7 Trends That Define The Next Phase Of Cloud Computing

Today, cloud computing has evolved to be a reliable and one of the prominent technologies that’s transforming digital businesses to a whole new level.

With latest collaboration tools, AI, machine learning, analytics and various business apps, cloud computing can now be termed as a reliable means of business innovation.

Organizations have scope to adapt and scale their business model as per changing market demands and opportunities. And, cloud computing plays a vital role by acting as a flexible infrastructure so companies can build new growth strategies.

Cloud trends are going to gain momentum and organizations will witness next phase of their cloud computing journey!

Here are few trends that will define the next phase of cloud computing:

1. HYBRID ARCHITECTURES

Instead of ‘one-cloud-fits-all’ approach, organizations will embrace hybrid multi-cloud architectures to reap maximum benefits out of their cloud investments.

Today, nearly 80% of business processes are still running on-premises, whilst only 20% of them have moved to cloud.

Sensitive data and workloads are not always suitable for public cloud, even if it’s a cost-effective path. Which is why, businesses will integrate public and private clouds, thereby embracing hybrid multi-cloud approach along with best resources derived from different cloud vendors.

2. OPEN CLOUD TECHNOLOGY WILL BECOME MORE COMMON

Open technology allows businesses to carry out inter operation of data, applications and platforms.

Not only does it attract expansive markets, but also provides new opportunities to secure, update and administer open-source application containers across clusters of hosts over time. Upcoming year will witness more and more companies switching to open cloud technologies.

3. CLOUD SKILLS WILL PROSPER

In order to embrace hybrid multi-cloud architectures, organizations need to enhance their skill set and change the way they’ve been working. Departmental teams need to be equipped with new cross-platform tools, knowledge of API, best practices to handle data integration, automation experience and more.

Job titles such as cloud automation engineer, cloud architect, cloud service broker, cloud project manager, etc. will become more common as organizations will move towards hybrid cloud environments.

4. SECURITY WILL BECOME PARAMOUNT

As organizations evolve into the next phase of their cloud computing journey, they will start to integrate private clouds, public clouds and on-premises IT. Today, many firms are handling around 4 to 15 different cloud vendors at a time, which makes them vulnerable to security risks caused due to poor control, management and visibility. Organizations might not be fully aware of threat posture of their data and applications.

To avoid this problem, developers will integrate security as a major part of their app development process, especially in SaaS development. Incorporating best practices of security into every step of application development will allow businesses to manage, control and protect the entire system better.

5. EDGE COMPUTING WILL BE AT THE FOREFRONT

Consistent and rapid development of telecommunication and IT will make edge computing more popular in upcoming year. It will not only create new opportunities for companies to embrace new technologies but also enhance their computing power.

Value and scale of edge computing will hike up rapidly. Meaning, companies will have the ability to expand automation, drive innovation and reduce response-times even in low-bandwidth locations.

Software-defined networks and hybrid cloud architectures will greatly use edge computing. Thereby, allowing companies to improve visibility and protect, analyze and derive important data from cameras, sensors and other technical equipment.

Open technologies will also allow edge locations to stay in sync with cloud, so as to provide consistent user experience all throughout.

6. CREATE NEW CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE DIMENSION

Cloud computing will create a whole new dimension of customer experience as organizations will embrace new, smart technologies and integrate them with cloud.

When cloud is used in conjunction with machine learning, AI, analytics and IoT, it will not only change the way digital businesses work but also innovate customer interactions with brands.

Companies will also have the ability to analyze large dimensions of data including customer experience data and operational data. These insights can then be used to build new products and services in order to deliver better customer experiences.

7. CLOUD WILL BE MAINSTREAM

No more will cloud computing be considered as ‘emerging’, rather it will be a mainstream adoption in digital companies.

According to Gartner’s Hype Cycle for Cloud Computing, this technology is predicted to be the fastest growing, IT spending category out of $3.77trillion total global information technology spend in 2018. Around 72% businesses are estimated to adopt cloud computing globally by the year 2022, as per latest WEF survey.

Final Words

Organizations are rapidly entering the next phase of cloud computing and it’s an exciting environment to work in. From AI, hybrid multi-cloud to blockchain, security and quantum, companies are greatly investing in these emerging segments to dominate the market.

We look forward to see new cloud trends being embraced by companies in upcoming year.