Adoption of Cloud Computing Services by Public Sector Organisations

Despite attractive benefits a range of barriers is inhibiting take-up of Cloud Computing services which in most public sector organisations remains at less than 5% of the ICT footprint. The generic factor inhibiting wider deployment is that use of Cloud Computing services exposes organisations to heightened risks. While the inherent risks can be managed, in the near term significant investment in skills, processes, tools and technology is a prerequisite for doing so efficiently. For many organisations that use ICT services, the level of investment needed will often be prohibitive. This has created the opportunity for the emergence of trusted cloud brokerage services that can invest strategically to assist organisations with the use of Cloud Computing services and management of the associated risks, developing service portfolios that reduce upfront costs, so that use of Cloud Computing services becomes the best choice on a project by project basis. This paper considers the benefits of Cloud Computing, identifies the barriers to take up and how these can be overcome, and considers how cloud services brokerages can potentially develop new capabilities to accelerate take-up and benefits realisation.