Are you still thinking through your options for the cloud? Microsoft Azure should be at the top of your list, especially if your data center is built around Windows. Here’s why.

1. Faster software development. When you work within Microsoft Azure, you’re working in the familiar Microsoft environment. Your developers can keep working with Visual Studio, so they don’t need to learn a new way of working before they become productive. There’s also a complete set of software development kits to help them access all the APIs available on Azure. Azure has tools, products, and services that support a vast range of specialized needs, including databases, analytics, mobile application development, and more. In addition, Azure supports the complete development and delivery process, including source code control, testing, and deployment.
2. Disaster recovery is built in. Cloud is a great choice for disaster recovery, and with Azure you get the high availability that comes with a robust environment supported by Microsoft. You can customize your disaster recovery options through using different regions and maintaining hot and cold standby servers.
3. You can manage your IT budget. Microsoft Azure offers trials of most of its features, letting you test out new technology without making a commitment. You can also size your servers and storage to meet your needs. Once you know your exact requirements, you can opt for pay-as-you-go or make a commitment to benefit from cheaper pricing. There’s also special pricing for all your development and test environments. You can also often transfer your in-premises software licenses over to the cloud.
4. Get help meeting security and compliance requirements. Unfortunately, using cloud doesn’t let you completely hand off your security and compliance tasks. But using Microsoft Azure can get you a long way towards satisfying those concerns. With Azure, you can choose environments certified to meet standards like HIPAA and PCI DSS, giving you a head start on your compliance.
5. Work in an all-Microsoft environment. If your business is a committed enterprise user of Microsoft applications, migrating to Azure is the easiest way to integrate your enterprise applications with the cloud. You’ll gain access to analytics and big data services that let you make the most of your SQL Server data. The third-party products and solutions offered in Azure provide additional functionality and are easy to add to your Windows infrastructure.

Prescient Solutions is a Microsoft Partner committed to helping our customers gain the most benefit from their Microsoft products, including Microsoft Azure. Our IT consulting and managed services in Chicago and Schaumburg include the design, implementation, and support of Azure clouds. Contact us to learn more about how using Microsoft Azure can meet your IT and business challenges.