Cloud computing may already be the popular choice for businesses, and many enterprises in the Americas, Europe and Asia-Pacific are moving towards bringing their data and processes to the cloud. However, even with the popularity of both consumer-grade and enterprise-grade cloud services, business executives are not so keen on going past corporate IT departments and implementing their own cloud setups.

This is a good sign, says Trevor Clarke, research manager for IDC in Australia. Cloud computing services becoming cheaper and cheaper, and these services are increasingly becoming more flexible and useful for the enterprise. However, even if the assumption is that business managers and executives will simply input their credit card numbers into an online payment system and sign up for a cloud service by themselves, 75%, will still prefer to run through their decisions with the IT department.

Not everyone will just jump on the cloud bandwagon, says Clarke, which is a good sign.

Rogue Cloud Consumption

The so-called myth of the “rogue” cloud consumption has therefore been debunked, at least in this region. Still, there are a minority of business executives and managers who would rather use the technology of their choice, and when they want it. With the myriad of public cloud services – including email, messaging, VoIP, collaboration, storage and the like, signing up for a consumer-grade service is tempting. Even enterprise-grade services can come by inexpensively, which can be attractive to executives looking to a better bottomline.

However, unsanctioned cloud consumption does have its costs. The so-called “consumerization” of IT does have its dangers and disadvantages. If executives were to bypass CIOs and IT departments in the decision-making process, then these groups will just be a “fulfilment office” rather than an actual driving force in the organization.

The study was a bit limited, though, in that it did not explore the kinds of cloud services that managers and executives were willing to bypass their CIOs and IT departments to acquire. According to IDC, this information will be included in future studies.

Being Proactive

With the increasing usefulness and cost-effectiveness of cloud computing, however, IT departments should not leave their organizations in the dark about plans. The trick here is for IT departments and CIOs to become proactive. Their task is to help the organization evaluate their needs, and procure reasonable services that support the organization’s requirements and thrusts, says Clarke.

As such, IT departments should keep abreast of cloud-related trends, and these departments will have to consider cloud computing products and services that will serve the organization for the long term.

CIOs and IT departments will need to be in stride with the pace and needs of the enterprise. These groups will get the support of their organization of they are proactive and helpful to the needs and requirements of their companies, says Clarke.

For now, suffice to say that enterprise executives and managers still trust their IT departments, but CIOs will need to maintain this trust by going for the right kinds of cloud and other enterprise services.

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