The cloud is no longer a novelty. It’s no longer a platform for use only when security isn’t that big of a deal. It’s no longer just for big companies—or, for that matter, just for small companies. The cloud is no longer the exception.

Indeed, you could say that the cloud has reached a state of critical mass. Now, companies are looking to do more than just save money and optimize resources with the cloud; they want to leverage the cloud to achieve competitive advantage, and partners are perfectly positioned to help them achieve their goals.

But, even if the cloud as a platform is—dare we say it—ubiquitous, not every cloud service will enable a move to “phase 2” of the cloud. Moving beyond commodity toward value-add requires:

Intelligent Integration

Sure, companies can say they are taking advantage of the cloud by using a SaaS app here and an online storage service there, but true cloud exploitation requires an integrated approach—across applications, platforms, and infrastructure. This provides organizations with the ability to build up and out as needed—and as needs inevitably (and quickly) change. With a cloud platform that integrates all layers—from IaaS to PaaS to SaaS to DaaS—organizations will spend less time on IT maintenance and more time on innovation.

Intelligent Business Applications

Software as a service frees up IT and provides freedom from hardware restraints, but in today’s business climate SaaS has to do more. A cloud platform that positions SaaS applications as a means to an innovation end will help companies meet the challenges of the digital age through the use of built-in analytics, a focus on collaboration and transparency, and the ability to provide a holistic view of the organization.

An Eye Toward the Future

The best of cloud platforms will only remain the best if it supports companies in strategizing for the future. Now, for example, companies that want to retain (or attain) competitive edge must be doing more than just thinking about technologies including artificial intelligence, blockchain and the internet of things; they must be actively working with and collaborating on the technologies. This requires a cloud platform that enables them to build, run, extend and experiment in a safe and business-relevant way.

Automation

Partners have always been an important resource for helping customers effectively work in the cloud, but their insight and experience is even more critical as customers look to achieve an advantage in specific areas such as geography and industry. Partners, therefore, can’t be distracted by the mechanics of the cloud; they need to leverage a platform that provides services that are self-driving, self-securing and self-repairing, delivering performance, security at scale.

Oracle’s Cloud Platform provides the opportunity for partners to transform and accelerate their—and their customers’ business as the next phase of the cloud unfolds. For more information, click here.

This guest blog is part of a Channel Futures sponsorship.