Frank Levering, Research Manager for IDC<\/a> said, “An efficient and productive internal IT department is definitely a good to have in any organization, private or public. However, a department that is highly confident in running its own private cloud environment may run the risk of not reaching out to other internal departments to collaborate on cloud opportunities<\/a>.”<\/p>\n To counter this possibility, IDC recommends that whenever possible, governments should consider cloud-based collaboration services rather than independent private cloud solutions. <\/p>\n Although governments will initially be seeking cloud-based solutions<\/a> to deliver cost advantages and better manage resources, eventually, cloud implementations need to be about inter-department collaborations and citizen relationship management in order to reap the full benefits of its capabilities to deliver optimal citizen services.<\/p>\n This is particularly important for key initiatives like data classification for security purposes; if agencies do not align their security levels, it would prove to be a massive obstacle for future joint efforts.<\/p>\n A positive sign is that governments across the region are growing to recognize the need for collaboration within the cloud space. There is already a significant installed base of collaborative applications in the cloud and the numbers will grow significantly in the next 12 months.<\/p>\n \nTo optimize the benefits of cloud services, IDC offers recommendations to governments: <\/p>\n![](\"http:\/\/3.bp.blogspot.com\/-y7VzR_8sfKE\/T6bRn6_IPSI\/AAAAAAAAAiA\/fKsAgN6vc_g\/s400\/Government-private-cloud.jpg\")
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