The Benefits of Cloud Storage for Municipal and Vital Records

The cloud has gained tremendous popularity recently as the COVID-19 pandemic prompted businesses and municipalities alike to seek new technologies that would bridge the gaps directly resulting from social distancing and quarantines. The popularity of cloud solutions has only gained more traction in recent years, becoming increasingly mainstream.

Municipalities – from large cities to small townships and everything in between – have seen an increased demand for virtual solutions, such as the remote retrieval of vital records documents. The cloud is a key technology for achieving this, and the facts and figures evidence the rising demand for cloud technology. A study performed by the ESI Thought Lab revealed that 88% of city leaders viewed cloud technology adoption as a top IT priority for their communities. It’s a wise position when you consider these cloud adoption statistics.

• 8 in 10 business leaders reported improved operational efficiency within months of adopting cloud-based technology.
• 94% of companies reported improved security post-cloud adoption.
• 59% reported improved operational efficiency and increased productivity after they shifted to cloud technology.
• 60% of corporate data was stored in the cloud as of late 2022.

Leveraging the Benefits of Cloud for Municipal Records Requests and Storage

Cloud technology can be used for everything from hosting secure meetings and collaborations to data storage and citizen-friendly portals. Storing vital records in the cloud can bring many benefits, providing municipal employees and citizens access to essential documents. All you need is a WiFi connection, meaning this data can be accessed virtually anywhere. The benefits of cloud-based municipal records storage are many and varied.

Improved Accessibility – Citizens no longer have to visit city halls to submit or access vital records such as birth certificates, death certificates, marriage licenses, and other essential documents. Instead, those documents can be accessed remotely in the cloud.

Elevated Security – A traditional records room is a reasonably vulnerable location since virtually anyone can find their way into this location if they’re sufficiently determined. A records room contains large volumes of potentially sensitive information that requires protection. Today’s cloud storage platforms feature robust security and encryption, providing peace of mind that these critical records are protected. In cases where a paper copy must be retained, a digital version of the record can be stored in the cloud, serving as a valuable backup. This leads us to our next benefit: disaster recovery and backups.

Backup Capabilities and Disaster Recovery – Storms, fires, floods, and other events threaten a municipality’s vital records. Paper documents can also be lost, especially in a massive records room. By storing records in the cloud, you preserve these documents, allowing for easy backup and disaster recovery.

Freeing Up Space – Vital records and paper documents can occupy vast physical space. By digitizing vital records and storing that data in the cloud, you eliminate the need for paper documents and free up valuable real estate in city hall.

Affordability and Scalability – A cloud-based municipal records retrieval system is highly scalable since you can allocate additional cloud resources as needed. This also translates into greater affordability since you’re not paying for unused resources as you would if you had an on-premises data storage infrastructure. Cost savings also arise from the cloud service provider overseeing the existing cloud infrastructure and all associated maintenance, freeing the municipality from any responsibility and risk.

Efficient Municipal Records Retrieval – Retrieving vital records from a vast records room can take time and can drain staffing resources too. The equation gets even more challenging if a document is accidentally misfiled or lost. Using a cloud-based municipal records retrieval process, you avoid all of this since vital records and other important documents can be accessed quickly and precisely from any location with internet access.

Improved Transparency – Easy access to vital records and other essential documents can give citizens a sense of transparency, which is critical for maintaining good public relations. Cloud-based data platforms provide citizens with easy, consistent access to records and documents.

Greater Adaptability – Digital cloud technologies are highly adaptive and ideal for improving a municipality’s agility. Rigid paper-based processes can impede productivity and evolution toward better, more efficient processes. But cloud-based municipal records management platforms can be easily modified to accommodate new process flows and workflows. This allows cities to ditch inefficient, time-consuming processes in favor of fast, efficient processes that drive productivity.

There are many advantages to migrating municipal and vital records data to the cloud. It’s a digital transformation form that can bring immediate results with significant operational, financial, and strategic benefits. Cloud storage represents a robust, secure, and scalable solution for municipalities seeking a healthy ROI and a more streamlined municipal records management system.

At iTech, we specialize in providing innovative data governance, process automation, and cloud solutions to municipalities and businesses nationwide. We work directly with the client to gain an understanding of their processes, workflows, challenges, and goals. Then, our innovative team develops a strategy that will generate maximum ROI while bringing financial benefits and improving efficiency, productivity, and scalability.

Contact iTech’s team today, and let’s begin a dialogue on deploying a cloud-based municipal records retrieval system for your city or town.

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IDS Commander iTech2021

http://www.itechind.com