In the IT industry, we like our vague concepts. More than that, we like giving it a mystical name to confuse the lesser beings. However, when we analyse the concept it is actually a simple one. For example, the new buzz words are “the cloud”! “Everything needs to go into the cloud.” “My life is in the cloud.” “We are taking things to the cloud.” Normally clouds are associated with daydreamers and rain, and yet now it is the centre of the IT universe (which basically explains what the cloud is).
In your company or organization the cloud will become the centre of your IT universe.
According to Wikipedia, the definition of cloud computing is:
“The delivery of computing as a service rather than a product, whereby shared resources, software and information are provided to computers and other devices as a metered service over a network, typically the internet”.
The Microsoft Virtual Academy defines cloud computing as
“The practice of using a network of remote servers hosted on the Internet to store, manage, and process data, rather than a local server”.
When we look at the concept of the cloud, all you need to do is take all the required services that you would see running in a normal server room in racks and booths and you move it to a central location that would be publicly available to many devices throughout the world. (If you get lost at this point, please refer to the article on social networking, might be easier to start off with). Now this magical place is not a mystical land that has recently been discovered and made available for our abuse, but it is a place that has been around for many years. We all know it and love it. It’s called the internet!
By centralizing all our required services in our corporate networks on the internet, we make it publicly available. Even in our personal lives, it becomes such a convenient concept.
For example: Bob is a tech savvy individual who owns a Windows enabled laptop, a Windows enabled desktop, a Windows based smart phone as well as a Windows enabled tablet. He has a Windows Live ID which gives him free access to a Windows Sky Drive (if it crashes, would it be called a sky dive?). This allows Bob to place all his photos, music and movies (all legal, of course) on the sky drive and then he can synchronize all of his Windows enabled devices with the sky drive and they are kept up to date. So no matter what device Bob is currently working with, he has unrestricted access to all the information he is used to having available on his desktop or laptop. So when Bob is chatting up the European swimwear model in his local bar and he wants to show her a picture of his newly acquired Porsche, he can access the sky drive from his phone and show her, instead of having to whip out his laptop, which would almost guarantee that he never gets her number.
In a business scenario, we could take a look at XYZ incorporated. They are an accounting firm. As a start-up, they don’t have the resources to set up in a nice shiny new office park, and purchase all the office amenities required such as desks, chairs, canteens etc… They want to maximise profits by decreasing overheads. They would much rather spend the money on hiring decent accountants than on purchasing over the top office furniture. So what do they do? They hire all the accountants they need and they get a team of cloud computing specialists in to design their cloud computing solution and host it from a data centre. They issue every one of their accountants with a laptop and install internet lines in their homes, and inform that they will work from home.
By doing so, they eliminate the need to pay benefits such as car allowances and they don’t have ridiculous electricity bills. They don’t have massive rentals or bonds to service. They don’t have to worry about providing tea or coffee or lunch. They don’t have to worry about who gets the better office! What they now have is the ability for their workers to work from anywhere on all resources needed, at a minimal cost. XYS inc. may even become more productive, as studies have shown that people who work from home tend to work longer hours and are more productive.
From a cost perspective, the initial setup of a cloud based solution is expensive, but if you weigh it up against the costs that you would eliminate as mentioned above, you would see the benefit of investing the substantial amount in the initial setup of your cloud.
Even from a “green” perspective (yes, even the hippies are accommodated) cloud computing makes sense. You reduce the amount of physical servers needed by going the virtualization route and you will reduce the carbon footprint of your IT infrastructure. (If you are still lost because you didn’t switch over to the social networking article, I obviously kept you interested). This is a help for many companies, especially as it is becoming integrated into your ISO and SABS standards.
The next question to ask is: “if the internet has been around for so many years, why is cloud computing only starting to make an impact now? “
The answer is simple but complex at the same time. Investment in IT has always been a sore topic. The “Rands and Cents” concept has never been understood by IT managers and the “cool stuff” we can do with our network concept has never been understood by financial managers.
The ability to translate an IT infrastructure, which is essentially a cost centre, into a viable cost saving solution that still provides all the functionality needed, will convince most CFO’s and bean counters to invest the few million rand it might cost to get the company into the cloud.
Another hindrance to the migration to the cloud was the availability and reliability of internet access. In the US and Europe internet is widely available at very low prices. So naturally the migration is in full swing there. In South Africa not so much! DSL has only recently become available in speeds and capacity that would viably justify a cloud based solution, and dedicated connections are still ridiculously expensive. These factors would obviously hinder the migration locally.
Another factor I feel is it contributes to the low adoption rate in this country is the IT manager’s ego. They don’t want to relinquish control and they don’t fully understand the concept of the cloud, so they don’t try and push for the money to do so.
Many just cannot adequately convince the financial powers that be. IT managers were never the best sales people, marketers or general socialisers so this has a massive impact on the migration.
To fully understand the cloud would require an in depth knowledge of many technologies which I am not going to go into in this article (if you want more I will gladly provide) but needless to say our entire computing experience will be moving to the cloud, if it hasn’t already.
Your ability to adapt will be determined by your ability to adopt. For once in the IT industry, we don’t have a simple fly by night concept which will be adopted and then left behind by companies. The cloud is a radical shift. Not in the way that information technology works, but in the way that companies operate. Not since the introduction of the computer, have we seen a concept that will change the way a company runs itself. This if you look at it, is a pure example of information technology optimizing business.
Written by: Brendon De Meyer
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