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Cloud computing security can be a scary word for SME’s. I mean, how secure could your data possibly be if it’s floating around in space!? Especially with all of these cyber-attacks we are hearing in the news…

But what if cloud computing was safer than your small business system? Before you look for a cave to curl up in, let us explain a few points:

It’s not brand-brand new, having been launched late in 2016, but Microsoft Flow is a rather unsung hero in the Microsoft pantheon. It’s a hero nonetheless, though, because it can transform the way you work.

In most offices today, there are several different options for where you can save your work. The standard place might still be ‘My Documents’, but depending on what you are working on, the other popular options are Microsoft’s OneDrive and SharePoint cloud services. Knowing which one is best for any given type of work is important, as it can facilitate improved collaboration and better working.

This post deals with OneDrive and SharePoint and helps you decide which one to use in any given situation.

But first, let’s find out more out each application.

What’s the ‘power to know’ worth? (Yes, we know that’s the slogan of a business intelligence vendor…SAS, to be specific). Ask most people and they will easily agree that accurate information, as detailed as the situation demands, is invaluable.

That’s why data analytics is tipped for big things by the likes of Gartner. The growth in spend, to over US$18-billion this year, is matched by the positive attitude which business leaders have towards concepts like big data (which is a branch of analytics). 85 percent of them believe it will dramatically change the way they do business. 

There’s good reason for all that positivity. Analytic tools take raw data and turn it into valuable information to support decisions made by people. Combine gut feel with data insights and amazing things can happen: customers can be better served, problems anticipated and prevented, performance tracked and managed ‘at the minute’, products developed more effectively and at lower cost – and much, much more.

Getting your business into the cloud can happen by stealth or it can happen through conscious direction and effort – in other words, by strategy. That’s by far the better approach, as it means you have a level of control, can understand the advantages and challenges, and manage any risks. It also means you can apply our four top tips to bear in mind when building your cloud strategy.

Considering Microsoft Office 365 as your first step in moving to the cloud? Like any other applications, there may be some inconsistencies in your research giving rise to myths which make it difficult to separate fact from fiction. Here are our top four – dispel these ones and make a more informed decision.

You will by now have heard the term 'Cloud Computing' a lot.  You probably have found that the term 'cloud computing' is used for completely different and apparently contradictory circumstances. Google, Uber and Amazon are all 'cloud' but very different services. Didn't Amazon once sell books?  AWS, Evernote, Uber, AirBnB, Office 365, Google - all cloud, all quite distinct.

Moving into the cloud is going to be different for every business, but there are also some similarities. The major one is that there will be some principles which apply broadly, chief among them the fact that the journey – for it is a journey – is likely to be an iterative one. Few companies are born into the cloud, or migrate to it in a single ‘lift and shift’ moment. For most, it is a process which starts with testing the waters, then gradually examining the various services required by the organisation, then moving those into the cloud if, when and where there is advantage to be gained.

Throughout this process, your business has an opportunity to relook at IT: how does it operate, what value does it add, and how? The journey into the cloud, therefore, is probably transformative already, but it can become even more so by revisiting the way IT is delivered and consumed. It is therefore a change management process as much as a technology migration one.

Check out these best practices to get the most out of moving into the cloud.

Do business like efficiency? (of course you do)! Keen to get things working better? Then there are four technologies which you should consider, if you haven’t already, to get your business humming – and which could even give you the competitive edge. They are:

Office 365 has probably completely changed your view of Microsoft's world-leading productivity suite. For starters, tighter integration and more tools mean using much more than Word and Excel, it is a proven solution for streamlining your business and there are pleanty of good reasons to consider moving to Office 365 if you haven't already.

But for those who are into the Office 365 experience, there's always something new to learn; one of our favourite things to do with the software is to find ways to make it work even better for us. Check out these four epic hacks which have made Office 365, easier, better and faster.