Cloud Computing Project: Enhancing Business Performance

This project delves into the realm of cloud computing, analyzing its significance and benefits for businesses. It begins with an introduction to cloud computing, its architecture, and various infrastructure types, including private, public, and hybrid cloud models. The project investigates the impact of cloud computing on business efficiency and productivity, supported by a literature review exploring the evolution and advantages of cloud technology. Key research questions are formulated to guide the data collection process. The methodology involves an explanatory research design utilizing both primary and secondary data collection methods. The project outlines a detailed time schedule and addresses ethical considerations and limitations. The conclusion summarizes the findings, emphasizing the importance of cloud computing for businesses and its role in enhancing overall performance. References and appendices are included to support the research.

Running Head: Cloud Computing
CLOUD COMPUTING

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Table of Contents
Introduction.................................................................................................................................................2
Project Objective.........................................................................................................................................3
Project scope...............................................................................................................................................4
Literature review.........................................................................................................................................5
Research Questions/Hypothesis...................................................................................................................7
Research Design and Methodology.............................................................................................................8
Research Limitations.................................................................................................................................11
Time schedule (Research Plan)..................................................................................................................12
Conclusion.................................................................................................................................................15
References.................................................................................................................................................16
Appendix...................................................................................................................................................19

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Research title: Cloud Computing
Introduction
With the advancement in the technology, many organisations are implementing the new
technologies in their processes. One of those technologies is cloud computing. It is the
technology that is being used by most of the organisations these days. Those technologies
provide many benefits to the businesses. Not only the big companies but the small companies are
making more use of cloud computing services. This is because big companies have their own IT
infrastructure but small companies find it very costly to develop their own IT infrastructure.
Development of cloud computing has also created a new era of competition amongst the
businesses to build their network and enhance the businesses. Cloud computing has become a
very popular idea and service (Ezell & Swanson, 2017).
Cloud computing is an innovative technology which is being used by the businesses for
managing the data in a better manner and focusing on the performance of the business. Cloud
computing has provided a cost benefit to the organization which has contributed to the
performance of the business. Cloud computing is considered as a bonafide business strategy for
the organizations operating at different levels. Cloud computing has enhanced the level of
flexibility of the organizations and promotes better forecasting on the basis of the stored data
(Shuleski, et. al., 2016).
This essay describes the overall functioning of cloud computing and it infrastructure.
This is the project that discusses about the concept called cloud computing. The major focus of
the project is to analyse the importance and benefits of cloud computing is business efficiency

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and productivity. Research has been conducted on this topic so as to analyse the aspects related
to the topic which is popular in the business environment.

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Project Objective
This project focus on the concept cloud computing. Objective of the research is to gather data
regarding the role of cloud computing, the manner in which cloud computing works and benefits
of using the cloud computing for enhancing the efficiency and productivity of the business. As
far as the specificity of the objectives is considered, following are some of the objectives of
cloud computing:
1. What is cloud computing and how it works?
2. What are the benefits of cloud computing on the business efficiency and productivity?

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Project scope
The scope of the project is to know about the level of involvement, cloud computing has in
businesses. This report focuses on cloud computing and its impact on businesses. This helps the
researchers to better understand the intensity of cloud computing involvement in the businesses
these days. The scope of the research is so wide. Understanding the benefits of cloud computing
in businesses help them to take better decisions in order to implement the cloud computing
services in the organisations (Armbrust, et. al., 2010). The focus of this research program will be
on analyzing the increasing role of cloud computing and impact of cloud computing on business.
There various benefits of using cloud computing to a business and these benefits will be
discussed in this research program. Cloud architecture will be discussed in this research program
along with the cloud computing infrastructure and types of cloud computing infrastructure.

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Literature review
Concept of Cloud Computing
According to the report presented by Intel (2013), cloud computing can be explained as the
storage device acting as an online database where data is stored. The Internet is being used as a
medium for storing, saving data and using the data as per the need of the business. Cloud
computing has contributed to the decision making the process of the business. Safety and
security of the data have increased with the use of cloud computing.
Cloud computing architecture
Cloud computing architecture can be explained as the components which are required for cloud
computing. There are four layers in the cloud computing architecture. These four layers are
hardware layer, an infrastructure layer, a platform layer, and application layer.
Cloud computing infrastructure and types of Cloud computing infrastructure
Different virtual technologies are being used for the purpose of building the cloud computing
infrastructure. Different models of the cloud are available which can be used by the businesses as
per their need. These models of the cloud include private cloud, public cloud, and hybrid cloud.
Organizations can select the models of the cloud as per the need of the business. Different types
of cloud computing infrastructure are available which include infrastructure as a service,
software as a service and platform as a service (Lewis, 2010).

