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85% of respondents in a Tata Communications survey say that cloud computing had lived up to industry hype in their experience, with 23% saying cloud had exceeded their expectations.

Increased productivity was the most popular benefit according to 69% of those polled, with better access to data (65%) and reductions in costs (63%) also highly cited. 83% of respondents admitted they experienced benefits they weren’t expecting to see.

The report added to the plethora of research confirming cloud computing was being widely used in the enterprise. 97% of respondents overall said their organisation had already adopted cloud, with only 1% saying it wasn’t an important part of their infrastructure. Private remains the most popular use case – 50% of respondents said they had deployed private cloud for between one and three years – while hybrid is certainly on the rise, with one in 10 deploying within the last year.

Almost two third (65%) of respondents said using the cloud had led to increased speed of access to technology, while a similar number (67%) experienced reduced delivery times to clients and partners.

Yet this doesn’t explain the full story. More than half (57%) of respondents admit they have migrated data back in-house from the cloud. Not surprisingly, it’s security and data protection they’re concerned about. Of the application structure in organisations polled, only two in five (39%) apps are ready to move to the cloud – and as a result companies are primarily relying on private cloud.

However 94% said their organisations would be more partial to using hybrid cloud is the connections within publicly-used internet structure could be made more predictable.

“This independent research shows that the cloud has exited the hype cycle and entered the real adoption phase for businesses globally,” said Julie Woods-Moss, CMO at Tata Communications. “It is now a strategic investment and a competitive differentiator.”

You can find the full report (email required) here.

Every successful company hits growing pains at some point along the way. One of the most harrowing for IT is the transition from the “build it quick!” startup mindset to the more structured and stable mentality of a mid-stage business.
For VIIAD Systems, a healthcare technology company that is reinventing how healthcare information flows, our transition from startup to mid-stage was marked by a transition from a physical, bare metal solution to a private cloud.
We had been experiencing an almost overwhelming influx of business over the last two years, which was both a blessing and a challenge. Like many small businesses, we had pieced together our infrastructure over the years, which eventually resulted in an expensive and “clunky” solution. Upgrading our systems was a daunting task, and we were concerned that any downtime to critical systems would be crushing to the business.

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We continue to see an increasing trend in cyber-attacks in line with the growth of new technologies, and enterprises have to protect themselves. It is critical for enterprises to devise their own measures to protect against cyber-attacks because any tolerance on this front is more than an IT issue but may affect the very existence and the business model of the enterprise. We have seen in a recent incident where a cyber-attack prevented a large enterprise from performing their basic business process.

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Kenichi (Kevin) Mori is the director of Sony Electronics’ Security Systems Division, based in Park Ridge, New Jersey. He oversees business development and partnerships for the security group, which is part of Sony Electronics’ Professional Solutions of America group. He started his Sony career doing business-to -business sales and product marketing in China before moving to the security marketing division in Japan and then coming to the U.S.
SecuritySolutionsWatch.com: Thank you for joining us today Kevin. Before discussing Sony’s security capabilities in greater detail, please tell us about your background.
Kevin Mori: I am the director of Sony Electronics’ Security Systems Division, based in Park Ridge, New Jersey. I oversee business development and partnerships for the security group, which is part of Sony Electronics’ Professional Solutions of America group. I started my Sony career doing business-to -business sales and product marketing in China before moving to the security marketing division in Japan and then coming to the U.S. I received my Master’s degree in Australia and my Bachelor’s in Japan. Between my schooling and my career, I’ve learned and worked nearly everywhere in the world.

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CIOs are increasingly concerned about cloud security. And they should be: with the recent outbreak of visible breaches at high-profile organizations like Target, Anthem, and others, and the subsequent damage they cause, corporations are scrambling to make sure their cloud applications, whether on private, public, or hybrid clouds, are safe.
But cloud security is complex. With ephemeral applications and services springing up around multiple data centers, with dozens or hundreds of independent microservices each with their own access mechanisms, with the widespread adoption of virtualization and the recent rampant frenzy over containerization, keeping on top of cloud-specific security vulnerabilities is a huge effort in itself.

