The 3rd annual study by VMware shows cloud computing entering a new stage of evolution in the region as it highlights the growth and importance of cloud as a business enabler.
Infographic showing the findings for APJ from the VMware Cloud Index 2012. Click to enlarge.
The results of the study was presented at the annual vForums in Asia. Here are several key trends revealed by the VMware Cloud Index.
Key trends for APJ
- Despite global economic concerns, nearly 80% of respondents in Asia Pacific indicates that their companies’ business outlooks for 2012 and 2013 include some growth and/or expansion.
VMware Cloud Index 2012 findings for Singapore. Click to enlarge.
- Cloud computing is seen by respondents as enabling the business to optimise IT (85%), reduce costs (80%), and supporting a more mobile and flexible workforce (81%).
- The CIO is increasingly empowered, with 44% of them cited as a final cloud decision maker. CEOs remain the top decision maker at 52%, but this is down 6% compared to 2011.
- 71% of respondents state that cloud computing has made their jobs less complex.
- Top barriers to cloud adoption are data privacy, residency, or “loss of control” (69%); security (64%); and cost (62%).
Businesses in APJ (Japan and Asia Pacific region) are forecasting business growth and see cloud computing as an integral part of their strategy.
“There is a transformation taking place in the industry and the datacenter has become a more automated place,” observed Andrew Dutton, senior vice president and general manager, VMware Asia Pacific and Japan.
There is an increased readiness for cloud and indication that it can provide competitive advantage, with 67% of APJ organisations believing that they currently have the skills and infrastructure necessary to manage a private cloud.
68% stated that without pursuing cloud initiatives, they could fall behind the competition.
With 83% of organisations stating that cloud can empower their businesses by simplifying access to IT resources, companies are looking to leverage cloud computing as a business enabler.
“VMware’s software defined approach to the datacenter not only helps organisations address concerns about integration, hybrid management and security, but also allows business leaders to leverage cloud computing in a way that aligns to their business needs,” Dutton added.
On the other hand, IT today is struggling to impose governance, control, access and self-service over heterogeneous cloud services.
VMware is working to solve this challenge – with the introduction of the software defined datacenter as the tenet to cloud computing.
IT has also evolved from its traditional role as a builder of services to become a broker of services and infrastructure capacity.
In the era of the enterprise hybrid cloud, there are new and increased responsibilities for IT, and CIOs will need to be at the helm to bridge the gap between business and IT and manage this transformation.
About the VMware Cloud Index
The 3rd VMware Cloud Index in 2012 is the largest regional cloud-related study in Asia Pacific.
VMware
Headquartered in the Silicon Valley, VMware is a global leader in virtualisation and cloud infrastructure solutions that enable businesses to thrive in the Cloud era.
With 2011 revenues of US$3.77b, VMware has more than 400,000 customers and 55,000 partners.
Forrester Consulting and ITR (for Japan only) were commissioned to conduct the annual research in September and October 2012.
Approximately 6,500 senior IT practitioners across the APJ (in eleven countries/regions: Australia, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Singapore, Taiwan and Thailand) were surveyed this year.
Check out the infographics for your region here.
