This morning, an e-Book entitled ‘A Guide to Cloud Computing for SMEs and Microenterprises’ was launched by the Parliamentary Secretary for Competitiveness and Economic Growth José Herrera, during a conference jointly organised by the Malta Communications Authority (MCA) and the Malta Information Technology Agency (MITA). This conference was intended to raise awareness about the benefits SMEs can get from cloud computing.
Held at the Le Meridien Hotel St. Julian’s, this conference specifically targeted SMEs and microenterprises and focused on the benefits of and challenges in implementing cloud-based solutions for such businesses. SMEs from different industries actively participated in the discussion which was led by local and foreign experts on the subject.
Parliamentary Secretary Herrera emphasised the importance of such enterprises using the right technology to maximise their outputs. He stated that the right technology can lead to greater efficiency for such businesses, which can only lead to greater productivity and sustainable economic growth. The e-Book provides a wealth of information for SMEs and microenterprises, including the benefits of cloud computing, the different solutions available on the market, how to select the right vendor to ensure their business needs are met, and a step-by-step guide on how to go about introducing and implementing a cloud computing solution. The benefits of cloud computing include flexibility and efficiency, automatic update of softwares and greater security among many others.
Dr Tobias Höllwarth, a founding member of EuroCloud Austria and editor of the book Migrating to the Cloud, Maurice van der Woude, general director of EuroCloud Europe, Dr Godwin Caruana, Chief Technology Officer at MITA, and Mr Steve Agius, Chief of Information and Business Development at MCA, also addressed the conference. Nick Tonna from BMIT, John Degiorgio from Shireburn Software and Edward Portelli from Microsoft Azure participated in a panel discussion, each sharing their own experiences in implementing cloud-based solutions and the impact that this had on their business.
“This e-Book is yet another step forward in our drive to support the local business community in keeping up with the latest technological developments,’ continued Parliamentary Secretary Herrera before thanking MITA and MCA for yet another new fruitful project. He said that it is with initiatives like this that our country can continue to bolster its economic growth sustainably and increase Malta’s competitiveness in the services sector.
In a separate event held at the University Of Malta, students, particularly those from the Faculty of ICT, FEMA, Engineering and Sciences, had the opportunity to meet these experts and discuss the benefits and opportunities of Cloud Computing.
The e-Book can be obtained by clicking on the following link: http://www.mca.org.mt/notices-and-announcements/cloud-computing-guidelines-smes-and-microenterprises-1