Pictured (l-r): Claire Dillon, Microsoft Ireland; Lavinia Morris, Friends First; Frank Ryan, Enterprise Ireland; and Joan Mulvihill, Irish Internet Association

Cloud services are reshaping the way companies do business and manage their information. The Irish Internet Association, in partnership with Enterprise Ireland and sponsored by Microsoft, is holding a series of Cloud Awareness and Adoption events for summer 2013 aimed at helping Irish SMEs assess the potential of using cloud-based business models to support their export growth.

The first Cloud Adoption Event will take place in Galway on Thursday, 30 May, with further events planned for Dublin and Cork early this summer.

This Cloud Awareness series is specifically designed to help companies to assess the benefits of cloud computing while managing any potential risks. Delegates will hear from other SMEs on how, why and what they moved to the cloud as well as from security and service contract experts who will guide delegates through the process.

“This is an important move to help increase the number of Irish businesses, small and large, who successfully adopt cloud computing, and is an important element of the Government’s Action Plan for Jobs,” said Frank Ryan, CEO of Enterprise Ireland. “A central part of this plan is targeting key sectors where Ireland has competitive advantage and the potential to foster growth. One such sector is cloud computing, and a number of studies have reported that Ireland has potential to create high levels of growth and jobs in this sector if we move early.”

This series of IIA and Enterprise Ireland events were announced during National Cloud Week – a week of activities organised by Microsoft to drive cloud awareness and adoption. “There is enormous potential for the cloud to play a central role in driving economic growth and job creation but for its potential to be fulfilled it is critical that small businesses understand how they can tap into the benefits of cloud to help them scale for growth,” said Clare Dillon, developer and platform group lead with Microsoft Ireland.

For more information on these events: www.iia.ie/cloudroadshow