07.27.10
Is IT Blocking Cloud Computing?
[Cartoon]
Large corporate IT departments have very little to gain from cloud computing and a great deal to lose. They also have a huge influence on the understanding of any disruptive technology such as cloud computing. So, there should be no doubt that IT will come up with multiple creative ways to delay the inevitable transition to cloud computing.
The most obvious fear that IT can plant in the minds of their management is that cloud computing is not secure. IT can have management envisioning the corporate data being spread out over the internet for anyone to access. IT can sell the idea that the data and processes are securely protected within the walls of the data center.
The security argument is a good one. Not because it has much accuracy, but because it is easy to visualize. According to IT, placing information critical to the operation of your organization outside the data center would be like putting your treasures outside the protective walls of the castle. Forgive me for the pun, but this is a futile analogy.
Another great issue brought up by IT is performance. It should be obvious that when the information is close at hand there will be better performance. This argument is easy to describe in concept, but it does not actually have much merit in the real world. Think about how long it can take to access account information that is inside your data center. Now consider doing a Google search. Google can respond to a search for words that appear in documents on servers all over the world with a sub-second response. How does this stack up against your local account access?
No one likes to make major change, especially if it means that your job may change or even be eliminated. IT is no different when it comes to liking the promised effects of using cloud computing.
What is needed is an independent third party to evaluate cloud computing benefits for an organization. These types of evaluation are best accomplished by Enterprise Architects that do not have a reporting line within IT. Enterprise Architects are uniquely equipped to evaluate and recommend, from a business perspective, the pace and order of moving processes and data into the cloud.
Enterprise Architects should be responsible for the evaluation. They should be given a huge amount of authority in making the transition work. The authority will be required to prevent accidental or intentional sabotage from IT.
Closing the Business / IT gap
