Working From Home with Cloud Technology
COVID-19 has made it necessary for organizations to develop remote work strategies, transitioning many employees to work from home. Of course, this has led to a rise in connectivity and productivity challenges, not to mention social distancing which is by no means easy for industries built around person-to-person interactions. So, how can smart cloud solutions ensure businesses will succeed in the long run?
Cloud computing empowers organizations to supply flexible, secure accessibility of resources and applications to their employees. The technology enables you to work from anywhere that has reliable internet access, via a virtual desktop or remote infrastructure and can easily be scaled to meet changing remote work requirements. It improves resource accessibility, creates a mobile-friendly environment, and optimizes company spending with a pay-as-you-go policy.
Additionally, cloud-based collaboration tools allow users to perform tasks more efficiently and strengthen connectivity between teams working in different parts of the world. For example, services like Slack offer the capacity for secure group chats and file sharing and easily integrate with project management software such as Trello. Teleconferencing initiatives can be enabled with platforms like Zoom that help distributed teams schedule remote video conferences with each other. There are different ways to connect to the cloud, including via Remote Desktop Server (RDs), Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI), or Virtual Private Network (VPN). Also, many cloud service providers include mobile applications that one can readily use to access data from a smartphone anywhere, anytime.
Evidently, the cloud has transformed the way we conduct business across the world. Now, let’s look at the top four benefits of incorporating cloud technology into one’s IT infrastructure that overall allows an enterprise to implement a secure work-from-home plan.
Seamless Access
When an employee works remotely, they must have the ability to use all the files and resources they would normally have in the office. This can be done by allowing cloud accessibility of software such as Google Cloud, Microsoft Office 365, and Slack. Requiring specific credentials to grant entry into the virtual environment allows location flexibility and ensures data security is maintained. This can be helpful especially in time and mission-critical projects where users must have shared access to data that they can retrieve centrally through a server. Moreover, modern communication and collaboration tools ensure that users can perform their duties at the same level, if not better than they would from their office PCs.
End-To-End Security
Businesses often hesitate to allow users to work remotely because of security compromise concerns. This is understandable, especially considering that cyber crimes are on the rise and a slight overlook could cost a fortune. With organizations investing heavily in solutions to secure their office systems, having employees exiting the workplace means leaving their safety net. Cloud security addresses these concerns by protecting IT environments against unauthorized access, data theft, DDoS attacks, malware, viruses, hackers, and other risks. Enterprises can outsource certain aspects of technology stack management, such as networking, storage, servers, operating systems, and runtime. By outsourcing security to specialists, you can eliminate the anxiety of dealing with ever-evolving security vulnerabilities.
Also, with cloud computing, your business is protected from hardware failure which, in turn, prevents file loss. The cloud represents one of the most reliable backup technologies with multiple built-in redundancies in its data center. Additionally, devices like Thin Clients and Zero Clients provide secure access to the cloud, addressing problems like hardware space for apps that takes the burden off servers.
Unmatched Scalability
Cloud computing offers the flexibility that on-premises hardware cannot by allowing organizations to scale their IT infrastructure on demand. Organizations no longer have to buy extra servers, support more data storage, or purchase additional software licenses to support growth. Now they can easily rent extra storage space, acquire more bandwidth, and increase access to software programs managed by a cloud service provider when needed. So, when down-scaling or during an off season, one can choose to discontinue the services they no longer need and pay for only what they use. Then, as demand increases during peak seasons or business growth, IT can add access to cater to more users and increased activity on the corporate network.
Furthermore, new employees can be given access to the information they need without having to visit the office. This is especially convenient when less physical office space is available to work with, and there is no limit on the number of remote employees.
Business Continuity During COVID-19
Cloud solutions have become a driving force in helping organizations maintain business continuity during COVID-19. It has made remotely communicating with customers, collaborating with teams, and offering services painless, and can be done as smoothly as one would in office. This indicates a growing demand for agility across entire organizations because even after the pandemic is over, there will still be uncertainty surrounding business operations. Unpredictable market conditions will leave businesses with no choice but to constantly adapt and innovate, and cloud solutions make this all possible.
On the bright side, many of us are already using cloud-based web applications in our daily work routine, from chat and team meeting solutions to email and file-sharing apps. We can use this to our advantage in improving customer experiences, maintaining closer relationships with different teams, and increasing productivity and profitability.
Conclusion
Working from home with cloud technology is a relevant option both during and post COVID-19 for any organization regardless of size or industry. ClearCube has been working with this innovative platform for several years, and our endpoint devices are specially designed to effectively support cloud computing initiatives. For more details about our work from home solutions click here or if you have any questions please feel free to contact us today.
