Gone are the days when you had to store boxes of documents in your office. Salvation came in the form of cloud computing in the 2000s. Since then, it’s made a world of difference for businesses across all industries, increasing productivity, organization, and decluttering the workspace. More importantly, it allows businesses to reduce various expenses by 30%-50%.


Cloud computing has countless benefits, but that doesn’t mean the technology is flawless. On the contrary, you should be aware of several disadvantages of cloud computing that can cause many problems with your implementation. Weighing up the pros and cons is essential – and we’ll do precisely that in this article.


Read on for the advantages and disadvantages of cloud computing.


Advantages of Cloud Computing


The cloud computing market is worth more than $540 billion. The main reason being that over 90% of all companies use some form of this technology. Here’s why they rely on cloud-based platforms.


Cost Efficiency


One of the greatest benefits of cloud computing is that it’s cost-efficient and allows you to reduce business expenses on three fronts.


Reduced Hardware and Software Expenses


You don’t need physical hardware to store your documents if you have a cloud computing platform. Likewise, the technology eliminates the need to run multiple software platforms because you can keep all your files in one place.


Lower Energy Consumption


In-house storage solutions can be convenient, but they consume a lot of electricity. Conversely, cloud computing systems help companies increase energy efficiency by over 90%.


Minimal Maintenance Costs


Maintaining such platforms is straightforward and affordable as cloud computing doesn’t involve heavy-duty software and hardware.


Scalability and Flexibility


Another reason cloud computing is popular is its scalability and flexibility. Here’s what underpins these advantages of cloud computing.


Easy Resource Allocation and Management


You don’t need to allocate your storage resources to numerous solutions if you have a unified cloud computing system. Managing your storage requirements becomes much easier with all your money going into one channel.


Pay-As-You-Go Pricing Model


Cloud-based platforms are available on a pay-as-you-go model. This reduces the risk of overpaying for your service because you’re only charged for the amount of data used.


Rapid Deployment of Applications and Services


Deploying cloud computing applications and services is simple. There’s no need for intense employee training, which further reduces your costs.


Accessibility and Mobility


Cloud computing is a highly accessible and mobile technology that can elevate your efficiency in a number of ways.


Access to Data and Applications From Anywhere


All it takes to access a cloud-based platform is a stable internet connection. As a result, you can retrieve key files virtually anywhere.


Improved Collaboration and Productivity


The ability to access data and applications from anywhere boosts collaboration and productivity. Your team gets a unified platform where they can share data with others much faster.


Support for Remote Work and Distributed Teams


Setting up a remote workspace is seamless with a cloud-computing solution. Employees no longer have to come to the office to perform repetitive tasks since they can do them from their computers.


Enhanced Security


If you want to address the most common security concerns in your organization, cloud computing is an excellent option.


Centralized Data Storage and Protection


By storing your information in a centralized location, you decrease the risk of data theft. In essence, you funnel all your resources into one platform rather than spread them out across multiple channels.


Regular Security Updates and Patches


Cloud computing providers offer regular updates to protect your information. Systems with the latest security patches are less prone to cyber attacks.


Advanced Encryption and Authentication Methods


You can also benefit from cloud computing tools due to their next-level encryption and authentication solutions. Most platforms feature AES 256-bit encryption, which is the most advanced and practically impregnable method. Furthermore, two-factor authentication lowers the chances of unauthorized access.


Disaster Recovery and Business Continuity


Business continuity and disaster recovery are two of the most pressing business challenges. Cloud computing solutions can help address these problems.


Automated Data Backup and Recovery


Many cloud storage systems are designed to automatically backup and recover your data. Hence, you don’t need to worry about losing your information in the event of a power outage.


Reduced Downtime and Data Loss


Since cloud computing helps prevent data loss, this technology also saves you less downtime. You don’t have to retrieve information manually because the platform does the work for you.


Simplified Disaster Recovery Planning


Although cloud computing tools are reliable, they’re not immune to failure caused by power loss, natural disasters, and other factors. Fortunately, these platforms have robust disaster recovery plans to get your system up and running in no time.



Disadvantages of Cloud Computing


Since the technology is so effective, you might be asking yourself: “Are there any disadvantages of cloud computing?” There are, and you need to understand these downsides to determine the best way to implement the technology. Here are the main drawbacks of cloud computing.


Data Privacy and Security Concerns


Like any other online technology, cloud computing can put users at risk of data privacy and security concerns.


