As a result of the digital shifts in recent years, SMEs across the globe have been accelerating their adoption of the cloud. 81% of tech companies have at least one application currently hosted on the cloud. Beyond that, cloud spend is also increasing rapidly, as more businesses fully embrace cloud solutions. Cloud spend grew in 2021 by 21.7%, making up an ever-increasing percentage of IT spending. In this post, the reasons why any small to medium-sized business should consider using a cloud management platform will be reviewed.
Why Use a Cloud Management Platform?
As the cloud estates of small and medium-sized companies continue to increase, continuously managing and optimizing them can become burdensome. This is especially true for organizations that lack the resources to hire a dedicated cloud engineer. On average, an organization can reduce their cloud spend by up to 40% through the use of a cloud management platform. But it goes beyond that, here are a few reasons SME’s should consider implementing a cloud management platform:
Managing Increasing Cloud Estates
As the complexity of applications for technology companies continues to grow through the addition of new features, such as artificial intelligence—so does the range of cloud services they require. Leading companies, such as Salesforce, are implementing powerful new features in partnership with AWS, like automatic call transcription for its call centers and Alexa for Business. As smaller companies start to compete with such extensive feature sets, they are required to manage a complex collection of services across providers and geographies.
Navigating The Cloud Skill Gap
The average cloud engineer in the US makes $118,000 per year. For an average small to medium-sized organization, this cost can be prohibitive. CTOs and other IT leads are often required to manage an organization’s cloud estate themselves. This can quickly become a cumbersome process if done manually and usually requires extensive research to conduct properly.
Cloud management platforms provide an easy and cost-effective way for SME managers to manage their cloud instead, without the need of a cloud engineer. With a management system, SME’s have a complete overview of their cloud services, as well as AI-powered cost and compliance recommendations that can be implemented at the touch of a button.
Save Time on Cloud Management
External organizations typically take 90 days to perform a full cloud audit. The same insights on platforms, such as Kumoco Cloud Manager SME, are available immediately. Instead of searching for a cloud spend consultant that you can trust, many of the same recommendations will be available immediately, ready for you to implement. Leading platforms not only assist with overall cloud spend, but offer additional benefits, such as timely notifications, forecasting abilities, and compliance management.
Managing Compliance Requirements
As organizations serve multiple geographic markets, cloud compliance becomes a concern. More governments are requiring that firms store specific data within certain geographies to protect the privacy of their citizens. This is especially true for financial organizations. Leading cloud managers are able to detect these compliance issues and propose changes to ensure alignment with relevant standards.
For more information and further reading, the Google compliance resource center provides details on the topic relating to specific countries and jurisdictions.
Reducing Overall Cloud Spend
As cloud spending continues to consume more of the IT budget, so does the importance of managing these costs effectively. In 2021, cloud costs were estimated to make up 32% of IT budgets at organizations. Beyond this, these costs are even higher for high growth software-focused organizations. Managing this spending effectively can have a massive impact on profits. Cloud management platforms enable significant cost savings on the critical services that SMEs rely on, from AWS, Azure, and Google Cloud, all at the press of a button.
Managing Your SME Cloud Estate with a Cloud Management Platform
While managing an ever-growing cloud estate can be a challenge for business leaders, using the right cloud management platform can enable significant cost savings. By constantly monitoring and providing opportunities to reduce costs and ensure compliance, Kumoco Cloud Manager SME allows small to medium-sized organizations to use the same AI-powered platform that enterprise businesses rely on. Get back to the important tasks by eliminating manual audits. Start using a cloud management platform today.
