What Insurance Businesses Need to Understand About the ‘Hybrid’ Cloud
December 8, 2016
December 8, 2016
The focus on cloud computing in insurance, and other sectors, is how much it can reduce IT costs. This is important, but there are many other factors involved, especially in the insurance industry. There are now public clouds which offer a higher cost savings to the company, and the private clouds which allow the company to retain a stronger control over its data. As the cloud continues to transform, so does its technology and options offered by cloud service providers.
More companies are moving from public and private clouds and veering toward the third option: the hybrid cloud. The hybrid allows companies to secure their information, but retain the advantage of software on demand. Cloud service providers, like TOSS C3, will have the tools and experience to move your insurance company to the next level.
The Public Cloud
The public cloud is a set of hardware and software tools owned by a third party, but is used by several other companies. Many companies do not feel secure using this type of cloud service as a primary source of data control since data from several companies can be stored in the same place. They are great for monotonous workloads like email, or storing a large number of pictures. For more information on how the public cloud and other cloud architectures work:
The Private Cloud
The public cloud is a set of hardware and software tools owned by the organization for the use of its employees, partners, and customers. The private cloud hides behind a firewall and does not allow access with the outside world. This provides stronger security, and allows a predictable managed work environment. More information can be attained by reading TOSS C3’s white paper:
The Hybrid Cloud
This is the best of both worlds. The goal is to combine services and data from a variety of cloud models to create a unified, automated, and well-managed computing environment. The hybrid can allow core applications, such as policy management, to remain local, but other services can still be connected to the cloud to provide other services. Back-office operations, underwriting processes, and regulatory concerns provide a need for the added security the hybrid cloud can offer. According to Capgemini, “For core functions like product design and front office applications, including agents and broker portals, P&C insurers are likely to prefer a hybrid cloud delivery model where the cloud infrastructure is composed of two or more clouds (private or public) based on insurers’ business needs and security concerns.”
It’s important that insurers rationalize applications and create their own cloud-based strategies that take advantage of a private cloud in their organization. It is also important to have the versatility of the public cloud, so the hybrid may be the best solution. Unified computing systems (UCS) and servers that unify computing, networking, management, virtualization and storage access into a single integrated architecture can be achieved seamlessly with the hybrid design.
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