Emerging Cloud Technologies: How They Can Revolutionize the Way We Work

Cloud computing, a phenomenon, that is absorbing itself in every profession, especially businesses and industries appears to be the house of implementation for this technology. For us to say that this word has spread like a pandemic in the days of COVID-19 will not be an exaggeration.

Much to the liking of entrepreneurs, it promotes the overall business activity instead of working against it.

Business vendors who are offering cloud services or consumers, the ones who are using it are looking to improve their overall business function.

For a layman or a person who is reading about the cloud for the first time, here is a look at its formal definition.

What is Cloud Computing?

It is the use of hardware and computer programs to serve a business or an individual with a service over a network. The network is usually the Internet. Google Gmail is a pioneering example of cloud-based computing services. Users can access Google apps from anywhere as long as they have the Internet.

Furthermore, it is a technology that makes it easier for a business to work with departments or individuals associated with it. The biggest worry of a manufacturer these days is how to work with the supply chain and the customers most efficiently.

Cloud computing reduces the amount of difficulty people face when they are working for a business. By improving the experience, it solves their core problem and connects them with each other effectively.
Customers and vendors who are directly involved in the business process can utilize each other’s true potential through cloud solutions.

Technology is transforming many industries and sectors. Some of them that are under direct influence include the defense, aerospace, healthcare, retail, lifestyle sciences, and automobile industries.

SaaS (Software-as-a-service), the most important category of cloud computing brings services to you rather than physically going to the location and availing them. It means the third-party manufacturer serves you with a range of applications making them available to you over the Internet. The other two components of cloud-based systems are PaaS (Platform as a service) and IaaS (Infrastructure as a service). All of them present equal opportunities in simplifying and benefitting the business processes.

We will take a look at the following industries and how top trends are transforming them. Emerging cloud technologies hold the future of information technology (IT) firmly as they continue to brighten the communication horizon of the world.

1. Automobile Industry

Cloud technology has simply overtaken the business operations of the automotive industry. Industry 4.0 has revolutionized the whole car manufacturing system from design and functions to the servicing of physical components. It also enables the management of different procedures and services, thereupon, reducing the overall cost of manufacturing. Cloud-managed services are highly cost-effective when compared with conventional services.

The automobile industry is making use of the cloud to invent and channelize applications, operating systems, and the Internet of Things (IoT), thus, laying out a complete software development plan.

There is no reason to doubt that the production department will be coordinating with the design section in 2020.

2. Healthcare industry

The US healthcare industry is adopting the cloud solution as a means to cut operational costs of running a practice and focus more on quality of care. The modern scene demands it both in terms of improved functions and reduced expenses. As the value-based system takes effect, good quality care at controlled costs is the two priorities of the government.

Replacing the in-house medical billing section with a remote medical billing company to look after the finances of a medical professional is a step into the cost-effective system; the physicians and other clinicians are turning to cloud-based services not only because they are cheap, but also because they are accustomed to targeted claim-processing skills.

Their expertise helps in processing those bills quickly leading to effective revenue cycle management (RCM).

Hybrid Cloud

This is the latest cloud technology that is currently in circulation in the healthcare sector according to an article on Forbes. It is understandable that the providers are not entrusting their conventional applications to the public or private cloud. Choosing a hybrid cloud is playing safe in times when we are not completely aware of the adverse effects of this technology. A hybrid model is a mixture of on-premise, private, and public cloud computing services. It is definitely one of the emerging technologies to invest in.

By becoming part of a hybrid cloud, the providers have the liberty to choose which services to make part of the cloud and which to keep separate.

Cloud technology empowers healthcare professionals to share and exchange information over a network effectively. It facilitates the exchange of information, unlike any other computing solution.

• Providers can share large data files easily reducing cost and boosting workflow

• EHR systems are rapidly integrating with cloud-based technologies for a safe and efficient flow of patient data. However, the safety guidelines must be first agreed upon with the cloud service providers and vendors. They must ensure the Health Information Exchange (HIE) follows HIPAA regulations. Otherwise, they may be subject to lawsuits violating HIPAA regulations.

3. Retail Industry

Just like the manufacturers and the banking sector, the retail industry is heavily investing in cloud technology. The statistics show that the retail industry’s investment in 2017 alone was $15 billion. How is it helping them?

• Convenience in Sales – Customers undergoing a seamless shopping experience

Retailers have to survive in a marketplace that is dominated by mobile devices. According to the recent stats, 30% of the users are shopping through mobile devices. Therefore, the retailers are upgrading their Internet portals and making them mobile-friendly for a smooth shopping experience. On the other hand, they are placing huge discount offers and offering free Wi-Fi in the physical boundaries of their stores.

• Production department works to its full potential

The retail industry is making informed decisions by relying on cloud-based computer services. For instance, Lisara, a Berlin-based fashion house adopted cloud computing to make number-based decisions about how many clothes to produce and sell. Data through various sources like Google, social media, and other e-shopping portals proved to be helpful in this regard.

By knowing that data, they became free from all the guesswork around styles, the styles that will be in, and those that will go obsolete in the future. Hence, by observing which trends to follow and which to put aside, they optimized their production department and saved a lot of money from going to waste.

• Handling the Inventory

The most important benefit of running the inventory management software on the cloud is that we can access it from anywhere and at any time. The employees of a business spread in multiple locations can really help each other out. The system allows the employee at one location to enter valuable data for another employee working in another location.

On the contrary, if the business is only in one place, employees that are traveling to attend the trading expo in another state can access information at home through cloud technology. The access to information stays unaffected by the change in location. It is simply incredible!

Even if we are on a vacation on a beach somewhere, we can connect with our business through our laptop or a phone application. Although it is never a good idea to talk about work during a break, we can relax because we know we have things under control courtesy of the cloud.

4. Human Resource Management

When other departments are taking advantage of cloud technology, the human resources sector is certainly benefitting from it.

Enterprise systems or ERPs are designed to integrate several applications such as manufacturing, warehousing, inventory, logistics, marketing, finance, HRM, and others.

The cloud-computing facilitates the organization tremendously by streamlining the HR department in particular.

5 Skills that Experts Say You Should Learn in 2020

• Global Employee Engagement

Running a successful HR department means heavier costs. It has led 50% of companies to outsource HRM. This has further allowed small or medium enterprises to hire world-class professionals for a reasonable fee. Cloud technology allows department heads to rejuvenate the bond between employees and business associates. Employees’ working location doesn’t matter because in a cloud-based system they can access their personal benefits data from anywhere in the world. This definitely helps communicate better and develops a sense of community within the organization.

• More Secure

According to a report, more than 50% of the Fortune 1000 companies have a data breach every year and they lose almost 100,000 business files with sensitive data as a result. Cloud-based HRM will not only secure important employee data but will also build confidence in them to work for the company. From easy access to documents to less paperwork and no more uncalled-for breaches, the cloud has it all.

• Taking care of compliance

With Cloud, one can easily manage the policies of an organization. Every organization needs more rules as it grows and making them available at all times is when the problem starts. The management of these rules becomes a daunting task when the organization stands at a global level. And the costs can be unbelievably high. The user-friendly nature of the cloud-based systems allows everyone to read the