Event Management and the Cloud What Does It All Mean?

Everyone is talking about "the Cloud" but what does it all mean? And more importantly what does it mean to an event manager?

Firstly a little background on "the Cloud", cloud computing is the delivery of shared resources, software and information over the Internet. It is still a relatively new delivery model for IT services and provides users with a completely different way to use and manage their IT software and platforms. The most common way to use cloud computing is through a subscription service or pay a monthly fee to use a particular software solution and instead of the software being installed on a user's computer directly, the user accesses the software remotely, via their web browser. Some of the generic benefits of cloud computing include:

• Cost: Cost can be greatly reduced since capital expenditure is converted to operational expenditure, lowering the barriers to entry
• Local Independence: Users can access systems using a web browser, regardless of their location or device they are using
• Scalability and Peak Load Capacity: using software on the cloud means that companies can manage peaks in demand with ease
• Reliability: Reliability is improved making it a safer option with regards to disaster recovery
• Maintenance: This is easier on cloud computing since the software is not installed on the user's computer; meaning that support and upgrades are managed and taken on by the provider themselves.

Event managers are starting to understand how they can take this development in IT and use it to help improve the management and quality of their events. This post will look atevent management and the cloud and will highlight two popular event software solutions that can be deployed via the cloud. Event managers can take avdantage of cloud computing and use it to improve efficiency and reduce the cost of their events.

Two of the most popular cloud software solutions for event managers are:

Google Docs
Google Docs is a fantastic example of cloud computing. Traditionally, working off a master document on a conventional server or network could cause many issues such as:

• Not knowing if you're working on the most recent version
• Only one person at a time being able to gain access
• Ony those working on the server/network would be able to access the document
• Issues with duplication

Hosting documents on the cloud means that key members of the event team (and external partners and suppliers) can access documents at any time from any location. There is also no limit to the number of peope who can view the document at any time, all updates are made in real time, and there are no issues with document duplication. Additionally, hosting documents on the cloud is also safer, since they are not relying on the security of the network or server they would normally be kept on.

I will be posting the next part of this blog shortly which will cover the second most popular cloud software solution for event managers.

In the meantime if you would like more information on evocos or event management and the cloud then please contact us.

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