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Cloud's disruption creates complexity - BPM software can help

Cindy Cheng, ​Sr. Director of Marketing Communications, EMEA, Appian
October 12, 2012

Cloud computing is widely regarded as a disruptive technology in the enterprise IT space. The solution completely shifts how businesses handle technology. A recent PC Advisor report explained that the cloud changes the operational landscape for both businesses and solution vendors, forcing them to shift how they get things done, but freeing them from many of the burdens associated with traditional IT setups.

As businesses adjust to the cloud, one of the primary challenges they face is having to deal with a major increase in the amount of information within the IT department and the pace at which it moves between systems. Business process management software can play a critical role in this process.

Scale of cloud's disruption

Before figuring out how to respond to the disruptive nature of cloud computing, businesses have to consider precisely how much the cloud will impact them. The report explained that cloud computing will affect enterprise operations similarly to how Henry Ford's assembly lines and standardized systems altered the manufacturing landscape. Companies turning to the cloud will leave behind their IT spending models that focus on capital investments, licenses and contracts that last for years and adopt a pay-per-use functionality that makes them flexible and eliminates a significant share of the capital costs that come with traditional IT.

This transformation also happens at the vendor level. The report explained that most technology service providers are used to making a small number of sales that involve high capital costs. With the cloud, they have to adjust their sales and marketing procedures to handle a much larger quantity of purchases, but with a lower fee paid by each customer.

Role of BPM software

For businesses and vendors alike, cloud computing accelerates IT. The large strategic investments are disappearing and being replaced by rapid new application investments. Keeping up with the pace of change and amount of data generated by users in the cloud can be overwhelming. This issue becomes even more problematic because companies also have to handle extra information coming in from social and mobile channels, which depend heavily on the cloud. BPM software can help integrate all of these systems, helping organizations get a better grip on how they interact and enabling them to turn the technology into new opportunities for operational growth.

Cindy Cheng

Director of Product Marketing

Cindy Cheng