CURRENTS

a seasonal report on developer and SMB trends in the cloud

Introduction
With our eighth edition of Currents we wanted to shake things up Our original goal was to understand what’s most important to SMBs,
and look at the trends influencing developers at work. We decided where their unique challenges lie, and what’s keeping them up at
to look exclusively at technical leaders and founders at small- and night. But then the world changed, and SMBs became among those
medium-sized businesses (SMBs). hardest hit by the economic impacts of COVID-19.

We see these organizations as the unsung heroes of the global The resulting report includes responses from 500 founders and
economy as the size and scale of their output dwarves even the world’s technology decision-makers at small and medium tech companies
largest companies. Collectively, SMBs represent close to 90% of all (under 1,000 employees), collected in June 2020. Their responses
registered businesses and employ half of the world’s workforce. provide unique insight into larger technical challenges, but also how
business processes are changing in light of COVID-19.
Despite their large footprint, when it comes to cloud services, SMBs
remain underserved relative to their enterprise counterparts. They
often face unique technical challenges and constraints when it comes
to deploying new technology, yet there’s comparatively little focus on
this relative to larger organizations.
Key findings include:

Technical infrastructure challenges make it difficult for new businesses and affordability when evaluating a cloud service, particularly features such as
to get started. firewalls and data protection. Additionally, 40% of respondents say that more than
Technical infrastructure challenges continue to be a barrier to entry for new half of the technical positions they are hiring for offer the ability to work remotely.
businesses. Of the half (51%) of respondents who were company founders, 71%
cite the cost of maintaining technical infrastructure as the top technical barrier. Demand for digital services in India outpaces the U.S.
Other common challenges are know-how around maintaining technical With the world’s fifth-largest GDP and one of the fastest-growing cloud adoption rates
infrastructure (65%) and the costs to lift and shift part or all of infrastructure (57%). globally, India is a major cloud services market. Forty percent of respondents in India say
Broadly, these businesses need to be able to experiment (and recognize when it’s that more than half their company’s annual technology budget goes toward cloud
time to move on) quickly and cost-effectively. Many startups have one key services, compared to 15% in the U.S. There is also greater demand for cloud infrastructure
application. They are not like their larger enterprise compatriots with multiple lines in the next 3-6 months, with 80% of respondents in India reporting that they have plans to
of business. If a company’s new, cloud-based tech doesn't work behind the one increase their cloud investment, versus 55% in the U.S. The largest difference between
thing they do well, it can be disastrous for the business. these regions was in hiring, with 63% of Indian respondents saying they’ve increased
hiring targets as a result of COVID-19, compared with 30% in the U.S.
IT and cloud security are top priorities for SMBs, as well as remote hiring.
IT security is a top concern for the majority of small and medium businesses: 59% COVID has impacted SMB security, cloud spend, and hiring.
rank it as their number-one priority, and 91% rank it among their top three priorities. The pandemic has impacted a range of key technical areas for SMBs. Sixty-three percent
Security needs to be embedded in their environment, since the vast majority of of respondents say that COVID-19 impacted their approach to IT security, resulting in
small businesses either lack the technical expertise and/or can’t afford to invest in increased investments in multi-cloud disaster recovery availability and reliability, security
the time required to manually oversee every aspect of cloud security. Ensuring a audits, and data leakage prevention. As a result of the pandemic, SMBs have made
smooth transition (without creating another liability) when deploying new investments in cloud technologies as they transitioned to remote work and prioritized
technology is a key concern here. Cloud spending is also a high priority, though it resilience. Meanwhile, hiring has remained steady or increased. Seventy-four percent say
ranks slightly below IT security. Thirty-nine percent say it is their number-one priority, they either increased or maintained hiring targets during COVID.
while 84% rank it in their top three. SMBs prioritize security over factors like reliability
1 Respondents who have founded

What’s on or cofounded a company in the

past 5 years:
founders’ minds?
Just over half (51%) of all survey respondents were
founders or cofounders of their companies, while
the remainder were technical decision makers.
Here’s a look at what’s most important to SMB Yes 51%
founders, 88% of whom indicated that they had No 49%
launched their first companies.
Respondents’ involvement
in technical decision making:
88%
82%
I am the primary decision maker as it
79% relates to technology 86%
I am involved in the decision-making
21% process as it relates to technology 85%

Respondents who were both founders Eighty-eight percent of founders indicated their
current company is the first they’ve started. Of the
& technical decision makers: 85% of startups with a dedicated IT team, 82% have
IT teams of at least four members or more. Among
Founders who were also the primary founders who do not have a dedicated IT team, 86%
89% decision makers manage IT themselves.

Founders who were involved in the decision

10% -making process as it relates to technology

Founders who were not involved in the decision

1% -making process as it relates to technology
Most helpful resources What technical barriers to entry
when implementing a new do you believe currently exist
technology service: for new businesses?