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Figure 1: Reasons for using cloud computing by the business
Source: (Wpengine, 2017)
Cloud as an emerging utility in business
Buyya, et. al. (2009), the use of cloud computing by the businesses has increased with the change
in the business environment. Various applications can be accessed in an easy manner with the
help of cloud computing. Numerous pros of cloud computing have been identified which include
on-demand services, pay as you go, guaranteed quality, accessibility and pooling of resources
(Metzler, 2011). Customers or businesses can use cloud computing services as per the need and
customization is possible. Payment can be made for the service used as per the usage is possible.
Cloud computing is designed with a user-friendly interface (Gibson, et. al., 2012). Quality of the
service is maintained in cloud computing by focusing on the infrastructure of the business.
Services can be used on a shared basis with the help of cloud computing (Avram, 2014).

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Cloud Computing in Business
According to Carlin & Curran (2012), organizations are using IT tools for the purpose of rapid
development, batch processing, and business analytics. With the increase in the competition,
there has been a rise in the number of organizations using of cloud computing. Cloud computing
has resulted in a reduction in the cost involved in managing and storing data, reliable, enhanced
security of the data, mobility, recovery and backup and immediacy. These benefits result in
enhancing the efficiency and productivity of the organization.
Figure 2: Impact of cloud computing on business
Source: (Coles, 2018)

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Research Questions/Hypothesis
Research questions have been prepared so as to form a base for guiding the data collection
process and assembling of the quality data. Research questions for this research program are
mentioned below:
Primary question
 What is the importance of cloud computing for businesses?
Secondary questions
 What are the benefits of using cloud computing in business?
 How does cloud computing work towards the enhancement of the efficiency and
productivity of the business?

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Research Design and Methodology
Data collection is an important aspect of every research as the success of the research is based on
the quality of the data collected. For the attainment of the objectives of the research, data has
been assembled with the application of different methods or approaches. These different
approaches have contributed towards the assembling of the data regarding the concept of cloud
computing and its importance and benefits to the efficiency and productivity of the business.
With the change in technology, cloud computing has gained much importance due to the benefits
associated with its use.
Research method or design: analysis has been made of the different research methods so as to
choose the appropriate design. An explanatory research design has been chosen for the
accumulation of the data regarding the cloud computing and its role in enhancing the efficiency
and productivity of the business (Subedi, 2016). Explanatory research design helps in the
developing knowledge of the concept in a better manner by forming priorities. The explanatory
research will help in developing an understanding of the behavior in the market (Gorard, 2013).
This research will help in gathering information related to cloud computing and its increasing
importance for the business efficiency and productivity. The qualitative method will be used for
the accumulation of the data with the use of primary and secondary methods.
Data collection: The term data collection can be explained as the process of assembling of the
data for an activity. Data collection is an important aspect which determines the chances of
success of the research program. Quality of the data is an important element which is dependent
on the methods selected for the process of data collection. Primary data is the raw and first-hand
data assembled by the researchers solely for the research. This form of data is a less reliable form

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of data as the data may get affected due to the views of the respondents (Lowry, 2015).
Secondary data is the second-hand data assembled by the other researchers for their work and is
used by the researcher (Johnston, 2014). This data is considered more reliable as the data has
been used by other researchers. Both forms of data will be assembled in this research for meeting
the objectives of the research.
Procedures and techniques: analysis of the data has to be done effectively for the extraction of
the reliable data. Data collected is available in large quantity and for the analyzing the collected
data within the limited timeframe, random sampling technique will be used. Random sampling
technique is an approach which selects samples from the population in an unbiased manner
(Rahi, 2017). Equal opportunity is provided to every sample of getting selected for the data
analysis process (Turkenburg & McAuley, 2013).
Research strategies: a sequential strategy has been selected for this research in which focus will
be on execution of the research in a sequence. An action plan has been prepared for conducting
the research in a sequence.
Research timeframe: One of the main limitation of the research is the availability of limited
time period for completion of the research. For overcoming this limitation, an action plan has
been prepared.
Collection of data and targeted market: Primary data will be assembled by preparing a
questionnaire. This questionnaire will be presented to the employees of the businesses using
cloud computing. Secondary data will be assembled with the internet sources issued or published
after 2008.

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Ethical consideration: Ethical values or principles have been followed for ensuring the
completion of the research in a right manner. Ethical values have guided the completion process
of the research without harming the interest of any individual. Ethical values or principles
followed during the research include confidentiality, unbiasedness, and integrity.

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Research Limitations
Research limitations are those challenges or issues which are being faced by the researcher while
conducting the research. Impact of these limitations can be seen on the quality of the research
program. Research limitations faced during this research program are a shortage of time for
completion of research, insufficient resources including finance and human resource and lack of
access to the sources. Effective approaches have been considered for overcoming these
challenges identified.

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Time schedule (Research Plan)
Serial
Number
Activity Initiation
date
Duration
(in days)
Completion
Date
Description
A) Selection of the
topic
16 January
2018
1 16 January
2018
The topic will be
selected on which
research will be
carried out.
B) Framing the
outline for
research
17 January
2018
3 19 January
2018
The outline will
be prepared so as
to prepare a
blueprint on the
basis of which
research program
will be executed.
C) Execution of the
outline prepared
20 January
2018
7 26 January
2018
Plans prepared in
the previous stage
will be
implemented
during this phase
so as to complete

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the research
successfully.
D) Selection of
methods for data
collection
27 January
2018
2 29 January
2018
Methods for the
data collection
have been
selected as per the
requirement of
the research.
E) Initiation of data
collection
process
30 January
2018
8 06 February
2018
Data assembling
process will be
initiated for the
purpose of
developing
knowledge of the
research topic.
F) Analysis and
evaluation
process
07
February
2018
5 11 February
2018
Data assembled
will be analyzed
and evaluated for
extraction of the
relevant data.

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G) Conclusion and
recommendations
12
February
2018
2 13 February
2018
Data analyzed
and evaluated will
be used for
extracting
conclusion and
providing
recommendations.
(Gantt chart is in appendix)

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Conclusion
Thus, from the above discussion, it can be concluded that change in the technology has created
an impact on the different aspects of the business environment. Different information technology
tools are being used by the different organizations for performing the operations of the business.
One of these IT tools is cloud computing which has been used by businesses for enhancing the
performance of the business. Cloud computing has provided a better platform for the storage of
the data to the business. The efficiency of the business operations is increased with the use of
cloud computing.
Businesses are using Cloud computing as a data storage device for storing the
confidential and crucial data of the business. There are various advantages which an organization
can gain for grabbing the opportunities available by using cloud computing for the businesses.
These advantages include reliability, safety to the confidential data, mobility and cost saving.
Data regarding the research topic has been assembled with the use of different methods or
approaches.

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References
Armbrust, M., Fox, A., Griffith, R., Joseph, A.D., Katz, R., Konwinski, A., Lee, G., Patterson,
D., Rabkin, A., Stoica, I. and Zaharia, M., 2010, “A view of cloud computing”, Communications
of the ACM, 53(4), pp.50-58.
Avram, M. G., 2014, “Advantages and Challenges of Adopting Cloud Computing from an
Enterprise Perspective”, Procedia technology, Vol. 12, pp. 529-534.
Buyya, R., Yeo, C. S., Venugopal, S., Broberg, J. & Brandic, I., 2009, “Cloud computing and
emerging IT platforms: Vision, hype, and reality for delivering computing as the 5th utility”,
Future Generation Computer Systems, Vol. 25(6), pp. 599–616.
Carlin, S. & Curran, K., 2012, “Cloud Computing Technologies”, International Journal of
Cloud Computing and Services Science, 1(2), 59–65.
Coles, C., 2018, “11 Advantages of Cloud Computing and How Your Business Can Benefit
From Them”, Sky High Networks. Available at: https://www.skyhighnetworks.com/cloud-
security-blog/11-advantages-of-cloud-computing-and-how-your-business-can-benefit-from-
them/
Ezell, S. & Swanson, B., 2017, “How Cloud Computing Enables Modern Manufacturing”,
American Enterprise Institute.
Gibson, J., Rondeau, R., Eveleigh, D. & Tan, Q., 2012, “Benefits and challenges of three cloud
computing service models”, Research Gate.

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Gkikas, D., 2014, “The Impact of Cloud Computing on Entrepreneurship and Start-ups: Case of
Greece”, KTH.
Gorard, S., 2013, “Research design: creating robust approaches for the social sciences”, SAGE,
London.
Intel, 2013, “Virtualization and Cloud Computing”, Intel IT Center. Available at:
https://www.intel.com/content/dam/www/public/us/en/documents/guides/cloud-computing-
virtualization-building-private-iaas-guide.pdf
Johnston, M. P., 2014, “Secondary Data Analysis: A Method of which the Time Has Come”,
Qualitative and Quantitative Methods in Libraries, pp. 619 –626.
Lewis, G., 2010, “Basics about Cloud Computing”, Software Engineering Institute.
Lowry, L. D., 2015, “Bridging the Business Data Divide: Insights into Primary and Secondary
Data Use by Business Researchers”, IASSIST.
Metzler, J., 2011, “Virtualization: Benefits, Challenges, and Solutions”, Riverbed.
Rahi, S., 2017, “Research Design and Methods: A Systematic Review of Research Paradigms,
Sampling Issues and Instruments Development”, International Journal of Economics &
Management Sciences, 6:2.
Shuleski, D., Birsan, A., Cristea, C. V. & Radu, I., 2016, “Impact of Cloud Computing
Technology Implementation in Public Sector”, Proceedings of the 10th International
Management Conference, Bucharest, Romania.

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Subedi, D., 2016, “Explanatory Sequential Mixed Method Design as the Third Research
Community of Knowledge Claim”, American Journal of Educational Research, Vol. 4, No. 7,
570-577.
Turkenburg, J. P. & McAuley, K. E., 2013, “Data collection and processing”, Acta
Crystallographica Section D, vol. 69, no. 7, pp. 1193-1194.
Wpengine, 2017, “Making the Decision to Move Your Business to the Cloud”, Bay Computing.
Available at: https://baymcp.com/making-the-decision-to-move-your-business-to-the-cloud/

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Appendix
Gantt chart