6 Ways Microsoft Azure Can Help Your IT Business in the Middle East Boom High

Some two years ago, Microsoft cloud solution provider, Azure, launched its first two cloud region datacenters in the Middle East (United Arab Emirates: UAE) with one in Abu Dhabi and the other in Dubai. The region now shares a global network of more than 60 data center regions. With more than 170 worldwide network PoP (Point of presence), 130,000 miles of lit fiber optic, and undersea cable systems, the region now not only has a local presence but even a global reach. 

The presence of Azure data centers locally in the Middle East has stimulated regional entrepreneurship, powered business growth, intensified innovation, and helped government organizations serve their customers and citizens better. Companies like the Abu Dhabi Department of Culture and Tourism, Etihad Airways, CBD, Mashreq, and Dubai Tourism are already reaping their benefits. If you too have plans to migrate to Microsoft Azure but your heart is left in doubt whether or not to make a move, here are the top 5 ways how the rapidly expanding Microsoft Azure cloud services can be good for your IT business.

1. Reduces Costs

The first direct benefit of moving to Azure is you do not need to spend a fortune on buying and maintaining expensive hardware. So, it drastically reduces the CAPEX (Capital Expenditure). Moreover, Microsoft Azure offers a pricing model that allows you to pay for what you use. So, you can not only control but reduce your OPEX (Operational expenditure) based on your goals and needs. 

The other way Azure reduces cost is through indirect savings that you make through it. By facilitating easy access to your data, it helps you save both money and time. Moreover, fixing issues that occur due to frequent downtimes results in the wastage of a significant amount of time and money. However, in the Azure cloud, the downtimes are rare helping you save again. One more factor that makes Azure cloud services in Dubai cheaper is that the service is new to the market. 

2. Enhances Security

For those who don’t know, Microsoft Azure invests $1 billion every year in cybersecurity research and development. All the client data is encrypted by default by Microsoft whether in transit or at rest.  The cybersecurity team of the cloud service provider (CSP) maintains a 365/24/7 vigil so that your data is safe. Not just that, the CSP employs various cutting-edge security technologies like Advanced Threat Analytics, Multi-Factor Authorization, Threat Intelligence, Azure Information Protection, etc., for proactively identifying and preventing any suspicious attempts. 

3. Improves Compliance

With Microsoft Azure, organizations find it easy to meet security requirements, data residency, and local certification due to its ‘trusted cloud’ principles of security, privacy, compliance, and transparency. By embracing the world’s first set of laws & regulations for cloud privacy i.e., ISO/IEC 27018, and by supporting various other industry standards like PCI, GDPR, etc., the CSP helps you stay compliant with the laws, regulations, and standards. Not just that, the CSP had the Dubai Electronic Security Centre certification before any other CSP could have.   

4. Provides Multiple Capabilities

Apart from providing SQL & NoSQL data services, Microsoft Azure offers multiple capabilities that include Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence, Blockchain as a Service (BaaS), and Cognitive APIs. It also allows you to automate several tasks so that you do not waste effort, time, and money in implementing those properly. 

5. Easily Integrates with Microsoft Tools

A large number of businesses already use Microsoft tools such as Microsoft 365, Teams & so on. Integrating them with a cloud platform may or may not be difficult. However, in the case of Azure, this integration not only becomes easy but you can also move your data & applications to the cloud quickly and seamlessly.

6. Offers Hybrid Cloud Capabilities

Microsoft Azure offers an advanced version of hybrid cloud capabilities. So, just in case you have already heavily invested on-premises but want to reap the benefits of the cloud, you can benefit from the hybrid cloud capabilities offered by the CSP. Some of the hybrid connections offered by Azure for enhancing performance & usability are ExpressRoute connections, content delivery networks (CDNs), caches, and virtual private networks (VPNs).

Moreover!

If you want to build up the benefits of the Azure cloud, even more, you can get a cloud consultant on board or outsource the cloud migration & management to a Managed Services Provider (MSP). For a nominal monthly charge, the MSP helps you seamlessly move your workloads to the cloud and easily maintain the cloud environment that gives you complete peace of mind. It, in turn, helps you invest the time and money saved on enhancing your business bottom line. 

Wrapping Up

A whopping 95 percent of Fortune 500 companies globally are already using the Azure cloud. With a presence in more than 60 regions and 140 countries, Microsoft Azure has a global footprint that can help you achieve the scale you require for making your applications available to your remote users sitting globally. Whether yours is a government, aviation, healthcare manufacturing, or financial services company, you can benefit from the Azure cloud services in Dubai. The most remarkable point is that this is just the beginning of the Azure journey in the Middle East. There is much more to be introduced making migration to Azure a future-proof step in the region.