While formal adoption of cloud in SA is slow compared to our international counterparts, the country is far ahead of most developing countries.
This is according to principal researcher of the annual SME Survey and World Wide Worx MD, Arthur Goldstuck, who chatted to ITWeb recently in the run-up to the release of the results of the 2014 SME Survey.
Last year, Goldstuck highlighted a lack of awareness and poor understanding of the value of cloud as some of the biggest factors inhibiting cloud uptake in the enterprise market; a phenomenon that was mirrored in the SME space where poor decision making could have dire consequences for the business as a whole.
Today, Goldstuck asserts that larger enterprises are still driving cloud adoption in SA, with active cloud deployments in over half of corporates across the country. Conversely, less than a fifth of SMEs have embraced the cloud, he adds.
SMEs are heavily focused on cost-cutting and on finding cost-effective ways to leverage technology, he says.
When looking to transition into the cloud, Goldstuck advises that SMEs do their homework. "Make sure you know what alternatives exist for each of the services you want to use. Have a structured plan and follow it methodically. A scattergun or kneejerk approach can result in expensive mistakes."
In line with this, he encourages SMEs to do some research online to find case studies detailing the impact cloud has had on IT in organisations. "The more you educate yourself, the less apprehensive you will be, but also the better decisions you will be able to make."
He cites a lack of adequate skills as a significant stumbling block for SMEs in SA. While Goldstuck does cite outsourcing skills related directly to the SME's core business as "not ideal", for the more technical aspects of cloud usage, he does advise that - depending on the complexity of the task at hand - it may be a good idea to enlist the expertise of a service provider.
Goldstuck describes cloud adoption as a "no-brainer" for SMEs because it addresses everything from system costs and reliability to security, scalability and manageability.
Goldstuck believes cloud uptake in the SME sector will continue to be an area of interest as it becomes an increasingly important part of the local business landscape. And thus, cloud will continue to be a focal point in future research, he adds. "The goal is to discover both how it has grown since the last survey, and what is holding it back from more rapid growth."
The SME Survey 2014 is sponsored by the Small Enterprise Development Agency (SEDA), Business Connexion and Microsoft and it is the original representative survey of small, medium and micro enterprises in South Africa. The results of the SME Survey are due mid-2014.
For more information, visit www.smesurvey.co.za
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