Biz4Afrika

THE CLOUD TOOLKITA Guide for Small and Medium Enterprises

Table of contents
PART

01
PART

02
PART

03
2 | The Cloud Toolkit

WHAT IS CLOUD COMPUTING
Concept of Cloud Computing.....................................................5
Characteristics of Cloud Computing..........................................7
Model of Cloud Computing.........................................................7

CLOUD COMPUTING STRUCTURES FOR
SMALL AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES
Types of Cloud Computing Services Available.......................9
Types of Cloud Computing Deployments Available.........13

USE OF CLOUD COMPUTING IN SMALL
AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES
Why is Cloud Computing Important in Small Business...17
Cloud Computing Advantages.................................................20
Cloud Computing Disadvantages...........................................22

PART

04

CLOUD COMPUTING ADOPTION COSTS
Total Cost of Ownership..............................................................24
Increase in Return on Capital....................................................26
Other Costs to Consider.............................................................27

PART

05
PART

06
PART

07

CLOUD COMPUTING: CONSIDERINGPOLICIES AND GOVERNANCE
General Data Protection Regulation.......................................29
Policies...............................................................................................31

CLOUD COMPUTING IN BUSINESS:
PRACTICAL CASES
Farming and Agriculture.............................................................33
Education and Training................................................................35
Healthcare........................................................................................37
Logistics and Transportation......................................................39

PART

08
PART

09

NEXT STEPS: GETTING CLOUDCOMPUTING FOR YOUR BUSINESS.............................................................................................................55

MICROSOFT CLOUD COMPUTINGDICTIONARY.............................................................................................................58

ROADMAP FOR CLOUD COMPUTING
Steps for Successful Strategic Cloud Computing
Deployment.....................................................................................43
Keys to Success...............................................................................54

The Cloud Toolkit |3

01

4 | The Cloud Toolkit

THE CLOUDCOMPUTING TOOLKITThis cloud computing toolkit has been developed by Microsoft
to provide non-technical entrepreneurs and small businesses theunderstanding as well as practical know how on adopting cloudtechnology.

CONCEPT OF CLOUD COMPUTING
Although cloud computing is not a physical object, it is made up of a series of tangible elements. It is a massive
network of remote servers around the world which are linked together and work as a single ecosystem.
These remote servers store and manage data, run applications, deliver content or a service such as streaming videos,
web mail, or social media. Cloud computing means that you are not accessing files and data from your local or
personal computer, but that you are accessing them online from any internet enabled device.
Information that is stored in the cloud is available anywhere you go and anytime you need it, giving entrepreneurs
access to data wherever they have an internet connection. It is important that in today’s fast-moving business climate,small business owners get what they need right when they need it, whether they’re on their computers, tablets ormobile phones – or in the office, out in the field or on the road. This is exactly the convenience that cloud computing
provides entrepreneurs. You don’t have to be at your desk to access your work.
Cloud computing is an evolving concept which continues to optimise IT performance of small and medium enterprises
because of the low cost on infrastructure. It is an on-demand computing service which provides pay per use
opportunities to small and medium enterprises.
Where have you possibly used cloud computing services before?

Think about it………
Whenever you travel using a bus,
you get a ticket for your specificdestination and sit in your seat
until you reach your destination.
Likewise, other passengers also
get tickets and travel in the samebus with you, and you don’t
worry about where they aregoing. When your stop comes,
you get off the bus and thankthe driver. Cloud computing isjust like that bus, carrying dataand information for different
users, and allows users to use theservice at minimal cost.

The Cloud Toolkit |5

Cloud computing is a phrase used to cover a wide range of services, including:

CLOUD COMPUTING

6 | The Cloud Toolkit

Cloud storage

Cloud backup

Cloud hosting

Stores and backs up
your files for regularaccess and for sharing
and synchronising themacross all devices.

Similar to cloud storage,
but primarily used asa backup source in theevent of a computer
hard-drive crash,cyberattack or otherdata loss.

Facilitates all types of
information sharing,such as email services,
application hosting,web-based phonesystems and data
storage.

CHARACTERISTICS OF CLOUD COMPUTING
It is important for entrepreneurs to understand the basic characteristics of cloud computing so that they can use its
services properly. Basically, cloud computing enables entrepreneurs to increase their capacity by offering remotemanagement and control of information. The following are some important characteristics of cloud computing:

LOW

Low Costs
Small businesses will save in rack space, power usage and IT requirements,
such as hardware and software installations, maintenance, upgrades and support.
For small businesses, especially, those savings are invaluable.
Greater Collaboration

Think about it………

Ability to save files using collaboration tools enables better teamwork for example
the editing of documents.

Based on the characteristics ofcloud computing, how could
implementing these services

Increased Flexibility

be beneficial to your business?

Ability to access work-related files and information from any device,
anywhere and at any time.
Greater Integration
Small businesses can take advantage of specialised services that fit in with back-office
operations, from human resources to marketing or accounting.
It is important for entrepreneurs to have a full understanding of how to implement and use cloud computing services.
It enables entrepreneurs to understand the services available in the cloud computing market and how to use these
services to achieve organisational goals.
Check out Microsoft’s tips on how to choose a Cloud Service Provider
The Cloud Toolkit |7

02

8 | The Cloud Toolkit

CLOUD COMPUTINGSTRUCTURES FOR SMALL
AND MEDIUM ENTERPRISES
Three basic categories of cloud computing services are available
for small and medium enterprises. Entrepreneurs should determine
which of the basic cloud computing services would best fit their IT
requirement. These services can meet every IT requirement of small
and medium enterprises with constant support from thetelecommunication and IT industries.

TYPES OF CLOUD SERVICES AVAILABLE
The three major cloud computing offerings are:

Software as a Service (SaaS)

Platform as a Service (PaaS)

Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)

Different businesses use some or all these components according to their different requirements.

SaaS
PaaS
IaaS

HostedDevelopment
applications/apps tools, data
management,
business analytics

Operating systems

Servers andstorage

Networking
firewalls/security

Data centre physicalplant/building

The Cloud Toolkit |9Software as a Service (SaaS)
Software as a service (SaaS) provides small and medium enterprises with the option to purchase a complete
software solution on a pay-as-you-go basis from a cloud service provider. Entrepreneurs rent the use of an app
for their organisation, and their users connect to it over the Internet, usually with a web browser. All the underlying
infrastructure, middleware, app software, and app data are in the service provider’s data centre.
The service provider manages the hardware and software, and with the appropriate service agreement, will ensure
the availability and the security of the app and data. SaaS allows the business to be operational quicker with an app
at minimal upfront cost.
Typical functions for businesses using SaaS include:
Web-base email service
These are free services for personal use. With these services, entrepreneurs log into their accountover the Internet. The email software is located on the service provider’s network, and messages
are stored there as well. Entrepreneurs can access email and stored messages from a web
browser on any computer or Internet-connected device.
At a glance
Examples are email, calendaring, and office tools(such as Microsoft Office 365).

What SaaS services are you currently making use of?

10 | The Cloud Toolkit

Subscribe
Think about it………
Traditionally, software applications
needed to first be purchased
and then installed onto yourcomputer. SaaS users cannow, instead of purchasing thesoftware, subscribe to it, usuallyon a monthly basis, via theinternet. They have access to it
immediately.

