Many people have already adapted and welcomed the cloud into their personal lives. The cloud holds favorite songs, photos, videos, and so much more. Best of all, it fits seamlessly into the way people use their tech and devices. However, the transition to the cloud for small business has been a slower process. For some businesses, there is a belief that moving to the cloud could be too expensive. Others may not want to mess with a system that already works. Ultimately, all of these issues boil down to the confusion around taking the first steps to get started with using cloud services.
The truth is that using the cloud for tasks like document storage and workflow automation is easier than many expect. The process doesn’t have to be costly or time consuming. In fact, for many small businesses, moving to the cloud has proven to save time and money. It may help explain why nearly 70% of businesses are moving to the cloud right now.
Embracing Automation
Automation isn’t just some fancy term that highly paid CEOs in big, Fortune 500 companies throw around. Thanks to advancements in artificial intelligence (AI), automation is something that businesses of all sizes can employ in their operations. Simply put, automation watches the way humans work and predicts the actions it can take to make their job easier moving forward. This helps reduce repetitive, mundane tasks for people and enables them to process workflows faster and more efficiently.
Many people fear automation as something that will take away their job. The reality of automation is that it manages simple tasks to free up humans to focus on the work that requires more brain power, creativity, and communication. Essentially, automation makes businesses more efficient. Things like repeated copying and pasting, transferring data, or digitally sorting files can be automated so employees can do the work that has the biggest effect on the bottom line.
Business Intelligence Support Through ECM
ECM, or enterprise content management, is an incredibly important aspect of moving to the cloud. With documents being delivered and transferred every day, ECM can help automatically identify and sort documents to save time and ensure everything gets to the right place for easy access in the future. This could include automated capture of email attachments, document management, and automated workflow tools to help improve efficiency.
In more real-life terms; this means that ECM could potentially capture a document from email, scan to see where it needs to go, and deliver it to the right person in a matter of seconds. No more letting documents sit and go forgotten, no more email chains trying to find who needs what document, and no more wasted time.
Cloud Computing Means Unlimited Processing
The challenge with physical hardware is that businesses are limited by the power and capability of the hardware they use. Short of spending more money on new hardware, businesses can’t increase their processing capabilities. With the cloud, processing power is virtually unlimited. Cloud services scale seamlessly alongside business needs. Need more document storage? No problem. Need AI that can watch and learn as the job is done? Also, no problem. None of this is possible with the average technology setup of a normal small business. By moving to the cloud, businesses are getting the power and technology they need for today as well as tomorrow.
Ultimately, this means the work of potentially several people (and machines) is done in the cloud at one low cost. Where businesses may have to hire additional staff like data analysts, they can now use the power of the cloud and AI to get the same results. All of this while freeing up their existing staff to be more efficient. This is where the true cost benefits of cloud services are seen.
Take the First Step Today
Moving to the cloud is not complicated, expensive, or time consuming. In fact, it aims to help accomplish better efficiency and cost savings in the long run. For small businesses, the cloud is not a fairy tale; it’s something that can be implemented today. To learn more about enabling your business to become more efficient and productive, contact the business technology experts at James Imaging Solutions today.