Software development 101 meetups 71% Cost of maintaining infrastructure

Know-how around maintaining

65% technical infrastructure
Technical tutorials
Security concerns with open
57% source software

An informal network of peers, ROI for move between clouds or

mentors and advisors 51% multi-cloud strategy

1% Other
YouTube
2
How much of a priority
IT security priorities is IT security to you?
& concerns
IT security is a top priority for the majority of small and
59% It is my number 1 priority
medium businesses: 59% rank it as their top priority, while
91% rank it among their top three priorities. It also accounts 32% It is my number 2 or 3 priority

for a large percentage of company spending, with nearly 8% It is a priority but not in my top 3
a quarter (23%) of respondents saying that more than half
1% It is not a priority at all
their company’s budget goes toward IT security.
IT security is
the top concern
for SMBs.
What percentage of your company’s
budget goes toward IT security?

Less than 5% 11%

6-10% 18%
11-19% 24% Respondents’ top concerns with regard to IT security
20-49% 23% are understanding new threats, firewall/network security

50-74% 16% issues, and antivirus/anti-malware issues. Eighty percent

75% or more 7% of respondents deploy specific security measures for

their company’s cloud-based infrastructure. The two

Unsure 1%
most commonly used security measures are operating

0% 5% 10% 20% 30% system updates and management, and firewalls.

What’s keeping SMB founders Does your company deploy
and technical leads up at night? specific security measures for
your cloud-based infrastructure?
Understanding new security threats

Firewall/network security issues

80% Yes

Antivirus/anti-malware issues
16% No

4% Unsure

Employees who do not follow IT

security guidelines

Identity and access management

What security measures does your company
deploy for your cloud-based infrastructure?

Operating system updates

73% and management

72% Firewalls

69% Data encryption

68% Identity and access management

1% Other
3
What’s keeping SMB founders
SMB cloud and technical leads up at night?
spending trends Speed and quality of customer
Security
service and support
Cloud spending is also a high priority, though it was not
ranked as highly as IT security. Thirty-nine percent rank it
as their number one priority, and 84% rank it in their top
Reliability New features
three priorities.

When evaluating and purchasing a cloud service,

SMB founders and tech leaders prioritize security over Affordability ? Complexity
factors like reliability and affordability. Security features
like firewalls and data protection are the two most
essential features for decision makers when evaluating
cloud services.
Most essential features when Most (60%) of respondents say that lower prices for
cloud services would make cloud spending more worth
evaluating cloud services: the investment, followed by better customer service and
support (33%) and more features at the same cost (27%).

Security (e.g. firewalls)

What would make your cloud
spend more worth the investment?
Data protection
Lower prices 60%

Better customer service

33%
24/7 support and support
More features at
27%
the same cost

Less downtime 13%

Compatibility

More one-off discounts 13%

Disaster recovery Other 7%

4 For the technical positions you
are hiring for, what percentage
offer the ability to work remotely?
Recruiting plans
7% Less than 5%

& in-demand skills 11% 6-10%

Like most organizations right now, SMBs are continuing 15% 11-19%
to embrace remote work options. When asked in June,
40% of respondents report that more than half of the 22% 20-49%
technical positions they are hiring for offer the ability
to work remotely. 23% 50-74%

17% 75% or more

5% Unsure
The most in-demand roles among respondents are service
Top soft skills for IT candidates:
reliability engineer, DevOps manager and frontend
developer/engineer. The most sought-after soft skills for
IT candidates include teamwork, effective communication
skills and dependability. 1. Teamwork

What roles are in demand at

2. Effective communication skills
your company right now?

Service reliability engineer 43% 3. Dependability

DevOps manager 40%

Frontend developer/engineer 39%

4. Problem-solving
Backend developer/engineer 38%

Solutions architect 35%

5. Adaptability
Other 1%

None of the above 18%

5
30%
India: Growing
demand for digital
services in the world’s
About 30% of survey respondents were from
next tech hot spot India, compared with 50% from the United
States. Respondents in India reported greater
Our survey made it clear that the demand for digital services
in India is huge and outpaces U.S. demand in areas like IT
spending on IT security and the cloud, higher
security and cloud adoption. As India’s startup ecosystem demand for cloud services in the next 3-6
and developer community continue to grow, the adoption
of cloud and IT services will only accelerate. months, and significantly more ambitious
hiring targets. These findings all point to India
as the next digital hot spot.
More than half of the company's More than half the company’s annual Increased hiring targets as a result
budget goes to IT security technology spend goes to the cloud of COVID-19

India 40% India 40% India 63%

United States 20% United States 15% United States 30%

Deploy specific security measures Plan to increase cloud infrastructure

for cloud-based infrastructure investment in the next 3-6 months

India 91% India 80%

United States 79% United States 55%

Rank cloud spend as their number Looking to increase their pool of

one priority technical talent

India 56% India 59%

United States 36% United States 22%

Key differences between Indian & American respondents

6
Has COVID-19 impacted your
The impact of COVID-19
approach to IT security?
on IT priorities
COVID-19 has made IT security top of mind. Amid a less secure
remote work environment and many unknowns, companies are
taking steps to strengthen security measures.
63% Yes

