When most of us learned about clouds in elementary school, we learned terms such as cirrus, stratocumulus, and cumulonimbus. Most of us likely did not learn about clouds that were available “as a service.” But nowadays, when we hear someone reference “the cloud,” they’re likely talking about something technological rather than meteorological.

Just like atmospheric clouds need rising air and water vapor, the technology cloud doesn’t exist on its own. It needs other technologies to supplement its computing platforms. While there are many technologies and vendors emerging to enable cloud computing, here’s one trend we’ve been keeping a close watch on for the first half of 2019.

Getting Technology Onto a Platform

We’ve already become familiar with software as a service (SaaS). Best Buy doesn’t sell a physical box with tangible disks containing all the data to run Microsoft Office. Even many ERPs—such as SYSPRO Cloud ERP—are cloud-based, making it easier to install the system for your company and scale it to your growth year over year.

Now with the platformitization of emerging technologies—consolidating onto one platform so that the technology can be updated, analyzed, and accessed by all—cloud-provided services are evolving. Cloud providers are functioning as both the enablers and testing grounds. Some of the technologies you may see platformitized include blockchain, VR, microservices, augmented analytics, IoT, AI, and more.

The “Why” Behind it All

Moving all these technologies into as-a-service formats sounds important but what does it really mean for businesses?

Take blockchain as an example. Blockchain-as-a-service (BaaS) means that an external service provider has set up all the required blockchain technology and infrastructure for a customer for a specified fee. This fee ensures that the BaaS provider will set up and maintain blockchain connected nodes on the customer’s behalf, handling the complicated back-end so the customer doesn’t have to.

BaaS is a great solution, especially for small businesses who might not have the technology or infrastructure necessary on their own to leverage cloud-based solutions for building, hosting, and using their blockchain apps. Offering BaaS also aids blockchain adoption across businesses.

By using BaaS, a company essentially “outsources” the technically complex work so they can focus on their own core activities. For something like the internet of things (IoT), turning IoT into a service—or IoTaaS—lowers the barrier of entry to deploying IoT solutions.

Leveraging aaS Models for Small Businesses

“As a service” models have become increasingly more popular in today’s commoditized IT world. So how do you best leverage them? First, aaS models keep the important things running. Once that load is off the client’s shoulders, they have more time to focus on their core job instead of sweating over infrastructure or performance-related issues.

Second—and probably more important—is that aaS enables the rapid innovation, configuration, design, and integration of smart products with enterprise-grade systems and applications. This reduces the product manufacturer’s go-to-market cycle and increases the speed at which they innovate. Small businesses can then focus on delivering the best smart products and staying ahead of the competition

Getting Ready for aaS Platforms

Cloud computing is becoming less of a novelty and more of a trustworthy standard for businesses worldwide. Like the other emerging aaS services, even ERPs come as SaaS, software as a service. Cloud ERP provider SYSPRO empowers small and mid-sized organizations to expand business and support continued growth, all without sustaining overlarge operating fees. Using ERP SaaS, businesses are set up in the sweet spot to modernize and advance their solutions without needing the heavy technology—and without needing to add headcount to run it.

Prepare for aaS platforms by adding a cloud-based SaaS to your services today. SYSPRO Cloud is safe, accessible, and flexible. It also works well as a combo solution, allowing the businesses who need it to run both cloud SaaS ERP and on-premises at the same time. A SaaS solution such as SYSPRO Cloud could rapidly improve your growth and productivity and set you up for future aaS success.

This is the one time we’ll advocate for keeping your head in the clouds—or in the cloud, as it were. When you’re ready to take that next step, consider calling PositiveVision. With nearly 20 years in the accounting and business software industry, PositiveVision has a proven track record of helping clients uncover the best solution for their needs. If SaaS (or a combination thereof) sounds like the right fit, PositiveVision can help get you there.

So, go ahead: Get your head in the cloud and let PositiveVision help you get your data there too.