Page 19 - Issue 3 2023

CLOUD ON-PREM

must factor in the need to replace there is no use case for it? Businesses
hardware components which have simply must be in control of their data.
taken a massive wear and tear beating Beyond these three major
due to persistent power surges as stumbling blocks for many businesses,
the power supply switches from the and the risk that load shedding and
utility to another source, as well as unreliable energy supply adds to the
the actual power backup system itself. equation, there are also legislative and
It is then fair to say that this same trust issues, and a reliance on legacy
business would have to quadruple systems. The second a business puts
that investment today in order to keep data into a public space it invokes
going. POPIA. Being POPI compliant is a
If we consider that running an on- complex and expensive exercise which
prem business requires huge amounts adds to business hesitancy to move
of capital, it should follow that cloud to the cloud. POPIA also places strict
makes business sense. Yet still there is rules on cross-border movement of Udhveer Sookraj
hesitancy and it is important to look information and businesses know they
into the reasons for this. must work with expert counsel to
The cloud can become extremely remain compliant. data processing while staying on-prem.
expensive. By way of analogy, However, compliance doesn’t This is achieved through a number
when you move house, you need end there. If one looks at the cloud of capabilities, notably a tool set
to go through everything you have infrastructure in South Africa, most that brings together three different
accumulated over time, sort through use Europe-based data centres and so technologies in a single subscription,
it, pack, change location and integrate businesses need to be compliant with removing the need for add-ons or
it into your new space. This requires basic European law. This is not well- extra purchases. It is agnostic because
a great deal of time - something most known in South Africa. no single business has one, unified
businesses don’t have in abundance. Some businesses, source of data, and Qlik has
Very few organisations can afford to especially those in the its own cloud which
take time out to sort through, analyse manufacturing Some businesses, means that
and order its data before moving it to sector, have particularly in manufacturing, businesses
the cloud. They must remain online, invested in have invested in large, outdated don’t get
and they must be making real-time massive legacy systems that may be inefficient but charged
data-driven decisions to remain systems still effectively serve their needs. The for cloud
competitive, so they move massive which may cost of replacing these systems with storage and
volumes of data to the cloud. This is be outdated cloud-based solutions may not be computing
expensive and if it is unsorted and and heavy or financially justified. power, which
uncleaned, the exercise is akin to clunky, but they do is crucial in
bleeding money. the job well for these a cost-sensitive
Cloud technology itself has not businesses. Sometimes the environment.
yet evolved to a place where one financial investment in these systems Simply put, the use of a tool such
provider can tick all the boxes and just doesn’t justify another capital as Qlik Forts enables a business to
provide a full, one-stop shop for every outlay to move to the cloud. control its security because data
business’s needs. This requires moving The big picture that we have stays at its source. It utilises the
to multi-vendor solutions. One vendor painted is clear. We have a massive benefits of the cloud without any
may account for 70% of a business’s need for cloud computing but a fairly data leaving the on-prem systems. In
functionality while the rest is spread long list of challenges and risks that essence, it addresses compatibility,
elsewhere and so there must be a prevent wholesale uptake. And to be cost, the pursuit of actionable insights
concerted effort to seek compatibility. clear, this is not a global problem, this from data, compliance and legacy
Lastly, a business must understand is an African challenge. Thankfully Qlik concerns. Don’t be surprised to see
its data to use its data. As mentioned, has been proactive in cloud computing more businesses working in a cloud
businesses have data in a number of in Africa and has provided the perfect environment within their own native
different places and so the question evolution, or as I prefer to describe it, systems as they realise there is
must be asked - what is the point of a revolution: the ability for businesses another way to leverage the power of
bringing this data into the cloud if to unlock the power of the cloud and the cloud.

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