{"id":7301,"date":"2020-08-07T13:32:39","date_gmt":"2020-08-07T17:32:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/?p=7301"},"modified":"2026-02-12T05:03:36","modified_gmt":"2026-02-12T10:03:36","slug":"doing-business-in-the-cloud","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/doing-business-in-the-cloud\/","title":{"rendered":"Business in the cloud: Lessons learned in 2020"},"content":{"rendered":"<header class=\"entry-header has-dark-background-color entry-header--has-illustration entry-header--has-illustration--generic\">\n\t<div class=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-header__row row align-center\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"col col-lg-7 col-xlg-6 entry-header__content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"component component-single-header\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-header__misc text--subtitle text--uppercase text--small\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/category\/trends-insights\/\" class=\"entry-header__link\">Trends &amp; Insights<\/a>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"entry-title-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<h1 class=\"entry-title\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\tBusiness in the cloud: Lessons learned in 2020\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<p class=\"entry-header__description\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t<div class=\"single-post-details container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"col\">\n\t\t\t<span class=\"posted-on \"><time class=\"entry-date published\" datetime=\"2020-08-07T13:32:39-04:00\">August 7, 2020<\/time><\/span><span class=\"reading-time\"> min read<\/span>\n\t\t<button\n\t\t\ttype=\"button\"\n\t\t\tclass=\"social-share-button button button--icon button--secondary js-social-share-button\"\n\t\t\tdata-share-title=\"Business in the cloud: Lessons learned in 2020\"\n\t\t\tdata-share-url=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/doing-business-in-the-cloud\/\"\n\t\t\tdata-share-text=\"Please read this interesting article\"\n\t\t>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"social-share-button__share-label\">Share<\/span>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"social-share-button__copy-label\" hidden>Copy Link<\/span>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"social-share-button__copy-tooltip\" aria-hidden=\"true\" hidden>Copied<\/span>\n\t\t<\/button>\n\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/header>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-post-author has-dark-background-color alignfull\">\n\t<div class=\"container\">\n\t\t<div class=\"col\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"co-authors\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\n\t\t<div class=\"entry-author-wrapper\">\n\t\t\t<a class=\"entry-author\" href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/author\/johannabrown\/\">\n\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"40\" height=\"40\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/07\/Johanna-headshot2-350x350.jpg\" class=\"entry-author__image\" alt=\"\" \/>\t\t\t\t<span class=\"entry-author__name\">Johanna Brown-Lyons<\/span>\n\t\t\t<\/a>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"video-container-wrap -mode-full\"><div class=\"video-container\"><video\n\t\t\t\tclass=\"sage-video video-js vjs-default-skin \"\n\t\t\t\twidth=\"640\"\n\t\t\t\theight=\"360\"\n\t\t\t\tdata-setup='{ \"controls\": true, \"aspectRatio\" : \"16:9\", \"poster\": \"https:\/\/img.youtube.com\/vi\/X8u3FUGg-Nk\/hqdefault.jpg\", \"techOrder\": [\"youtube\"], \"enablejsapi\": 1, \"origin\": \"https:\/\/www.sage.com\", \"sources\": [{ \"type\": \"video\/youtube\", \"src\": \"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=X8u3FUGg-Nk\"}], \"youtube\": { \"ytControls\": 0, \"cc_load_policy\": 3, \"modestbranding\": 1, \"hl\": \"en_US\", \"playsinline\": 1 } }'\n\t\t\t\tcrossorigin=\"\"><\/video><\/div><\/div>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p>How have the events of 2020 impacted businesses so far? That is the question we recently posed on Twitter. Below is an edited transcript of our <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/i\/events\/1288173980680060929?\">Twitter chat<\/a> with our expert panel, their responses covered cloud migration, remote working, lessons learned from this unique period in history, and the importance of people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>The discussion included the following participants:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/communication-and-collaboration\/\">Tripp Braden<\/a>, growth and development strategist, Strategic Performance Partners<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/challenges-cfos-post-covid-19\/\">Tom Hood<\/a>, president and CEO, Maryland Association of CPAs<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/author\/rafaelcasas\/\">Rafael Casas<\/a>, senior accountant advocate, Sage<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/lost-passion-business-get-back\/\">Kay Dexter<\/a>, marketing strategist, Sage<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/digital-transformation-covid-19\/\">Gary Boomer<\/a>, visionary and strategist, Boomer Consulting<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Carol Stephen, author and social media expert, Your Social Media Works<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/talent-shortage-in-the-accounting-industry\/\">Blake Oliver<\/a>, executive producer, Cloud Accounting Podcast<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li>Garrett Wagner, co-host, Entrepreneurial CPA Show<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n<div class=\"single-cta\">\n\t<a\n\t\tclass=\"button button--primary \"\n\t\trole=\"button\"\n\t\tdata-button-location=\"content_area\"\n\t\thref=\"#\"\n\t>Download your copy of The cloud and beyond: A guide to implementing the technologies of today and tomorrow<\/a>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-did-the-pandemic-accelerate-the-shift-to-the-cloud-or-solidify-its-importance\">Did the pandemic accelerate the shift to the cloud or solidify its importance?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThe pandemic has permanently changed client and customer expectations. The cloud has become a foundation for future business growth.&nbsp; It allows the business leader to define new opportunities for growth within their customer base and beyond at a lower cost of sales. The cloud empowers this digital transformation.\u201d \u2013 <strong>Tripp Braden @TrippBraden<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThe disruption we\u2019ve faced in 2020 so far caused all businesses to shift overnight how they operated.&nbsp; Due to the nature of the disruption, the world was forced into virtual work.&nbsp; The real question isn\u2019t have you shifted to the cloud already [because] everyone has. The real question is will you stay in the cloud or [will you] go backwards and become irrelevant?\u201d \u2013 <strong>Garrett Wagner @garrettwagner37<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-what-lessons-have-we-learned-from-the-events-of-2020\">What lessons have we learned from the events of 2020?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cFirms are more resilient than they thought. Surprisingly, they were all able to go virtual with 48 hours during busy season.&nbsp; Were personal preferences holding them back?\u201d \u2013 <strong>L. Gary Boomer @lgboomer<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019ve learned that we are more resilient than we give ourselves credit for. However, we need to work on being more proactive than reactive. When we are prepared these events don\u2019t change our businesses too much.\u201d \u2013 <strong>Rafael Casas @SageRafaelCasas<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-how-has-2020-impacted-business-continuity-strategies\">How has 2020 impacted business continuity strategies?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cMany entrepreneurs had to reconsider how they do career planning for their key people.&nbsp; All it took was one key person\u2019s illness and the rest of the organization had to step up.\u201d \u2013 <strong>Tripp Braden @TrippBraden<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201c2020 has turned many businesses on their heads. We\u2019re really seeing who the leaders are right now.\u201d \u2013 <strong>Carol Stephen @Carol_Stephen<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-which-lasting-business-process-changes-could-result-from-this-year\">Which lasting business process changes could result from this year?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cClearly remote and distributed work, cloud-based accounting systems, visual communication, and e-commerce will stay with us into the future.\u201d \u2013 <strong>Tom Hood @tomhood<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cElectronic signatures and workflow for tax prep must be updated to take advantage of the technology and reduce cycle times.\u201d \u2013 <strong>L. Gary Boomer @lgboomer<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cA big change is that management has to learn to trust employees.&nbsp; The days of micromanagement are over if they want to survive.\u201d \u2013 <strong>Carol Stephen @Carol_Stephen<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThe forceful push to cloud and virtual environments. Businesses right now, more than ever, are required to \u2018play in\u2019 and \u2018learn\u2019 cloud. Re-education\/training to all things cloud or virtual is the new normal.\u201d \u2013 <strong>Kay Dexter @TheKayDexter<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-what-are-some-barriers-to-migrating-to-the-cloud-and-how-can-they-be-overcome\">What are some barriers to migrating to the cloud and how can they be overcome?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cStubbornness about learning new technology is a huge barrier. People don\u2019t like change. Give the early adopters the job of helping the others.\u201d \u2013 <strong>Carol Stephen @Carol_Stephen<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cTraining and education. Also, data discrepancies or comprising of data. Lack of planning. Ensuring users, regardless of business size, that are using the software platform are in the planning and migration conversations. This way they feel motivated to participate.\u201d \u2013 <strong>Kay Dexter @TheKayDexter<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cMost of the barriers to migrating to the cloud revolve around mindsets that are resisting the changes \u2013 COVID has overcome them in the short-term. The long-term will require change leadership.\u201d \u2013 <strong>Tom Hood @tomhood<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cUpgrading your technology to provide better collaboration and connectivity will provide for increasing results. Upgrading your people\u2019s capabilities will provide exponential opportunities.\u201d \u2013 <strong>Tripp Braden @TrippBraden<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\" id=\"h-what-is-the-priority-when-developing-an-effective-cloud-strategy-people-technology-or-something-else\">What is the priority when developing an effective cloud strategy \u2013 people, technology, or something else?