Public Cloud Computing Required? Fast-Tracking the Digital Enterprise

Grazed from Midsize Insider. Author: Joe McKendrick.

What is the digital enterprise? Joe McKendrick of Forbes says it is "associated with the design, development and delivery of innovative products and services through online channels." In other words, taking what is best about a business and moving it online, transforming it from brick and mortar to bytes and mobile. Private and public cloud computing speeds this process, in effect giving midsize companies access to the fast track. But is a true digital enterprise even possible without the cloud?

Critically Speaking

According to McKendrick’s recent Forbes piece, while the cloud and digital enterprise easily go hand-in-hand, one is not dependent on the other. The article reveals the findings of a Saugatuck Technology survey, which found that 60 percent of businesses are creating new digital products and services while 70 percent are adapting existing services to work within a digital framework. But only 29 percent of respondents said the majority of their business apps and infrastructure reside in the cloud. It is possible, therefore, to chase the digital business model without significant cloud backing…

Saugatuck Analyst Bruce Guptill notes, "Enterprises are still very early in the life cycle of digital business, with much left to learn and experience regarding how it is accomplished and how its success is measured." The high mark of digital success today, therefore, may be the middle ground in just a few years when the company predicts 63 percent of businesses will leverage a significant amount of public cloud computing resources. Bottom line? Digital businesses are in uncharted territory, and while the cloud can help since it is an experienced traveler, there is no road map here. Success does not have a single definition…

Read more from the source @ http://midsizeinsider.com/en-us/article/public-cloud-computing-required-fast-tr#.U7sM9JRdWRM