Find out about
Microsoft SaaS products
herePlatform as a Service (PaaS)
Platform as a service (PaaS) is a complete development and deployment environment in the cloud, with resourcesthat enable you to deliver everything from simple cloud-based apps to sophisticated, cloud-enabled enterpriseapplications.
Like IaaS, PaaS includes infrastructure servers, storage, and networking — but also middleware, development tools,
business intelligence (BI) services, database management systems, and more.
PaaS allows entrepreneurs to avoid the expense and complexity of buying and managing software licenses, theunderlying application infrastructure and middleware or the development tools and other resources. You manage theapplications and services you develop, and the cloud service provider typically manages everything else.

Think about it………
To understand PaaS in a simple
term, let us compare it withpainting a picture, where you
are provided with paint colours,
different types of paint brushes
and paper by your school teacher.

Typical functions for businesses using PaaS include:
Development framework
PaaS provides a framework that developers can use to customise cloud-based applications.
Cloud features such as scalability, high-accessibility, and multi-user capability are included,
reducing the amount of coding required.

All you must do is just draw abeautiful picture using those tools.

In a nutshell
PaaS is designed to support
the complete web application

Analytics or business intelligence
Businesses can use PaaS to analyse and research their own data. This allows them to find insights
and predict outcomes to improve forecasting, product design decisions and investment returns.

lifecycle: building, testing,deploying, managing, andupdating.

Additional services
PaaS offers other application enhancements such as workflow, directory, security, and scheduling.

The Cloud Toolkit |11

Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS)
Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS) is the least disrupting cloud computing service adopted by small and medium
enterprises. IaaS is an instant computing infrastructure, supplied and managed over the Internet.
IaaS eliminates the need to invest in and manage your own physical servers and other data centre infrastructure. Eachresource is offered as a separate service component, and it is only necessary to rent what you want and for the periodthat you need it. The infrastructure is managed by the cloud computing service provider, while you purchase, install,configure, and manage your own software operating systems, middleware, and applications
Typical functions for businesses using IaaS include:
Test and Development
Teams can quickly set up and dismantle test and development environments, bringing new
applications to the market faster. IaaS makes it quick and economical to scale to environments.

Think about it………
IaaS provides access tocomputing resources in a virtualenvironment, “the cloud” on theinternet. It provides computing
infrastructure like virtual server
space, network connections,bandwidth, load balancers and IP
addresses. The pool of hardware
resource is taken from multiple

Website hosting
Operating websites using IaaS can be less expensive than traditional web hosting.

servers and networks, distributed
across many data centres. This
provides redundancy andreliability to IaaS users. Think of
the cost savings you can have inStorage, backup, and recovery
IaaS can assist entrepreneurs in handling unpredictable demand and steadily growing
storage needs, while also eliminating the need for capital expenditure for storage and storage
management.
Web applications
IaaS provides infrastructure to support web apps, including storage, web and application servers,
and networking resources. Web apps can be easily scaled up and down when demand for theapps is unpredictable.
12 | The Cloud Toolkit

your small business.

Watch this video tofind out more

TYPES OF CLOUD COMPUTING DEPLOYMENTS AVAILABLE
Public Cloud
Public clouds are the most common deployment of cloudcomputing. A third-party cloud service provider owns
and operates the cloud resources (servers and storage).
All hardware, software, and other supporting
infrastructure is owned and managed by the cloudprovider. Microsoft Azure is an example of a public cloud.

Cloud “tenants” share the same hardware, storage, andnetwork devices with other cloud “tenants.” Entrepreneurs
access services and manage accounts using a web
browser. Public cloud deployments are frequently used
to provide web-based email, online office applications,storage, and testing and development environments.

No MaintenanceYour service provider
provides themaintenance.

Google Cloud Engine
Salesforce.com
Amazon AWS
Microsoft Office 365

Advantages of Public Clouds

Lower Costs
No need to purchasehardware or software,and you pay only forthe service you use.

At a glance

Near-unlimited
Scalability
On-demand
resources areavailable to meetyour business needs.

High Reliability
A vast network ofservers ensuresagainst failure.

Public cloud is usually used for B2C (Business to Consumer) type interactions. Here the computing resource is owned,
governed and operated by a third party.

The Cloud Toolkit | 13

Private Cloud
Private clouds are often used by government agencies,
financial institutions, any other mid-to-large sizedorganisations with business-critical operations seeking
enhanced control over their environment.

As the name suggests, the private cloud is used
exclusively by one business. The private cloud can bephysically located in the organisation’s on-site datacentre,
or it could be hosted by a third-party service provider.
The hardware and software are dedicated solely to theorganisation.

Advantages of a Private Cloud

At a glancePrivate cloud offers agility,
scalability and efficiency of the
public cloud, but provides higher
levels of security and control.
This makes it ideal for larger
companies or those with strict
data regulations.

Flexibility
The cloudenvironment can becustomised to meet
specific businessneeds.

14 | The Cloud Toolkit

Enhanced Security
Resources are notshared with others,so higher levels ofcontrol and security
are possible.

High Scalability
Private clouds afford
the scalability andefficiency of a public
cloud.

Hybrid Clouds
Hybrid clouds are a combination of private clouds andpublic clouds, so organisations can reap the advantagesof both. Data and applications can move between
private and public clouds for greater flexibility and more
deployment options.

For instance, the public cloud could be used for highvolume, lower-security needs such as web-based email,while the private cloud could be used for sensitive
company operations like financial reporting.
At a glance
Organisations can havetheir HR and CRM data in a

Advantages of Hybrid Clouds

public cloud like Azure but
have confidential data intheir private cloud.

Control
The organisation canmaintain a private
infrastructure forsensitive assets.

Flexibility
The public cloud
can be used when
demand requires it.

Cost-effectivenessWith the ability to scale
to the public cloud andpay for extra computing
power only whenneeded.

The Cloud Toolkit | 15

CONSIDER PUBLIC CLOUD SOLUTIONS IF:CONSIDER PRIVATE CLOUD SOLUTIONS IF:• Growth is dynamic and computing demand will fluctuate over time
• Keeping costs low by taking advantage of economies of scale 		is appealing• Growth is predictable and computing demand is stable over time
• Accepting higher, but predictable costs to ensure dedicated 		
resources is strongly desired
If you need more help deciding, check out theMicrosoft Cloud Adoption Guide

Which solution do you think is right for you?

16 | The Cloud Toolkit

03

USE OF CLOUD COMPUTINGIN SMALL AND MEDIUMENTERPRISESWHY IS CLOUD COMPUTING IMPORTANT IN A SMALL BUSINESS?
Cloud computing is convenient and keeps people productive. Apps anddata can be accessed at any time from any internet-connected device. It
is also cost effective as the organisation only pays for the services theyuse. You’re probably already using cloud computing at work, just like yourpersonal email, and your business email may also be cloud-based.
Other uses of the cloud include collaboration and communication,
productivity, file backup, data analysis, tools for developing software, andmore. Cloud computing can also enhance business processes as data canbe replicated at multiple redundant sites on the cloud provider’s network.

The Cloud Toolkit | 17

Below are some examples of how businesses use cloud computing:Communication
Communication and collaboration tools like email, calendaring, messaging and voice and video callingapps like Skype all take advantage of the cloud. The messages and information are located on theservice provider’s network rather than on personal devices.

Think about it………
Based on the examples on thispage and the next, do you think

Productivity
Office tools (like Microsoft Office 365) can be cloud-based, which allows you to connect to yourmost-used apps over the Internet. You can work in your document, presentation, or spreadsheet
software from virtually anywhere. With your information securely stored in the cloud, you don’t
have to worry about losing your data if your device fails.

