Get to know Azure for business

  • 6 minutes

What is the cloud? What is Microsoft Azure? And what can they do for your business?

Learn all about Azure and the cloud in this video.

Key Takeaways

  • Microsoft’s “cloud” is a worldwide network of powerful computer datacenters. Microsoft Azure is a collection of services that connect you to that cloud via the Internet.
  • You can think of Azure as a subscription IT service delivered via the Internet. Azure can wholly or partially replace your business’s existing IT system.
  • Cloud-based IT can save your business money by eliminating the capital costs of buying and maintaining physical IT systems.
  • Azure is far more cost-efficient, powerful, agile, reliable, and secure than off-cloud IT systems. Its power and reach enable your business to grow faster, more easily coordinate your workforce, gather and analyze huge amounts of data, and offer new and high-tech products.
  • Cloud economics is all about operational expenditures and a consumption-based model. You’ll be paying for what you use when you need it, and not fretting over capital expenditures.
  • The cloud makes it easy to scale operations and spending. You can pay for more computing power when you need it for a large project or spike in customer engagement, then scale back down later.
  • If you’re not ready to go all-in on the cloud, you can use Azure in tandem with off-cloud IT in a hybrid arrangement.

In the next unit, we’ll explore the concepts of cloud economics a little deeper.