NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--TheInfoPro, a division of leading analyst and data company The 451 Group, today released an in-depth Cloud Study that outlines the key market factors relating to cloud services growth. TheInfoPro is also happy to announce that Sean Hackett, Research Director of CloudScape at The 451 Group, TheInfoPro’s parent company, will be joining the TheInfoPro as Research Director for Cloud services.
The cloud study is completed biannually and is based on hour-long interviews with cloud decision-makers at large enterprises in North America. Key sections of the report include Cloud Drivers and Inhibitors, Cloud Budgets, Decision Making and Service Delivery Model Preferences, Service Management and Orchestration, and Vendor Preferences.
Key highlights from TheInfoPro Cloud Study include:
- Fifty-two percent of interviewees said that internal change and learning was the leading roadblock to cloud project success. Pointing to possible pent up demand for advisory services, as users struggle with the change brought on by the cloud. Other project roadblocks included up-front cost (15%) and security (13%).
- Cost reduction (68%) is the leading justification for implementing cloud services followed by increased flexibility/scalability (24%) and reduced complexity (21%), also key drivers toward the cloud.
- A majority (75%), of respondents said that they have virtualized their cloud servers. However, few have currently implemented the core management, automation and orchestration functionality, which are all cornerstones to the enablement of truly flexible, agile and cost effective internal cloud solutions.
- VMware continues to be the primary vendor selected for cloud enablement projects. For internal or private IaaS projects, 37% of interviewees said that VMware is their primary cloud enablement provider.
"The cloud market is at an inflection point right now and it’s critical to understand the opportunities for as well as barriers to adoption and growth," said Ken Male, Managing Director and Founder of TheInfoPro. "In this study, we’ve applied TheInfoPro’s voice-of-the-customer research methodology and, now with Sean Hackett leading our Cloud practice, we’ve got the right combination of cloud analysis and underlying data from large IT organizations to give a clear picture of where the cloud market is heading," continued Mr. Male.
"2011 continues to be the year of the internal cloud. Most organizations are increasing the efficiency and agility while lowering the cost of their internal IT assets,” said Sean Hackett, Research Director for Cloud at TheInfoPro. “Because of the cloud's economics and speed of deployment and flexibility, by and large many initiatives are in-fact additive, enabling organizations to drive projects that they otherwise weren’t able to in the past. Vendor and Service providers will need to watch closely as the resulting shift will present opportunities and perils for both incumbents and emerging providers,” continued Mr. Hackett.
Mr. Hackett has over a decade of experience as an IT industry analyst and consultant. Prior to TheInfoPro, Mr. Hackett was responsible for the CloudScape practice at The 451 Group, the parent company of TheInfoPro. Prior to joining The 451 Group, Mr. Hackett worked at CA Technologies in Corporate Strategy. Prior to CA Technologies, Mr. Hackett directed IDC's IT Outsourcing and Utility Computing research program, where he was at the vanguard in identifying the disruptive potential of the cloud service-delivery model.
About TheInfoPro Cloud Study
TheInfoPro Cloud Study, completed in May 2011, focuses on IaaS, PaaS & SaaS while taking an in-depth look at key trends across the cloud services industry, as well as the performance of individual vendors. The study is completed biannually, and is based on hour-long interviews with cloud professionals and primary decision-makers at large and midsize enterprises in North America. The interview results are collected in comprehensive research reports that provide continuous business intelligence within key areas, such as technological road maps, spending plans and vendor performance. A sampling of vendors covered in the Vendor Performance and Technology Roadmap components of the study include: VMware, Salesforce, HP, IBM, Rackspace, Savvis, Verizon, Citrix, AT&T, Successfactors, Cisco, Oracle, Amazon, Dell, EMC, Microsoft, CSC, Joyent, and Google.
About TheInfoPro
TheInfoPro is a division of The 451 Group and a leading advisory and research firm that provides real-world perspectives on the customer and market dynamics of the information technology landscape. Using a unique research methodology that harnesses the collective knowledge and insights of leading IT organizations worldwide, TheInfoPro serves as a conduit between IT decision-makers, technology providers and institutional investors. To learn more, visit www.theinfopro.com or email sales@theinfopro.com.
About The 451 Group
The 451 Group is a leading technology-industry analyst and data company focused on the business of enterprise IT innovation. The company provides critical and timely insight into the market and competitive dynamics of innovation in emerging technology segments. Clients of the company – at vendor, investor, service-provider and end-user organizations – rely on The 451 Group's insight to support both strategic and tactical decision-making. The 451 Group is headquartered in New York, with offices in key locations, including San Francisco, Washington, DC, London, Boston, Seattle and Denver.