Cloud computing – The key enabler of digital transformation

Cloud computing is a practice of storing, managing, maintaining, and processing data by utilizing a network of remote servers hosted on the internet instead of using, or hosting on a local server or personal computer.

Importance of digital transformation
Digital transformation has become a top priority; an organization’s cloud strategy has proven to be an integral ingredient in business change and innovation. Businesses across the globe are making a move to innovative platforms and using applications that drive better business results. Businesses are also feeling a sense of urgency to begin a digital transformation, as user demand increases and the competitive environment heats up. If your organization does not have an online presence, it is considered non-existent or, worse, not credible. There is no doubt cloud computing is a key driving factor in digital transformation, impacting every single sector, from retail to financial services, manufacturing to heavy industry. Though digital transformation and cloud computing are separate entities, yet they are always linked. Digital transformation is not dependent on cloud computing, but it would be nearly impossible to achieve digital transformation without it.

Cloud computing and digital disruption
Cloud-based infrastructure is key to delivering flexible, on-demand access to the resources underpinning these new digital business offerings. Whatever the reason, a digital transformation will require any enterprise to shift much of its computing infrastructure from its own data centers to those operated by private or public cloud providers. By embracing the cloud, your business can modernize its IT infrastructure, create in-built security, and focus on how it might serve customers digitally in new ways. Rather than worrying about big data and AI, your firm needs to turn first to the cloud. Cloud computing is the agent of digital disruption, and we can see that there are significant benefits to be had by businesses that pursue both digital transformation and cloud strategies in tandem. For digital disruption to take place, a company needs to revolutionize its current business process and leverage technologies like the IoT, chatbots, AR, ML, big data analytics, and the like. The early adopters of the cloud will get a leg up on the competition in terms of digital experience for their customers and employees. On the other hand, enterprises that still have not implemented cloud technologies will be impeded in their digital transformation journey because of issues with legacy systems, slower change adaptability, longer speed to market, and inability to adapt to fast-changing customer expectations.

The impact
Business leaders across the board are aware of the race to digital transformation. Currently, some industries are more vulnerable to disruption than others; where a company is in the transformation process is often based on just how vulnerable their industry is to disruption. Not surprisingly, B2C organizations have made the greatest strides toward this end-goal. Digital transformation is far more than simply digitizing data streams, products, and services; just as important is the ability to manage the processes that create, enable, manage, and deliver them. The entity that makes all of that possible is the cloud. The payoff of successful digital transformation can be life-changing for enterprises in numerous sectors, particularly those engaged in hyper-competitive global markets. Digital transformation is authoritative to business survival. As support for legacy systems, as various server operating systems like Windows Server 2008/SQL and Server 2008 are phased out, businesses must be looking ahead to the journey and preparing for accidental failures, data loss, and security regulations. When you invest in software or hardware infrastructure, you have to follow the instructions and squeeze in your requirements around the way the infrastructure can deliver. Cloud-based testing makes the infrastructure function the way you want. You can integrate live user experiences within your testing requirements and guarantee that the cloud environment provides all the important components required for testing. So, it won’t be wrong if I say that each company’s journey to digital transformation will be unique, but the destination remains the same.