Can your organization afford to ignore cloud trends?

Utilizing cloud solutions is no longer an option for large and medium-sized companies; it has become a fundamental way to do business.

Marcin Wojtaszek

Vice President of the Euvic IT board

The study clearly demonstrated that there are several key trends in the cloud arena that will allow large and medium-sized companies to build a competitive edge. Read our article to find out which areas our respondents highlighted. 

 

  • 97.5% – investments in enhancing security 
  • 79.2% – incorporating AI into processes 
  • 80.8% – hybrid cloud solutions 
  • 84.2% – developing edge computing 
  • 75.0% – multicloud 

Key trends

A factor that companies today consider crucial in building a competitive advantage is enhancing data security. A staggering 97% of all surveyed enterprises identified this trend as key – also from the perspective of customers, i.e., end users, for whom security is an increasingly important criterion in their choices. 

1/5 of representatives from the largest companies believe that artificial intelligence will not play a significant role in securing a dominant position for their enterprises. Among medium-sized companies, a similar viewpoint is represented by 1/10 of respondents. 

Interestingly, the giants do not see the potential in utilizing edge computing to bolster their market position. Nearly 17% of respondents think that the proximity of end devices to data processing will not play any role in changing their market standing. 

In today’s era, as Microsoft continues to develop its services to become safer, more efficient, and easier to manage, and as Azure offers a highly available and easy-to-configure environment, companies are increasingly moving to the cloud, opting for SaaS, PaaS, or IaaS solutions. 

Our study clearly outlines a trend toward adopting hybrid solutions, and this is hardly surprising.

Microsoft is delivering more and better-refined types of connections, and Azure solutions are increasingly integrating with on-premise solutions. Therefore, hybrid integrations are becoming not only cheaper but also easier to implement, which will lead to more companies boldly reaching for them over time.

Grzegorz Mazur

Technical Director at Euvic

charts comparing large and medium-sized enterprises

Trends that will shape the direction of cloud development

Expert commentary

The use of cloud solutions has become essential for both large and medium-sized businesses, transforming from an option to a fundamental way of doing business. Furthermore, these businesses see the technology provided today as an opportunity to build tangible competitive advantages. 

A key trend in this area is data protection and security. Nearly 9 out of 10 major companies and over three-quarters of medium-sized companies point to this solution. The increasing cyber threats year after year mean that few companies today are able to create adequate protections on their own. The risk associated with data loss or breach is a key factor in business stability. Cloud solutions, which aim to minimize threats related to data protection and process continuity, are not only the most economically efficient. They provide the greatest sense of security, given that their providers focus on constant updating and advancing their technology. 

Another trend recognized by Polish companies is the increasingly widespread use of artificial intelligenceprimarily for automation and process acceleration. The year 2023 could be pivotal in this respect due to breaking certain scale barriers regarding AI’s capabilities. Just as the cloud had to reach a critical mass some years ago to be recognized as indispensable, the same may now be true for artificial intelligence. Those who can harness this technology to develop their businesses, or even base their further development on it, will win. Medium-sized companies currently have greater hopes of genuinely harnessing AI’s potential. Among the largest enterprises, we see some skepticism, evidenced by the fact that 22% of respondents from this segment do not believe that artificial intelligence will enhance the efficiency of processes in their companies. We are, of course, at the beginning of the road to mass adoption of machine learning algorithms, but what the leading cloud solution providers offer today holds tremendous potential and is evolving at an unimaginable pace. Moreover, only the computing power of the cloud will allow for the full utilization of the possibilities that AI can bring to business. This is certainly a trend that will quickly become more significant in the future. 

In creating a hierarchy of the most important trends that will influence the development of cloud-based technologies, we cannot overlook the practice of the largest companies using solutions from multiple providers simultaneously. These providers are building their specializations, which not only increases market competition but also offers the opportunity to select different tools and combine them appropriately for a given enterprise. This is one reason why Euvic is expanding its collaboration with major cloud providers such as Microsoft and building expertise in combining and customizing the solutions they offer. 

 

Marcin Wojtaszek, Vice President of the Management Board
EUVIC IT

Summary

Today, there is no room to ignore the immense potential inherent in cloud technologies. A lack of understanding and utilization of this potential means that organizations remain far behind their competition, and the greater the distance that separates them, the harder it is to close. Those who quickly understand this and take appropriate steps will certainly not regret it and will soon experience a range of measurable business benefits.