Grazed from CIO.  Author: Bernard Golden.

In 2014, Gartner introduced a prescriptive organization model for enterprise IT called “Bimodal IT.” It posits that IT organizations of the future will have two separate flavors, if you will: Type 1 is traditional IT, focused on stability and efficiency, while Type 2 is an experimental, agile organization focused on time-to-market, rapid application evolution, and, in particular, tight alignment with business units.

Here is one description of bimodal IT from a Gartner conference attendee — unfortunately, Gartner has not yet chosen to publish a full description of the concept that can be accessed by non-subscribers, although a good overview of it can be gleaned from the firm’s report outline…

Grazed from SysCon Media.  Author: Elizabeth White.

OneCloud Software has launched the OneCloud Partner Program. Responding to demand from prospective partners, the Program offers managed service providers (MSPs) and resellers the resources they need to grow their business with the OneCloud Recovery solution. OneCloud Recovery is an automated solution for disaster recovery/business continuity (DR/BC), which leverages Amazon Web Services as the disaster recovery site.

"This is a tremendous opportunity with an innovative hybrid cloud-based DRproduct and a partner committed to providing the tools and support that will enable a competitive advantage," said Marc Crespi, CEO at OneCloud Software…

Grazed from TechTarget.  Author: Dan Sullivan.

With multiple models and all that fine print, cloud licensing gets complicated quickly. Risks arise when IT isn’t clear on what’s allowed and what’s not. And when you’re not sure whom to contact for support, the complications only grow.

Prior to cloud computing, perpetual licenses were common. With these licenses, users purchase software and can use it as needed — subject to other license restrictions. But to ensure you have access to updated software, users may need to pay for ongoing maintenance…

Grazed from TalkinCloud.  Author: Dan Kobialka.

CloudBees has secured $23.5 million in a financing round led by Lightspeed Venture Partners. Existing investors Matrix Partners,Verizon Ventures and Blue Cloud Ventures also participated in the financing round.

To date, CloudBees has raised nearly $50 million in total financing; the continuous delivery (CD) platform provider previously added $11.2 million in Series C financing last March…

Grazed from InformationWeek.  Author: Ben Kepes.

Respected cloud computing commentator and consultant Ian Apperley has spent significant time studying the UK’s G-Cloud program. G-Cloud is a program introduced by the UK Government back in 2012 that aimed to offer public-sector organizations throughout the UK access to cloud infrastructure. The idea of the initiative was that the G-Cloud organization would negotiate agreements with suppliers, thus avoiding the need for individual organizations to complete a full procurement process. On top of that, G-Cloud created a “CloudStore” where public sector bodies could search for services covered by the G-Cloud supply agreements.

In a recent post, Apperley suggested that the UK Government cloud program is for all intents and purposes dead. Apperley has a professional interest in the G-Cloud story – he has studied the UK program as part of an assessment of opportunities that existed for New Zealand’s Departments of Internal Affairs. Apperley concluded that the G-Cloud model was a good one – it created a level playing field for suppliers, more generally used to favorites being played by departmental IT staff…

Grazed from Nextgov.  Author:  Frank Konkel.

The General Services Administration is the latest agency to commit big bucks to cloud computing, awarding Laurel, Maryland-based Aquilent a 5-year blanket purchase agreement for cloud services worth up to $100 million.

Awarded through GSA’s Office of Citizen Services and Innovative Technologies, the contract will be a GSA-wide procurement vehicle, meaning any organization or department within GSA has a quick route by which to procure many variations of cloud services…

Grazed from InformationWeek.  Author: Kelly Sheridan.

Microsoft’s most recent earnings report indicates a fall in quarterly profit due to restructuring expenses and tax adjustments. While revenue increased 8% from the same quarter a year ago, net income fell by 10%. However, sales of its Surface tablet and the company’s cloud computing business offered some bright spots.

The tech giant reported revenue of $26.47 billion during its quarterly earnings calls on Jan. 26. Microsoft’s profit had fallen from the previous year, with numbers clocking in at $5.86 billion, or $0.71 per share, compared with $6.56 billion during the same quarter the previous year…

Grazed from BusinessWire.  Author: PR Announcement.

NAKIVO Inc., the fastest growing virtualization and cloud backup software company for VMware environments, today announced it has earned recognition on The Channel Company’s CRN 100 Coolest Cloud Computing Vendors of 2015. This annual list recognizes some of the most innovative cloud companies supporting the IT channel today.



The 100 Coolest Cloud Computing Vendors honor is presented to companies based on their approach to creating innovative products, services or partner programs that have helped channel partners transform into true solution providers, ultimately helping customers take advantage of the ease of use, flexibility, scalability and savings that cloud computing offers...

Grazed from InformationWeek.  Author: Joe Stangenelli.

Going to the cloud makes things easier, right?  Then why is it so complicated?  Cloud computing contracts are often full of traps for the unsuspecting customer — traps that can compromise data and expose said customer to fines, lawsuits, and other problems.

These traps hurt not just cloud customers but the entire cloud industry. Organizations in highly regulated industries (such as healthcare and finance) are notoriously nephophobic because of the massive legal liabilities they face for data compromises. They fear handing control of their data (let alone encryption keys) to cloud providers — and often for good reason, unfortunately…

Grazed from CloudComputingInfo.  Author: Paola Cornacchiola.

Cloud computing startup called Ravello Systems announces to have secured $28 million funding and to have boost a total of $54 million capital led by Qualcomm Incorporated, through its venture investment group, Qualcomm Ventures, and SanDisk Corporation through SanDisk Ventures. Among the investors that participated in this funding round: Sequoia Capital, Bessemer Venture Partners, Norwest Venture Partners and Vintage Investment Partners.

Ravello Systems Founded in 2011 by the team that created the KVM hypervisor at Qumranet (now part of Red Hat) which is now emerging among enterprises as the third virtualization platform of choice. The company went into public beta in February 2013 and GA in August 2013…