Potential for Data Breaches and Unauthorized Access


While cloud apps have exceptional security practices, cyber criminals can bypass them with state-of-the-art technology and innovative hacking methods. Consequently, they may gain access to your information and steal your credentials.


Compliance With Data Protection Regulations


Your cloud computing tool may comply with many data protection regulations, but this doesn’t mean your information is 100% secure. Some standards only require apps to use robust password practices and fail to consider other attack methods, such as phishing.


Trusting Third-Party Providers With Sensitive Information


Online services require you to share your information to enable all features. Cloud computing is no different in this respect. You need to provide a third-party vendor with your data, which can be risky.


Limited Control and Customization


Cloud computing is a flexible and scalable technology. At the same time, it limits your control and customization options, which is why you might not be 100% happy with your platform.


Dependence on Cloud Service Providers


You decide what files you wish to share with your cloud-based solution. However, that’s pretty much it when it comes to the control you have over the platform. You depend on the vendor for every other aspect, including updates and patches.


Restrictions on Software and Hardware Customization


There aren’t many options to choose from when selecting a cloud storage plan. The price of your plan mostly depends on how much data you wish to share. Other than that, you get little-to-no hardware and software customization features.


Potential for Vendor Lock-In


Once you create an account with one cloud computing provider, you might not be happy with their services. As a result, you want to switch to a different platform. Many people think this is a simple transition, but that’s not always the case. Even though you can cancel your plan, migrating your data from one tool to the next can be difficult.


Network Dependency and Connectivity Issues


You might be relieved once you set up an account on a cloud-based platform: “I no longer need to clutter my office with masses of documents because I can now use an internet tool.” That said, using an online app also means you depend on network quality.


Reliance on Stable Internet Connection


A stable internet connection is essential for cloud computing. Internet problems can reduce or prevent you from accessing your files altogether.


Performance Issues Due to Network Latency


If your cloud network has high latency, sharing files can be challenging. In turn, latency reduces productivity and collaboration.


Vulnerability to Distributed Denial-of-Service (DDoS) Attacks


Cloud platforms are susceptible to so-called DDoS attacks. A cyber criminal can target your tool and keep you from accessing the service.


Downtime and Service Reliability


Not every cloud computing system performs the same in terms of reducing downtime and maximizing reliability.


Risk of Outages and Service Disruptions


While cloud-based solutions have exceptional recovery plans and backup methods, you’ll still face some downtime in case of outages. Even the shortest service disruption can cause major issues when working on certain projects.


Shared Resources and Potential for Performance Degradation


Cloud systems are convenient because they allow you to store your data in one place. Nonetheless, one of the key disadvantages of cloud computing is managing those shared resources. Accessing information can become difficult if you don’t stay on top of it.


Likewise, performance can drop at any point of your plan. App incompatibility and other issues can compromise data architecture and further compromise management.


Dependence on Provider’s Service Level Agreements (SLAs)


You’ll probably need to enter into an SLA when partnering with a cloud computing provider. These contracts can be rigid, meaning they may fail to recognize and adapt to evolving business needs.



Make an Informed Decision


Cloud computing has tremendous benefits, like improved data storage, collaboration, and cost reduction. The main drawbacks include hardware and software restrictions, connectivity issues, and potential downtime.


Therefore, you should understand the advantages and disadvantages of cloud computing before implementing a platform. Also, consider your business needs when partnering with a cloud provider to help prevent compatibility issues.

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How Regenerative Business Models Are Redefining Innovation and Sustainability
OPIT - Open Institute of Technology
OPIT - Open Institute of Technology
Aug 18, 2025 6 min read

Open Institute of Technology (OPIT) masterclasses bring students face-to-face with real-world business challenges. In OPIT’s July masterclass, OPIT Professor Francesco Derchi and Ph.D. candidate Robert Mario de Stefano explained the principles of regenerative businesses and how regeneration goes hand in hand with growth.

Regenerative Business Models

Professor Derchi began by explaining what exactly is meant by regenerative business models, clearly differentiating them from sustainable or circular models.

Many companies pursue sustainable business models in which they offset their negative impact by investing elsewhere. For example, businesses that are big carbon consumers will support nature regeneration projects. Circular business models are similar but are more focused on their own product chain, aiming to minimize waste by keeping products in use as long as possible through recycling. Both models essentially aim to have a “net-zero” negative impact on the environment.

Regenerative models are different because they actively aim to have a “net-positive” impact on the environment, not just offsetting their own use but actively regenerating the planet.

