Network Communications News (NCN) – the UK’s premier title for network infrastructure installers, integrators and end users. - Network Communications News

ICT architecture delaying cloud adoption

81 per cent of leading CIOs believe their own ICT architecture is the greatest hurdle to cloud adoption, a study, sponsored by NTT Europe, has found. 

The report, based on a survey of 300 CIOs and senior IT professionals, further reveals that over half (58 per cent) of respondents believe the complexity of their existing IT estate is holding up their implementation of cloud computing platforms. This complexity is compounded by the continued use of legacy IT platforms – on average, just over a quarter (28 per cent) of respondents’ infrastructure is described as legacy IT.

The research also suggests that the cloud is being used more as a tactical bolt-on to existing IT services than a strategic ICT platform for the business. Around two thirds (65 per cent) of businesses that use cloud are using three or fewer cloud platforms, and over two thirds (68 per cent) of respondents admit they have only been using cloud applications for less than two years. 

Damian Skendrovic, VP Cloud Services, NTT Europe, said, ‘We can deduce from our findings that cloud is largely restricted to test and development, and software as a service (SaaS). IT leaders have held back from putting their business engine in the cloud – the suites of core applications and data that lie at the heart of the organisation. They are concerned that cloud providers do not appreciate the complexity of their legacy ICT estate and fear migration may not be successful.’