Cloud is an innovative way to deliver IT software and services without the files sitting on your PCs and servers.
So long as a computer or tablet can connect to the Internet, it can access the Cloud.
More and more technologies are moving to the Cloud as web technologies advance and the cost of delivering hi-speed Internet drops. The latest big name brand to make the move is Microsoft. Microsoft’s Office 365 gives you the Microsoft Office products you’ve come to know and – maybe – love over the Internet. There are a lot of good things about Office 365 but before you take the plunge consider the following:
- Appoint an expert to help – Microsoft has appointed Telstra as it’s provider of Office 365 for small & medium business. This means you have to deal directly with Telstra should anything go wrong with your Office 365 service (e.g. a lost file or connection issue). We suggest a better option is to engage us to set-up and support Office 365 so if anything goes wrong then we are the ones responsible for dealing with Telstra. This gives our customers confidence because we are ultimately accountable for all IT issues, whether on-site or “in the cloud”.
- Your data may reside offshore – Microsoft has informed us that your Office365 files are likely to be residing somewhere in South East Asia although w
e don’t know much more than that. Don’t let this alarm you. “Data sovereignty” is a buzz phrase and concerns about your data being compromised by foreign governments are seriously over-hyped. There are however strategies to mitigate risk of exposing your sensitive documents (such as data encryption and “hybrid” cloud) and we can offer you different options depending on your needs. - Cloud is only part of the software puzzle – As of today you can’t move everything to the Cloud. Most software is not yet ready for the Cloud and others will perform a lot better within your current network. So whilst you can move Office and maybe your accounting software to the Cloud right now, your practice management software, operating system and custom-applicat
ions might be better installed on your PCs and servers.