Until the day that business becomes fully automated from start to finish, there will always be a human cap on efficiency. While more workers can be added to a point, the need to clarify and compile data will always act as a leash on a project timeline. Abraham Thomas, Intrinsic Technology Group from NYC mentions AI becomes smart enough to run a “human” business as well as humans (aided liberally by coffee) can, the only way to boost overall business agility is by picking up the time that tends to fall through the cracks.
Productivity: Death By a Thousand Cuts
So where exactly is this time slipping out of the hands of decision-makers and teams responsible for it? Leaks are everywhere, if you know how to spot them. Consider how often your company has lost time through any of these common pain points:
- The minutes spent hunting through a database looking for “final.FINAL.reallyfinalthistime.pdf”
- The minutes lost in the dreaded “walkthrough” call as one system fails to interface with another.
- The minutes lost in the eternal marketing PC-versus-creative department Mac OS battle.
- The minutes lost compensating for a crucial employee sick at home or working overseas.
While cloud computing isn’t necessarily a panacea for the issues that nip at productivity a few minutes at a time, it’s definitely a way to stem the proverbial bleeding.
The Great Equalizer
As computer systems have gotten more complex, the shift to cloud computing isn’t so much centered on the latest-and-greatest aspect of the feature. Rather, it’s focused on the ability for virtually (pun intended) any computer, Mac or PC, to access files without the need to buy expensive programs, install finicky drivers, and cope with slow-as-molasses updates on every boot-up.
When a company needs to update their in-house machines, or a remote worker needs to upgrade a laptop, IT doesn’t need to strong-arm the process into compliance. With cloud computing, the important data is stored, protected, and accessible to the right people, even if a motherboard decides to give up the ghost back at the office. It’s economical, too: while most cloud computing access does have a monthly, yearly, or data-based fee associated with it, it’s generally considerably lower than the cost to maintain expensive standalone storage devices that need hardware upgrades every few years.
Abraham Thomas reiterates that companies are still on the fence about trusting their data to the cloud: cloud computing is proven, at this point. With blue-chip companies and household brands alike trusting it to hold and dole out their data, smaller businesses can – and should – benefit from the stability of the tech’s evolution.
