BLOOMFIELD, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--North American businesses are cloud enthusiasts, according to a new global study conducted by NTT Com Security. The research found that 87 percent of North American organizations surveyed have already moved, or are looking to move, the majority of their data and services into the cloud within the next two years – compared to 68 percent of businesses in Asia, and 60 percent in Europe. Regions with the lowest early adoption of cloud services in organizations were Japan (54%) and the Nordics (34%).
North American organizations have also been committed to the cloud for longer than those interviewed in other regions, with 98 percent of North American businesses interviewed confirming that cloud-based operations have been part of their infrastructure for six months or longer. In Asia 83 percent of organizations have been using the cloud over this time, and 79 percent in Europe.
The survey is based on in-person interviews with more than 700 IT decision makers at organizations with 500+ employees from USA/Canada, UK, Germany, Japan, Singapore, Hong Kong and the Nordics.
Technology innovation was also evident in the US and Canada, with 59 percent of North American businesses stating they actively experiment with emerging technologies, followed by Singapore (41%), Japan (26%), Germany (21%) and the UK (20%).
The survey also revealed an increased commitment to cloud-related spend by North American businesses, with on average 32 percent of IT budget dedicated to cloud technology. The picture is the same in Asia (also 32%), with Europeans lagging behind with an average 24 percent of IT budget dedicated to cloud. When asked if the cloud is ‘critical’ for deploying services, 45 percent of North American firms agreed, compared with 32 percent in Singapore, 29 percent in Germany and just nine percent in the UK.
"The speed of global cloud adoption is based on how quickly issues such as security and cost can be reconciled,” said Garry Sidaway, Global Director of Security Strategy at NTT Com Security. “Once businesses have the right policies in place, they rapidly expand the services and applications delivered via the cloud.”
So what’s driving North American cloud adoption? When deploying new services or changing the delivery of existing services, US and Canadian organizations are driven primarily by cost (63%), followed by business agility and flexibility (52%), availability of in-house skills (47%), competitiveness (39%) and client retention (38%). Indeed worldwide, organizations admitted that cost reduction was the most likely factor to drive cloud deployment (50% in Europe and 54% in Asia), followed by availability of skills (27% in Europe, 20% in Asia) and finally speed-to-market (26% in Asia and 22% of European organizations).
The report characterizes organizations as fitting five cloud ‘personas’* defined by their level of enthusiasm for cloud computing and maturity of adoption. Ranging from Embracers at one end of the scale (very active in new technologies for over three years) to ‘Controllers’ at the other (characterized by their lack of cloud deployments), the personas also include Accepters, Experimenters and Believers.
Sidaway explained: “What's interesting is that it’s possible to see attributes of different cloud personas in each country, even though they were defined globally, with the USA falling into both the Embracer and Believer personas. But whatever stage businesses are at, cloud is recognized as playing an increasingly important role as companies seek to move into new territories and be competitive on the global stage."
*The five cloud personas
1. The Embracer –using cloud for 3+ years, very active in seeking out new technologies, dedicates over half budget and is very likely to see an increase in revenues and profits from cloud
2. The Believer – very likely to actively seek out new technologies and to have moved the majority of services into the cloud over the next year. Critical to the deployment of services with a third of budget allocated
3. The Experimenter – likely to experiment with new technologies and to move the majority of services into the cloud in the next year. Used in half or more departments with a quarter of budget dedicated to cloud
4. The Accepter –adopted cloud in the past two years and most likely to adopt technology when there is a clear business case. Cloud is not central to IT strategy
5. The Controller – least likely to be using cloud and emerging technologies, more reliant on data centers. Cloud is not currently part of their IT strategy
Notes for editors
NTT Com Security (formerly Integralis) commissioned market research company Vanson Bourne to conduct independent research among 700+ IT decision makers at organizations of 500+ employees in the USA/Canada, UK, Germany, Nordics, Singapore, Japan and Hong Kong in May and June 2013. Research was conducted online and by telephone across the public and private sectors, with particular emphasis on Finance, Retail, Pharmaceutical, Telecommunications, Utilities, Petrochemicals and Healthcare. A whitepaper is available to media, with full details of the five cloud personas, an infographic, full research findings and spokesperson photography. For additional information, visit: http://www.integralis.com/en/uploads/files/Cloud%20Personas%20whitepaper%20-%20FINAL.pdf
About NTT Com Security (formerly Integralis)
NTT Com Security (formerly Integralis) is the power behind WideAngle, a global information security and risk management brand. WideAngle delivers a portfolio of managed security, business infrastructure, consulting and technology integration services. WideAngle helps organizations lower their IT costs and increase the depth of IT security protection, risk management, compliance and service availability. NTT Com Security AG, is headquartered in Ismaning, Germany and part of the NTT Communications Group, owned by NTT (Nippon Telegraph and Telephone Corporation), one of the largest telecommunications companies in the world. For more information, visit http://www.nttcomsecurity.com.