Massive Transformative Purpose

While regenerative business models are often associated with philanthropic endeavors, Professor Derchi explained that they do not have to be, and that investment in regeneration can be a driver of growth.

He discussed the importance of corporate purpose in the modern business space. Having a strong and clearly stated corporate purpose is considered essential to drive business decision-making, encourage employee buy-in, and promote customer loyalty.

But today, simple corporate missions, such as “make good shoes,” don’t go far enough. People are looking for a Massive Transformational Purpose (MTP) that can take the business to the next level.

Take, for example, Ben & Jerry’s. The business’s initial corporate purpose may have been to make great ice cream and serve it up in a way that people will enjoy. But the business really began to grow when they embraced an MTP. As they announced in their mission statement, “We believe that ice cream can change the world.” Their business activities also have the aim of advancing human rights and dignity, supporting social and economic justice, and protecting and restoring the Earth’s natural systems. While these aims are philanthropic, they have also helped the business grow.

RePlanet

Professor Derchi next talked about RePlanet, a business he recently worked to develop their MTP. Founded in 2015, RePlanet designs and implements customized renewable energy solutions for businesses and projects. The company already operates in the renewable energy field and ranked as the 21st fastest-growing business in Italy in 2023. So while they were already enjoying great success, Derchi worked with them to see if actively embracing a regenerative business model could unlock additional growth.

Working together, RePlanet moved towards an MTP of building a greener future based on today’s choices, ensuring a cleaner world for generations. Meeting this goal started with the energy products that RePlanet sells, such as energy systems that recover heat from dairy farms. But as the business’s MTP, it goes beyond that. RePlanet doesn’t just engage suppliers; it chooses partners that share its specific values. It also influences the projects they choose to work on – they prioritize high-impact social projects, such as recently installing photovoltaic energy systems at a local hospital in Nigeria – and how RePlanet treats its talent, acknowledging that people are the true energy of the company.

Regenerative Business Strategies

Based on work with RePlanet and other businesses, Derchi has identified six archetypal regenerative business strategies for businesses that want to have both a regenerative impact and drive growth:

  • Regenerative Leadership – Laying the foundation for regeneration in a broader sense throughout the company
  • Nature Regeneration – Strategies to improve the health of the natural world
  • Social Regeneration – Regenerating human ecosystems through things such as fair-trade practices
  • Responsible Sourcing – Empowering and strengthening suppliers and their communities
  • Health & Well-being – Creating products and services that have a positive effect on customers
  • Employee Focus – Improve work conditions, lives, and well-being of employees.

Case Studies

Building on the concept of regenerative business models, Roberto Mario de Stefano shared other case studies of businesses that are having a positive impact and enjoying growth thanks to regenerative business models and strategies.

Biorfarm

Biorfarm is a digital platform that supports small-scale agriculture by creating a direct link between small farmers and consumers. Cutting out the middleman in modern supply chains means that farmers earn about 50% more for their produce. They set consumers up as “digital farmers” who actively support and learn about farming activities to promote more conscious food consumption.

Their vision is to create a food economy in which those who produce food and those who consume it are connected. This moves consumers from passive cash cows for large corporations that prioritize profits over the well-being of farmers to actively supporting natural production and a more sustainable system.

Rifo Lab

Rifo Lab is a circular clothing brand with the vision of addressing the problem of overproduction in the clothing industry. Established in Prato, Italy, a traditional textile-producing area, the company produces clothes made from textile waste and biodegradable materials. There are no physical stores, and all orders must be placed online; everything is made to order, reducing excess production.

With an eye on social regeneration, all production takes place within 30 kilometers of their offices, allowing the business to support ethical and local production. They also work with companies that actively integrate migrants into the local community, sharing their local artisan crafts with future generations.

Ogyre

Ogyre is a digital platform that allows you to pay fishermen to fish for waste. When fishermen are out conducting their livelihood, they also collect a significant amount of waste from the ocean, especially plastic waste. Ogyre arranges for fishermen to get paid for collecting that waste, which in turn supports the local fishing communities, and then transforms the waste collected into new sustainable products.

Moving Towards a Regenerative Future

The masterclass concluded with a Q&A session, where it explained that working in regenerative businesses requires the same skills as any other business. But it also requires you to embrace a mindset where value comes from giving and that growth is about working together for a better future, and not just competition.

