Getting rid of the old Client/Server methodology and moving to the cloud model will save you a considerable amount of time and money, and open many doors for future progress, no matter which business you are running. Compared to hosted and software-plus services technologies, Google’s multi-tenant, Internet-scale infrastructure will provide you with a faster access to innovation, superior reliability and security, and maximum scalability.

Innovation is More Accessible

Google knows the web is the epicenter of innovation, thus their multi-tenant infrastructure is designed to provide us with the opportunity to improve our entire customer base on short iteration cycles. Since the systems are able to distribute updates so efficiently, we are able to deliver new functionalities, even several times a week without the need to manage any upgrades or patches.

Browser-based apps are definitely key ingredient in the process of rapid innovation. As soon as the new feature is launched in the web application, the user automatically gets these improvements by simply refreshing the browser. Mobile browser applications also get new features without software updates, while with traditional technology and software, the user doesn’t get new functionality until the software on their computers or mobile phones have been upgraded.

Cloud Computing as the Present, not the Future

Google uses the precious feedback and usage statistics from hundreds of millions of users in order to bring tested innovation to business customers at an unprecedented pace. New features are introduced, refined and made useful in the business context with minimal delay and practically in real time. Users adopt new functionality with less disruption as Google Apps adapt to a continuous stream of manageable improvements.

Since data in Google Apps is stored in the cloud instead of on employee computers, multiple users can access and contribute to projects simultaneously without worrying about using the same operating system, software, or browser. Rather than collaborating on a document by sending back and forth revision after revision as attachments by e-mail, with Google Apps your documents are stored in the cloud so your coworkers can access them simultaneously in their browsers and make changes that are visible in real-time.

Investing in Security

Protecting their customers is Google’s top priority. With their enormous investments in physical and process-based security, their data centers are hardened with only the latest measures in security precautions, including biometric access controls and multi-tiered security perimeters.

Browser-based applications also help keep your sensitive data more secure and harder to breach. For instance, when you are finished using a web-based application, minimal data is left on the machine that could be compromised, unlike traditional software. Making data securely available from the browser and minimizing the amount of sensitive data stored on devices is an effective security strategy.

Google has the same level of certification for the internal email usage as the US government and is also capable of supporting HIPAA compliance. Google Apps are trusted by millions to virtually secure their email from any threats. Your emails are being routinely checked before downloading a document for any threats of viruses, phishing emails, malware or other threats.

More Reliability and Uptime

Data and user actions in Google Apps are reflected in real-time across multiple data centers via synchronous replication. Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Talk, Google Groups, Google Docs and other Google services and sites have a 99.9% uptime guarantee, however, the actual reliability has been even higher than this commitment, and significantly for that matter. Any attempt to replicate the level of reliability this high with on-premises or hosted technology is incredibly complex and it simply does not pay off. Even some of the largest enterprises with their state-of-the-art disaster recovery systems can’t match this percentage, have long recovery times and are prone to losing data.

Google Apps Offers Higher Flexibility and Extensive Control

It is important to point out that by moving to Google’s cloud doesn’t mean you will lose control of your data or your technology – you will actually gain more control and flexibility. Google strongly believes that customers should be able to easily get their data out of Google Apps, should they ever decide to stop using their service (the Google Apps Terms of Service clearly state that customers retain full ownership of their data in Google Apps). Google Apps also provides more control to the administrators as they can now manage which applications their users can access and choose the way their employees are using each service, while Google Apps API allows you to build custom functionality and integrations with other technologies.

Cost Efficiency

Google Business Apps can give you the tools to expand your business for ridiculously low prices. For approximately $5 per month, you can receive email addresses for your team with your company’s name, receive 30 GB of storage space you can use to store your documents, share them or use useful online calendars. You will also be provided with the ability to easily create your own online spreadsheets, slides, text documents, etc, as well as gain admin controls and reliable security from a name you can trust.

If the healthcare industry is moving to Google Apps for work, why wouldn’t you?

With millions of customers already using Google Apps, Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA) compliance is a critical feature for businesses and organizations that handle health care information, as well as one of the crucial considerations for hospitals, health organizations and governments. Joe Ganneman, CIO for Rockford Orthopedics a leading bone and joint center in Illinois, also believes Google Apps and cloud computing in general is the inevitable step we all need to take. “From a HIPAA compliance standpoint, you are actually in a better shape by putting your data in a cloud infrastructure like Google’s, than you are trying to store it locally.” Flint Waters, CIO for the State of Wyoming, states that “using Google Apps made us confident we would meet strict HIPAA requirements and demonstrate to our citizens that their data was on one of the most secure architectures out there.”