Demystifying the Top 10 Myths Surrounding Cloud Computing in 2021

A look back at 2020 will showcase the enormous impact that cloud computing made in light of the pandemic. A MariaDB survey reveals that nearly 40% of companies accelerated their move to the cloud due to the pandemic. Businesses from all sectors realized the benefits of cloud computing to stay competent in the wake of the massive disruptions never before seen in history. As 2021 looks to be the year when the COVID-19 pandemic will come under control and normalcy will return to life, some traits are expected to last from the pandemic. One primary trait will be the digital economy that sprang up on a massive scale.

From food to shopping and entertainment, nearly all countries experienced significant shifts to digital-only operations. It was a massive opportunity for businesses to transition more of their services into cloud platforms and make them available to the masses. In the first quarter of 2020 alone, cloud IT infrastructure spends grew 2.2% globally while overall IT expenditure for the same period declined by 16.3% compared to the previous year, according to IDC. With so much growth and potential expected, it is finally time to refute some of the most intriguing myths about cloud computing.

Here are the top 10 myths compiled from the questions and concerns raised by global developers.

1. Will Cloud Computing Reduce My IT Costs Significantly, as Claimed?

The figures in cost that cloud computing can save for an enterprise need to be examined from a long-term perspective. Cloud computing can save a significantly high percentage of operational cost with optimization over the years. For example, leading image and photo-sharing platform SmugMug reduced operating costs by around 40% with AWS's EC2 A1 instances. Samsung's engineering wing reported nearly 20% savings on moving to AWS for handling their EPC design and information management.

2. Is It Always Cheap to Run Services on the Cloud?

As mentioned in the previous point, cloud computing starts to show its results in the long term. As more of your business's technology moves to cloud services, there will be significant reductions in operational costs when compared to managing the infrastructure to run them in an on-premises setup. Running a few apps in-house may appear to be cheaper in the short term, but as the business grows, more departments will need access to IT resources, and this will increase the infrastructure cost required to keep your in-house IT supportive of the increased demand.

3. Will My Data Be Secure on the Cloud?

In the initial days of cloud, security was a serious question. But today's cloud services have improved massively and now deploy the latest firewalls and AI-based intelligent security monitoring for added assurance. Cloud security comes with the added benefits of innovation and market research done by a cloud provider, thereby guaranteeing data security. It is better than choosing an in-house hosting for your technology stack. 

4. Is Cloud Computing Only for Tech Companies?

Cloud computing is for everyone. Gartner says that 87% of all senior business leaders prioritize digital as a key initiative in their organization. Cloud computing is central to a digital-friendly business and has more takers from every sector. It is not just big corporations or large companies that benefit from cloud computing. If you are updating your social media profile or checking your bank statement online, you are using an application hosted on the cloud. Most of these applications that we use daily are accessed through an internet connection. 

5. Can I Use the Cloud for Mission-Critical Applications?

In 2019, the US Pentagon awarded a USD 10 Billion contract to Microsoft Azure to move critical defense applications into a secure cloud environment. Cerner, one of the world's largest healthcare ERP providers, uses AWS to build vital clinical information management services that doctors rely on to save the lives of millions of patients daily. These are two striking examples to show that the cloud is a reliable option for any mission-critical service.

6. Will Cloud Computing Reduce IT Jobs In-House?

As with any emerging technology, cloud computing will create opportunities for existing technology folks to upskill and transition their expertise to a new dimension. There will be an increase in demand for people with cloud skills in the coming years as more businesses turn into a tech-driven enterprise.

7. Will Migrating to the Cloud Cause Extended Downtime?

Modern technology architecture like microservices combined with newer deployment and DevOps techniques assure businesses of near-zero downtime while migrating their business services to the cloud. When social media giants like Facebook upgrade their network or introduce new services, we hardly notice any downtime of their systems running in the cloud. Similar will be the case for any cloud service.

8. Is Cloud Computing Feasible for a Small Business?

82% of small businesses reported extensive cost savings when moving to the cloud. In the wake of the 2020 pandemic season, several small businesses could remain competitive solely because of their digital supremacy supported by an underlying cloud infrastructure. SMBs have reported significant improvements in productivity and agility. 

9. Will I Have Less Control Over My IT While Moving to a Cloud Service Provider?

Modern cloud services operate on customer's terms, and there are no virtual lock-ins by the provider. A business that moves to the cloud will have full flexibility to manage its applications, data, and policies and can scale up or down its cloud usage on its terms.

10. Will My Organization Be Entirely Digitally Transformed by Moving to the Cloud?

Cloud computing is a fundamental pillar of digital transformation. But by just moving your existing technology to the cloud doesn't guarantee a complete digital transformation experience. You need to re-align business processes, workflows and strategically introduce new digital platforms running on the cloud to every department in your business to make a complete transformation of your business with your IT spends.

Gartner reports that by 2022 nearly 28% or approximately $1.3 trillion of  global IT spending will be directly or indirectly attributed to cloud developments. Irrespective of your business's scale or operational domain, cloud computing will be a worthy choice. Now that you have an answer to those intriguing myths about cloud computing, there is nothing that stops you from picking the next generation of enterprise cloud platform to spur your business's growth.