Despite this, 70% of companies say they collect more data than they can analyze and use, leading to wasted information and resources, according to the Data Paradox report carried out by Forrester. Likewise, one of the consequences of the pandemic has been the increase in the demand for data that companies need, increasing the amount they collect by 56%.

In this collection and management process, companies have detected that they have information silos that they do not use and that even slow them down or prevent them from growing at the same rate as before. 

Thus, 60% of data managers believe that existing silos in their organizations are one of the main barriers when establishing a data strategy. In this sense, Sistemas highlights the five benefits of optimizing the data in silos and moving it to the cloud.

Better use of storage

Currently, the optimization of storage space is one of the main challenges that organizations face. According to Forrester data, 60% of companies are working to reduce data silos, and 64% intend to keep a significant portion of data under more comprehensive control. 

In this sense, the elimination of silos and the storage of this information in the cloud helps to avoid the duplication of data since all employees have access to the information and also enhances accessibility and security since employees tend to keep fewer copies on their devices if they know they can easily access them.

Increased communication and collaboration

Usually, the information stored in silos is forgotten by many of the organization’s workers, even by the top management, affecting the very development of the company’s activity. Thus, cloud storage will help all employees of the organization to have access to relevant information with which to make the right decisions at all times. 

This will also help improve communication and collaboration between departments which, thanks to this new storage, will be able to have information from all the teams, improving communication with them and increasing business transparency. This better use of the information will transform companies, making them more horizontal and digital,

Increase in competitiveness

Data collection with a marked structure and strategy undoubtedly increases competitiveness. This is something that the main business managers have already internalized since, according to a recent Deloitte study, 59% of them considered it a key lever to achieve competitive advantages. 

In this sense, a good data strategy allows companies to analyze them, make strategic decisions to be more competitive, and anticipate the competition when identifying market needs. This analysis is possible as long as this information is visible to the company, so reducing silos and transferring this information to the cloud is essential to increase competitiveness.

Maximum use of resources

The lack of structure and analysis of the collected data causes data silos to increase. It is, therefore, important that companies that are beginning to bet on these technologies take them into account since they represent a large investment in the early stages of their implementation. 

Companies that have these technologies and do not take full advantage of them will generate big data without decoding it, making it difficult to apply in various business areas and wasting their tools in the short and long term.

Cost savings

The commitment to transfer information from data silos to the cloud also allows significant cost savings for companies since they do not need their storage infrastructure. According to the data published by Red.es, the savings when using this model is very significant for an SME that could save up to 40% in hardware and software investment, 31% in personnel costs, and up to 80% in energy consumption. 

In addition to helping to make access to information more flexible, company employees do not have to be in a specific place to access key data.

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The digitization of the entire process also means a competitive improvement that adds another series of advantages to the financial area. 

According to the consulting firm Paystream Advisors, depending on the digital maturity of the companies, the impact of the use of automation solutions in reducing costs and the terms between their receipt and final approval varies from an average of 45 days in low-tech companies. , with a management cost of 14.12 euros, after five days in the most automated companies, reducing the processing cost to only 2.22 euros.

In the middle are most companies that still combine paper-based processes with other computerized ones. The study by Paystream Advisors estimates the processing time as an average of 23 days and the cost per invoice at 6.32 euros. 

For Capgemini Consulting, in a similar study among CFOs, Automating Accounts Payable achieved a 71% cost reduction. And it is that the management of contacting suppliers represents up to 41% of an accountant’s time, while the management of late payments or disputed invoices consumes 31% of their time.

But let’s not just stop at ‘figures and letters. The world is changing rapidly, and the pandemic has shown that the companies best prepared to face the new challenges of the present and to come to those that have taken a good part of their performance to the cloud. 

Facilitating teleworking and multiple access ‘ATAWADAC’ ( Any Time, Anywhere, Any Device, Any Content); those that base their business strategy on extracting value from data through Artificial Intelligence, on the best knowledge of the client, their expectations, and fulfilling their experience. 

Likewise, it is in the adoption of pay-per-use tools that provide flexibility, agility and scalability. 

The growing ‘uberization’ of the economy is driving a gap between distanced innovators and the mainstream that is held back by increased costs of all kinds. 

And the directive adds: “Without going any further, companies immersed in a digital transformation process show growth up to 6 times higher and are on average 25% more profitable than those that have remained anchored in a traditional approach.

Some elements seem to show that the use of digital technologies constitutes a powerful lever to (re)find the conditions of competitiveness”.

The keys to success

Faced with these significant challenges of the digitalization of companies, it is easy to feel a little lost and disoriented. Where do I begin? Where do I go next? What will it cost me? 

According to this practical guide, “the important thing is to take the first step because those who have the support of technology will be the ones who survive and differentiate themselves from their competition. 

In addition, it is easier to start than it is believed. The important thing is to find the person or team that leads this change, and due to their functions and attributions, the director of the financial and accounting area is the ideal candidate. 

There are already many telematic processes to which companies are obliged in their relations with the Tax Agency or their banks, so this already serves as the starting point for a more ambitious digital transformation plan.

When we talk about digital transformation, everything looks abstract and unclear about how to implement it, when, why, where to start, etc. In addition, not all companies have the same digital transformation plan they can copy, and that’s it. 

Each company will have its path to follow depending on its starting point, sector of activity, needs, and objectives, among others. “However, putting together and implementing a digital transformation plan in the company is much easier than you think, and it is quite easy to take that first step.”

