“As you have access to data, numbers and cash flow anytime you need it, cloud technology makes sense for the entrepreneur who has to be in a million places at once,” says Alex So, group managing partner of FastLane Group, which provides corporate services to entrepreneurs.

Bay McLaughlin, who co-founded accelerator Brinc.io, adds that cloud tools allow people to work how they want, whenever they want. “Work for entrepreneurs is a non-stop thing, so any tool that helps you work on mobile or in real-time and allows you to connect to the likes of accountants and book-keepers is welcome and valuable. Your time is the most important thing you have,” says McLaughlin.

It is a style of work that is in sync with the wants of younger workforce, according to Christian Yan, co-founder of smart lighting company Nanoleaf. “We have always wanted to adapt to newer technologies, and make those go hand in hand with our products,” he says. “We believe in cloud-based platforms, using phones and apps. We don’t believe in stand-alone servers that much, which might be cheaper and have no monthly subscription, but also have a myriad of problems,” he adds.

The ability to connect to teams, whether with the back office or support companies, is crucial to small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). But does this require more people to do the job? “Increasing headcount is not always the right solution; it is more about defining the most cost-effective solution for the goals you have. Cloud tools are offering a new cost-effective way of working, while associating headcount with productivity is an old-school way of thinking,” says McLaughlin from Brinc.

Cloud services allow companies to be very lean, where one person can wear several hats. “What these cloud-based systems do is give small- and medium-sized companies the ability to grow without high cost, and the flexibility to scale. Although you might outgrow the cloud when you expand, with security and jurisdictional issues coming into play, and at that point you might need something more heavy duty to give you faster data access,” says Yan from Nanoleaf.

Jarome Tam, co-founder and director of Rush Hour Media, leverages cloud and its ability to integrate with many apps to maintain control and drive up employee productivity. “Having project management tools to know exactly where the sales cycles are at for leads and current projects are at is extremely important, so we can forecast and plan when we will get cash in. On the accounting front, the ability to see all receivables at a glance and see which clients owe what and what the due dates are on each saves us so much time and completely avoids situations where we make human error and forget to invoice clients or delay invoicing them.”

For small businesses, cost control is at the heart of the cloud’s utility. "While headcount can no doubt make a business strong, we also see how cloud tools are enabling a new generation of entrepreneurs to be sensible about their expenditure, and not expand until they really need to. The cloud helps take care of so many functions, and this can be very powerful for entrepreneurs,” says So from FastLane Group.

Wherever you are in the world, cloud tools give you that edge to be on top of your business when you travel. “Start-ups and SMEs are constantly working, and cloud tools are the essential tools keeping it all together while you are on the road. Cloud tools improve communications, with equal access to data and information between stakeholders, which then build trust and transparency,” says FastLane Group’s So.

It’s an attitude that Yan from Nanoleaf incorporates into his international business. “Being on the go with the ability to look at sales, inventory, generate quotations, reconcile accounts and see bank information is very helpful. We have offices in Toronto, Paris, Hong Kong and Shenzhen, so to have that access means we can reduce manpower and boost efficiency for our international workforce,” says Yan.

McLaughlin rejects the notion that it is harder to compete when everyone can run their business from anywhere and at any time. "There's more competition now, but it's also cheaper than ever with more tools, and technology allows you to start a company faster and in a more distributed format, so I would argue the cloud has made business easier,” he says.

Being on the forefront of technology also means that your cloud platform is constantly updated, giving you access to the latest technology such as data analytics, automation, machine learning and AI. In fact, business leaders believe that widespread adoption of cloud will enable AI to deliver more meaningful value to businesses.

Brick and mortar environments have given way to online-to-offline (O2O) retail, and this is “where cloud tools come into their element by allowing businesses to have visibility of their cash flow and inventory as they reach out to customers globally and locally,” says So.

In addition, finding customers has become much easier with the explosion of online tools. “With greater internet and social-media penetration and outsourced customer support, everything is designed to help businesses in their expansion efforts,” says McLaughlin.

For Yan from Nanoleaf, using cloud tools to manage inventory is essential to running an e-commerce operation. “I need to have control over my cash flow, and these cloud tools allow me to check on my sales and inventory even if I am in the bathroom. Now, I don’t have to call several colleagues for updates anymore. It might be hard for the older businesses to adapt, because they have been using legacy systems for a few decades and migrating to new systems could bring unforeseen problems and spending for them,” Yan adds.

Accountants are more than just book-keepers in today’s business environment, says So from FastLane Group. “We work alongside start-ups and SMEs as their business partners, using cloud tools to help guide our clients to successful outcomes. In a way, the cloud has made that two-way process so much easier, and has led to accountants becoming more like business strategists,” he says.

The ease with which information is shared on the cloud means most companies are now more likely to engage external consultants or support that might not have services catering to smaller companies before the cloud. “We are seeing an increase in cloud service providers for start-ups and SMEs, especially with the subscription model where you don't need to get five different quotes for everything,” says McLaughlin from Brinc.

Enabling businesses to easily make sense of the multitude of data in their possession and using them to make informed business decisions are some of the most powerful benefits of the cloud, according to Yan from Nanoleaf. “You need to be fast and efficient, because 99 per cent of the time you’re worried about sales. Most entrepreneurs don’t realise the mess that can happen when they just look at sales figures and not the entire spectrum of accounting,” he says.

Xero provides a cloud-based accounting software for small and medium-sized businesses. Find out more about how you can keep your finances in check in real-time through technology.