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Addressing the Skills Gap: OPIT Prepares Students for the Modern Job Market
OPIT - Open Institute of Technology
OPIT - Open Institute of Technology
Aug 18, 2025 5 min read

Riccardo Ocleppo’s vision for the Open Institute of Technology (OPIT) started when he realized that his own university-level training had not properly prepared him for the modern workplace. Technological innovation is moving quickly and changing the nature of work, while university curricula evolve slowly, in part due to systems in place designed to preserve the quality of courses.

Ocleppo was determined to create a higher learning institution that filled the gap between the two realities – delivering high-quality education while preparing professionals to work in dynamic environments that keep pace with technology. Thus, OPIT opened enrolments in 2023 with a curriculum that created a unique bridge between the present and the future.

This is the story of one student, Ania Jaca, whose time at OPIT gave her the skills to connect her knowledge of product design to full system deployment.

Meet Ania

Ania is an example of an active professional who was able to identify what was missing in her own skills that would be needed if she wanted to advance her career in the direction she desired.

Ania is a highly skilled professional who was working on product and industrial design at Deloitte. She has an MA in product design, speaks five languages, studied in China, and is an avid boxer. She had the intelligence and the temperament to succeed in her career, but felt that she lacked the skills to advance and move from determining how products look to how systems really work, scale, and evolve.

Ania taught herself skills such as Python, artificial intelligence (AI), and cloud infrastructure, but soon realized that she needed a more structured education to go deeper. Thus, the search for her next steps began, and her introduction to OPIT.

OPIT appealed to Ania because it offered a fully EU-accredited MSc that she could pursue at her own pace, thanks to remote delivery and flexible hours. But more than that, it filled exactly the knowledge gap she was looking to build upon, teaching her technical foundations, but always with a focus on applications in the real world. Part of the appeal was the faculty, which includes professionals who are leaders in their field and who deal with current professional challenges on a daily basis, which they can bring into the classroom.

Ania enrolled in OPIT’s MSc in Applied Data Science & AI.

MSc in Applied Data Science and AI

This is OPIT’s first master’s program, which also launched in 2023, and is now one of four on offer. The course is designed for graduates like Ania who want a career at the intersection of management and technology. It is attractive to professionals who are already working in this area but lack the technical training to step into certain roles. OPIT requires no computer science prerequisites, so it accepted Ania with her MA in product design.

It is an intensive program that starts with foundational application courses in business, data science, machine learning, artificial intelligence, and problem-solving. The program then moves towards applying data science and AI methodologies and tools to real-life business problems.

The course combines theoretical study with a capstone project that lets students apply what they learn in the real world, either at their existing company or through internship programs. Many of the projects developed by students go on to become fundamental to the businesses they work with.

Ania’s Path Forward

Ania is working on her capstone project with Neperia Group, an Italian-based IT systems development company that works mostly with financial, insurance, and industrial companies. They specialize in developing analysis tools for existing software to enhance insight, streamline management, minimize the impact of corrective and evolutionary interventions, and boost performance.

Ania is specifically working on tools for assessing vulnerabilities in codebases as an advanced cybersecurity tool.

Ania credits her studies at OPIT for helping her build solid foundations in data science, machine learning, and cloud workflows, giving her a thorough understanding of digital products from end to end. She feels this has prepared her for roles at the intersection between infrastructure, security, and deployment, which is exactly where she wants to be. OPIT is excited to see where Ania’s career takes her in the coming years.

Preparing for the Future of Work

Overall, studying at OPIT has helped Ania and others like her prepare for the future of work. According to the Visual Capitalist, the fastest-growing jobs between 2025 and 2030 will be in big data (up by 110%), Fintech engineers (up by 95%), AI and machine learning specialists (up by 85%), software application developers (up by 60%), and security management specialists (up by 55%).

However, while these industries are growing, entry-level opportunities are declining in areas such as software development and IT. This is because AI now performs many of the tasks associated with those roles. Instead, companies are looking for experienced professionals to take on roles that involve more strategic oversight and innovative problem-solving. But how do recent graduates leapfrog past experienced professionals when there is a lack of entry-level positions to make the transition?

This is another challenge that OPIT addresses in its course design. Students don’t just learn the theory, OPIT actively encourages them to focus on applications, allowing them to build experience while studying. The capstone project consolidates this, enabling students to demonstrate to future employers their expertise at deploying technology to solve problems.

OPIT also has a dynamic Career Services department that specifically works with students to prepare them for the types of roles they want. This focus on not only learning but building a career is one of the elements that makes OPIT stand out in preparing graduates for the workplace.

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