Monday, 7 April 2014

Cloud Enablement – A Strategic Mantra for Energy Conservation and Sustainable Cost Effective Business


 

                                        





Cloud is the new age mantra:

There used be a time when most of the discussion related to Cloud Computing was centered on security of data moving over cloud. From that point, the discussion has moved one step ahead for sure. The industry leaders are now earnestly considering Cloud as a mantra to build a sustainable, cost efficient business which uses up less energy and therefore protecting the surroundings at the same time. Market sluggishness is instigating cloud based cost saving measures that need to be adopted for sustaining in tough market conditions.
Cloud provides large-scale, shared IT infrastructure available over the internet transforming the way corporate IT services are delivered and managed. The compelling reason to pursue cloud lies in the benefits of adopting it. Many claim cloud will be the way business will happen in future. No doubt that recent developments in cloud technology provide a definite reason of its pursuance by all industry sectors particularly the retail.

Cloud Acceptance, Now or Never:

Despite such supportive reasons, industry leaders are cautious over the point: how far they should go for this transformation and more specifically when?
The answer is now or never. This is the right time. But more important question is: with what pace cloud should be adopted? The best would be to remember that slow and steady wins the race. There is no need to leap for an overnight transformation and get saddled by the cost. Slow but steady pursuance to adopt cloud is the best way. 

To understand and drive this technology implementation, Companies are now willing to spend on Information and Communication Technology more than ever. Through it, companies may epitomize an excellent business opportunity for vendors, their clients and most importantly turn themselves energy conscious. Saving energy consumption in terms of resources, infrastructure and space can lead to lowering of huge costs and gain business agility, overall contributing towards more sustainable, ecofriendly & agile business environment. The software majors like Microsoft & IBM realized the importance of cloud early and now provide solutions for companies to migrate over to cloud. This may be one reason why Microsoft CEO, Satya Nadella, in his inaugural addressed to the employees, emphasizing on Cloud to be the future way of Microsoft.

Cloud – The Energy Saving & Eco-Friendly Alternative:

Off late Cloud service providers are linking technological transformation to reduction of Energy use by 90% and further reducing emissions. There are several factors that enable cloud computing to lower energy use and carbon emissions from IT:

• Data Center Effectiveness: Applying advanced data center infrastructure designs that shrink power loss through improved cooling, power conditioning, etc.

• Dynamic capacity delivery: Reducing wastage of computing resources via better matching of server capacity with the actual demand.

• Server Consumption: Servers are operated at higher utilization rates to optimize operation costs

• Multi Leasing Infrastructure: Balancing relative peak loads by serving large numbers of organizations and users on shared infrastructure.

• Single location of Data Centers: With Cloud at its best, helps having Data Center at one remote location but enables service to  be available anywhere on the planet via internet. Only worry about the internet speed at the user end for the best experience.


Benefits of Cloud Strategy and it's impact on Macroeconomic Level:

The need is to include a strict agenda for cloud in long term strategies of the company. This is more valid when corporate sustainability officers, regulators and other stakeholders become increasingly focused on IT’s carbon footprint urging to reduce it through more sustainable operations and products. It positions to aim that consolidating corporate IT environments into large-scale shared infrastructure operated by specialized cloud providers would reveal new operational efficiencies on one hand and reduce the overall environmental impact by decreasing CO2 on the other.Moreover embracing cloud has clear advantages at the macro-economic stratum. Cloud computing can help achieve savings of scale by integrating computing power and improving access to variable capacity at a more affordable price at almost any place.