Sixty-three percent of respondents report that COVID-19 has impacted 37% No

their approach to IT security. By far the most commonly cited impact is
an increased investment in multi-cloud disaster recovery availability
and reliability (70%). Over half (54%) reported that they have conducted
security audits with policy compliance as a result of COVID-19, while
48% acquired a data leakage prevention solution and 45% required
VPN. Given these trends, we believe that virtual private clouds (VPCs)
may also see a rise in popularity as a result of COVID-19.
How has COVID-19 impacted COVID-19 also illustrated the need for companies to have
crisis plans in the event that employees have to work remotely

your approach to IT security? for the foreseeable future. Eighty percent of respondents say
that their IT department is aligned on maintaining company
functions across remote environments.
Increased investment in multi-cloud
70%
disaster recovery availability and reliability

Conducted security audit

54%
How aligned is your IT department
with policy compliance

Acquired data leakage

to maintain company functions
48%
across remote environments?
prevention solution

Required VPN 45%

Very aligned 42%
Other 2%
Aligned 38%

Somewhat aligned 14%

Not very aligned 3%

Not aligned at all 2%

COVID-19’s impact on cloud spend

When COVID-19 spread across the globe, SMBs and enterprise Considering the increase in cloud spend across both SMB and
companies alike made investments in cloud technologies as they enterprise organizations, we believe that it is more important than ever
transitioned to remote work, while most companies plan to increase or for cloud providers to account for SMBs’ unique technical
expand even further in the future. requirements. As we discussed above, founders find the costs and
know-how associated with maintaining cloud infrastructure are to be
Sixty-two percent of respondents say that they expanded or upgraded key technical barriers. Thus, first-time founders may be particularly
their cloud usage during COVID-19, while only 2% consolidated or frustrated during the COVID-19 period if they are required to both
eliminated it. In fact, 60% are planning to increase their level of cloud increase cloud spend and infrastructure while overcoming these
infrastructure investment in the next 3-6 months, and only 6% are barriers. The solutions have to be affordable, safe, and reliable.
planning to decrease it. Among the most cited reasons for
expanding/upgrading are the need to increase storage, the need to
increase bandwidth and the need for disaster recovery and backup
options. SMB and large enterprises will need tools to manage multiple
cloud requirements as they spread applications and data across service
providers. Simple tools help reduce the complexity for SMBs with
limited resources.
From January to June 2020, Top 5 reasons companies
how did your company’s cloud expanded or upgraded cloud
usage change? usage during COVID:

To increase storage

To increase bandwidth

Needed disaster recovery and backup options

Needed multi-cloud options for availability and failover

To reduce in house cloud costs

62% Expanded/upgraded it

36% Left it the same

2% Consolidated/eliminated it
 What impact has the COVID-19
pandemic had on your hiring plans?

37% Increased hiring targets

Recruiting priorities amid a
37% Stayed the same
new way of working
26% Scaled back hiring targets

Despite the massive economic disruption brought on by

COVID-19, most respondents have not scaled back on hiring
and plan to maintain or increase talent pools in the future.
Seventy-four percent of respondents say they either increased
or maintained hiring targets, while only 26% have scaled them
back. Hiring plans for the future are also optimistic: 64% are
looking to increase their pool of technical talent, while only 3%
are looking to decrease it.
Are you looking to change The pandemic also revealed the importance of knowing
which services are essential within your company.

your pool of technical talent?

Top 5 positions that are
31% Looking to increase it a lot essential in times of crisis

33% Looking to increase it somewhat IT consultant

28% Staying about the same Cybersecurity expert

3% Looking to decrease it somewhat Software engineer

0% Looking to decrease it a lot Cloud architect

Health IT specialist
5% Not sure yet
7 How many employees work
at your current company
Demographics (including yourself)?

40%
I identify as a:
30%

60% Male 20%

40% Female

0% Non-binary/other 0%
1-5 6-24 25-49 50-99 100-499 500-999
0% Prefer not to say
8
Methodology About Currents

An online survey was conducted among a panel of potential respondents. Trends in the developer and SMB communities move
The recruitment period was June 17, 2020 to June 21, 2020. A total of 500 quickly. As a developer- and SMB-focused company, it's
panel respondents completed the survey (excluding terminations and vital to keep up with the technologies and tools these
abandonments) from four countries: United States (250), India (150),
audiences are interested in so we can help them
Canada and the United Kingdom (100 combined).
achieve their goals. Currents is DigitalOcean's seasonal
There were four screeners for the survey to determine eligibility: report on developer and SMB trends that we created to
share knowledge with the community.
• 18 years or older
• Had to be a full-time employee
• Had to work at company with fewer than 1,000 employees
• Had to be a founder/co-founder of a company OR a decision
maker as it relates to technology

The sample was provided by Market Cube, a research panel company.

All respondents were invited to take the survey via an email invitation.
Panel respondents were incentivized to participate via the panel’s
established points program.