Will the cloud be the dominant force within four years?

A recent report has suggested that within four years the cloud will be the dominant force in business and IT architecture.

IT leaders have been aware for some time that businesses are moving toward a cloud based environment, but they may be surprised to learn that the move to adopt the technology is accelerating rapidly. If this is true, IT leaders and organisations are heading for a period of immense change whereby their core mission and roles could alter beyond recognition.

These findings came to light in the latest Global Cloud Business Software Survey Data Report from Saugatuck Technology Inc.

The report says that enterprises will move rapidly towards hybrid on-premises+Cloud offerings rather than deploying new on-premises business software over the next two years and much of the hybrid focus will shift towards total SaaS/cloud services within a few years.

However companies, especially larger enterprises, will be slower to move financial applications such as those used for budgeting and reporting & planning to public and private clouds.

The top cloud related concerns remain data security, integrity and privacy but businesses are also expressing concerns over customization and integration, which suggests they are thinking of the management benefits of integrating their business operations.

Bill McNee, the CEO and founder of Saugatuck who developed the survey, said the results suggest that IT leaders are going to find themselves faced with rapid and significant changes and they will have to seek out innovative solutions a lot faster than the majority of them are prepared for.

What will your company’s IT infrastructure look like in four years time? Will you still be operating purely in-house systems or will the majority of your applications be in the cloud?

Asia Pacific and Latin America firms love the cloud; why don’t we?

Large companies in Asia Pacific and Latin America are embracing the cloud, but those in Europe and the US still display a certain reluctance to use cloud computing applications, according to a recent study from Tata Consultancy Services.

 The average company in Latin America uses cloud computing for 39% of all applications. In Asia Pacific, 28% of company applications are in the cloud, but in Europe and the US, companies only utilise the cloud for 12% and 19% of their applications respectively. 

N Chandrasekaran, the CEO and MD of Tata Consultancy Services said we’ve reached the point of no return with the cloud. Companies that have taken to the cloud are already enjoying substantial benefits, but there is still huge scope for growth and he believes many more organisations will soon discover that cloud computing provides opportunities across a host of different functions.

Data security remains the biggest challenge for cloud computing providers and companies in Europe and the US remain cautious about adopting the new technology for fear of security breaches.

Tata’s research showed that companies in the West are reluctant to use the cloud for applications that include customer data and only 20% of them would trust critical applications to public clouds. However, companies are keen to utilise cloud marketing applications and other customer facing business functions. Across the four regions, at least two-fifths of the cloud budget goes on sales, marketing and services.

Which applications would you trust to the cloud and are there any that would have to remain company based regardless of the cost?

Business Schools turning to the cloud

On line accounting is proving to be a winner in the business education sector with the Niels Brock Business School in Copenhagen utilising our own E-conomic system to teach accounting to students.

The school has recently changed from Microsoft Axcapta to E-conomic mainly due to continual breakdowns of the old system on their computers. The SaaS approach means that there are no updates top worry about and as it’s all based in the cloud there is nothing that can break down. It’s a win/win. 

The school reports that it can now get its students up and running on E-conomic within 2-3 hours whereas previously it was taking around three days.  This obviously means more productive learning time.

It’s great to feel that we are now helping the next generation of accountants!

 

 

Cloud accounting systems can alter your entire business strategy

Gartner, the market analyst, has predicted that cloud computing will be at the top of the business agenda this year along with information management and social computing.

 A lot of enterprises have already realised that the cloud is a cost-effective way to access additional services to help their business grow. In fact, 29% of SMEs are already using cloud based accounting services according to the Cloud Industry Forum and by 2013, 20% of cloud based applications will be geared towards accounting and payroll.

The role of Financial Directors has evolved into more than just balancing the books. They now have to find ways to transform their business from one that is just getting by into an expanding, profitable enterprise.

Cloud-based technology can help businesses get more out of their assets and their people. With cloud accounting packages the functional benefits become clear within a few months and after six months it should be possible to gauge the impact on the finance department and the return on investment to the company as a whole.

Whilst there are many convincing reasons to switch to cloud-based applications, data security is still a major concern for many companies. However, cloud providers are extremely vigilant and their systems could offer better data protection than current internal systems. T

Once you’ve tried out the cloud and seen the benefits, you’ll no doubt want to use it for more of your core IT applications. Flexibility is the name of game and you should be looking for a cloud provider that gives you the freedom to decide what software you want to integrate with your cloud applications.

FDs who pilot cloud accounting will not only be able to judge the benefits from a financial perspective but also lay down the foundations for a more comprehensive cloud-based company strategy in the future.

Are you a financial director who is already using a cloud accounting system? What benefits has it brought to your organisation and has it encouraged you to expand your organisation’s use of the cloud?

A NEW PARTNERSHIP – KRESTON AND E-CONOMIC

 

We are delighted that Kreston, the global network of independent accounting firms, and the 13^th largest accounting network in the world, has selected us as an online accounting  preferred supplier.

Kreston, which has a fee income of $1,673m and operates in 98 countries through 600 offices realises the benefits of cloud software – not least the low cost set up and implementation together with the benefits of having 24/7 anytime, anywhere access and working with clients using live data.

We’re really looking forward to working with Kreston, There was an obvious synergy between us – we operate internationally and have a global focus.  The E-conomic system has both multilingual and multicurrency functionality and is used by 45000 clients in more than 50 countries as well as 4000 accounting firms and their subsidiaries.  We’re really looking forward to the partnership with Kreston and the mutual benefits the collaboration will bring to both parties.