Business processes
Many sophisticated business applications such as customer relationship management, enterprise
resource planning, and document management can be rented from a cloud service provider. This
ensures the availability and security of the organisation’s business-critical resources.

18 | The Cloud Toolkit

your business should employ
cloud computing?
Which of the six areas above do
you think cloud computing would
benefit you the most?

After listing yourareas, get started using
Cloud Computing today
using Microsoft Azure.

File storage
Many cloud services automatically synchronise your files from your desktop. Your stored files can be
retrieved from another computer or device. Organisations pay only for the storage used, and don’t haveto maintain the infrastructure—the cloud service provider does this.

Backup and recovery
When utilising cloud services for backup and recovery, the organisation avoids capital outlay for
infrastructure and management. The cloud services provider is responsible for managing data
and meeting legal and compliance requirements.

Big data analytics
Cloud computing enables data to be analysed for trends and insights, and to make other businessdecisions. Cloud services can provide your organisation with sophisticated tools for data mining, as wellas the ability to quickly scale your environment as your data grows.

The Cloud Toolkit | 19

CLOUD COMPUTING ADVANTAGES
Cloud computing is highly beneficial for mid-sized and large companies, but now smallerfirms are also adopting and using its benefits to grow their businesses.
Cost
Cloud computing eliminates the capital expense of buying hardware and software and setting up and runningon-site datacentres such as the racks of servers, the round-the-clock electricity for power and cooling, and the
IT experts for managing the infrastructure. Costs can add up fast.

Speed
Most cloud computing services are provided as self service and on demand services, so even vast amountsof computing resources can be provisioned in minutes, typically with just a few mouse clicks, giving businesses
a lot of flexibility and taking the pressure off capacity planning.

Global Scale
The benefits of cloud computing services include the ability to scale elastically, in other words, the ability to growor shrink your deployment on demand. This refers to delivering the right amount of IT resources, for example,
more or less computing power, storage, bandwidth, exactly when its needed.

Productivity
On-site datacentres typically require a lot of “racking and stacking” including the hardware set up, software
patching, and other time-consuming IT management chores. Cloud computing removes the need for manyof these tasks, so IT teams can spend time on achieving more important business goals.

20 | The Cloud Toolkit

Performance
The biggest cloud computing services run on a worldwide network of secure datacentres, which are regularly
upgraded to the latest generation of fast and efficient computing hardware. This offers several benefits overa single corporate datacentre, including reduced network latency for applications and greater economies ofscale.
Reliability
Cloud computing makes data backup, disaster recovery, and business continuity easier and less expensive,
because data can be mirrored at multiple redundant sites on the cloud provider’s network.

Maintenance
Cloud computing is easy to manage as it is not required to be physically installed on your computer and canbe reached from any location with an internet connection. A feature of cloud computing is that it allows service
providers to maintain, host, develop, and test applications in the cloud. In this way, developers can modify andlaunch different programs as compared to setting up systems and infrastructure themselves.

Continuously Evolving
Cloud computing, storage, networking, and interface requirements of the customers are continuously evolving,
meaning that you will always have access to the latest software versions.

The Cloud Toolkit | 21

CLOUD COMPUTING DISADVANTAGES
Cloud computing is highly beneficial for mid-size and large companies, but now smallerfirms are also adopting and using its benefits to grow their businesses.
Lack of Control
Cloud computing is fully owned, managed and monitored by service providers
and thus end users have minimum control over it. End users only have control overservices, data, and applications that they pay for. Further, customers do not haveaccess to servers to perform administrative tasks such as upgrading of firmware
and managing updates.
Network Dependency
Cloud computing is a completely internet dependent service. In the event of unstable,
unreliable or total outage of the internet, service delivery by the company could becompromised. Service interruption can occur during transactions, file transmission,or other tasks and as a result tasks can be delayed.
Risk
Every cloud computing component is highly accessible from internet servers.
While every effort is made to secure data, cyber-attacks and hard security
breaches may possibly occur.

Migration Issue
Migration to cloud computing is not without its challenges with the selection of suitable
cloud vendors, effective management of cloud resources, and transitions of IT hardware
and investments being the foremost.

22 | The Cloud Toolkit

Think about it………
Now you know the advantages and disadvantages of using cloud computing.
Make a list of elements which could affect your business.

The Cloud Toolkit | 23

04

CLOUD COMPUTINGADOPTION COSTSTOTAL COST OF OWNERSHIPThe total cost of ownership is a financial estimate to guide
entrepreneurs to identify some of the direct and indirect costs
involved in adopting cloud computing in the business.
Below are a few cost elements to consider in cloud adoption:

24 | The Cloud Toolkit

Investment costs
Cloud computing infrastructure costs include charges related to software licenses, hosting, support
and other service components. Sharing these costs with other organisations using public cloud iswhat makes IaaS a cost-effective option.

Migration
When utilising cloud services for backup and recovery, the organisation avoids capital outlay for
infrastructure and management. The cloud services provider is responsible for managing data
and meeting legal and compliance requirements.

Monthly/yearly cloud fee
Cloud computing enables data to be analysed for trends and insights, and to make other businessdecisions. Cloud services can provide your organisation with sophisticated tools for data mining,as well as the ability to quickly scale your environment as your data grows.

The Cloud Toolkit | 25

INCREASED RETURN ON INVESTMENT (ROI)
ROI is the proportionate increase in the value of an investment over time. It can be measured
in a variety of ways. There are four basic ways to improve ROI, they are: to decrease theinvestment, increase revenue, decrease costs, and make the return faster.
There are several fundamental drivers that
impact ROI in cloud computing, namely; productivity, speed, size, and quality.

Productivity
Cloud computing
contributes to ROI
through improved speedof operation.

26 | The Cloud Toolkit

Time to Deployment
Cloud computing
provides an increase in
speed, which enables
small and medium
enterprises to accessthe resources they needfaster.

Size
The combination of
low costs and fastdelivery makes products
and services morecompetitive, generating
more business and larger
scale of operation.

Quality
Productiveness resulting
from better asset use andfaster operation deliver
lower costs. This resultsin improved margins andmore profit.

OTHER COSTS TO CONSIDER
Bandwidth
This refers to the data transfer capacity of a network. Internet providers typicallydenote bandwidth speeds in millions of bits per second, or megabits (Mbps), andbillions of bits per second, or gigabits (Gbps). The rate paid for bandwidth varies
across countries in Africa.

CHEC
LIST K

Think about it………
Make a list of the costs and prices

Training of staff
To calculate staffing changes when adopting cloud computing, entrepreneurs
must first identify staffing requirements. Develop tools that measure existing
service management capabilities, including staff, processes, tools, and values, whenevaluating cloud adoption. Entrepreneurs will likely need to adjust IT talent within thebusiness.

Updates in technology
This will not cost the business as the cloud service provider has the responsibility of
upgrading the technology. For them to maintain their business and provide the best
service, the service provider will continually update services.

that you expect to incur when you
adopt cloud computing.