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cFocus on the \u2018who\u2019 can get it done, rather than the how. It takes a team to provide client services. The day of the rugged individual is over.\u201d \u2013 <strong>L. Gary Boomer @lgboomer<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cCreating a great culture where technology and people can be empowered. Technology and innovation are useless if you don\u2019t have the right culture in place that has set the right business processes in play for technology to succeed.\u201d \u2013 <strong>Rafael Casas @SageRafaelCasas<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cIt hasn\u2019t changed, PEOPLE are the priority, be it the employees, partners, or clients.&nbsp; People allow the technology and\/or systems to work. You must listen to them and use their insights to develop an effective cloud strategy.\u201d \u2013 <strong>Kay Dexter @TheKayDexter<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cSo why do we let other factors determine how we deploy our cloud strategies? It\u2019s all about the people!\u201d \u2013 <strong>Tripp Braden @TrippBraden<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>\u201cThe #1 thing is people and their mindsets about the future and technology. Technology and process should follow the people.\u201d \u2013 <strong>Tom Hood @tomhood<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"single-cta\">\n\t<a\n\t\tclass=\"button button--primary \"\n\t\trole=\"button\"\n\t\tdata-button-location=\"content_area\"\n\t\thref=\"#\"\n\t>Download your copy of The cloud and beyond: A guide to implementing the technologies of today and tomorrow<\/a>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"single-cta\">\n\t<div class=\"single-cta__positioner\">\n\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__wrapper has-dark-background-color\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__content\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<h2 class=\"single-cta__title h3\">Subscribe to our Sage Advice Newsletter<\/h2>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"single-cta__description\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<p>Get our latest business advice delivered directly to your inbox.<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<a\n\t\t\t\t\t\thref=\"#gate-ab515c6e-7e90-4c2f-a67e-113872516e8b\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\tclass=\"single-cta__button button button--primary\"\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t>Subscribe<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t<img decoding=\"async\" width=\"1440\" height=\"810\" src=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/GettyImages-1073797282-1440x810.jpg\" class=\"single-cta__image\" alt=\"Working from home with tea in hand\" loading=\"lazy\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2022\/04\/GettyImages-1073797282-1440x810.jpg 1440w\" sizes=\"auto, (min-width: 48em) 33vw, 100vw\" \/>\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>How have the events of 2020 impacted businesses so far? That is the question we recently posed on Twitter. Below is an edited transcript of our Twitter chat with our expert panel, their responses covered cloud migration, remote working, lessons learned from this unique period in history, and the importance of people. The discussion included [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":795,"featured_media":2841,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_sage_video":true,"post_featured_image_hide":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[49],"tags":[257,399,346,205,279],"business_type":[40,312],"lilypad":[],"context":[],"industry":[],"persona":[150,97],"imagine_tag":[222,230],"coauthors":[645],"class_list":["post-7301","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-trends-insights","tag-boomer-consulting","tag-business-continuity","tag-cloud-technology","tag-influencers-to-follow","tag-sage-events","business_type-small-business","business_type-accountants"],"sage_meta":{"region":"en-us","author_name":"Johanna Brown-Lyons","featured_image":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2017\/10\/BusinessVoice.jpg","imagine_tags":{"222":"Accountants","230":"Small business"}},"distributor_meta":false,"distributor_terms":false,"distributor_media":false,"distributor_original_site_name":"Sage Advice US","distributor_original_site_url":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog","push-errors":false,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7301","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/users\/795"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7301"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7301\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/media\/2841"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7301"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7301"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7301"},{"taxonomy":"business_type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/business_type?post=7301"},{"taxonomy":"lilypad","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/lilypad?post=7301"},{"taxonomy":"context","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/context?post=7301"},{"taxonomy":"industry","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/industry?post=7301"},{"taxonomy":"persona","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/persona?post=7301"},{"taxonomy":"imagine_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/imagine_tag?post=7301"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.sage.com\/en-us\/blog\/api\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=7301"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}