As the leading IT research firm in the entire world, when Gartner speaks, people listen. According to their prediction, a phenomenal amount of growth is expected and the reason for such a huge rise in revenue is due to the fact that businesses operating in the Cloud are seeing a larger than forecast ROI.
According to the Gartner’s research director, Sid Nag, the underlying reason for such amazing growth is due to the savings that businesses and other organizations are realizing through the use of Cloud system infrastructure services. Also referred to as Infrastructure as a Service (IaaS), this sector is expected to increase by almost 43 percent this year along with a 21.7 percent growth within the industry’s largest segment, SaaS or Software as a Service. Referred to as a Cloud application service, SaaS is providing a way for businesses to avoid the high costs of a local infrastructure, (main frame) and on an average are saving as much as 14 percent by using Cloud based services.
At the top of the list of what is driving growth in the Cloud Services market is IT modernization which is closely followed by the savings that companies are realizing, thus lifting their ROI beyond expectations. Along with the savings, companies are continually benefiting from innovations in the IT environment that are modernized continually as advances are implemented. This is leading to an environment that is proving to be the foundation of advancing applications and business processes — such as those integral to human resources. A huge part of the savings being realized is due to a reduction in manpower hours because of streamlined processes that can be accessed from any location at the home office or in the field.
When it comes to security, Gartner has made it perfectly clear that Cloud services are quite secure and businesses have nothing to worry about in terms of data loss. The leading providers have made necessary provisions for security but for smaller IaaS providers, security is still something they are working on. Even so, security can still be a real challenge and the way forward, according to the research vice president at Gartner, Ed Anderson, is through education. He cites the hype over concerns with security and so providers should make every effort to inform and educate their clients. By so doing they can enjoy the real benefits of Cloud computing.
The figures and projections detailed by Gartner are in terms of public Cloud services but in the very near future there will be a greater focus on private Cloud services which are also expected to continue rapid growth throughout the remainder of this year and into the next. However, this also presents a challenge to provide a coordinated service because of the multiple Cloud providers each organization is using. In a multi-cloud environment, the need to have services coordinated cannot be overemphasized, and that’s why providers are gearing up to offer this service as well. Of major concern is the incompatibility of services from one provider to the next.
Later in the month of September between the 26th and 28th there will be a Gartner Symposium/ITxpo 2016 in which many of these issues will be discussed with potential solutions and future innovations being hinted at. The Symposium takes place in Cape Town and participants are expected from every continent on earth. With a growth rate as rapid as it has been and is expected to be going forward, this Symposium couldn’t come a minute too soon. The outlook for 2017 and beyond will be discussed by key speakers who will also be representative of various providers.