Use the Microsoft
pricing calculator toestimate your cloud
costs

Support services
A business may not have all the skills and resources necessary to execute a cloudcomputing strategy. An outsider’s perspective can be helpful in several areas
including mapping a strategic approach, developing a cloud architecture, or
executing the migration process. A consultant’s knowledge and experience could
be very valuable.
The Cloud Toolkit | 27

05

28 | The Cloud Toolkit

CLOUD COMPUTING:CONSIDERING POLICIESAND GOVERNANCE

GENERAL DATA PROTECTION REGULATIONThe General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) was implemented in May 2018 by the European
Union (EU). This act governs consumers’ private information and it could have a big effect on how
businesses handle privacy. This level of regulatory overview of personal data is unprecedented
and will require companies to ensure the highest levels of privacy protection or suffer dire financial
consequences.
This data protection legislation has been adopted in seventeen counties in Africa. Additionally, theAfrican Union (AU) has adopted the AU Convention on Cybersecurity and Data Protection, whichis pending approval by fifteen of the fifty-four AU members.
The data protection legislation adopted by African countries share many principles with the GDPR.
There are however a few areas in which they differ. Some authorities might require businesses
to register with a data protection authority while others may not. Some countries may be very
prescriptive on cross-border data transfers , while others may have little or no requirements.
It is very important to understand the requirements that are set out in each country to ensurethat the business complies and operates within these regulations.
Entrepreneurs need to make sure that they have a high data protection standard in place when
adopting cloud computing services. If a higher standard is used, in conjunction with a country’s
legislative requirements, compliance efforts will be streamlined.

The Cloud Toolkit | 29

Think about it………
Make sure you comply with the GDPR by following the steps below:
STEP

ABOUT

Get Informed

Know all you need to know about GDPR.

Audit data collection practices

Consumers need to be informed regarding datacollection practices. Let them know why you collectdata, and what the data will be used for.

Review how you get consent

A core pillar of GDPR is getting consent fromconsumers to receive emails or even simple
communications. Make sure you include this in yourcommunications with your customer.

Refresh your privacy policy

Update your privacy notices to provide theadditional information required by the GDPR.

GDPR is a reality

Businesses need to train employees in best practicewhen it comes to handling data in accordance with
the GDPR. This will also apply to third parties whoare employed to process data on a business’s behalf.

Complete the GDPR Compliance Checklist
Take the detailed Microsoft GDPR assessment here

30 | The Cloud Toolkit

CHECK

POLICIES
The Information and Communications Technologies (ICT) environment is dynamic and rapid
technological development is changing how we communicate and access information andservices. Cloud computing has a huge impact on the rate of change and is one of the main
reasons why this environment keeps changing. It is important that your business operates
within the policies and regulations set out by each country.

Think about it………
In which countries do you

Familiarise yourself with the ICT Policies in your country and make sure you comply with all theregulations in place. If you are operating across Africa, you will need to familiarise yourself withthe policies and regulations of those countries as well.
COUNTRYICT POLICYSouth Africa

ICT White Paper

Kenya

National ICT Policy

Ghana

Ghana ICT Policy

Nigeria

National ICT Policy

Egypt

ICT Strategy

RELEVANCY TO YOUR
BUSINESS

operate?
Make a list of the policies andregulations you will need tofamiliarise yourself with.

The Cloud Toolkit | 31

06

32 | The Cloud Toolkit

CLOUD COMPUTING IN
BUISNESS: PRACTICALCASESFARMING AND AGRICULTURE
Farmers and others in the agricultural sector spend most of their time trying to control theuncontrollable. The seasons, climate patterns, and precipitation levels are in constant change,
and the effects of climate change are being felt globally. But farmers could take more controlof the uncontrollables with the help of technology.
Cloud computing could be used to gather data from tools like soil sensors, satellite images,
and weather stations to assist farmers in making informed decisions about crop management.
The cloud’s analytic capabilities could also assist farmers to comprehend their production
environment.
This wealth of information can be uploaded to the cloud, which has enough storage, speed, andprocessing power to analyse the collected data and package it in a form that would be useful tothe agricultural sector. Timely processing of data would allow producers to act within the growing
season and address issues before they become harmful in harvesting seasons.

Wind

18mph

Humidity33%

Day to day

Soil%

The Cloud Toolkit | 33

SMART AGRICULTURE SOLUTIONS– CASE STUDYJapanese university uses cloud software to develop smart agriculture solutions“Osaka Prefecture University is helping lead the development of smart agriculture
technologies, including plant factories where crops can be grown indoors under
carefully controlled conditions. The university is using Midori Cloud, developed
by Seraku and built on the Microsoft Azure cloud platform, to help manage theseenvironments. With access to detailed climate, soil, vegetable image, and facilities
data provided by Midori Cloud, farmers can produce more and better crops andhelp rejuvenate the Japanese agriculture industry.
Smart agriculture aims to improve production efficiency by establishing anenvironment that can be managed in an integrated fashion by more easily
monitoring conditions inside a greenhouse, such as changes in temperature andhumidity. In March 2015, the Plant Factory Research Center adopted the Midori
Cloud remote monitoring system for greenhouse environments to facilitate such
advanced management.
“Among the farmers who are actually using Midori Cloud, there are some cases
in which the webcam has been used to help monitor parts of the facility, such as
the windows in a greenhouse,” says Mochida. “There would be major damage ifsome problem occurred with the automatically opening and closing windows andthey became stuck while open. In addition, there was an actual case in which acustomer had their heating stop when the greenhouse circuit breaker suddenly
shut off one night. But thanks to an alert from a terminal connected to a sensor,
the customer rushed to the site and was able to avoid a loss of close to 30 million
yen.”
Read the full case study here

34 | The Cloud Toolkit

EDUCATION AND TRAINING
Cloud computing ensures that learning institutions concentrate more on research and learning,
and less on implementing complex IT infrastructure. The cloud computing applications relating to
education will soon strengthen the foundations of educational IT infrastructure.
To ease the pressure and meet the high demand associated with the information explosion, highdata processing speed is essential and is made possible by integrating resources through cloudcomputing. This will ensure development in education by employing the rapid changes in IT.

The Cloud Toolkit | 35

PHILIPPINES UNIVERSITY – CASE STUDY
Lyceum of the Philippines University powers education with Microsoft“LYCEUM of the Philippines University (LPU) has partnered with Microsoft
Philippines to upgrade its educational system for more than 1,000 faculty
members and staff throughout its five LPU campuses.
New solutions rolled out by Microsoft for LPU include Office 365, which
combined the Microsoft Office desktop suite that faculty, staff and students havelong been used to, with cloud-based versions of today’s latest collaborationand communication tools. Office 365’s cloud platform has also been able toprovide users with more secure email and Office services, specifically real-timecommunications using Microsoft Exchange Online and Office Online that allows
users to accomplish more tasks, whether independently or with a group.
LPU has also been benefitting from Microsoft Azure for DreamSpark, a programthat supports technical education by providing access to Microsoft software forlearning, teaching and research purposes. The program equips students withprofessional-level developer and designer tools, and helps educators teach thelatest technologies and experiment in research. Since Microsoft Azure is available
in an open, flexible, enterprise-grade cloud computing platform, LPU staff andstudents can get a head start with the services they need to develop in the cloud.
Through their new partnership with Microsoft, LPU gained access to solutions
that provide efficiencies to manage administrative and operational functions
with an Active Directory, that is available in both desktop and Wi-Fi accounts of
LPU employees and students. An Access Control Server provided for in-houseredirection and E-books server for student access and downloads. And lastly, thepayroll system was upgraded with HR biometrics monitoring.”

