it@cork

cloud computing – what are your views?

It is accepted by most serious commentators that cloud computing will have a major impact on the global IT industry and on business in general.

If adoption rates reach anticipated levels, the nature and distribution of IT jobs will change significantly with the emergence of new consumer/provider relationships and risk/reward propositions. Cloud will create many new jobs and eliminate older ones. It will require new IT skills, facilitate the implementation of new business models and processes, change the rules for many start-up businesses and raise new security challenges. It will be over-hyped at the outset before settling to sustainable patterns of usage and evolution.

How will cloud computing impact on the Irish economy? The Programme for Government has identified it as a key component of its strategy for increasing the efficiency and effectiveness of the public sector. The report “Ireland’s Competitiveness & Jobs Opportunity: Cloud Computing”, prepared by Goodbody Economic Consultants and sponsored by Microsoft, makes a number of findings, included those stated below.

 Cloud Computing sales by Irish firms could reach €9.5bn per annum by 2014 and provide jobs for 8,600 people.

The report “The Cloud Dividend: Part One”, prepared by the Centre For Economics And Business Research Ltd on behalf of EMC, finds that across the combined economies of France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the UK, the widespread adoption of cloud computing has the potential to generate over €763bn of cumulative economic benefits and in excess of 2.3 million net new jobs over the period 2010 to 2015.

If similar forecasts were applied to Ireland, the projected cumulative economic benefit over this period would be of the order of €12bn with net new job creation of the order of 38,000 jobs.

Regardless of which forecasts and related assumptions one chooses to believe, it is clear that cloud computing will have a significant and increasing impact globally, and that Ireland Inc. will need to position itself optimally to pick up a decent share of the resultant opportunities on offer. How can this be accomplished?

Some commentators have called for Ireland to pursue a first mover advantage by implementing a major cloud initiative to create national brand awareness and attract inward investment. Indeed, Microsoft and the IDA have joined forces to attract inward investment. Other commentators have highlighted the need to invest in cloud-related infrastructure, education, research and innovation in order to create a sustainable cloud computing ecosystem in Ireland.

it@cork is determined to put forward the views of its members in relation to cloud computing and to lobby for the implementation of initiatives that will make a difference to Ireland Inc. while taking account of current national economic challenges. To this end, members are invited to send their views to chairman@itcork.ie or to post them on our Linked In group web page.

Some questions for you to consider in this context: