Everyone is talking about ‘the cloud’ and how it can be beneficial for small and medium sized businesses, yet its uptake still remains limited. So what is the cloud? And why are organisations taking so long to implement it?

Despite its stated benefits, ‘the cloud’ is still being met with hesitation from many small and medium size businesses. It can be a daunting prospect, migrating all your information and data to an intangible place that can’t be physically moved or accessed. The security of data and information is also concerning, especially in regards to the ownership of the information, its accessibility and the level of privacy from local governments and the hosting organisations. So why pick the cloud? And what is all the fuss?

The commercialisation of IT has made tech gadgets cool and accessible on a mainstream scale, giving employees access to organisations’ information on a number of personal devices. This underlines the challenges that organisations face in regulating employee-owned devices in the workplace, as the protection of confidential information is paramount.