Read the full case study here

36 | The Cloud Toolkit

HEALTHCARE
The principal driver for the adoption of cloud computing in the healthcare industry is the continual change
in both supply and demand, driven by a fast-growing youth population with an increased awareness of theconcept of wellness. It is anticipated that this will influence the role of IT in the industry, and, by association,
the role of cloud computing.
Some of the most advanced analytic services cloud computing gives to healthcare providers is to access anenormous amount of medical knowledge. The potential for such an advanced analytical service has not beenrealised to date owing to the cost and complexity of analytics solutions that cloud computing can provide.
The abilities offered by health cloud computing services can be expected to facilitate personal healthmaintenance, improve diagnoses, obtain better case outcomes, optimise healthcare delivery operations
and facilitate the transformation from volume- to value-based care.

Therapy
4C

Cardio2A

Paeditrician
6F

The Cloud Toolkit | 37

HOSPITAL CIMA – CASE STUDY
Hospital Institution Obtains High Availability and Cost Savings After Migrating
to the Cloud“Hospital CIMA San José, located in San José de Costa Rica, has been rated
as one of the best private hospitals in the region. With the goals of optimizing
its operations, empowering its employees, and offering a better service to thecommunity via up-to-date technology, the hospital migrated its infrastructure to
the Azure cloud. It was looking to acquire a platform that would allow it to scale
the business in a fast, effective, secure and reliable way, while obtaining benefits
such as high availability and significant savings. As part of this strategy, the company
also implemented Office 365 to increase the productivity of its approximately 500
employees.
The cost savings offered by the Azure solution were one of the driving factors
in CIMA’s decision to completely migrate its systems to the cloud.
The company is currently implementing an improved system in Azure, which willallow it to modernize the process of medical imaging, including taking, displaying
and distributing the images. This will be accomplished thanks to greater supply
agility within the hard disk. As Portugués explains, a challenge in finding the rightsolution is having a platform without space restrictions and possible outages.
“With Azure, challenges that include platform, capacity and availability are nolonger a concern. Also, the cost is lower in comparison to executing theseprocesses in a local datacentre.”
Read the full case study here

38 | The Cloud Toolkit

LOGISTICS AND TRANSPORTATON
Supply chain management based on cloud computing provides effective scheduling , forecasting
accuracy and inventory optimisation information for logistics and transportation to have total
insight into the business state and it’s moving parts. With better insight of the state of operations,corrective actions can be taken timeously to address negative trends that could be harmful to thegrowth and survival of any company.
Cloud computing systems enhance efficiency as it enables the creation of critical checkpoints.
This helps to minimise risks and threats and to create the opportunity to respond appropriately
to any issue. This is crucial for any alerts or important news that freight forwarders must relay
to their clients in case of anything that may go wrong.

The Cloud Toolkit | 39

MAERSK LINE – CASE STUDY
Global transport and logistics company goes digital to transform its operations“Maersk is an integrated transport and logistics company with multiple brands,
and a global leader in container shipping and ports. The company is partneringwith Microsoft Enterprise Services on its digital transformation journey, moving five
regional data centres to Microsoft Azure to improve performance and reduce its
operational risk. Maersk recently selected Microsoft as its preferred cloud partner as
it works to transform its operations, bolster its customer service, and generate newrevenue streams.
By moving its regional data centres to the Azure platform, Maersk has ended its
reliance on obsolete hardware, while significantly decreasing operational costs.
It has also mitigated its on-premises security risks, taking advantage of the tightphysical and operational security that Microsoft data centres provide. “We now havedisaster recovery and failover, which we lacked before,” Laurence says. “We’re in amuch better position.”
Maersk also enjoys far better performance and scalability, which has improved
employee productivity and positioned the company for future growth. “With theInfrastructure as a Service (IaaS) model, we can easily scale up and down basedon the needs of the respective business unit,” Weissbeck says. “We now have much
more flexibility to serve our customers’ needs.”
Read the full case study here

40 | The Cloud Toolkit

07

ROADMAP FOR CLOUDCOMPUTING
Now that you are familiar with what cloudcomputing is all about, how do you go
about evaluating your needs and selecting
what cloud architecture is best suited toyour needs? You will also be wondering
what implementation approach to adopt,
are you going to use in-house staff, cloudvendor(s) or maybe a combined approach?
Unfortunately, there is no magic wand thatcan be waved here, and like people, eachorganisation has their own unique goals,
expectations and timelines. While the cloudis extremely flexible to the point of being
almost like a candle in the wind as far as
design choices go, enterprises still look forthe tried and tested methodology for the
adoption of cloud computing technologies.

Adopting cloud computing technologies
may not be a linear process as this depends
on how far your organisation has evolvedon the migration to the cloud. You may
have few or various teams or divisions,some of your teams may have highworkloads and there may be a need tomodernise their processes and efficiency
by adding cloud technologies, or even by
migrating them to the cloud completely.
Some teams may be in their infancy, so
you can immediately start in the cloud.
There may be teams that are not ready forthe migration, but don’t close the door on
cloud yet, rather learn and experiment withthe cloud in anticipation of future growthand opportunities.

The Cloud Toolkit | 41

Next, we discuss the steps you could follow to introduce cloud computing into your small or medium enterprise:42 | The Cloud Toolkit

Define the Vision

Develop Business
Case and Strategy

Evaluate and Short
List Cloud Services

Determine Who Will
Develop, Test, Deploy
and Maintain the Cloud
Services

Assess and Resolve
Security Risks

Manage the Cloud
Environment

Selection of
Implementation Strategy

STEPS FOR SUCCESSFUL STRATEGIC DEPLOYMENTStep 1: Define the vision
Once you have decided that cloud computing is the way
forward, it is important to define and commit a vision topaper. This will ensure you stay focused and on track andwill also help you guard against scope creep. Defining
a vision should not be a one-person show as it is betterto establish a team who can develop and approve thefuture cloud strategy. Depending on the size of yourbusiness, you could for example make use of a businesscoach, senior employees, subject matter experts in thedepartments that will be affected, or trusted suppliers to
help you formulate your plan.
You should view the adoption of cloud computing as a
strategic business decision that will improve efficiencies
within your business and allow your business to grow.
During this first phase you and your team will define theoverall vision for cloud computing adoption. It is

important to get collaboration and buy-in to the visionfrom those who will be impacted by it. The vision should
address the future needs of the business and align withthe overall business strategy.
Define your terms of reference to ensure that you stay
focused on the target business goals. Your terms ofreference should address key issues such as objectives(what do you want to achieve), guiding principles (yourcompany’s values and ethics), roles and responsibilities(who is responsible for what), and rules of engagementof the teams (how often do you meet, how do you
communicate, timelines etc.) involved in forming thecloud computing vision and strategy.

Think about it………
Based on the discussion alongside,
what would the vision of cloudcomputing for your business be?
And who would you need on yourcloud computing adoption team?

Provide guidelines to the team. These will provide highlevel requirements and ensure that your team are all on
the same page.

At a glance
Get management tools to help your staff manage
and run the administration on Microsoft Azure here

The Cloud Toolkit | 43

Step 2: Develop the business case and strategy
Cloud computing offers stimulating opportunities toorganisations of all sizes. Developing a business case andstrategy that defines how cloud computing will transformkey business processes like procurement, marketing,customer acquisition and support, product development,
and accounting practices will set you on the right track.
Identify business problems that could be potentiallyaddressed by implementing cloud computing. Try toquantify the potential benefits of adopting the cloudcomputing solution, for instance, cost savings, rapid
deployment, flexibility, access to advanced capabilities,
etc.
Obtaining support and buy-in from your department
heads or senior employees for the initiative is critical.
Getting them on-board early in the process will help
alleviate potential issues down the line, and they are avaluable source of information.

