04-04-13 | Blog Post
A recent article by CIO.com reports on the growing trend of outsourcing IT infrastructure to service providers – according to the IDC, service providers currently account for 13 percent of new data center space, with projected growth to be more than 30 percent by 2017.
The State of Michigan’s Mi-Cloud initiative saw the consolidation of data centers and the widespread use of the cloud across its agencies for increased efficiency and lowering costs. Shifting mission-critical applications to service providers means lightening the workload in-house, an effective way to streamline workflows.
The CIO article reports that staffing is one of the reasons why CIOs are transferring data center operations to third-party hosting providers – the concern is around staffing personnel with the needed skill-set to manage, update and maintain technical environments. Partnering with a hosting provider means clients can benefit from their investment in the needed professional certifications and training, as well as benefit from the available technical support.
Cloud infrastructure as a service (IaaS) is the fastest-growing segment of the cloud market, having grown 42 percent in 2012, and projected to grow to $131 billion in 2013, according to Gartner.
But according to CIO.com, 72 percent of users lack the tools to audit existing and future cloud environment (LogLogic Big Data and Cloud Survey). If your private cloud hosting provider hasn’t invested in their own third-party audit of their services, why should you trust them with your mission critical applications and data? Check their SSAE 16 and SOC 2 report for full assurance of their controls related to the security, availability, processing integrity, confidentiality and privacy of the data you entrust them with.
Learn more about cloud computing at our Lunch & Learn hosted at our Ann Arbor 2 data center. Co-CEO Mike Klein will present on cloud computing, and how it helps all types of Michigan businesses – small businesses get off to the right start, mid-size businesses can grow, and large businesses effectively protect themselves from natural disasters or other business disruptions. Register online.
Or learn more about the cloud remotely with our recorded webinars and slideshows:
New Solutions for Security and Compliance in the Cloud
This webinar reviews data security challenges in cloud environments as well as introduce new solutions for meeting security and compliance in virtualized and cloud infrastructure.
Overcoming Cloud-Based Mobility Challenges in Healthcare
A free educational webinar on Overcoming Cloud-Based Mobility Challenges in Healthcare with Rich Mendis, Co-Founder and CMO of AnyPresence and April Sage, Director of Healthcare Vertical and Marketing at Online Tech.
Comparing Cloud vs. Traditional Server-Based EHR/RCM Systems
During this educational webinar, Satish Malnaik, CEO of NextServices, and April Sage, Director of Healthcare Vertical for Online Tech discuss compare cloud vs. traditional server-based EHR/RCM systems.
References:
It’s Twilight for Small In-House Data Centers
Gartner Says Worldwide Public Cloud Services Market to Total $131 Billion
Gartner Predicts Infrastructure Services Will Accelerate Cloud Computing Growth
How Secure is the Cloud? IT Pros Speak Up