Spotlight on E-conomic Referral Partners – easysme.co.uk

Affiliate programmes are a good way for webmasters, internet marketers and enthusiasts to earn a bit of extra money. E-conomic runs a programme that allows affiliates to earn £65 every time they introduce a new customer to the company.

One of E-conomic’s dedicated Referral Partners is easysme.co.uk. Wendy Cockcroft, the owner of Cockcroft Web Design, set up the site with the specific aim of referring customers to E-conomic. She even purchased a domain name specifically for the purpose.

Wendy is an experienced web designer and her site illustrates ways in which SMEs can benefit from using E-conomic. Easysme.co.uk presents all the good arguments in favour of using a cloud based accounting system and it has become an excellent source of referrals.

Wendy makes extensive use of links, both in call-to-action buttons as well as in the text. When she mentions a specific feature of the E-conomic system, a link takes the reader through to the E-conomic website where they can read a more detailed description. Links embedded in the text are particularly relevant and encourage the reader to learn more.

The site is by no means complete; easysme.co.uk is a perfect example of a work-in-progress affiliate site. Wendy will continue to optimise and improve the site as she learns which techniques generate the most sales.

Affiliate marketing is a great way to earn some extra money and if the idea appeals to you, why not check out Wendy’s site and get inspired to set up one of your own. More information about E-conomic’s Referral Partner Programme can be found by visiting http://partner.economic.com

The cloud is flying high – and here’s the proof

We have had an absolutely stupendous start to 2012. And here’s the story in numbers illustrating our year on year growth

Our new customers are up 41% and we expect to reach close to 60,000 by the end of 2012 – and that’s customers – not users.

Sign-ups via the website are up 57% and January the highest number of trials in a single month

Website visits from organic traffic are up 170%  – thanks to the great work of our SEO team

Headcount is up 25% and over the last two months we have employed 8 new people, we’ll be adding another five and are still recruiting.

I can’t wait to see what the rest of the year has in store!

Does the mobile cloud have a silver lining?

A lot of experts predict that mobile cloud computing will really come to the fore this year.

According to the Guardian, almost 50% of the UK population owned a smartphone at the end of October last year, and sales of smartphones are expected to exceed PC and laptop sales this year.

Companies used to hand out Blackberrys to their employees but now iPhones and Android are also being adopted in corporate settings. In fact Android is predicted to account for 50% of the worldwide market this year, followed by iPhone with 18%. Blackberry’s share of the market is expected to shrink to a mere 12%.

It’s not surprising then that there is an increasing emphasis on mobile cloud services. We now have DropBox, Apple’s iCloud and Microsoft’s SkyDrive and users are getting used to accessing and uploading data from the cloud using their mobile device.

Visiongain expects to see revenue from mobile cloud services reach $45 billion within the next five years. Mobile cloud applications will contribute the greatest revenue, as smartphones become ever popular and 3G network coverage spreads around the world. The development of cloud based mobile applications will be further enhanced by enhancements to technology such as HTML5 and BONDI.

It would appear that the future is bright for mobile cloud computing and customers should soon start to see an increase in the number of companies offering carrier-cloud services and providing improved levels of service.

Emerging markets are set to embrace cloud solutions

Some people believe 2012 will be the year when cloud computing really comes to the fore. There’s no doubt that over the next couple of years companies around the world are set to dramatically increase their usage of cloud services. For example, small and medium-sized businesses in emerging markets are expected to increase their spend on cloud services and investments through service providers from $111 million last year to $615 million by 2015.

AMI-Partners recently published its Route-to-Market Opportunity Model showing that hosters, multiple system operators and telcos are in a good position to help SMEs acquire cloud-computing solutions.

Particularly in the emerging markets of Brazil, China, India and Russia, service providers who acquire smaller VARs will be able to diversify and provide basis Software as a Service cloud offerings such as accounting, CRM, email, and business analytics.

Rohan Bose, an associate for AMI, went on to explain that a lot of SMEs in emerging markets will want to bundle together high-speed Internet and SaaS applications in order to increase business efficiency. Service providers are in a unique position to fulfil these needs.

AMI’s report concludes by saying that IT vendors should take advantage of the lucrative opportunities available to them. Many of the smaller service providers are not in a position to offer a complete bundle including high-speed Internet and cloud facilities to small businesses.

What’s in store for 2012?

First off, let me wish you a Happy New Year – and add that if I knew exactly what’s in store for 2012, I would hurry down to the stock market right now!

Keeping costs down

One thing that is pretty certain, however, is that the strained global economy will continue to keep everyone focused on keeping costs down. Businesses need to be constantly aware that their customers will want value for every dollar spent.

Providing easily accessible Internet-based business applications at a low price – like we and others do – should be a recipe for maintaining growth under these circumstances, allowing clients to keep costs low and making it easy for startup companies to get started.

I think we will see many software providers – ourselves included – focusing on ease-of-use in the way they design their products, support new customers and market themselves.

Fun marketing

Speaking of marketing, another focus area for many businesses in the year ahead will be generating publicity and knowledge of their products and brand without spending tons of money on full-blown marketing campaigns.

At e-conomic, we are doing this by insisting that bookkeeping and accounting systems can be fun and entertaining.

We have launched a number of initiatives featuring ‘the e-conomic man’ (pictured at his desk, to the right), and we are using social media like Facebook, Twitter and YouTube to reach out to our customers in new and fun ways.

As our latest social media initiative, we have started to create YouTube videos specifically to help developers make apps that connect e-conomic with other systems.

So, sit back and enjoy as we prepare to make 2012 as easy and fun for you as possible!