When developing your strategy, there are some fundamentals to be kept in mind:

44 | The Cloud Toolkit

Element of Strategic Planning

Strategic Planning Activities

Educate your team• Inform them of cloud computing technologies capabilities• Establish a common definition of cloud computing (including
terminology), so everyone is speaking the same language• Cloud computing should be used as a collaborative process in which
new services are built onto legacy services to improve their functionality

Establish short and long-term plans• Create a plan and roadmap for adoption.
• Spell out the benefits of cloud computing vs. existing problems/bottlenecks• Prepare for potential problems post implementation, and how to deal withthese problems so have a contingency plan
• Reduce the risk of being locked into a vendor by taking a long-term view.
Consider interoperability, portability and ease of integration upfront.

Element of Strategic
Planning

Element of Strategic Planning

Understand the desired • What Return on Investment are you going to get and are there potential new revenue
services and functionality opportunities.
• Use your knowledge of standards and industry frameworks to assist you with collecting
service information.
Do a detailed cost
analysis

These are some of the costs that need to be considered, if applicable:• On-going cloud service costs• Service management• License management• Application re-designs• Application deployment and testing• Application maintenance and administration• Application integration• Cost of developing cloud computing skills• Human resources and talent management implications• Additional tools/ services/ processes

Consider and evaluate
the impact on yourservice levels

For each cloud computing application being evaluated, always consider the following
elements as they could impact on your service delivery:• Application availability• Application performance• Application security• Privacy• Regulatory compliance• Data residency

Consider your existing
IT environment• Focus on integrating and leveraging existing technologies and standards.
• Ensure that any existing services that are migrated to cloud computing will continue tocomply with your desired standards.

IT environment• Determine what skill are available, and what is needed.
• Develop a plan to upskill to address potential gaps.
• Consider external skills as an option for addressing gaps.

Think about it………
Based on the elements shown
here, what are some strategic
actions that immediately spring tomind that you need to consider or
can implement in your business?

The Cloud Toolkit | 45

Step 3: Evaluate and short list cloud service providers
When it comes to selecting a service provider, there
is no standard rule that will apply to all businesses. All
businesses are unique and will have their own evaluation
criteria and requirements. There are however somecommon areas of focus when selecting a service provider.

Always plan for the long-term and avoid lock-in contracts
where possible. Do not blindly agree to terms andconditions, rather take time to establish workable Service
Level Agreements (SLA’s) and contractual terms.

Small and medium enterprises and new companies that
Always remember that it is advisable to consider hard and do not have existing infrastructure should consider public
soft factors when evaluating and short listing your cloud
cloud deployments versus the private cloud option. Small
service providers. It is important that you check what
and medium enterprises have much to gain in termsof cost savings, IT capacity, lower skill requirements andcertification and standards they adhere to, but equally it is improved application functionality not available to them
important to check what their customers say about them. previously.

At a glance
Microsoft Azure is an ever-expanding set of public cloud services tohelp your organisation meet business challenges. It offers the freedom
to build, manage, and deploy applications on a massive, global
network using various tools and frameworks. Check out Microsoft’s
tips on how to choose a Cloud Service Provider

46 | The Cloud Toolkit

Think about it………
Make a list of possible service
providers that you could makeuse.

Step 4: Selection of implementation strategy
Before making the final selection, the question needs tobe asked – what implementation strategy is envisaged,
a hybrid deployment or a “big bang” deployment where
the business implements the IT solution on a public cloudoutside the organisation.

The potential benefits and issues of each model must be
carefully considered. The IT maturity of the organisation
as well as its size also impacts significantly on this decision.

Approaches for Adoption of SaaS
Entrepreneurs may not have made significant investments in IT because of the cost factor involved as wellas the complexity of managing an in-house deployment. Subscription-based SaaS offerings now make itpossible for entrepreneurs to adopt SaaS solutions for business needs which were not previously possible.

Analyse SaaS offerings

Define a SaaS strategy forboth private and public
implementations before
adopting specific SaaS offerings.

Identify availability of SaaS offerings
for these specific processes.

At a glance
Is this the approach for you?
Discover the advantagesof SaaS.

Re-evaluate your businessprocesses and identify thosethat can be re-engineered to beleaner and more effective

Evaluate the various SaaS offerings froma business and technical perspective.
The Cloud Toolkit | 47

Approaches for Adoption of PaaS
Smaller organisations can benefit from the already running software stack requirements of a custom application, suchas databases and messaging infrastructure, removing the need to have skilled staff to set up, run and maintain what
can be complex software.
Small and medium enterprises do not have the resources to develop and run platforms and they lack the in-houseskills to develop and test home-grown applications. As many entrepreneurs are dependent on Independent Software
Vendors (ISVs) to deliver their application functionality, they are likely dependent on a cloud service provider to support
a PaaS environment that is consistent with their ISV’s applications.

Analyse PaaS offerings

Define a PaaS implementation
strategy adopting specific PaaS
offerings

Determine if there’s enoughin-house development
resources to justify the use of
PaaS. If not, SaaS may be thebest alternative.

At a glance
Is this the approach for you? Discover the advantages of PaaS.

48 | The Cloud Toolkit

Approaches for Adoption of IaaS
The primary motivation for an entrepreneur to consider IaaS is capital expense reduction and accessto IT capacity that would otherwise not be available.
Entrepreneurs may not be able to make significant investment in IT services, it is therefore beneficial to consider
infrastructure services that are delivered and managed by an external cloud service provider.
Think about it………
Based on the three
implementation strategies
discussed, which do you thinkwould be best suited to yourAnalyse IaaS offerings

Define an IaaS strategy

Consider the application migration
and administration costs for Publicand Private (Outsourced) options.

Private (On-premise) deployment model
may not be viable because of insufficient
ROI associated with consolidating a relatively
small number of existing IT assets, therefore itis advisable to consider a public deployment
model that will provide access to computing
and storage capacity at the lowest cost.

business?

Be aware of Disaster Recovery
capabilities

At a glance
Is this the approach for you? Discover the advantages of IaaS.
The Cloud Toolkit | 49

Step 5: Develop, test, deploy and maintain the cloud services
The needs and capabilities of the organisation will determine
the most effective method to design, develop, deploy andmaintain new cloud applications.

50 | The Cloud Toolkit

For most entrepreneurs, there are three options to consider:• Cloud provider development and deployment (if available)• Independent cloud service development provider• Off the shelf purchase of a cloud application service

Options

SkillsStartup considerations

Updates to services

Testing, deployment and support

Cloud provider
development,
deployment andsupportThe cloud provider’sarea of expertise iscloud computing.
This implies a shorter
development anddeployment timeline.

Details of all products
and systems (APIs,
data formats, security,etc.) must be provided
by the Cloud provider
to be considered indevelopment anddeployment.

Change request process andassociated costs must be
known if the provider does
the maintenance.

Coordination between theorganisation’s development andoperations teams and the cloudprovider development and test teams
are required.

Independent cloudservice development
providerMust have provenexperience andexpertise on thespecific cloud
application service
thus reducing
development, testingand deployment costs.

Must be provided withproduction knowledgeof the services andinfrastructure which will belinked to the cloud service.

Testing could take longer as more
Coordination and structured
teams are involved.
engagement between theorganisation’s implementationteam and the cloud provider’s
implementation team in orderto test and deploy the cloudserviceOptions

SkillsStartupconsiderations

Updates to services

Testing, deployment and support

Off the shelf purchaseof a cloud application
Software as a Service(SaaS

Ensure that the service
is fit for purpose andmeets all the specified
requirements

Determine changes
to business processes
and the complexity to
implement the changes.

