Cloud computing will deliver 'competitive advantage'

Cloud computing will deliver 'competitive advantage'

Companies that move to adopt cloud computing will find themselves with a competitive advantage in a year or two's time.

This is the view of Drew Whitehead, head of IT architecture at Aviva, who stated that the next 12 to 24 months will see the insurer leverage its cloud-based services to improve the effectiveness of its working practices.

He added, “Being able to make use of emerging capabilities and adopting increasingly flexible ways of working will generate competitive advantage. Companies that can’t do this will be disadvantaged.”

The comments came in response to research conducted by Xantus Consulting, which found that companies are generally enthusiastic about the cloud but would like more clarity on exactly what it involves.

For example, 86 per cent of CIOs surveyed believed that vendors are using the term 'cloud' generically in order to sell products and services without specifically describing what they are. But in spite of this, 73 per cent of those questioned are planning to make use of cloud services within the next two years.

Adrian Steel, head of infrastructure management at the Royal Mail, explained that cost is a major factor in cloud adoption for many organisations.

“An IT department in the public sector is probably going to have to lose 25 per cent of its staff, and budgets are going to be capped by 25 per cent or more over the next five years,” explained Mr Steel. “This means doing things as cheaply as possible. The cloud is perfect for overcoming this.”

Businesses looking to move services into the cloud, should evaluate the performance of their existing network and consider setting up a leased line or MPLS network.