The economic impact of the coronavirus has had a huge effect on Polish entrepreneurs. More than a year since the first lockdown was introduced, it has become apparent that companies – including the SME sector – that have managed to grow digitally or are in the process of digital transformation have coped better with the crisis.
Research by the Polish Economic Institute says that the coronavirus pandemic has significantly accelerated the digitalisation process in Polish companies. The numbers shows this bluntly, as 74 percent of Polish companies had not invested in modern technologies before the COVID-19 outbreak. Now, as many as 91 percent of the companies surveyed declared that they were using at least one new digital solution.
Trust in cloud computing
While confidence in the cloud grew slowly before pandemic, once they need to move to remote working become apparent, many companies realised its potential and possibilities.
Customers to whom we helped to implement cloud solutions indicated as the greatest benefit, among others, the solution to the problem of underestimation of IT projects and a significant reduction in the time from the start of work on a new project to its availability (time to market). It was also important to enable companies to launch a new project without investing in IT hardware and software, or to ensure the continuity of systems – says Piotr Szypułka, Director of the Maintenance Department at Polcom.
Gartner study shows that companies suffer an average loss of USD 5,600 per minute as a result of IT downtime. Technology support is therefore very important and, above all, needed.
Cloud is the optimal solution for companies
A report conducted in the SME sector by Polcom and Intel shows that cloud computing has become the optimal solution for managing company resources and delivering dedicated systems and applications. 91 percent of responders use cloud capabilities, and for 67 percent of those questioned, cloud computing is a way to increase IT resources without investing in their own infrastructure.
Observation of digital decisions and trends among domestic entrepreneurs indicates that technological solutions and habits will stay with us for longer. The pandemic has contributed to a digital acceleration that has made it easier for companies to function and survive in this challenging time – points out Piotr Szypułka.
On the other hand, Marcin Gwóźdź, CEO at Polcom, adds that SME sector use cloud solutions to solve many problems. They use cloud, for example, to reduce costs. However, regardless of the factors determining this choice, the common denominator for them is the issue of secure data storage and processing – points out Marcin Gwóźdź.