The shift to the cloud and its two masters

The “Cloud” represents a foundational shift in how information is created, shared, stored, and protected across the data center, business, home, and mobile computing environments. Some argue that we have not experienced such a seismic shift with such categorical effects on industries, economies, and innovation since the advent of the electric utilities of the early 20^th century. “The next sea change is upon us.” — Bill Gates

This sea change lies not only in how large enterprise companies provision IT services in the form of compute; it’s also in how large enterprises, small-to-medium-sized businesses, and we consumers save the digital content we create and consume – in the form of storage. Thus, the cloud for all practical purposes serves two masters: compute and storage.

There is no doubt that the way large enterprise customers deliver IT resources is changing. Countless articles, whitepapers, and case studies have been written by nearly every tech company looking to grab a piece of the cloud craze. Some would argue that we have entered an era of “cloud washing” similar to the “green washing” phenomenon experienced over the past five years. Take a hot topic like green IT or the cloud, apply it to your solution, and all of a sudden you’re a legitimate player. Cutting through this mess of marketing messages and claims can prove to be difficult and costly for many businesses and consumers alike. The definition of the cloud has become, well, cloudy for most.

I suggest we go back to understanding, at its foundation, what the cloud really is: a new style of computing and storing data. And whether you are a large enterprise, small-to-medium-sized business, or consumer, it might not be your style, just yet, and that’s okay.

It’s way too early to say that everything will move to the cloud by X date. There are years of innovation and advancements to be made in the areas of compute, networking, and storage to make cloud even close to the norm. By the time this happens, the cloud will no longer be a buzzword, it will simply be IT.

Are you tired of all the cloud talk? Or have you shifted already?

Who is the largest cloud customer? You.

[Infographic]: SMBs migration to the cloud