How Cloud Computing is Changing Membership Management Software
Originally published on Capterra’s Nonprofit Technology blog
As cloud computing moves everything we do and store onto the internet, the necessity of on-site software and on-site data management continues to shrink. Our entire lives are making their way onto the cloud, from pictures and music to spreadsheets and Word documents.
Nonprofits have a great opportunity to take advantage of this technology, especially in regards to membership management. It is important to understand the changes, positive and negative, cloud computing is making to membership management before taking the plunge.
Here is how cloud computing is changing membership management software, from the benefits to the drawbacks.
Pros
Less on-site hardware
Hardware can be expensive and hard drive crashes are inevitable. Since hardware never lasts forever, it is best to have your data backed up somewhere.
Rather than purchasing an external hard drive and tons of software discs, the cloud provides a virtually infinite digital hard drive for you to store all of your member data. It doesn’t matter if you spill your coffee on your work laptop or if you happen to toss your computer out the window of your 30-story office building, your data will always be available to you on the cloud.
Besides, haven’t we all wanted to do this at some point?
With the cloud your data is always accessible, even if your computer makes a long drop from your office window, so long as you have an internet connection.
Security
I was shocked when I found the statistics regarding electronic device theft.
According to a study cited by Channel Pro Network:
- One laptop is stolen every 53 seconds.
- 70 million smartphones are lost each year, with only 7 percent recovered.
- 4.3 percent of company-issued smartphones are lost or stolen every year.
- 80 percent of the cost of a lost laptop is from data breach.
- 52 percent of devices are stolen from the office/workplace, and 24 percent from conferences.
Nonprofits live and breathe data, much of which is made up of highly sensitive personal information, including but not limited to social security numbers, bank accounts, phone numbers, and personal addresses. A stolen laptop with on-site membership management software is a treasure trove of personal information waiting to be breached and exploited.
Cloud computing alleviates these concerns. Holding data in the cloud on off-site servers behind logins creates another barrier of security around member data that would otherwise be accessible if stored on a stolen laptop.
Cloud computing affords you new security measures such as third-party data monitoring and potentially more sophisticated encryption depending on your own nonprofit’s network and data security skills.
Work anywhere from any device
Imagine you are getting on a plane to head to a nonprofit conference but then you suddenly realize that you remembered your personal computer but somehow you left your work laptop back at the office. If you are using on-site membership management software this can create problems for your work. All of your data, presentations, and all other relevant work data are stuck back at the office while you sit helplessly strapped into your seat.
Cloud computing renders this scenario moot by making all data and work resources available on any device with an internet connection.
