Accessibility – Anyone with a phone or computer can access cloud software if you have granted them permission. Onboarding and involving employees, subcontractors and collaborators is far easier. This does mean that user management becomes key and regular reviews are important. Data management – Your data is duplicated between multiple sites, meaning that if one site was ever affected your data would still be accessible. Backups are not required to ensure you can get to your data. Data security – The best cloud systems build their security in layers, making external penetration very difficult. The easiest way in is therefore pretending to be a user and so two-step authentication becomes paramount. This can vary across cloud platforms so we advise checking before adopting. Version control – There is only ever the current version. Updates are never needed, compliance is ensured and you are always working on the newest system. The downside is you cannot roll back to a previous version if a disgruntled employee purposefully wrecks your data and there is the odd downtime when a new release goes awry. That said, these are less likely than data loss if on your premises. Connectivity – Modern cloud systems are built with APIs (Application Programming Interfaces) that allow them to plug into each other. This means you can pick best of breed programmes and plug them together, benefiting from the automation gains of data flowing from one to another. Getting the right connection is important as some programmes say they connect when they don’t in a reliable way.
Smart data – Having the data in cloud systems with APIs allows you access to it. By bringing this data together in smart ways you can gain insights into your business that help drive business decisions. New skillsets are needed to understand how to access, build and utilise this data to make it work for you, so ensuring you have the right advisers who can help you do this is more important than ever before. IoT – As the hardware you use becomes connected to the internet, such as your machinery, this information can be used to drive the business systems, removing the need to update them manually. This is still early on in its evolution, but the agricultural sector is taking a lead here and so aligning the right software and hardware purchases is now an important strategy in your business planning.
The world of software is constantly evolving and your business can gain significantly by using it in the right way. Native cloud software can enhance your operations through flexibility, automation and better business insights, but it is crucial to only adopt the right technology that works for you. Talking to an adviser in our SBDigital team is an easy first step and will help you understand what may be appropriate for your agriculture business. Take a look at our subsequent articles to find out more about the different areas of focus for landed estates, including an assessment of different tools and operations and how these can be brought together to be far more than the sum of their parts.
Function
Desktop/Server
Hosted
Cloud
Data stored
Local
Cloud
Cloud
Backups
Needed
Outsourced
Not needed
Remote work
Difficult
Moderate
Easy
Security
In house
Hybrid
Outsourced
Updates needed
Yes
Yes
No
Connectivity
Very rare
Rare
Likely
A G R I B U S I N E S S | S C R U T T O N B L A N D | 5
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