Operational processes are becoming more and more automated. This makes IT even more important to an organisation, and with it come the risks in terms of continuity and security of applications. Cloud software can limit the risks considerably.
One of the biggest issues in any boardroom is to make the organisation more agile and resilient. It must be able to anticipate external developments in a flexible way. “You need extra data for that”, believes Maarten de Ru, Director of Partners & Alliances at ISPnext. “And applications that support operational processes, while at the same time make that data accessible in a user-friendly way. This allows you to look at both the processes and the world around you critically.”
Systems are often still hosted within organisations themselves. The IT department is responsible for maintenance of the server, security and upgrades. As more operational processes are automated, the number of applications to be maintained increases. “The knowledge of all those applications then becomes more and more fragmented between a select number of people. The continuity of operational processes is quickly compromised when an employee leaves or an application crashes. The same applies to security issues.” In his view, organisations would do well to switch from managing software to using software. Cloud solutions offer that option. “Take us as an example. ISPnext is a software supplier. Its operation and security is our core task, our raison d’être.”