Can small businesses or SMBs benefit from Microsoft Azure?

Microsoft Azure has made great strides ever since it was launched first for the enterprises and data centre spaces. Microsoft Azure wasn’t originally meant for businesses of all sizes and segments mainly because cloud computing wasn’t the same as it’s today. And with growing competition from Apple and Google that all went on to build their own cloud-based service infrastructure, Microsoft Azure, today, has not just grown into Software-as-a-Service (SaaS), but also as an Infrastructure-as-a-Service. Here’s how small businesses can benefit from using Microsoft Azure:

No longer do businesses just get access to software offerings including Microsoft Office or Skype; today, Microsoft Azure suite is power-packed with computing, networking, mobile apps, analytics and storage. It also features fast deployments that enable quicker installation, faster set up and configuration of new workstations, easy set up of new users and scalability of data, as required, all from one primary console.

Azure allows SMBs to stay agile. Custom integration of software enables business rapid intra and inter communication. Because insights can be shared quickly, it reduces the overhead costs and accelerates deployment rate, particularly if you’re a small business.

Security is one of the salient features of Microsoft Azure. Some of the secure features include Single-Sign-On log-on so that users have access to the appropriate platforms without any complex passwords; 2-factor authentication that offers two different authentication factors for robust verification and enhanced protection of both the user’s credential and the resources that the users have access to.

While most cloud providers adopt a ‘cloud-first’ infrastructure, Azure gives small businesses ‘Azure Stack’, a hybrid approach. Businesses can select from a range of hardware providers for their on-premises infrastructure, besides best practises and patterns. They can easily choose where the data and infrastructure resides in their onsite data centre and switch to total cloud solutions if needed.

Searching for the right tools and resources for deploying Azure can be a tough ask, given the technicalities of adopting it, particularly if you’re a small business owner. That is why working with a consistent Managed Services Provider such as Abi Tech will free small business owners of setting up and maintaining Azure cloud with an in-house team. We can be your perfect Azure implementation partner; simply touch base with us.