Why Aren’t More Businesses Embracing The Cloud?
There’s a lot of confusion today about cloud computing and the supposed cost benefits that it offers. According to an interesting piece by Alok Misra in Information Week, many companies don’t seem to understand where these reduced costs come from.
The reason is that many enterprises right now are not able to distinguish between on-site from off-site computing architecture. This is why many still persist with using old models, simply because they are more familiar with such systems. Little do they know that they end up paying way more by doing so.
Expenses with old fashioned infrastructure usually begin even before any software purchases are made. A prudent approach that many companies like to follow is to hire a consultant to help them choose the most appropriate software system for their needs.
What companies don’t seem to realize is that the cost of hiring a consultant nowadays is three times more than the cost of a one year subscription to a cloud computing service. And then, once the right software is identified and paid for, even more expenses follow, in the form of maintenance and support fees. These costs will continue throughout the lifetime of the software.
On the contrary cloud computing fees are typically bundled together, all in one. Further, this is a one-time annual fee, and you won’t be hit with further costs after paying for the subscription. What’s more, if an enterprise decides to discontinue the use of a particular cloud service after their contract expires, they can do so, unlike with onsite architecture, where they find themselves virtually married to it.
In addition, it is also much easier and far cheaper to customize a cloud platform than an on-premises one, due to the existence of thousands of off-site services in the market.
One of the biggest reasons why companies still adamantly cling on to the old way of doing things is that they are simply more at ease with it. If you were “raised” in an environment where on-site architecture is the norm, it’s going to be hard for you not to be influenced by it. This is the current situation today, and it seems that old habits don’t go away easily.
The other thing preventing people from embracing the change is that cloud computing providers are still evolving both what they offer and what their market position is. This makes it difficult for potential buyers to know exactly what they are getting when they make the switchover.
Lastly, many computer system consultants will make a strong case for on-site computer hardware, simply because they can charge more money for the easy servicing of these systems than they would be able to make with cloud computing product fees.
While cloud computing companies remain unclear about what they offer, and until organizations are brave enough to go against the advice of their computer consultant, it looks like they are going to be stuck with those expensive maintenance costs for a while yet.
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