The current pandemic has bought with it some serious downsides but there is a particular upside – it has forced small to medium business owners revaluate and rethink how employees work and how they need to ensure their businesses keep on chugging along no matter the environment they operate in.

In early 2020 when businesses in Perth had to make a sudden call to let employees work from home, it let business leaders see for the very first time that they can continue business as usual activities even remotely and with a remarkable efficiency.

At the onset of the pandemic, many small businesses in Perth had to embrace some aspects of remote work without a lot of time to research and prepare beforehand. Now, these businesses are able to devote more time to further evaluating their remote work/IT opportunities, costs and needs.

In this article we take a look at some of the most important considerations behind cloud computing, including business decisions that support and require them in a post COVID environment.

What are the options available for Cloud Solutions in Perth?

Depending on your method of operation, you are able to:

1. Opt for an On-Premise Solution. An on-premise solution lets your company own and maintain hardware, storage and other technology in a physical location. This is often located at the company’s main office and gives the business full control over purchasing, maintaining, upgrading and disposal of the hardware.
2. Opt for a Full Cloud Solution. If your company decides to go 100% to the cloud, expect to pay a third-party vendor to host all your infrastructure for you in a secured location that is purchased, maintained, upgraded etc. by the vendor. While your company has less control over the equipment you are not burdened with the initial capital outlay, ongoing operation & maintenance of the equipment.
3. Opt for a Hybrid Cloud Solution. Your company might decide to go down this route if they use critical line of business applications that they need working internally even if your internet goes down or a disaster strikes. These applications might be located in a physical location at your office while the other servers and applications can be moved to the cloud.

Okay Great! Which cloud solution is best for my business?

Here are some questions that will assist you in making a decision about Cloud IT services and solutions for your business in Perth.

Security Implications. Yes, you are still going to need IT Support. A popular misconception in some businesses in Perth is that once they move to remote work/cloud they would no longer need IT Support and Services. For example:

• Your employees will access files and share information more than likely using a service known as a VPN. Who does the setup and maintains this service?
• Should your company provide devices such as laptops, phones, tablets etc. or should employees be allowed/required to “Bring their own Device”?
• Who implements security features around data protection, compliance and governance? Things like emailing sensitive documents etc.
• Who protects against the potential external vulnerabilities for the system?

Cost Implications. As with many things in IT, costs always vary and is specific to a company’s modus operandi. This is where your company must engage a cloud solution expert who can not only understand the technical specifics of a cloud solution you require but will also make recommendations in order for you to get the most bang for your buck.

How can First Call IT help your business move to the cloud?

More than likely you still have a lot of burning questions as this is not a straightforward decision and luckily you do not have to walk this path alone.

If you are looking for a technology success partner in Perth to assess your overall IT plan and strategy, we invite you to schedule a free consultation with the First Call IT team.

Our approach to IT Services and Solutions for your business in Perth is very strategic, not just from a purely technical perspective. We speak human and ask questions like “What are your business goals?” and “What can the right technology do for your business?”

A practice that is rife in the in IT Service industry in Perth is moving businesses to the cloud and only focusing on the infrastructure. We think its far more important to gave your business goals aligned with your IT strategy and approaching technology from a proactive, not a reactive approach.