InBus_Win09_56-96:InBusiness 1-61 11/12/2009 10:45 Page 72
SPECIAL REPORT | IT Efficiency
agility. By enabling this kind of dynamic less expensive and more efficient –
adaptation, cloud computing is helping while adhering to user, business and
companies tap into services and information regulatory requirements.
that allow them to work smarter and take Cloud computing can have a significant
advantage of the increasingly digital, networked impact on a company’s financial performance,
world in new ways. altering how they operate and enabling them to
Today, users are tapping into public and target new markets and streamline their supply
private clouds for computing resources and chains. Companies like Google, Amazon and
services without having to address the eBay are building the future of their businesses
underlying technology. Companies are with cloud computing, using it to both sustain
leveraging the massive scalability and growth and touring innovative new services to
Pol Mac Aonghusa, Manager of the IBM European
collaboration capabilities of cloud computing to businesses and consumers. Being able to make
Cloud Computing Centre.
solve problems in ways that just weren’t possible these kinds of transformational advances, rapidly
“IT’S IMPORTANT TO
before and they are deploying new services with and before competitors do, can lead to
greater speed and without additional capital increased market share and higher margins,
FIND A GOOD, TRUSTED
investment. As IT budgets continue to be especially as business development budgets are
ADVISER WHO CAN HELP
stretched, cloud computing is enabling CIOs to squeezed. In the globalised world,
do more with less. Virtualisation, standardisation differentiation is imperative but increasingly
YOU UNDERSTAND HOW
and other fundamental features of cloud are difficult to achieve. Cloud computing enables
lowering the cost of IT, simplifying IT service companies to offload non-core computing
CLOUD COMPUTING CAN
management and accelerating service delivery. functions like password management, dynamic
MAKE A DIFFERENCE TO
“What we’re seeing now is that by going to a provisioning and data partitioning to external
service provider you are able to take a more partners. It enables companies to acquire the
YOUR BUSINESS.” consistent approach to your IT usage,” says Mac services or computing capacity needed to enter
– Pol Mac Aonghusa
Aonghusa. “With IBM for example, we would new markets or cross over into new industries.
have multiple customers so we have already As with any new product, there are
dealt with the procedures necessary to give you misconceptions about cloud computing, but
as you move on you begin to eliminate a service level that matches your business and Mac Aonghusa believes it is important to work
expenses and then you can look at associated gives you more time to focus on other things. with a partnership company who can help you
benefits. You can eliminate things which are Also, you don’t have to worry about down-time maximize its potential. “Like any emerging
non-core and reap significant benefits as due to maintenance and you can plan upgrades technology, there is a lot of opinion and a lot of
a result.” too. Essentially, the cloud provider worries about confusion. It’s important to find a good, trusted
the mechanics of your IT and allows you to adviser who can help you understand how
DYNAMIC INFRASTRUCTURE focus on core operations.” cloud computing can make a difference to your
The availability of a highly dynamic business. It’s easy to focus on the technology
infrastructure enables corporate data centres to APPLICATIONS AND WORKLOADS involved but businesses should really analyse
operate with improved flexibility, ready to Cloud computing provides a cohesive platform the benefits it can bring to your business.”
respond quickly to changing business for more rapid, full-scale adoption of
requirements and unexpected opportunities. virtualisation and other business-enabling
Such flexibility is essential in the fast-paced, initiatives such as service oriented architecture
constantly changing, globalised world – and (SOA), Web2.0 and information integration. It
even more so in an economic downturn, where improves their function and capability by
rigid and fragmented infrastructures can providing the scalability, automation, service
severely limit a company’s responsiveness. The management and geographic mobility to make
cloud computing architecture enables this kind them more robust. Take virtualisation for
of flexibility via a highly virtualised, automated example – in a typical data centre environment,
and service-oriented design. Companies gain virtualisation allows computing resources to be
rapid, real-time access to vast computing power, shared among various applications and
storage and applications. In the process, they workloads, but it is limited by the size and
become better at developing and deploying resources of the environment. Cloud computing
new applications, improve their quality of enables these applications and workloads to
service and bring their core services to market draw from a massively scalable pool of
in response to evolving consumer priorities and resources, beyond the borders of a company’s
market challenges. It is agility that will be the own data centre. It can migrate the workload to
lifeblood of successful business going forward, other data enters, even in other countries and
and cloud computing is one way of gaining continents – wherever computing is accessible,
72 InBusiness Winter 09
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