Cloud Computing and Recession Could Lead to Surge in Startups

Many experts were hoping that the economy would change course by now. Unfortunately, the economic downturn has been increasingly difficult for many people. Over three million people have been unable to find a job for more than a year. Some people have completely given up looking for work, while others are starting to pursue entrepreneurship as an option.

According to a recent article in Forbes, there will be a surge in entrepreneurship in the coming year. The long-term implications of this recession are encouraging more people to launch their own businesses;  however, Forbes also credited another trend with the entrepreneurial movement: cloud computing.

How Cloud Computing Is Transforming Entrepreneurship

cloud computing benefits startupsMany entrepreneurs are starting businesses in the cloud-computing industry. According to a report from Forrester in 2011, the number of cloud computing will probably grow 500% by the year 2020. The industry is clearly booming as more firms decide to migrate to cloud-based hosting solutions.

However, cloud-computing technology is improving entrepreneurial progress in other areas as well. Many firms are taking advantage of cloud solutions to operate more efficiently and provide profound benefits for their customers. Entrepreneurs are always looking for new ways to use their resources more efficiently. Advances in cloud computing have made it easier for them to improve scalability for their new ventures.

Thomas Friedman, Pulitzer-Prize winner and distinguished New York Times columnist, has said that the advances in cloud computing will benefit the economy and increase entrepreneurship. Friedman has quoted the CEO of LinkedIn and other global business leaders to support his points. He said that cloud computing has significantly reduced the costs and lowered the barriers of entry for many businesses. Entrepreneurs are able to use cloud solutions to take advantage of many powerful resources and reduce the operating costs of their business.

How Can Cloud Computing Help Your Startup?

There are a variety of ways that cloud technology will lower the cost of operating your business. Many technology entrepreneurs believe the real benefit to cloud computing is that they can reduce the costs of hosting their websites; however, cloud computing can help your firm in more significant ways.

Cloud computing has reduced the need for businesses to rent physical real estate. They can coordinate projects with other professionals across the city or on the other side of the world. They no longer need to raise capital to purchase office space to oversee their employees. They can also manage virtual teams with employees overseas who will work at more competitive rates than many local employees.

A business based in San Francisco would need to pay one of its employees about $30 an hour. Cloud computing allows them to outsource that position to someone who is working for a tenth that rate, while still allowing them the opportunity to oversee their work.

Using cloud computing can help you eliminate the need to secure the same levels of cloud funding. Friedman has shown that businesses are able to launch their venture on a shoe-string budget.

You should always consider all your options when you are starting a new business. You may find that a lot of the infrastructure you were considering investing in is unnecessary. You may be able to create a virtual workspace on the cloud to implement it at a much lower cost.

 

Kalen is a technology writer who talks about the benefits of cloud computing. He works with Scale Matrix, where he talks about the benefits of private cloud providers.      

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