It should come as no surprise that cloud computing is more significant than it has ever been before. The pandemic affected every industry in unforeseen ways, changing how many businesses run. A cultural shift to begin working from home has influenced organizations of every size. The way that people shop has changed with more focus on delivery and pick-up services; first as a necessity and then later as a hard-won convenience. The world looks vastly different from the one we were used to just two years ago, but does your business model look different, or is it still trying to operate in the same way?

2022 Growth Far Outpaces Predictions

Predictions for the growth of the cloud market all underestimated the boom that came as a result of the pandemic. Still, before anyone knew about COVID-19, cloud platform adoption was already on the rise. As late as 2019, estimates for the growth of cloud computing had predicted that the market would be around $200 billion in 2022. Recent figures show that expectations now outpace that significantly, indicating the market at closer to $450 billion. The use cases for the cloud platform in a pandemic situation are apparent; more people work from home or in a mobile capacity and need access to resources without worrying about physical space. There are some less obvious benefits and changes that have resulted from the chaos of the last few years, and your business can profit from understanding these changes and why they have happened.

Business Persistence during COVID-19

You might notice you have less competition than you did a few years ago - only some businesses were able to evolve with the times, and many shuttered their doors for good. Companies that had already adopted the cloud environment or emphasized flexibility could come out ahead. When lockdowns went in place, you were subject to losing out on business if you still needed to set up a WFH infrastructure. If you relied on a physical storefront, you were hurt as keeping locations staffed or attracting customers was challenging. Though many of the effects of the pandemic have waned, businesses have learned to adopt a hybrid solution that allows them to fall back on a WFH structure or rely on it entirely.

Evolution of the Water Cooler

The way people interact within the work environment has changed with the shift to WFH. Many interactions can now be analyzed, increasing productivity; however, if too much reliance is placed on this methodology, workers can feel micromanaged. One way to solve this problem has been allowing workers to let loose and collaborate in workplace-managed chatrooms. For example, a few exchanged gifs and office files end up more valuable than time wasted around the kitchenette or coffeepot. Additionally, this kind of collaboration offers many of the same benefits as in-office working when these chat programs are fully utilized. Video meetings and collab tools like Figma have shown that far from being a hindrance to productivity, WFH environments can be much more focused and lucrative if used wisely.

As the Cloud Grew, Businesses Invested in it Grew as Well

Demand for many services and products had extreme fluctuations during the pandemic, fueled by labor shortages and supply chain issues. Organizations that could scale with these rapid movements fared much better than those that didn't. Not relying on physical infrastructure for growth was a massive boon to those that saw demand increase rapidly, only to be blunted when the economic downturn came. Businesses invested in cloud infrastructure only paid for the resources they used and saw extensive cost savings that allowed them to shift priorities when buying trends began to cool.

Protecting Your Business from Viruses both Real and Virtual: Cybersecurity in an Age of Sickness

Hackers could smell the blood in the water, with many businesses clamoring to make their budgets and balance sheets match. With so many problems to focus on, some companies became less security minded and opted for quick solutions to their issues rather than safe ones. When these businesses struggled to move to a WFH environment, they were attacked due to poor security from workers using personal equipment or management failing to establish secure VPN tunnels to work servers. Those that adopted the Cloud platform early had a unified structure for their data, making it much easier to have proprietary data monitored and secured.

Preparing for the Future of Cloud Computing - What Comes Next?

Before the pandemic, moving into the cloud made sense from a business perspective. Now that the dust has settled somewhat, it's clear that cloud adoption is a necessity for businesses looking to dodge the next disaster. There are many things you can do to protect yourself and evolve your business at the same time. Utilizing a Managed Service Provider like iTecs is a sure way to keep ahead of these developments, as we are suited to deal with the changing nature of technology and its uses. Those companies with us before and during the pandemic have fared well, as we could protect them from the abovementioned changes. However, those businesses that have tried to face these challenges alone have found cloud adoption difficult due to a severe talent shortage. We wrote about the cloud skill shortage among tech workers last month, and while more workers may move to these fields as they become vital, it will still take time to acquire the skills needed - time that many businesses don't have to wait.

iTecs was Prepared for the Last Global Shift - and We're Prepared for the Next One

iTecs is well suited to navigate the ever-changing technology space, with our team being experts in all areas of IT. We utilize the Google Cloud platform, Amazon Web Services, and Microsoft Azure. We stay abreast of the many changes these platforms undergo to ensure we get the most out of them for your company. Our ability to adapt quickly allows us to help organizations stay ahead of new threats and adopt technologies that enable them to succeed in this new environment. As the world continues to change, we will continue to adapt to ensure our clients' success. Contact an iTecs Professional today and create a plan for the future of your business.

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