The Logical Organization™

Getting to Cloud

Discovering New Business Opportunities with Cloud Computing.

GETTING TO CLOUD unravels the mystery and hype behind cloud computing and reveals its true power and beauty.

Get the real definitions of private Clouds, public Clouds, Hybrid clouds and the different versions of each.

Understand how Cloud will impact the IT reseller market, the opportunities, the changes in revenue, sales processes and customer relationships.

Get real insight into the magic of virtualization, introducing the complete suite of IT management products available from leading virtualization vendors.

Explore step by step the questions you must ask yourself when considering virtualization and/or Cloud for your business.

Get valuable insight into business case cost savings examples behind virtualization.

Know what questions you must ask Cloud Service Providers, and the reporting data they must provide you to assure 'best of service'.

Gain insight into how Cloud, and virtualization, will change the landscape for power intensive applications such as Business Intelligence Analytics.

For IT Resellers

Most IT Resellers are naturally concerned as to how Cloud will impact both their current commercial model and their sales revenue models. They are also trying to work out how to leverage their existing relationships and resource skills to make the most of Cloud for both their businesses, and their clients businesses.

GETTING TO CLOUD covers the market, the business and the future of cloud computing to answer such questions as:

What are the real drivers behind Cloud?
How will Cloud impact my business?
How can I use Cloud to best advantage?
What choices do I have in integrating Cloud into our current product and service portfolio?
What resource skills will I need more of in the future?
How will I plan for the change to Cloud?
What impact will it have on our revenue model?
What is the best commercial model to adopt Cloud into IT reselling?
When should we start offering Cloud services?
What license models will vendors likely offer?
What are the concerns enterprise managers have with Cloud, and how can we overcome those?
What is the future of Cloud?

For Enterprise IT Managers

Before making any decisions around Cloud, the IT manager must fully understand both the impact on the business of continuing with their current IT strategy and modus operandi, as well as the pros and cons of integrating Cloud into their IT environment. There is much hot debate around various elements of Cloud and virtualization, and also much confusion.

GETTING TO CLOUD helps clarify Cloud in terms of your unique IT environment and requirements, by answering questions such as:

Do you fully understand the Cloud environment sufficient to make any decisions regarding Getting to Cloud?
Do you currently have a reliable, valid view of the costs of running your current infrastructure?
Do you understand and accept the risks of public Cloud computing environments?
How would your decision differ in respect to different types of applications used in your organization?
Do you want/need to own the hardware your data runs on?
If you do own the hardware, do you want/need to virtualize your enterprise environment?
If you do wish to virtualize, how far should you go?
Do you fully understand the impact of virtualization?
What is the benefit of internal virtualization compared to public Cloud, of Virtual Private Cloud?
Does the lower cost of computing through economy of scale balance or outweigh your current IT model?
Will the Cloud better meet your enterprise needs than your current environment, and is it likely to continue to do so in the near future?
Are there Cloud providers currently able to better meet your needs, and who have sufficient experience and trustworthiness?
What are the top 5 things holding you back from adopting Cloud?
How valid are those reason in terms of your current performance? In other words, are you expecting absolute 100% ideal from Cloud, instead of improving on your current state?
What can you do to overcome those concerns, in the short term, and in the longer term?
Is the cost of these concerns more or less than not going to Cloud?

Looking at the answers you gave for each question, where possible, challenge your opinion with valid evidence. Sometimes, the very fact that you cannot do this indicates that there are greater gaps in your awareness of state or control of your current IT environment.

GETTING TO CLOUD is part of the TLO Management Insight Series supporting The Logical Organization.

Author: Gail La Grouw

Publisher: Electrosmart

Size 9"x 6"

Pages: 362

GETTING TO CLOUD - Discovering New Business Opportunities with Cloud Computing