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There’s Big Data, then there’s really Big Data from the Internet of Things. IoT is evolving to include many data possibilities like new types of event, log and network data. The volumes are enormous, generating tens of billions of logs per day, which raise data challenges. Early IoT deployments are relying heavily on both the cloud and managed service providers to navigate these challenges. Learn about IoT, Big Data and deployments processing massive data volumes from wearables, utilities and other machines.

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“Free” reigns supreme when it comes to online marketing. But “pay” is more profitable to your bottom line. In the popular Freemium world of digital offerings, where free and premium content or services are offered, it’s prudent to consider how you will transition free offerings into paid subscriptions before you actually take that leap.

The conversion rate is all over the boards when transforming free into premium services. Industry averages have been reported anywhere from 0.5% to 5%. When it comes to profit, that’s a huge range.

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Flexiant, today releases the new look of Flexiant Cloud Orchestrator in its latest version to deliver a simplified experience for service providers and their end users. Using the latest design concepts, Flexiant has reduced complex common work processes into a few simple, wizard driven clicks. The result is a differentiated and easier experience for service provider’s customers helping to increase profit, revenue and growth from cloud services.

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The nature of work is evolving; employees are mobile and cloud-enabled, free to work anywhere from almost any device. In response to this shift, the BYOD trend has emerged stronger than ever. Coupled with this is the growth of employees desiring more accessible applications. However, these factors have undoubtedly contributed to the emergence of shadow IT, which is creating a problem for many IT departments.

Applications such as Dropbox are increasingly being used by employees for business critical functions. Yet many of these apps are not enterprise ready, leaving IT departments caught between the twin demands of employee flexibility and enterprise security. For example, a recent report from the Ponemon Institute revealed that 44% of corporate data stored in cloud environments is not managed or controlled by the IT department. More than two-thirds of respondents said that protecting sensitive data in the cloud was more challenging when using conventional security practices. Clearly, enterprises that want to embrace cloud but stay secure need a new approach.

Secure bridges beat blanket blockages

It is unrealistic to adopt a comprehensive block on all unsanctioned application. IT departments must empower employees by granting access to their favourite cloud apps, while protecting the organisation from data loss and network threats. Rather than blocking apps en-masse, IT departments need the ability to review the activities that pose the greatest risk, such as sharing data outside the company, and block those apps specifically to mitigate their risk. To do this, IT departments need real-time visibility into how cloud application are being used, so they can enforce smart usage policies and promote safe cloud practices. With the emergence of the latest cloud management and analytics tools, this kind of clarity is very achievable.

Teaching and engaging

Once IT departments have sight of the applications in used throughout the organisation, the next step is to educate employees about why certain activities have been blocked. Offering alternative apps that have similar features but are lower-risk, means employees will feel empowered by using apps and devices they enjoy, and corporate security is maintained.

Consulting and providing feedback also means IT is in a strong position to give guidelines of approved applications, policies and alternatives. Providing consultative advice ensures IT will be seen as trusted provider; staff will want to be informed and discuss their IT queries so they can get the job done and improve business processes. Ultimately, this open approach will give IT greater visibility and insight into what applications users are deploying.

The need for visibility

In the on-premise world, keeping track of the applications being used and by whom was relatively easy, as they were purchased and managed centrally. But with cloud, different applications are being used by different people across a multitude of devices; many of which have been purchased outside of traditional IT and procurement channels. This stops IT from having visibility and control over the applications being used in the cloud. Costs can also quickly spiral out of control as a result of ‘cloud sprawl’, thanks to the sheer ease of buying services and applications (e.g. employees paying by credit card). 

Without having visibility into cloud application usage across the business, organisations will be unable to consolidate applications and miss out on cost-savings as a result of procuring cloud services centrally. Having sight of the cloud applications being purchased allows businesses to easily forecast costs, and to make informed decisions that will improve business processes and cut costs.

Regaining control will deliver value

Cloud applications like Dropbox and Evernote are helping employees to be productive, but it’s up to businesses to ensure that the applications are secure. IT departments have a tricky job of securing data while allowing employees access to cloud applications; businesses need to support IT with tools which give visibility into the applications in use throughout the IT environment.

With this insight, IT departments can implement a far more strategic approach to cloud usage and security policies. With these controls are in place, the IT department can increase user productivity while securing the IT infrastructure. With this approach, IT can take back control and deliver value to the organisation with a skilled and productive workforce.