Moving operations into the cloud has been a huge benefit for businesses. For instance, it’s allowed them to embrace technology faster and more effectively without having to build their own infrastructure. As a result, these business owners are able to scale up or down when they need to.
Certainly, it’s helped them respond faster to customer and market demands. Cloud providers operate on such a large scale now that they can adapt quickly. Also, prices are competitive. There are a lot of players, so companies have several options when shopping for a cloud provider.
Owners and digital transformation platform managers, therefore, shouldn’t be shy about asking cloud providers questions. Having a variety of options means that business owners may have to do a lot of digging before finding the cloud service that works best for them. As a business owner, you’ll want to make sure that your cloud service can meet your business’s needs effectively. With so many cloud options, you don’t want to settle. Below are four questions that you can ask your cloud service provider. These questions will help you decide whether or not this particular service is your best choice.
What Are Your Security Protocols with a Digital Transformation Platform?
Most third-party data centers are co-location arrangements. That means a lot of companies share the same space. As a result, companies should have the security conversation sooner rather than later.
Often, this starts with understanding the importance of your company’s documents. The provider needs to know, without hearing specifics, how critical the documents and information you’ll be storing in their cloud will be. For example, do you need to follow HIPAA regulations when storing your documents? Do your documents contain client financial information, identifying information, or anything else that shouldn’t fall into the wrong hands?
Not only should the provider know the importance of your company’s documents, but you also need to know what steps they’ll be taking to keep those documents secure. Whether it’s security cameras, a private cage to house the servers, biometric access screening, or other security measures, digital transformation platform managers need to make sure customer and company data is secure.
The right document management platform will have team members who are happy to explain their security measures. They’ll understand the importance of high security, and they’ll willingly tell you about the measures that they have in place to keep your company’s information safe. They’ll take the time to answer your security questions, no matter how large or small.
On the other hand, if the company’s representative seems rushed or tries to pressure you to make a decision without giving you a lot of information, it’s probably best to move on to a different company. When it comes to your business’s documentation, it’s always better to be safe than sorry.
What About Your Business Continuity Plan?
Before you agree to a digital transformation platform, you need to know how secure access to your documents is. We already talked about digital security and protecting the information inside your documents. But what about physical security and disaster protection? What happens if there’s an earthquake or for some other reason the data center loses power? The cloud provider needs to have a business continuity plan in place with fail-over capability. In other words, you need to be able to access your documents even if something catastrophic happens.
Don’t commit to any cloud provider that can’t give you a clear and detailed answer to this question. Hopefully, your provider will never need to implement their business continuity plan, but you still want to make sure that they have one. Once again, it’s better to be safe than sorry.
What Is Your Digital Transformation Platform Price?
At some point, you’ll want to bring up pricing in your discussion. Price shouldn’t be the leading factor in selecting a software provider, but that doesn’t mean it shouldn’t be discussed. Document management cloud solutions vary widely in price, so companies need to know what they’re looking for and whether it is priced appropriately. You might also find companies with different services and various price points to go along with each service.
Keep in mind that it’s not just about the numbers. It’s also about what you’re getting for the price. Consider overall cost effectiveness as you discuss your options. One system may cost more than another, for example, but if it provides more service for your money than the other one does, then it may be the more cost-effective choice.
Is There Room to Scale?
Finally, you’ll want to ask about scalability. As businesses grow, they need to know their digital transformation platform can grow right along with them. Does the cloud provider have the room and resources to scale and grow with you? Find out what the data center capacity is, what plans they have for future cloud solutions, and whether your business plans fit within their capabilities. If they take a static approach to cloud service, you may want to look elsewhere for something more flexible. Having a service that grows with your needs is much simpler than replacing your cloud service every time your business outgrows it.
Vasion Cloud Solutions
Ready to have a conversation about your software needs? Our team is here to help you with your document management, business processes, workflow, content management, and automation needs. When it’s time to switch to a digital platform, you’ll want to keep things as simple as possible. We’re here to make the process easy so that the switch is seamless.
Vasion is a leading document management digital transformation platform provider. For years, we’ve helped companies harness technology to keep documents safe, easy to use, and quick to access. Our solutions come with plenty of flexibility for growing businesses, cost-effectiveness, and a step-by-step continuity plan to keep your documents safe no matter what happens. For questions about our cloud solutions, contact our team today. We’d love to talk to you about your cloud storage options.