In Cloud Solutions

A Message from Lord Pickles and Lord Blunkett, followed by In Cloud Solutions's best practice article

The ability to listen and learn from one another has always been vital in parliament, in business and in most aspects of daily life. But at this particular moment in time, as national and global events continue to reiterate, it is uncommonly crucial that we forge new channels of communication and reinforce existing ones. The following article from In Cloud Solutions is an attempt to do just that. We would welcome your thoughts on this or any other Parliamentary Review article.

Rt Hon The Lord David Blunkett

Rt Hon The Lord Eric Pickles

www.incloudsolutions.co.uk

THE PARLIAMENTARY REVIEW

Highlighting best practice

46 | IN CLOUD SOLUTIONS

In Cloud Solutions – providers of

SAP Business ByDesign business

software

In Cloud Solutions staff at

their offices near Reading

In Cloud Solutions is a partner of global software company

SAP, specialising in Business ByDesign – an ERP software

solution for small to mid-sized businesses. Based in the

Thames Valley, it boasts a staff of 30 specialist consultants

dedicated to making digital transformation straightforward, fast

and affordable. LucyThorpe, head of social media and content

creation, discusses the company’s digital work, the power of the

cloud and the digitalfuture.

It’s a digital world

All businesses are going to have to embrace digital technology if they want to

succeed. Governments and consultants know this and most companies now know

this, but there’s still widespread paralysis when it comes to doing something aboutit.

We understand this fear of the digital future at In Cloud Solutions – we see it

across all sectors, from manufacturing to professional services. As leading providers

of business software solutions, we believe it is our job to break down these fears

and lead small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) towards a smarter future by

embracing all that digital technology has to offer.

The power of the cloud

Business partners Caroline Atkinson and Liz Matraves started In Cloud Solutions six

years ago when they realised that a combination of cloud and digital technology

was about to transform the landscape for SMEs.

FACTS ABOUT

IN CLOUD SOLUTIONS

»Managing partners: Caroline

Atkinson and LizMatraves

»Based in Hare Hatch, Reading,

Berkshire

»Services: Supply of leading

business ERP software

»No. of employees: 30

»www.incloudsolutions.co.uk

In Cloud Solutions

47IN CLOUD SOLUTIONS |

BEST PRACTICE REPRESENTATIVE 2018

Where previously only big enterprises

could afford the kind of IT that ran

everything, the advent of cloud meant

that smaller companies could now

get the same advantage. Gone was

the need for a big stack of computer

hardware sitting in the office and in

came IT in “the cloud” – effectively

business process software accessed via

the internet. It was a game-changer,

putting everyone on the same footing

and we knew we had to be part of it.

The early days around a kitchen

table in Berkshire were a far cry from

the corporate and shiny world our

founders had been used to when they

worked for global leader SAP. But we

grew quickly and now occupy lovely

rural offices outside Reading with

over 30 staff and 35 clients around

thecountry.

We believe that we’re successful

because of our unique selling

proposition – the partnership that we

offer our clients. We don’t want to be

a “vendor” – we want to be a partner

and consultant, helping businesses get

the most from what digital software

has to offer. Without this approach, a

lot of digital efforts will fail.

Every kind of people

We are ambitious for our clients’

future and are equally ambitious for

our staff. Our talented developers

are given the freedom to create new

apps, which we offer for the benefit

of others. We work on trust and

respect, while encouraging people to

develop expertise in areas that they

findinteresting.

We are a diverse bunch. We recently

won an Enlightened Employer award

from Women in Business for our

human approach – women returning

from a career break are given the

chance to learn new skills and thrive,

while parents of both sexes are

understood and given the flexibility to

care for their families.

Impact on industry

Nationally, we are leading the way

in promoting cloud-based business

software. We decided early on to

cement that commitment by working

with only one product – the cloud-

based SAP Business ByDesign. After

a slow start, all the major companies

now offer cloud-based products, but

we still believe that ours is the best in

its class.

It is well known that cloud allows

business leaders to be flexible –

accessing information wherever they

are and on any device, making it easy

to get things done on the go. What

is less well understood, however, is Digital technology must

be part of the drive to

increase productivity in

manufacturing

Digital

technology is

now at the

heart of every

business

“

THE PARLIAMENTARY REVIEW

Highlighting best practice

48 | IN CLOUD SOLUTIONS

the idea that digital puts technology

at the heart of business, compelling

executives to take the lead. It is no

longer acceptable to sit back and leave

technology to the techies.

Business leaders have access to more

quality information than ever before,

but they need to be able to use it to

make the most informed decisions.

That is why we promote the idea of

partnership with our clients. After all,

once you accept the idea that both

learning and development will be

continuous, things become easier and

more productive.

Our “learning days” and follow-up

training mean that clients continue to

get the best out of their technology

well into the future. Anyone who

leaves a client bewildered and unable

to run their business is letting the

industry down.

It is this approach which has won

us coveted Platinum Partner Status

from SAP1 and it is this approach that

has placed us on the list of Crown

Suppliers for Digital Services.

1 In Cloud Solutions have Platinum status as

part of the United VARs network.

Digital future?

A lot has been written about jobs

being lost to automation – the brave

new world of machine learning and

artificial intelligence. Some routine

tasks will certainly be automated and

some services will become quicker and

cheaper as a result. While some tasks

will be achieved without the need for

human intervention, automation will

free up time for things that do, like

strategy and creativity.

As for the economic future, we know

that Brexit brings uncertainty and

doubles the need to be productive

as a nation – last year’s government

Rt Hon Kwasi Kwarteng's Foreword For The Parliamentary Review

By Rt Hon Kwasi Kwarteng

This year’s Parliamentary Review reflects on a tumultuous and extraordinary year, globally and nationally. As well as being an MP, I am a keen student of history, and I am conscious that 2020 would mark the end of an era. It will be remembered as the year in which we concluded Brexit negotiations and finally left the European Union. Above all, it will be remembered as the year of Covid-19.

In our fight against the pandemic, I am delighted that our vaccination programme is beginning to turn the tide – and I pay tribute to the British businesses, scientists and all those who have helped us to achieve this. But the virus has dealt enormous damage, and we now have a duty to rebuild our economy.

We must ensure that businesses are protected. We have made more than £350 billion available to that end, with grants, business rates relief and our furlough scheme supporting more than 11 million people and jobs in every corner of the country, maintaining livelihoods while easing the pressure on employers. The next step is to work with business to build back better and greener, putting the net zero carbon challenge at the heart of our recovery. This is a complex undertaking, but one which I hope will be recognised as a once in a lifetime opportunity.

Through the prime minister’s ten point plan for a green industrial revolution, we can level up every region of the UK, supporting 250,000 green jobs while we accelerate our progress towards net zero carbon emissions.

With our commitment to raise R&D spending to 2.4% of GDP and the creation of the Advanced Research & Invention Agency, we are empowering our fantastic researchers to take on groundbreaking research, delivering funding with flexibility and speed. With this approach, innovators will be able to work with our traditional industrial heartlands to explore new technologies, and design and manufacture the products on which the future will be built – ready for export around the globe.

And I believe trade will flourish. We are a leading nation in the fight against climate change. As the host of COP26 this year, we have an incredible opportunity to market our low-carbon products and expertise. Our departure from the EU gives us the chance to be a champion of truly global free trade; we have already signed trade deals with more than 60 countries around the world.

As we turn the page and leave 2020 behind, I am excited about the new chapter which Britain is now writing for itself, and for the opportunities which lie ahead of us.

Rt Hon Kwasi Kwarteng
Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy