Everyone working directly or indirectly with IT has heard the word "cloud" uttered numerous times over the last two years. The term can be defined in many ways depending on who you are talking to and what the context of the conversation is. One very simple definition relates to the idea of accessing a service that is not running on systems within an organization's data center(s). One such example is the idea of running traditional desktop software applications via the web browser. These applications could include: email, calendar, contacts, word processing, spreadsheets, slide presentations, and collaborative work on documents. Over the last 15-20 years, Microsoft has had the vast majority of the market share with its Office and Exchange products. This required the Office software to be installed on each individual PC and having the Outlook application point to an Exchange server running within the organization's data center(s). With the steady increase in services being offered in the "cloud," other options are now available to customers. In February of 2007 Google introduced their version of running these applications in the cloud. During the last five years, over four million businesses have decided to implement "Google Apps for Business" as their methodology for running some or all of these applications. When customers approach the end of their enterprise license agreement with Microsoft for Office and Exchange, they may consider moving to Google Apps for Business as an alternative. There are circumstances where Google Apps is potentially a perfect fit and there are circumstances where it may not be a viable option. Consider the following:
Potential Benefits for Migrating to Google Apps for Business:
* Email, Calendar, Contacts, Word Processing, Spreadsheets, Slide Presentations, Document Collaboration are all available in the web browser
* No ongoing maintenance of desktop software
* No servers necessary to maintain in the data center
* Enhancements are continually migrated into the product over time
* 99.9% "up time" Service Level Agreement (SLA)
* Complies with an SSAE 16 Type II audit
* Has achieved FISMA (Federal Information Security Management Act) certification
* 2 Step Verification available at no extra cost
* Employees need to use a wide range of mobile devices including Android, iPhone, Windows Mobile, and Blackberries for email as well as other applications.
* Simple and predictable licensing model
Potential Reasons for not Migrating to Google Apps for Business:
* Spreadsheet "power users" will not have access to all the functionality they may be used to
* Outlook users who are used to certain features when connected to Exchange will either have to switch over to the web interface or be willing to go without certain features
* Technical support is limited via email and phone
* Certain organizations may require more than the 99.9% up time SLA.
Google Apps for Business is not a perfect fit for all organizations. It is a great option for some and not for others. What about your organization? Would it work for you? Why or why not?
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