 3 year Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) basis. (Read - http://blogs.zdnet.com/storage/?p=472&tag=nl.e550 )

Perhaps the most reassuring fact is that the IT departments do not have worry about managing irregular updates, versions, fixing bugs and patches. With CC the upgrades are seamless and are always done by the service provider, and most importantly, are free. Further, by virtue of being hosted, the providers are able to offer the latest functionalities. For the providers themselves it is then about managing only one update / one release / one bug fix across the shared infrastructure and so they are able to sponsor it. They are equally incentivized to keeping their systems up to date with the latest capabilities in the market.

Now let’s have a quick look at performance. Performance and availability are perhaps the most notable and I'd say valid concerns yet. How dependable the cloud services really are? Will my critical applications be there when I need them? Well, any application whether installed or hosted is only as strong as the weakest link. No one of them is more vulnerable than the other. In that again CC takes the lead. By being on CC the companies are ensured of a world class service level which is not the case with smaller companies with limited IT infrastructure. The only weak link that may cause an interruption to business is the lack of stable bandwidth. This again is not totally unique to CC. The leading providers of CC are able to offer very transparent and credible service levels which are much in line with and sometimes beyond the requirements of companies.

Performance is also defined by how CC helps companies leverage a unified platform. It enables standardize IT processes for MNC that are spread across geographies and provide a collaborative work environment which was missing until now. To begin with isn't it about being able to access and share information easily, affordably and securely?

I think it's reasonably clear that the 1980's traditional distributed computing is passé and is beginning to crumble under its own weight. Cloud Computing is the way of the future.