Trends in Cloud Computing

Cloud computing is a rapidly evolving technology that requires frequent review in order to stay on top of trends and advancements.  As David Cearley, vice president and Fellow at Gartner, Inc., puts it: “Cloud computing is a major technology trend that has permeated the market over the last two years. It sets the stage for a new approach to IT that enables individuals and businesses to choose how they’ll acquire or deliver IT services, with reduced emphasis on the constraints of traditional software and hardware licensing models.”  And there is more to come when it comes to cloud-based technology; this is only the beginning. Here are five trends in cloud computing that Gartner, Inc. expects to see over the next three years:

1. Using cloud-based computing can have many benefits, from less capital expense, lower overall costs, reduced complexity, and increased agility for businesses.  It can also allow business IT departments to focus more on things like innovation, lowering risks, and adding value.  However, businesses also need to be sure to assess things like security, lack of transparency, licensing, integration, and availability and performance.
2. Using a hybrid model using both internal infrastructure and either a public or private cloud (or both) will likely become more common and essential, especially in businesses that have changing requirements over time.  With the hybrid model, the cloud can be used as needed, but the internal infrastructure and applications are still in place.  Guidelines and standards need to be established to define how the internal and external elements combine and coordinate.
3. In addition to just transferring existing workloads to the cloud, businesses need to begin to design their applications to be compatible with a cloud model in order to fully exploit the potential benefits of the use of the cloud.
4. Cloud services brokerage (CSB) service providers (such as Cloudspace USA) play an intermediary role that can assist with the adoption and consumption of cloud services without tying up the business’s IT department, and are therefore preferable to trying to deal with cloud integration internally.
5. In cloud computing, the business acts as a consumer of services.  The CSB provider handles all of the details of implementation.  But businesses would be wise to change its model to a more cloud-based model as it continues to build data centers and other aspects of infrastructure.  Beginning from a cloud computing model on future data and infrastructure investments will increase both efficiency and agility.

For more information, or to find out if we can help you get your business into the cloud, contact Cloudspace USA today!