Occasionally, new technologies are introduced that have a profound impact on the way we live or work. Sometimes these technologies are slow to materialize, while other times, they have an immediate impact. The rapid adoption of cloud computing is an example of these rapidly embraced technologies. Whether it’s a small start-up or a large enterprise, cloud computing allows any organization to do more with less.
The cloud provides the primary infrastructure for a variety of new applications — from operational ERP and CRM to analytics — and is comparatively inexpensive. Many tech companies are developing solutions to take advantage of this cost-effective infrastructure to provide additional new capabilities. However, while cloud computing has provided a cheaper, easier way to create and run applications and store information, it is not without its challenges.
Take integration and adoption, for example. It’s a scenario we have seen before in the case of on-premise computing. Once on-premise applications became successful, there was an almost immediate need to begin to integrate. This integration required multiple data sources to be combined. We are seeing the same issues with cloud computing, as successful cloud applications need to be combined with other cloud and non-cloud counterparts.
Fortunately, we are also seeing great advances to solve some of these integration intricacies. Big data stores are now, more than ever, accessible via standard and well-know interfaces like SQL. Data Services — or Data as a Service, as it is quickly becoming known — are providing API interfaces to help organizations access and publish data with documented access support. This provides organizations with the ability to receive and provide access to data that would otherwise be difficult or costly.
It’s exciting to see the development of new and relevant on-premise application and data implementations. As the trend of migrating to the cloud continues to grow in popularity, the ability to integrate across app environments will present new solutions to old problems. Learn more about cloud integration at Progress DataDirect.
Tony Fisher
Tony Fisher is the Technology Officer of Progress Software responsible for the company’s data connectivity and data integration product portfolio. Prior to his role at Progress, Fisher was the president and CEO of DataFlux Corporation. Fisher guided DataFlux through tremendous growth as it became a market-leading provider of data quality and data integration solutions. He is also a noted author and a sought after industry speaker on emerging trends in data quality, data integration, master data management and how better management of data leads to business optimization. Fisher holds a Bachelor of Science degree in computer science and mathematics from Duke University.