• Points to take into account in the preparation of this first digitization project
• Prioritize Cloud technologies in SaaS mode
• Facilitate and encourage the use of the solution by the financial team
• Ensure automation performance
• Ensuring the confidentiality and security of data
• Give priority to its integration with other pre-existing technologies in the company.
• Streamline and simplify the validation process with smart workflows
• Access real-time data for informed financial management

The digital transformation of companies, and more specifically, the financial function, cannot wait any longer. The good news is that it is easy, fast and straightforward to do if we prepare an implementation plan focused on achieving ‘quick wins’ with achievable objectives. The time has come to take the plunge!

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Indeed we are mainly familiar with the versatility of the cloud when it comes to allowing us to store information (documents, images, etc.). Still, the uses of this technology go much further, and many answers arise if we dig a little deeper into What is the cloud for?

Are you ready for an avalanche of innovation, creativity and new technologies? So let’s go now with the most current utilities of cloud computing technologies.

WHAT IS THE CLOUD FOR: MAIN UTILITIES

Cloud computing technologies offer specific functionalities at the moment, and their uses have become very varied. But among the most common benefits of the cloud, we can highlight the following:

IN DATA STORAGE

Have you spilled coffee on your computer and lost all the information you stored? Has your laptop suffered an unexpected crash, and there has been no way to get it working again? If you have experienced any of these two situations -or similar ones-you will soon regret the possible loss of everything you had stored on your hard drive. 

While there are processes by which one can extract information stored on a malfunctioning computer, this comes at a cost and a corresponding loss of time. And losing some of this data (essential documents, photos or videos) can be a real chore. How could we have easily avoided it? Storing the files in the cloud instead of just doing it on our computer.

The cloud allows us to access everything we store in it from anywhere without even needing to have our computer at hand. From your brother-in-law’s computer – without going any further – you could safely access all your files stored in the cloud with the simple need of Internet access.

IN THE EDUCATION INDUSTRY

No one will find it strange to know that the cloud has given wings to the education industry with e-Learning. The most immediate image that will come to mind is the student taking a course taught by a university thousands of miles away (isn’t that amazing?). But beyond removing geographic barriers, the cloud has revolutionized the education industry in many other ways.

For example, we are creating virtual learning environments, minimizing device requirements for students or facilitating full access to the different types of educational resources included in the courses (videos, downloadable documents, surveys, exams, etc. ).

Do you want to learn a subject of your interest? If you’re going to do it comfortably and agilely, you will have to thank the cloud.

GENERATING BACKUP COPIES

Another of the great uses of the cloud is that it allows us to create backup copies of those files (documents, photos, etc.) that are especially important to us.

And to better explain its usefulness, we will illustrate it with one of the great disasters of the 21st century: our mobile phone falls to the bottom of the pool so that we have just lost in a flash the thousands of photos we had taken in recent months and goodbye to our most memorable memories! 

Again, how can we avoid losing such valuable files when our mobile phone has an accident? Connect the phone’s photo reel to a cloud storage service so that will create a safe backup copy and will create a secure backup copy from each photo or video. We will lose the mobile, but not our vivid memories!

IN YOUR SOCIAL NETWORKS

The cloud also serves so that your favourite social networks can exist and work whenever you open your Facebook, Twitter or Instagram account. 

Where could they be stored, if not the more than 500 million tweets published daily on Twitter? As you can already guess, they are stored in the cloud. The fact that you can connect to your accounts from any device is also due to the cloud.

TO IMPROVE YOUR PRODUCTIVITY

The cloud allows us to work from anywhere, offering a most effective collaboration channel with other people with whom we have to develop joint tasks. Take, for example, Google’s free Google Docs app. 

Through this application, it is possible to create text documents that will be automatically stored in the cloud (which, in the case of Google, is Google Drive). This way, you could start creating a document from one place and continue working on it from another location without the slightest problem.

In addition, you will be able to share the document through a link with anyone so that you can work on it simultaneously. For example, do you want an HR specialist friend to review your resume? You have to send him a link to the document, and he can add comments to it in the form of annotations.

As you can see, the cloud is used for a multitude of uses in the day-to-day life of practically anyone. And you, do you know any other use of the cloud? Could you share it with our readers?

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Based on a survey of 775 cybersecurity professionals, the global report also revealed that incidents related to cloud protection are up 10% from the previous year. 

This time 27% of organizations have cited misconfiguration, far ahead of issues like data exposure or account compromise.

Companies are having difficulty incorporating security into the DevOps cycle, a situation that is exacerbated by a skills shortage in 45% of companies. 

Only 16% have full DevSecOps in place, and 37% incorporate DevSecOps into their cloud application development process.

While cost savings and ease of use were the original reasons for using the protection of these solution providers, it is becoming increasingly apparent that the complexity of managing three or four different security platforms necessitates a cloud solution. 

Independently, to unify the security of all of them. 54% of respondents think that a single independent vendor would better fit their needs than a cloud platform. 

A key consideration when deciding between the native platform and a third-party solution provider is the reduced complexity of an integrated solution, cited by 56% of respondents. 

Regarding the complexity of multi-cloud security, respondents attribute 57% importance to ensuring data protection and privacy in each environment, 56% have the right skills to deploy and manage a complete solution across all your cloud environments, and 50% understand service integration options.

There is also a growing demand to deploy application protection in the Cloud. In the last year, this capability has increased by 11% to become the third area of ​​interest, cited by 53% of the survey sample. 

According to the report, 57% of respondents expect to run more than half of their workloads in the Cloud in the next 12-18 months, with 76% using two or more cloud providers.

As the transition to the cloud accelerates, the ability to streamline your security becomes vital, with 75% of businesses favouring a single, unified platform with a single dashboard where they can configure all the necessary policies to protect your data. 

Today, 80% have to juggle three or more separate solution dashboards to set up the solution infrastructure in their company.

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