Cloud computing and “moving to the cloud” have been hot topics in the enterprise Business Intelligence (BI) market for what seems like forever. But for many companies, the decision to migrate their business intelligence systems to a modern cloud architecture still mainly comes down to one thing… cost. And while it’s true that there are cost savings associated with the cloud, cost is only one of many factors that can positively impact your business. Here are some of other hidden benefits of a cloud-based BI platform that should also be top of mind when making your decision.
Flexibility
Let’s face it, if you want to make smart decisions quickly, you need to stay flexible. Rigid systems with endless hurdles to cross just don’t cut it in today’s modern world. That’s why cloud BI makes so much sense, it represents the ultimate in flexibility.
When you’re on the cloud, rolling out new services and capabilities is quick and easy. There are dozens, if not hundreds, of different cloud features just waiting to be taken advantage of, all you need to do is install them. And the flexibility doesn’t end there. When it comes time to upgrade your cloud systems, updates happen just as quickly.
Yes, cost is also a big factor in flexibility as well. When your BI systems are in the cloud, you pay for only what you need and nothing that you don’t, as every cloud component can be ramped up or down as needed. If your analysts are away or asleep, your infrastructure needs are lower, and your cloud system costs you less. The same applies for support services. Cloud platforms are simpler to maintain, requiring only your DevOps team. And as you roll out new services, the cloud all but eliminates the costly up-front expenses of maintaining your own systems.
Better Resource Management
Historically, your BI systems have always be in a tug-of-war with your production systems. The more analysis you added, the slower your production systems became. The less analysis you did, the more in the dark you were as to what was really happening with your business. Fortunately, the cloud comes to the rescue once more by allowing your production systems to be easily mirrored in a cloud environment.
Mirroring data in the cloud not only enhances the performance of both systems, it also ensures one-way communication from production to analysis, keeping your production systems as the document of record. That said, if you want to update or augment production data with analytics, cloud BI can allow for writebacks, giving you the flexibility to have it both ways.
Security
Finally, no decision about BI in the cloud would be complete without the discussion of security. Modern cloud systems now employ best-in-class, role-based security models that match or surpass anything being used in deployed environments. Additionally, all major cybersecurity vendors now support cloud-based and hybrid-cloud security models, making the decision to move to the cloud even easier.
Conclusion
Business intelligence is really a match made in heaven for the cloud. It offers the increased flexibility, effective resource management capabilities, and an air-tight security model when compared to traditional on-premise or vendor-hosted BI solutions. That’s why Qrvey’s entire all-in-one data platform was born in the cloud, to fully take advantage of the next wave of data analytics and automation services.
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