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Gartner: CIOs Need To Consider Cloud First

A new survey shows that many executives still prefer only what they know.

• By Keith Ward
• 03/16/2015

Cloud computing should now be a first-line option for new IT projects, but many CIOs remain hesitant to consider it as such, according to new research from Gartner Inc. That conclusion comes from a 2015 CIO survey called "Flipping to Digital Leadership: The 2015 CIO Agenda." When it comes to infrastructure and operations (which Gartner calls I&O), the decision makers tend to fall back on what's already in their datacenters.

"I&O leaders have been more protective of their existing infrastructure and, in many cases, have been the biggest obstacle to cloud-based solutions," said Dave Russell, vice president and distinguished analyst at Gartner, in a press release. "Instead, I&O leaders should institute a 'cloud-first' consideration for every project on an application-by-application basis," he said.

The other side of that coin is that nearly half of the 2,800 respondents now consider the cloud a viable business option, rather than something that's still more of an experimental technology. Still, that leaves a lot of companies on the fence about the value of integrating the cloud into their operations.

That's a mistake, according to Mike Chuba, a research vice president at Gartner. "Rather than ignoring the cloud outright, or only reluctantly considering it, evaluating all implementation models at the outset of a project can help save time and produce better results."

Related to those findings is the survey revelation that Bring Your Own Device, or BYOD, has become entrenched in enterprises to the point that it's a front-line concern across IT. "… mobile devices are now the primary or secondary interface for a significant number of IT investments," Gartner reported, concluding that mobility now needs to be a major consideration when it comes to system design.

The report stated that "I&O leaders should assume that a variety of devices will access every application and build those applications accordingly, as well as viewing mobility as not just being about devices and infrastructure, but about the individual and [his] experience with IT systems."

The aggregate spending by the CIOs polled is $397 billion, including $202.5 billion in I&O.