Recent surveys show that the majority of businesses are adopting cloud computing services and making the Cloud an essential part of their IT strategy. For example, 76% of CFOs say cloud computing will be important to their business’s success over the next 12 to 18 months, according to one Google survey. The benefits recognized by finance executives include cost savings, productivity boosts and increases to flexibility.

However, it seems that not all organizations are that enthusiastic about the Cloud. Just 23% of small businesses have adopted cloud computing services, according to a recent survey conducted by AVG Technologies. In addition, just 21% are considering adopting a cloud service in the next year.

Why are smaller businesses adopting cloud computing at such a low rate? In contrast to other surveys, AVG’s poll says concerns about cloud security aren’t the main reason — just 19% of respondents said they fear a data breach in the Cloud.

Instead, one reason for those low numbers may be a lack of understanding about what cloud computing is and how it benefits companies.

Among the 1,000 U.S. and U.K. businesses with 100 or fewer employees surveyed by AVG, 20% believe that cloud computing services are geared mostly toward larger businesses. And 30% of the business leaders polled admitted that they don’t fully understand the Cloud.

But in fact, small businesses may get the most out of cloud computing, as they’re the companies that could see the biggest benefit from accessing scalable services at a fixed, regular price.

The post Small companies missing out on cloud computing’s benefits appeared first on Finance Tech News.

Cloud computing.

Most organizations plan to spend more on cloud services in the next year, according to a recent IDG Enterprise survey.

Currently, 60% of businesses use at least one application in the Cloud, and 71% plan to increase their spending on cloud computing services over the next 12 months, according to the survey of 554 IT professionals.

The Cloud’s popularity has been on the rise for a while now, in part because using cloud services can often save businesses a significant amount of money.

However, while cost savings were a significant motivator, respondents to this survey gave a different top reason for moving more applications to the Cloud: business continuity.

Cloud services allow companies to create backups and server redundancies at a lower cost and with more ease than they would often be able to otherwise. That was the top business driver for increasing cloud investments, according to 84% of IT pros surveyed.

Of course, cloud vendors must be carefully chosen for those investments to pay off. For more information, read our earlier posts on deciding which cloud applications make sense for finance and questions to ask before moving to the Cloud.

The post Most businesses will spend more on cloud computing this year appeared first on Finance Tech News.

It’s understandable that finance would want to keep close tabs on its data and processes. And once they’ve been acquired and configured for use by the in-house IT team, it’s often not cost-effective to move them to the stratosphere.

That being said, there are some times when it makes sense to consider transferring accounting systems to this new and popular technology. They include:

• Companies undergoing a growth spurt who find their accounting software doesn’t have enough muscle to manage the increasing workload of more staff, more transactions and more complicated services. Upgrading in-house could take up too much IT resources and the capital outlay may be too much to handle all at once. The cloud’s scalability and shared resources may make the transition to new systems more streamlined.
• Organizations with a parttime CFO — or one who performs these duties for others as well — can locate their financial systems in the cloud so that a remotely located CFO will have easy access to them. In the same way, CPAs used to have to show up on site to go over the books for company audits. If their clients use a cloud-based system, though, they can look at the books any time without having to be on site, improving the efficiency of their client service and perhaps reducing travel costs.
• And finally, a company with distributed operations and a decentralized accounting function can put these things in the cloud so that these locations won’t have to have their own hardware and support.

The post When does it make sense for finance to use ‘the cloud’? appeared first on Finance Tech News.

McCartney’s enormous catalog of music and memorabilia, much of it dubbed “priceless,” will soon be accessible using the latest rock star of the computer world, “the cloud.” This new data center in the sky has become increasingly popular for its accessibility and economy of scale.

McCartney’s archive includes a large collection of cover artwork, photographs, paintings, film and videos, as well as masters of songs from his Beatles and Wings days and beyond. They’ll help the rock star deliver his archive of work via a “private cloud.”

McCartney has one of the most comprehensive libraries of any artist, much of which has never been viewed before. He’s also accumulated iconic imagery, including the cover artwork for the multimillion selling No. 1 album, ‘Band on the Run.’

Under McCartney’s agreement with HP, the tech giant will work closely with McCartney Productions Limited (MPL) to digitize the material and design and build a state-of-the-art content management system. McCartney’s library will then be delivered through a private cloud environment. Portions of the library will be made available to fans so they can have a personal glimpse into McCartney’s work.

“I’ve always been interested in creative ideas and new ways of reaching people, so this is a really exciting initiative for me,” said McCartney. “I hope it will allow people who might be interested to access parts of our archives they might otherwise not be able to. I’m looking forward to working with HP on this project.”

The agreement marks the first time that HP has collaborated with an artist in this way. In addition to changing how fans and artists will interact, the digitization of McCartney’s library will help preserve the history of his work for future generations.

“Paul McCartney has always been a trendsetter in the music industry and HP has been at the forefront of technology innovation,” said Tom Hogan, executive vice president, Sales, Marketing and Strategy, Enterprise Business, HP. “We are proud that he turned to HP as a trusted partner to help him preserve his legacy and set a new vision for the industry.”

The post McCartney takes his work to ‘the cloud’ appeared first on Finance Tech News.

Yes, the economy’s lousy and companies are cutting back, but there’s one area of IT that doesn’t seem to be feeling the pinch: Data center expansion.

While companies may be talking about slashing IT budgets in general, it seems the data center is something they’ll open their wallets for in a big way.

Four out of five surveyed by Digital Realty Trust reported that they plan data center expansions in the next year or two.

Key findings of the new study include:

• 84 percent of surveyed companies are planning data center expansions in the next 12-24 months.
• 64 percent of surveyed companies with plans to expand in 2009 are planning to expand in two or more locations.
• Surveyed companies plan to increase data center spending by an average of 6.6 percent in 2009.
• Data centers account for an average of 35 percent of overall IT budgets for surveyed companies.

“Based on the results of this study, we expect to see sustained demand for data center facilities in 2009 and 2010 as companies implement these plans to expand their IT infrastructure,” said Chris Crosby, Senior Vice President of Digital Realty Trust. “One finding that may surprise people is that companies are increasing their data center budgets in 2009. This is a reflection of how companies view their data centers as critical assets for increasing productivity while reducing costs.”

It’s yet to be seen whether many of these companies will turn to the Cloud for their data storage and processing needs, however.

As many new players in the Cloud space begin to emerge, and as security standards evolve and improve, many companies may see the Cloud as a cost-saving and scalable option that reduces the risks and responsibilities of managing a vast, complex center.

But the study shows one thing clearly: The need for space to store and manage data is growing by leaps and bounds for most organizations.

What’s your opinion on the big drivers in this market? I’ll tell you mine if you tell me your’s…

The post One IT area that’s gonna boom appeared first on Finance Tech News.