86% of Businesses in Singapore Claim Cloud is Key to Surviving Covid-19

Yet Singapore’s IT decision makers were the region’s least satisfied with their Cloud-based solutions

SINGAPORE, 4 February 2021 – Alibaba Cloud, the digital technology and intelligence backbone of Alibaba Group, announced that 79% of IT Decision Makers (ITDMs) in Singapore were satisfied with how their company’s existing IT infrastructure dealt with the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on regular business operations. 7 in 10 respondents here also stated that the hybrid cloud approach was key to their company’s disaster recovery and business continuity during the pandemic. The Singapore-specific findings were derived from the company’s Cloud in Asia survey conducted in November 2020.

Maturity of Singapore’s Cloud Adoption and Attitudes

According to the survey findings, Singapore leads the Southeast Asia region in cloud adoption, with nearly 9 out of 10 ITDMs surveyed saying their companies are already using cloud-based IT solutions. Another indication of the Cloud maturity in Singapore can be observed by the top concerns flagged by ITDMs surveyed. Compared to regional counterparts where integrating Cloud-based solutions into existing IT infrastructure was one of the key issues, Singapore’s top concerns were a tie in cost and security (57%) and availability (49%).

Nonetheless, the pandemic prompted the adoption of even more Cloud-based IT solutions. More than 70% of respondents said their company introduced more Cloud-based IT solutions since the pandemic started. With the undeniable benefits of Cloud – especially in tackling a sudden and devastating event like Covid-19 – 72% of ITDMs agreed that their companies are even more supportive of riding on Cloud-based solutions to grow the business as compared to before the pandemic.

During the Circuit Breaker in 2020, to contain the spread of Covid-19 from April to June, Alibaba Cloud received a more than 50% increase in demand for its cloud computing technologies among retailers, delivery service providers, education companies and even heartland shops. The strong uptick in demand further demonstrates affinity towards using cloud computing technologies to solve business continuity problems by local companies large and small.

Avoiding the Diminishing Returns Trap

However, 15% of local ITDMs said Cloud-based and other digitalisation efforts did not help their company to cope with the pandemic, the highest in all markets surveyed. 30% of respondents also said their companies worked independently to develop new solutions to mitigate pandemic-driven needs like remote working.

“The maturity of IT and Cloud infrastructure and attitudes in Singapore means it is no longer a question of creating more clouds, but how to use existing ones more effectively,” said Derek Wang, Singapore General Manager, Alibaba Cloud Intelligence. “Having realized much of the immediate benefits of moving to the Cloud, the challenge for businesses here is to create new Cloud-based solutions to avoid the diminishing returns trap.”

The step up from just moving to the Cloud and readily adopting plug-and-play tools to creating tailored solutions for each company’s unique needs is not an easy one. Apart from the investment of people, energy and funds needed to power these initiatives, companies may be better served by partnering with specialists that have a critical mass of experience and expertise at hand to draw from.

Partnering for Success

ITDMs surveyed in Singapore already overwhelmingly agree that partnering with Cloud providers and other vendors is critical. Close to 70% of ITDMs also reported that their companies are already using cloud-based solutions provided by vendors, the highest in Southeast Asia. Respondents here were also more confident than the Southeast Asia average that cloud providers can deliver on their promises.

Especially in black swan events like the Covid-19 pandemic, 77% of respondents said that cloud vendors and/or external consultants should help them find customised solutions to support operational needs, and 64% agreed that cloud vendors helped their company react quicker to Covid-19.

“We have been working with Alibaba Cloud since Covid-19 outbreak to help local enterprises, especially small medium companies to digitalise. Working with a hyperscale cloud service provider enables us to pass on the benefits from economies of scale to our customers, and with our local expertise we can customise the best-fit solutions for our customers, in order to help them achieve the most from cloud computing technologies,” said Edric Khoo, Technical Director, SCash.

To accelerate enterprise cloud adoption for businesses, especially for small and medium-sized enterprises, Alibaba Cloud has placed increased emphasis in working with local partners such as Bamboo System Technology and Human Capital Singapore to serve more customers and hopes to train more than 10,000 professionals in Singapore to implement cloud technology for businesses.

For inforgraphics, please visit: https://www.alibabacloud.com/blog/infographic-cloud-and-digitalization-priorities-are-changing-in-asia_597261

About Alibaba Cloud

Established in 2009, Alibaba Cloud (www.alibabacloud.com), the digital technology and intelligence backbone of Alibaba Group, is among the world’s top three IaaS providers, according to Gartner. It is also the largest provider of public cloud services in China, according to IDC. Alibaba Cloud provides a comprehensive suite of cloud computing services to businesses worldwide, including merchants doing business on Alibaba Group marketplaces, start-ups, corporations and public services. Alibaba Cloud is the official Cloud Services Partner of the International Olympic Committee.

About Alibaba Cloud Survey

The Role of Cloud in Asia and Confidence in Asian Innovation Survey” was commissioned by Alibaba Cloud and conducted by an independent research organisation to obtain a better understanding of how regional businesses are feeling about and using cloud solutions as well as viewing local innovation. More than 1,000 IT decision makers (employees who have decision-making capabilities or is able to influence decisions regarding IT matters) from six markets across Asia, including Hong Kong, Malaysia, Singapore, India, Indonesia, and Philippines, participated in the survey by answering an online questionnaire distributed in November 2020.