Leading research firm, Gartner, predicted that the world would be “cloudy” by 2020. And now, the message is clear: businesses must transform digitally to compete. This is even more relevant to small and mid-market businesses, where the ability to compete with the big fish in the pond is more difficult due to the lack of capital and scarce IT support. Not all is lost, however. Cloud solutions, especially Desktop-as-a-Service (DaaS) can put small businesses on a path to success through higher productivity and more agility. Here’s how:
Eliminate Complexity for SMB
Let’s be real for a moment here. Most small businesses don’t have the technical knowledge to effectively manage the challenges that come with managing an infrastructure. The IT staff ends up spending most of their time on putting out fires with the current infrastructure so have little time to focus on improving it. But solutions like DaaS can significantly reduce this complexity. By taking the day to day management, maintenance and administration and placing it on the shoulders of the solution provider, IT staff can be freed up to do those tasks that can directly affect your bottom line.
Reduce Up-Front Investment for SMB
With the ever-changing climate in the business world, businesses are always in flux and looking for ways to cut costs. DaaS empowers these savings for businesses. Thanks to the mass-scale computing power enabled by cloud-hosted servers, small businesses can minimize their IT requirements and even rent. Management, physical space, heating/cooling, and security of their servers are taken on by the service provider, freeing IT staff to focus on issues directly affecting the growth of a small business. One small business even realized up to 50% savings in their operating costs by adopting cloud solutions.
SMB’s have the ability to Pay-as-you-Go
In addition to helping small businesses move away from CapEx to OpEx, DaaS solutions eliminate waste and enable scalability. You don’t need to try to forecast what the maximum workload will be needed; you simply pay for what you use. Additionally, you don’t need to buy every feature you may need for every user. Instead, you can mix and match and only pay for the features you need for each staff member.
Mobility in the SMB
Telecommuting isn’t just a fad and the benefits go beyond the employee to the employer as well. In this article on Research Advisors by Paul Boyd, the author lists 6 benefits of telecommuting: improved employee productivity, schedule flexibility, increased time available to work, overhead reductions, improved employee retention and attraction, and program continuity. Businesses that actively support mobility as a strategy can get more out of their employees than those who require all to be physically present. Research Advisors found that employees that can telecommute are less likely to take a sick day, but instead work from home and avoid risking the health of their co-workers. Desktop-as-a-Service allows employees to access their files at any time and from any device, so even in times where the employee may not be able to access a physical office system, they can continue to be productive.
SMBs can Reduce Cyber Risk
With all of the talk about cyber security and risks of having data in the cloud, it seems odd to say that you are reducing your risk when utilizing Desktop-as-a-Service, but it’s true. DaaS providers and any cloud provider have dedicated countless hours and resources to providing the highest level of security around their solution. It is their job to keep up to date with the newest threats and strategies for keeping your data safe. In fact, some of the biggest breaches in recent times were as a result of user error or insufficient security protocols on the part of the user, not the cloud provider.
But wait…there’s more. Not only is the data stored in the cloud safer from cyber security, but it also reduces the risk of data being stolen from a lost or stolen device. When all of the data lives on the cloud server, instead of the actual device, malicious sources cannot access the information without the username and password to the server. The same can be said about employees leaving the company. With a simple click of a mouse, you can de-provision that username and prevent access by the employee who is leaving.
Not only does DaaS protect your data from malicious outside sources, and from loss or theft of devices, but it also protects you in the event of a disaster. Since the data does not live on the physical device, if it is damaged due to a disaster, users can access it from another device. As long as your employees have access to an internet connected device, they can access their work product and continue to be productive.
Is that all?
Well, in short, no. DaaS is a very powerful solution and can increase the productivity of both your IT staff and your front-line staff. When people are no longer tied to a specific physical desktop or laptop, they can check and modify files. You will always have the most up-to-date software, and your IT staff does not need to worry about installing and updating every physical device in your business as all of this is handled by the DaaS provider. We invite you to speak with a DaaS specialist today to see how your business can take advantage.
