Cloud computing, or the process of using remote cloud networks to store data rather than local servers, is being used at every organizational level. Since it conveniently meets a wide range of needs, from the individual to major corporations and governments, cloud computing has become one of the most widely discussed topics among the IT community. There has been a great deal of research and countless polls conducted to find out more on the industry trends.
Here are some interesting statistics you must know about cloud computing.
1) Banking makes up the majority of activity on the cloud
You might think social media would have the most activity on the cloud but actually it’s banking. With the introduction of mobile banking, cloud demand about doubled in 2013.
With the new trend of “peer-to-peer” lending or “crowdfunding” for loans, banking on the cloud has grown in popularity, pushing even more applications to be used in a cloud setting.
2) Over 60% of server workloads will be virtualized by 2014
This is quite a high number especially when compared to 2008, when only 12% of server workloads were moved to the cloud. But moving to the cloud has lots of benefits, from saving money by not having to buy and store physical hardware for storage to reducing a company’s carbon footprint by outsourcing their workload to data centers
3) 41% of profit-focused small businesses plan to invest in cloud computing in 2014
Every year the adoption of cloud computing is constantly increasing. Companies are recognizing the value of having software and infrastructure as an online service, which eliminates the need for expensive equipment and time consuming installation and software upgrades
4) Last year, inclement weather caused employee shortages for 73% of companies. Of these, only 39% had the ability to work remotely.
Cloud computing helps eliminate inconvenient staff shortages by allowing employees to access their work from any location in the world. This solves weather related issues that could reduce a company’s productivity during the winter season.
5) Over half of the U.S government has moved to the cloud
It is estimated that the U.S government spends about $2 billion annually on cloud services. Security has always been a major concern for the government which is a one of the main reasons why government agencies have been early adaptors of private cloud computing. Private clouds are scalable and offer enhanced security over the information shared over the environment.
6) Executives said that data recovery was the most important reason for moving to the cloud
As key benefits of storage in a public cloud, executives rated disaster recovery as the highest at 63%. Other top reasons include, centralizing data management (51%) and cost savings at 44%.
7) By 2014, IT organizations in 30% of global 1000 companies will either aggregate, integrate and customize two or more cloud services for internal and external users. That is an increase of 5% from 2013.
While these statistics do not provide a complete view of the current cloud computing world, it certainly illustrates the growth of virtual computing and storage popularity. Consider using cloud technology in your company to enhance efficiency and productivity in your workplace.
