Hybrid IT: Are You Ready For The Next Revolution?

Today, everybody relies on technology because that technology can handle practically any job or need that arises.

Today, everybody relies on technology because that technology can handle practically any job or need that arises. Plus, many of these devices are connected - you can lock your doors from your phone even when you're not at home; your laptop and handheld device can sync in real-time so you're never apart from your documents. Apps are handling practically everything for us, both at work and in our daily lives. Combining IT services offers businesses a degree of flexibility that they may have never experienced before.

How Modern Businesses Connect with Today's Customers

Consumers are computing all the time, so businesses have to find a way to keep up with them. Both large and small businesses need to interact with their customers, both current and prospective. Applications make it possible to do just that. Unfortunately for brands that aren't harnessing the power of hybrid IT, the competition is quickly edging out ahead of them.

The Problem with the Public Cloud

There's an ongoing debate about the private(your own server bundles) vs. the public cloud. Many brands started off on the wrong side of this argument, attaching themselves to the public cloud quickly and having to learn the hard way. Unlike the private cloud, public cloud services can be laggy and under-performing. Often, public cloud services aren't able to meet a business' high quality standards. Outages in the public cloud can cause huge problems for brands and their audience. Cost can be high, too, especially as your business scales and your storage needs grow. Possibly the biggest problem with the public cloud is that other public cloud users - namely your competition - may be able to access your intellectual property.

When You May Want to Use the Public Cloud

Now, it's important to understand that there are times when you may opt, smartly, to use public cloud services. For example, let's say your business is planning to launch a new app, but you're not really sure if it's going to be received well by your audience. You can create, release and test it in the public cloud instead of taking the time to create it internally.

Finding the Right Mix of IT Services

Practically every brand has both traditional and cloud-based needs. This isn't likely to change any time soon, either. A good example of this is Dropbox. At first, they used only the public cloud, but eventually their operating costs became too high and they had to find a new approach. They opted to combine services to meet varying needs. Today, Dropbox still uses the public cloud, but they also use the private cloud as well as regular IT services. They were able to reduce operating costs while setting themselves up with a system that lets them grow and change their company as different needs arise.

With a flexible approach to IT, you can manage all of these needs easily. Knowing when it's best to use the private cloud and when you can safely use public cloud services is integral to maximizing your efforts.

Updated: 05/29/2017, RobertKeith

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