Determine responsibility
for modification, testing
deployment, andmaintenance activities.

Ensure that the total cost of ownershipof the off the shelf service offsets thecosts for modification.

The skills available within small and medium enterprises are typically geared to support existing applications so
it may be beneficial to contract resources from a cloud service provider or skilled independent development firm.

Think about it………
Based on the needs and capabilities of your organisation, what is the most effective option
to design, develop, deploy and maintain new cloud applications?

The Cloud Toolkit | 51

Step 6: Assess and resolve security risks
Adopting a cloud solution does not imply that theprovider is solely responsible for security, privacy, anddata residency issues. Security and privacy are risk
management issues and need to be treated using thefollowing formal approaches:
evaluate the probability and the impact of the potential
threats, prioritise the risks accordingly, design andimplement mitigation measures, test them, and monitor
the situation.
Think about it………

This is why Microsoft is the best Cloud Security choice

What security risks immediately
come to mind when you think

POTENTIAL CLOUD SECURITY RISKS

about adopting cloud in yourbusiness?

52 | The Cloud Toolkit

Loss of governanceCompliance andlegal risk

Responsibility
ambiguity

Isolation failure

Data protection

Incomplete datadeletion

Handling of
security incidents

Serviceunavailability

Management
interfacevulnerability

Vendor lock-in

Step 7: Manage the cloud environment
The technical and customer support requirements canbe determined based on the service model, deployment
model and hosting option selected.
• Private Cloud: Management of the cloud will be 		
consistent with the management of the existing services
within the organisation.
• Public Cloud: Responsibility for management of 		the cloud service will be outlined in the Cloud Service 		
Agreement. The Cloud Service Agreement will 		outline processes for identifying a problem, indicate 		
who is responsible and depending on the impact of 		the problem, what resources will be used to solve the 		
problem.

Risk management processes need to be implemented
to protect the organisation and its digital assets.
Responsibility for this process will be different according to
the nature of the service. For example, for a SaaS service,
it is often the cloud service provider’s responsibility,
while for IaaS services, it will be the responsibility of thebusiness.

Think about it………
How will your organisation
manage the cloud environment
once you have adopted it?

The Cloud Toolkit | 53

KEYS TO SUCCESS
Below are a few of the keys to success for any organisation starting their cloud computing journey.

54 | The Cloud Toolkit

Key to Success

Summary

Establish organisational
support andcommitment• The management team needs to understand and take full responsibility for the successful
adoption of cloud services.
• Staff members should be informed and educated about the business value offered by cloud,and how the adoption of cloud will change their daily activities.
• The organisation must be fully committed to developing and executing a strategic plan forcloud computing within the business.

Address organisationalchange management• Management must understand and address employees that will feel pressured by the pending
changes. Therefore cultural transformation management will be required when introducing
cloud computing.
• Cloud computing will introduce change to the normal business processes, breaking down
many organisational barriers and norms.
• At the heart of change is fear of loss of control. The change process must be well-managed,
highlighting the significance of a shared responsibility model with an external cloud service
provider. Embracing change is critical to success.

Evaluate cloud service
agreements to ensure
critical business needs
are addressed• Buy a service, not servers. Look for a complete managed service where the business can relyon the cloud provider to join all parts into a complete solution.
• A service agreement needs to be negotiated properly to ensure that there is a partnership
between the business and provider for the overall success of the service.

Handle security andprivacy• At the heart of security is trust. Cloud providers will have deeper awareness into what isneeded to provide security features. The business should work closely with the cloud service
provider to build a solid trust relationship and share responsibility to build the best security andprivacy environment possible.

08

NEXT STEPS: GETTING
CLOUD COMPUTING FOR
YOUR BUSINESS
It is obvious that the advantages of cloud computing far outweigh thelimitations. The biggest benefit of adopting cloud computing is thatit can provide small and medium enterprises significant savings.
The ability to save and access files through the cloud enables
employees to easily work from the same master document, be itfrom home, office or travel. Entrepreneurs can use specialised services
that integrate with back-office operations, from human resources tomarketing or accounting, giving them the opportunity to focus on the
more critical areas of business.

The Cloud Toolkit | 55

Don’t let this be the end of your cloud computing journey. Find out more and register today to get cloud computing
implemented in your business today.

56 | The Cloud Toolkit

Cloud computing options

Find out more

Learn more about Microsoft 365 for yourbusiness

https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/microsoft-365

Learn more about Office 365 for yourbusiness

https://products.office.com/en-us/business/officeLearn more about Office 365 for yourbusiness

https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/

Join Microsoft’s Cloud Society. Complete
assessments and courses to become a CloudExpert.

https://cloudsociety.microsoft.com/

The Cloud Practice Development Playbooks
provide the essential blueprints to develop,
manage, and secure an effective cloudpractice.

https://partner.microsoft.com/en-us/campaigns/
cloud-practice-playbooks

Start your own cloud business - This
Business Plan Template is designed to assist
in raising finances to pursue cloud business
opportunities.

https://assets.microsoft.com/sk-sk/Cloud-BusinessPlan-Template.docx

NotesThe Cloud Toolkit | 57

09

MICROSOFT CLOUDCOMPUTING DICTIONARYBusiness analytics tools
Tools that extract data from business systems and integrate it into a repository, such asa data warehouse, where it can be analysed. Analytics tools range from spreadsheetswith statistical functions to sophisticated data mining and predictive modelling tools.
Learn more about business analytics tools.
Business intelligence (BI) tools
Tools that process large amounts of unstructured data in books, journals, documents,
health records, images, files, email, video, and so forth, to help you discover
meaningful trends and identify new business opportunities.
Learn more about business intelligence tools.
Cloud
A metaphor for a global network, first used in reference to the telephone networkand now commonly used to represent the Internet.
Learn more about the cloud.
Cloud bursting
A configuration that’s set up between a private cloud and a public cloud. If 100% of
the resource capacity in a private cloud is used, then overflow traffic is directed to the
public cloud using cloud bursting.
Learn more about cloud bursting.

58 | The Cloud Toolkit

Cloud computing
A delivery model for computing resources in which various servers,
applications, data, and other resources are integrated and provided as a service
over the Internet. Resources are often virtual.
Learn more about cloud computing.
Cloud computing types
There are three main cloud computing types, with additional ones evolving—
software-as-a-service (SaaS) for web-based applications, infrastructure-as-aservice (IaaS) for Internet-based access to storage and computing power, andplatform-as-a-service (PaaS) that gives developers the tools to build and hostWeb applications.
Learn more about cloud computing types.

Cloud service provider
A company that provides a cloud-based platform, infrastructure, application, or
storage services, usually for a fee.
Learn more about cloud service providers.

Computer grids
Groups of networked computers that act together to perform large tasks,
such as analysing huge sets of data and weather modelling. Cloud computing
lets you assemble and use vast computer grids for specific time periods andpurposes, paying only for your usage, and saving the time and expense ofpurchasing and deploying the necessary resources yourself.
Learn more about grid computing.
Elastic computing
The ability to dynamically provision and de-provision computer processing,memory, and storage resources to meet changing demands without worrying
about capacity planning and engineering for peak usage.
Learn more about elastic computing.
Hybrid cloudA cloud that combines public and private clouds, bound together bytechnology that allows data and applications to be shared between them. A
hybrid cloud gives businesses greater flexibility to scale up and down and offers
more deployment options.
Learn more about hybrid cloud computing.

