Cost-effective solutions: Why the cloud is good for your bottom line

You don't need to be an expert in business to know that one of the best ways to increase your profit is to decrease your costs.

Thanks to cloud technology, that effort is made exceptionally easy. No matter the industry, cloud computing is streamlining essential business procedures and cutting corners without adding risk. To better understand what cloud computing can do for your business, here are a few ways the cloud optimizes budget.

Boosted productivity leads to higher revenues
Cloud-based processes can streamline many critical business functions. Supported by an ever-growing list of benefits, industries far and wide are accepting cloud infrastructure. In fact, LogicMonitor predicts that 95% of all workflows will be cloud-based by 2025.

For example, cloud-supported robotics accelerate many essential warehouse operations, including the picking and packing of goods. By automating an otherwise cumbersome process, cloud autonomy frees up time for warehouse associates to focus on other tasks.

Likewise, robotic picking and other transformative innovations are lifting a major weight off employee shoulders — literally and figuratively. Reducing the amount of physically and mentally strenuous labor that needs performing is going a long way toward eliminating burnout. Because replacing an employee is often costlier than retaining them, this is an exceptionally important cost benefit.

No upfront hardware or software costs
Many cloud computing solutions employ a software-as-a-service (SaaS) business model. Broadly speaking, SaaS refers to any application that's not supported on company premises. Instead, those services are housed, managed and maintained by a cloud-computing provider, but made completely accessible to the user via the internet.

In turn, businesses avoid the expensive overhead cost of purchasing hardware and software outright. Those needs are managed directly by the vendor. Consequently, businesses also save big on the cost of maintenance. No longer do companies need to employ an extensive in-house IT department to troubleshoot their issues. When it comes to scheduling and facilitating repairs, those procedures (and costs) are the responsibility of the vendor.

Better yet, when it comes time to upscale your business, cloud-based solutions are inherently scalable. An otherwise expensive and headache-riddled process is made quite simple when you employ cloud services.

Cost-effective solutions: why the cloud is good for your bottom line

Amplified process visibility
Plenty of cloud-based solutions also afford organizations a closer look into their operation. In other words, most cloud services help businesses collect data and insights to optimize their processes.

Workforce management software (WMS), for example, identifies inefficiencies in a company's labor. Managers can more effectively schedule their workers to ensure only enough hands are on deck for that day's workload (i.e. cutting down the cost of overtime).

Increased uptime and disruption avoidance
Thanks to the cloud, businesses are growing a thicker skin. In other words, cloud computing adds another resilient layer of protection between an organization and potential disruption.

Cloud-supported inventory management systems, for example, are supported by artificial intelligence. Using machine learning capabilities and predictive analytics, retailers can foresee disruptions into their supply chain and avoid costly stockouts. In fact, according to Retail Dive, inventory shortages cost retailers over $1 trillion in 2018.

Likewise, those same cloud technologies support predictive maintenance features. In simpler terms, organizations are using cloud-based predictive analytics to forecast when critical equipment and machinery will require repair. Not only does this ensure operator safety, it also prevents costly downtime of essential processes.

Cloud-based solutions are keeping organizations on their feet. To learn more about the cost-effective benefits of cloud computing, check out Perle's customer success stories.