The complexity of existing IT systems is acting as a major barrier to the adoption of cloud, with many CIOs unsure as to how to adapt to the technology, warns a report by ICT services provider NTT Europe.
Based on the views of 300 CIOs and senior IT professionals, the 'Growing Pains in the Cloud' report states that 58 per cent of those believe the complex nature of their existing IT estate is acting as a barrier to the adoption of cloud computing. Meanwhile, 62 per cent of respondents said that if cloud solutions were simpler to implement, they'd take them up more quickly.
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Cloud is generally regarded as a good way to reduce costs throughout a business, as well as providing other benefits including increased mobility and flexible working. Indeed, four out of five surveyed by NTT said they believed cloud represented 'the future,' but current realities mean it's difficult to adopt as it stands.
Budget is partially to blame for this, with the vast majority IT departments using most of their budgets to maintain current systems, with as little as 20 per cent set aside for innovation. However, the report claims that cloud can operate as a bridge between innovation and business, with half of respondents believing that adopting cloud can help them to expand their business.
"IT leaders have held back from putting their business engine in the cloud - the suites of core applications and data that lie at the heart of the organisation. They are concerned that cloud providers do not appreciate the complexity of their legacy ICT estate and fear migration may not be successful," said Damian Skendrovic, VP Cloud Services for NTT Europe.
"The results show CIOs are looking for cloud solutions suitable for the 'real world'. These solutions need to marry the old, existing, legacy systems with new applications. If CIOs are to organise their IT estates efficiently and to meet their cost and revenue objectives, getting this marriage right will be critical," he continued.
"Each business has its own complexities but their CIOs need clouds which can take that complexity and hide it behind the dashboard. CIOs expect transparency in their systems and for the control to be taken by the provider," said Skendrovic, adding that cloud providers need to prove that they are up to the task of transforming large IT estates.
"For their part, cloud providers need to demonstrate they can virtualise and industrialise a huge variety of IT platforms and services, and deliver them all with total security," he concluded.
A recent Gartner report suggested that government spending on IT is stagnating because cloud is being adopted in favour of traditional systems.
