Friday, January 2, 2009

Machines Don't Matter

Today, every business has to deliver more, for less. Time costs money, and money is getting tighter and tighter. You need to try to find alternative technologies that are cheaper, better and faster; but that don't get in the way of doing your job. The old paradigm required an enormous investment in computer equipment and labor. The market has changed, and you can probably find better uses for your money.

Most people appreciate the benefits of change if it provides real business value. Change is always risky so you have to be cautious. The challenge is identifying the right changes that will help you improve performance, exploit efficiencies and build competitive advantage. Fortunately, the solution exists in the Cloud.

Technically speaking, the Cloud is just another name for the Internet. However, it also refers to the amazing new way of working with the Internet. The Cloud refers to a shift away from the individual importance of any computer. The computer is just a machine. It shouldn't matter if any one computer breaks, explodes or catches fire. It should not impact your business in any way.

I realize you think I am crazy. "My life is in that laptop," is something I hear too often. They don't really mean the laptop, what matters is the information inside it! Now that information can reside in the Cloud: freeing you from equipment investments, costly computer techs, unreliable backups, expensive software and all the nasty surprises that seem to come with computers.

Undeniably, there is a major shift in thinking required to trust another company with your business information. Many are never able to overcome this barrier and are trapped in the old paradigm with all the related costs. That always happens when there is a paradigm shift. Those who are able to shift into the new paradigm will harness the new tools and blow away the competition.

Total reliance on a specific computer means you are paralyzed when that machine fails. And every computer fails at some point. Then there's the tedious, time consuming process of moving everything from your old computer to the new one. How many hours have you wasted? The Cloud eliminates all of these problems. Machine don't matter - information does. And your information is safe and secure on several remote computers at the same time when it's on the Cloud.

Online there are a collection of tools and services that you can harness for a fraction of the price of the most expensive enterprise-level software. That means you can have at your fingertips the same tools used by the biggest companies in the world, for a price that any small business can handle. It means having access to state-of-the-art computer tools and engineers for a price you cannot ignore.

The companies that are hosting these Cloud services know that their entire business will collapse if there is ever a security breach or data loss. So, they hire the best computer engineers to manage their world-class computer centers. You get the benefits without the massive costs. That means you get the software tools, plus the security, plus the backup, plus the freedom, but minus the cost. All it takes is that all important shift towards the Cloud.

Suddenly natural disasters, fires, theft and equipment failures don't matter. Sure, it sucks when you have to buy a new laptop because it was destroyed. Isn't it better to know that your information is safe and secure? Suddenly, the computer is just a machine again. And machines don't matter.

Louis Rosas-Guyon's FREE 5-week e-Course for Eliminating Tech Costs
R-Squared Computing - Business Technology Coaches

No comments:

Post a Comment