Cloud storage
A service that lets you store data by transferring it over the Internet or anothernetwork to an offsite storage system maintained by a third party.
Learn more about cloud storage.

The Cloud Toolkit | 59

Infrastructure as a service (IaaS)
A virtualised computer environment delivered as a service over the Internet bya provider. Infrastructure can include servers, network equipment, and software.
Also called hardware-as-a-service (HaaS).
Discover the advantages of IaaS.
Microsoft Azure
The Microsoft cloud platform, a growing collection of integrated services,
including infrastructure as a service (IaaS) and platform as a service (PaaS)
offerings.
Learn more about Azure.
Middleware
Software that lies between an operating system and the applications runningon it. It enables communication and data management for distributed
applications, like cloud-based applications, for example, the data in one
database can be accessed through another database. Examples of middleware
are web servers, application servers, and content management systems.
Learn more about middleware.
Platform as a service (PaaS)
A computing platform (operating system and other services) delivered
as a service over the Internet by a provider. An example is an application
development environment that you can subscribe to and use immediately.
Azure offers PaaS.
Discover the advantages of PaaS.

60 | The Cloud Toolkit

Private cloud
Services offered over the Internet or over a private internal network to only
select users, not the general public.
Learn more about private cloud computing.
Public cloud
Services offered over the public Internet and available to anyone who wants topurchase them.
Learn more about public cloud computing.
Software as a service (SaaS)
An application delivered over the Internet by a provider. Also called a hosted
application. The application doesn’t have to be purchased, installed, or run
on users’ computers. SaaS providers were previously referred to as ASPs
(application service providers).
Discover the advantages of SaaS.
Virtual machine
A computer file (typically called an image) that behaves like an actual computer.
Multiple virtual machines can run simultaneously on the same physicalcomputer.
Learn more about virtual machines.
Virtualisation
The act of creating a virtual rather than a physical version of a computing
environment, including computer hardware, operating system, storage devices,and so forth.
Learn more about virtualisation.

Cost savings guidance
Small companies
SMALL COMPANIES ARE SAVING – EXAMPLES
Forrester estimates the average small to midsize company should saveabout $16,000 per year on administration.
*based on the Forrester TEI of Office 365 for SMB report

By opting for Microsoft Office 365 and Microsoft Project Online, Mapps
Master Appraisal avoided an initial investment of more than $12,900 forserver purchase and configuration.

MOST COMMON AREAS FOR VENDOR DISPLACEMENT
Security – Advanced Threat Protection, Exchange Online Protection and Windows Defender can replace products such as Proofpoint, Symantec, McAfee,
Bitnine, Carbon Black, FireEye, etc.
Identity – Azure Active Directory can replace products such as SiteMinder, PING, Okta, Centrify, RSA, etc.
BI – Power BI can replace products such as Tableau and Qlik
Voice – Phone System can replace solutions like Cisco PBX, Cisco Spark, Avaya, Nortel, Shoretel, etc.
MDM – Intune can replace products like AirWatch, Good, Mobilelron, XenMobile, etc.
Team Collaboration – Teams can replace solutions like Slack, Jabber, Jive, etc.
File Shares – OneDrive for Business can replace products like Box and Dropbox
Audio Conferencing – Audio Conferencing can replace ACP solutions like Intercall, AT&T, Verizon, Cisco, CallMe, etc.

COST SAVINGS FOR SMALL COMPANIES$6,000 – per year in server, storage and datacenter costs$1,000 – in hardware and software deployment costs annually$16,000 – annually in administration costs$5,000 – in security breach detection and remediation cost savings annually$14,000 in cost savings from vendor displacement across security, compliance, identity, communications, BI, MDM and file shares$2,800 – in cost savings on eDiscovery legal reviews$6,000 – in spending on on-premises Microsoft software across CALs, Windows and Office*based on a typical 20-seat company
NEXT STEPSWork with your Microsoft representative or a partner to determine the cost impact based on your environment.

The Cloud Toolkit | 61

MICROSOFT VIRTUAL ACADEMY RECORDINGSThe following recordings have been made to help you along your cloud computing adoption journey.
You can access the recordings by clicking on the links below.

Topic
What is cloud, and why is it important
The benefits of using the cloud
How to go about and where to start
Costs associated with cloud
Cloud products

Notes

62 | The Cloud Toolkit

LinkNotesThe Cloud Toolkit | 63

Website Resources:
https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/case-studies/?service=cloud-services
https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/overview/cloud-migration/
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/azure/architecture/cloud-adoption-guide/
https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/overview/cloud-computing-dictionary/https://azureinfo.microsoft.com/AP-Azure-WBNR-FY15-16Oct-AU-WhyandHowCloud-Registration-Page.html?ls=Website
https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/overview/what-is-iaas/
https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/overview/what-is-paas/
https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/overview/what-is-saas/
https://partner.microsoft.com/en-us/campaigns/cloud-practice-playbooks
https://partner.microsoft.com/en-US/asset#/?type=Campaign%20and%20Product%20Guide%7CProduct%20and%20Solution%20Demos%7Cproductinfo%7CTo-Customer%20Pitch%20Deck%7CVideo&page=3&search=cloud&sort=updated
https://www.salesforce.com/what-is-cloud-computing/https://www.entrepreneur.com/article/245784
https://www.ibm.com/cloud/learn/what-is-cloud-computing
https://www.businessnewsdaily.com/4427-cloud-computing-small-business.html
https://searchcloudcomputing.techtarget.com/definition/public-cloudhttps://searchcloudcomputing.techtarget.com/definition/private-cloudhttps://www.datamation.com/cloud-computing/cloud-price-comparison-aws-vs.-azure-vs.-google.html

64 | The Cloud Toolkit

Website Resources:
https://azure.microsoft.com/en-us/overview/choosing-a-cloud-service-provider/
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/237078099_Costing_of_Cloud_Computing_Services_A_Total_Cost_of_Ownership_Approachhttps://www.expedient.com/blog/private-vs-public-cloud-whats-difference/https://customers.microsoft.com/en-us/story/osaka-prefecture-university-education-azure-cloud-services-machine-learning-notification-hub-en
https://customers.microsoft.com/en-us/story/lyceum-of-the-hilippines-university-office365-azure-cloud-services-philippines
https://customers.microsoft.com/en-us/story/hospital-cima-azure-cloud-services-office365-health-costa-rica-en
https://customers.microsoft.com/en-us/story/maersk-travel-transportation-microsoft-services
http://www.cloud-council.org/deliverables/CSCC-Practical-Guide-to-Cloud-Computing.pdf
https://www.theseus.fi/bitstream/handle/10024/101464/Khan_Imran.pdf?sequence=1
https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:32016R0679
https://www.htxt.co.za/2018/05/07/six-steps-african-business-can-take-to-prepare-for-gdpr/
http://icta.go.ke/pdf/National-ICT-Policy-20June2016.pdf
https://thecloudcalculator.com/
https://assets.microsoft.com/en-us/gdpr-detailed-assessment.zip
https://query.prod.cms.rt.microsoft.com/cms/api/am/binary/RE1YTTC?wt.mc_id=aid642608_qsg_pd_scl_250123
https://docs.microsoft.com/en-us/
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/learning/azure-training-certification.aspx
https://www.microsoft.com/en-us/learning/browse-all-certifications.aspx?technology=Microsoft%20Azure

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