Cloud computing is starting to show up in almost every business. As soon as the internet is involved, the business will soon be dealing with some aspect of the cloud. This is why cloud computing has become such an integral part in the functioning of many big box retail stores. This is the most important paradigm shift to occur in Information Technology (IT) since the breakthrough of the client-server in the eighties.
Cloud Computing – Recognized by Google, Microsoft and Others
Why is one of the largest sectors of the economy, the retail industry, quick to embrace cloud computing? Even the giants of software have started using the cloud. There are office apps from Google. Microsoft is offering Office Live Workspaces, websites, workrooms, etc. There are good reasons that cloud computing are capturing the interest of retailers.
Cloud computing is very efficient in the retail industry context, because it allows businesses to keep costs manageable. For example, a business can opt to purchase rights to use software on an as needed basis, instead of having to purchase a copy of the software for every computer in the establishment. This capability is referred to as software as a service (Seas).
Another feature that makes cloud computing so effective is the fact it allows you to share infrastructure (hardware like servers and storage units), software units (applications and operating systems) and other information using the internet. The capability to use infrastructure is referred to as platform as a service (Peas). This can save a business a considerable amount of money.
There may be some retailers who are concerned that using the cloud presents some risk. For example, how will the business keep track of transactions that occur in the cloud? They may feel more secure with the traditional IT environment.
Fortunately, the very development of cloud-based applications has driven the development of solutions for managing business transactions that occur over the internet. Businesses still need the consistent assurance that every application, whether it works in the cloud or on a server, is performing and available. And when those applications do not meet their service level agreement (SLAs), whether the business transaction management tool resides on company servers or on the cloud, the business needs to know when and where the problem occurred. You need software solutions that provide the root because enabling you to rapidly restore service. Whatever solution a business chooses to manage the could, it needs to be one that provides 24/7/365 visibility into the performance of every critical business process.
Managing Cloud-based Transactions
So when you start shopping for a cloud computing solution to handle your business application performance look for a solution that includes plug-ins for the vast array of applications ) your IT is built upon. These probably include Web Sphere MQ and WMB, TIBCO EMS, ESB and J2EE platform. There are a number of options on the market.
Ultimately what anyone in the retail industry needs when using the cloud is a way to monitor the business transaction performance of cloud-based operations? Without this monitoring, a business has no way of keeping track of what has gone on and with what is going on.
For business transaction management within the cloud computing environment to be effective, whatever solution you chose should be capable of performing many duties. First, it needs to track the performance of transactions over time and compare transaction behavior from a previous period. It also needs to give methodical results to retailers regarding the performance of every aspect of the applications used within the cloud, as well as performance of applications operating in more traditional structures.
