‘Clever’ CIOs will see the change ushered in by cloud computing as an opportunity to more closely align IT with the rest of the business, according to Oracle. However the database giant also warned that some CIOs may see it as a threat, as it gives the business much more control.
Speaking at Oracle’s Cloud Conference held in London this week, John Abel, technical architect, EMEA Storage & Servers at Oracle, said while cloud computing presents a great opportunity to CIOs, they must act to ensure they take full advantage of it.
"For the first time cloud computing means that the business can sub-navigate IT, and this is a concern as well as an opportunity for the CIOs," he said. "The good ones are using this as an opportunity and the more conservative or risk averse will see it as a threat."
Abel expanded on the idea of the business having the ability to "sub-navigate" the IT department: "With SaaS, the business thinks it doesn’t need IT, it can just go and procure its own capabilities. The generation that uses Twitter and Facebook will soon be the business decision-makers. They are used to instant access and will go and get it from somewhere else if IT doesn’t provide it."
Abel’s main message at the conference was "don’t worry". While there are obviously concerns to do with cloud computing it is more than anything an opportunity.
"Clever CIOs are looking at IT as a business," he said. "If you can attach yourself to business growth – the IT function – you are now an asset to the business. If you are just there as a supporting element, the supporting element is an OpEx cost, which most financial people will look at."
"So for me the clever CIOs are working with the business to enable it – through cloud computing – to enable the business to see what the IT function will give them moving forward. Those CIOs that don’t have that conversation early will be in trouble," he warned.
Oracle has certainly taken its time when it comes to explaining its cloud computing strategy but it now seems to be kicking things into gear.
Back in 2010, at Oracle OpenWorld, its annual San Francisco shindig, CEO Larry Ellison unveiled Exalogic Elastic Cloud, a combination of hardware and software that marks the company’s entry into the "cloud in a box" arena alongside fellow computing giants HP and IBM.
At the 2011 event it unveiled Oracle Public Cloud, a range of applications, middleware and database offerings delivered online, with Oracle providing the hosting, management, software updates and support.
Oracle has also made a couple of recent acquisitions to pick up the pace as it plays catch up in the cloud space. First, hosted CRM vendor RightNow Technologies was acquired for $1.5bn, followed by talent management firm Taleo for $1.9bn.
