Data overload. Poor decision-making. Inefficient processes. Limited real-time insights. These are just a few of the many challenges an organization would face without business intelligence (BI). Yet traditional BI has its own set of challenges, including complexity, cost, data diversity, and more. These limitations have led businesses to seek a more affordable and efficient solution — the cloud. This article explains cloud business intelligence (cloud BI), how it works, and its benefits.

We take our phones and tech devices everywhere — whether it’s on the train, at a coffee shop, or even in bed, we’re rarely far from them. In fact, 75% of Americans admit to using their phones even while on the toilet. With each new location, our devices pick up a mix of dust, dirt, and germs along the way. While the COVID-19 pandemic may have heightened our awareness of germs, are we paying enough attention to the bacteria that can gather on our everyday gadgets?

Data is in the digital age what oil was in the industrial age. Many organizations have noticed this and are now racing to find the most efficient, cost-effective, and robust platforms to help organize, store, and manage their data. Amazon RDS offers a robust cloud database solution, but like any service, it has limitations. In this guide, we’ll explain cloud database management, how Amazon RDS supports it, and why it might not meet all needs.

Data drives decisions forward. Every insight leads to action. A 2024 Gartner report revealed that organizations utilizing analytics and AI are better positioned to manage complexity, build trust in data, and empower their teams. This underscores the critical role of data intelligence. It involves collecting and analyzing data to uncover patterns and trends that help businesses take action. As a result, they can make informed decisions, optimize performance, and gain a competitive edge.

Microsoft Azure is the most popular cloud computing platform after Amazon Web Services (AWS). With over 200 services and resources available, there are plenty of ways to use Azure. This means the Azure public cloud allows hundreds, if not thousands, of unique configurations. This flexibility is ideal for tailoring Azure to your workload’s requirements but also makes cloud management more challenging.

A major problem led Amazon to introduce Cost Explorer and Cost and Usage Reports. Many Amazon Web Services (AWS) users were overspending on services they couldn’t quite identify. Before the two cloud financial management tools, the AWS public cloud was like a buffet menu without prices. Engineers could use as many cloud resources as possible (and then some), only to be hit with surprise bills at the end of the month or billing cycle.

Google Cloud Platform (GCP) offers a great alternative to Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft Azure. If you use Google Products extensively at work, such as Google Workspace, moving to GCP may be a natural choice. Perhaps you already use GCP with AWS, Azure, or another cloud provider as part of your hybrid cloud strategy. But maybe you struggle to manage GCP costs, monitor security and compliance, and observe performance.

As both the State Of FinOps 2024 and the State Of Cloud Costs In 2024 indicate, reducing cloud waste remains a top priority for cloud-driven organizations. Cloud spenders care more than ever about cost efficiency — and CloudZero is working tirelessly to make cloud savings simpler. To this end, we’re proud to announce that we’ve added a suite of automated Azure optimizations to our already robust library of automated Insights.

The cloud offers many benefits, including scalability, cost savings, and operational efficiency. But here’s the deal. Organizing, monitoring, and controlling a cloud environment can become complex as workloads, applications, services, and underlying infrastructure grow. Businesses can better control and monitor their cloud infrastructure services, resources, and data using cloud management software.

Cloud services have become an indispensable resource for businesses seeking agility, scalability, and innovation. However, with this increased reliance on the cloud comes the challenge of managing and optimizing costs effectively. For Chief Financial Officers (CFOs), understanding and tracking cloud cost metrics is crucial to maintaining financial health and ensuring strategic investments yield the desired returns.