CEO's Guide to Cloud Computing

Your organization can save and thrive in the cloud with this first non-technical guide to cloud computing for business leaders In less than a decade Google, Amazon, and Salesforce.com went from unknown ideas to powerhouse fixtures in the economic landscape; in even less time offerings such as Linkedin, Youtube, Facebook, Twitter and many others also carved out important roles; in less than five years Apple's iTunes became the largest music retailer in North America. They all share one key strategic decision – each of these organizations chose to harness the power of cloud computing to power their drives to dominance. With roots in supercomputing and many other technical disciplines, cloud computing is ushering in an entirely new economic reality – technology-enabled enterprises built on low cost, flexible, and limitless technical infrastructures. The Executive's Guide to Cloud Computing reveals how you can apply the power of cloud computing throughout your enterprise, giving members of the C-suite a detailed look at: Why cloud computing must be a top priority on your company's IT roadmaps How the drive for scale, lower costs and greater agility is making cloud computing a fiscal and technological imperative The relationship between cloud computing and other relevant IT initiatives The strategic implications of cloud computing for the enterprise Where to begin and how to get started integrating cloud computing into your existing operations Now you can harness cloud computing's potential for your organization. Executive's Guide to Cloud Computing shows you how.

Cloud computing is the most significant technology development of our lifetimes. It has made countless new businesses possible and presents a massive opportunity for large enterprises to innovate like startups and retire decades of technical debt. But making the most of the cloud requires much more from enterprises than just a technology change. Stephen Orban led Dow Jones's journey toward digital agility as their CIO and now leads AWS's Enterprise Strategy function, where he helps leaders from the largest companies in the world transform their businesses. As he demonstrates in this book, enterprises must re-train their people, evolve their processes, and transform their cultures as they move to the cloud. By bringing together his experiences and those of a number of business leaders, Orban shines a light on what works, what doesn't, and how enterprises can transform themselves using the cloud.

Massive, disruptive change is coming to IT as software as a service (SaaS), SOA, mashups, Web 2.0, and cloud computing truly come of age. Now, one of the world’s leading IT innovators explains what it all means—coherently, thoroughly, and authoritatively. Writing for IT executives, architects, and developers alike, world-renowned expert David S. Linthicum explains why the days of managing IT organizations as private fortresses will rapidly disappear as IT inevitably becomes a global community. He demonstrates how to run IT when critical elements of customer, product, and business data and processes extend far beyond the firewall—and how to use all that information to deliver real-time answers about everything from an individual customer’s credit to the location of a specific cargo container. Cloud Computing and SOA Convergence in Your Enterprise offers a clear-eyed assessment of the challenges associated with this new world—and offers a step-by-step program for getting there with maximum return on investment and minimum risk. Using multiple examples, Linthicum Reviews the powerful cost, value, and risk-related drivers behind the move to cloud computing—and explains why the shift will accelerate Explains the technical underpinnings, supporting technologies, and best-practice methods you’ll need to make the transition Helps you objectively assess the promise of cloud computing and SOA for your organization, quantify value, and make the business case Walks you through evaluating your existing IT infrastructure and finding your most cost-effective, safest path to the “cloud” Shows how to choose the right candidate data, services, and processes for your cloud computing initiatives Guides you through building disruptive infrastructure and next-generation process platforms Helps you bring effective, high-value governance to the clouds If you’re ready to begin driving real competitive advantage from cloud computing, this book is the start-to-finish roadmap you need to make it happen.

This book will enable you to: understand the different types of Cloud and know which is the right one for your business have realistic expectations of what a Cloud service can give you, and enable you to manage it in the way that suits your business minimise potential disruption by successfully managing the risks and threats make appropriate changes to your business in order to seize opportunities offered by Cloud set up an effective governance system and benefit from the consequential cost savings and reductions in expenditure understand the legal implications of international data protection and privacy laws, and protect your business against falling foul of such laws know how Cloud can benefit your business continuity and disaster recovery planning.

A close look at cloud computing's transformational role in business Covering cloud computing from what the business leader needs to know, this book describes how IT can nimbly ramp up revenue initiatives, positively impact business operations and costs, and how this allows business leaders to shed worry about technology so they can focus on their business. It also reveals the cloud's effect on corporate organization structures, the evolution of traditional IT in the global economy, potential benefits and risks of cloud models and most importantly, how the IT function is being rethought by companies today who are making room for the coming tidal wave that is cloud computing. Why IT and business thinking must change to capture the full potential of cloud computing Topics including emerging cloud solutions, data security, service reliability, the new role of IT and new business organization structures Other titles by Hugos include: Business Agility: Sustainable Prosperity in a Relentlessly Competitive World and Essentials of Supply Chain Management, 2nd Edition Practical and timely, this book reveals why it's worth every company's time and effort to exploit cloud computing's potential for their business's survival and success.

The ultimate guide to assessing and exploiting the customer value and revenue potential of the Cloud A new business model is sweeping the world—the Cloud. And, as with any new technology, there is a great deal of fear, uncertainty, and doubt surrounding cloud computing. Cloudonomics radically upends the conventional wisdom, clearly explains the underlying principles and illustrates through understandable examples how Cloud computing can create compelling value—whether you are a customer, a provider, a strategist, or an investor. Cloudonomics covers everything you need to consider for the delivery of business solutions, opportunities, and customer satisfaction through the Cloud, so you can understand it—and put it to work for your business. Cloudonomics also delivers insight into when to avoid the cloud, and why. Quantifies how customers, users, and cloud providers can collaborate to create win-wins Reveals how to use the Laws of Cloudonomics to define strategy and guide implementation Explains the probable evolution of cloud businesses and ecosystems Demolishes the conventional wisdom on cloud usage, IT spend, community clouds, and the enterprise-provider cloud balance Whether you're ready for it or not, Cloud computing is here to stay. Cloudonomics provides deep insights into the business value of the Cloud for executives, practitioners, and strategists in virtually any industry—not just technology executives but also those in the marketing, operations, economics, venture capital, and financial fields.

This book describes cloud computing as a service that is "highly scalable" and operates in "a resilient environment". The authors emphasize architectural layers and models - but also business and security factors.

How did salesforce.com grow from a start up in a rented apartment into the world's fastest growing software company in less than a decade? For the first time, Marc Benioff, the visionary founder, chairman and CEO of salesforce.com, tells how he and his team created and used new business, technology, and philanthropic models tailored to this time of extraordinary change. Showing how salesforce.com not only survived the dotcom implosion of 2001, but went on to define itself as the leader of the cloud computing revolution and spark a $46-billion dollar industry, Benioff's story will help business leaders and entrepreneurs stand out, innovate better, and grow faster in any economic climate. In Behind the Cloud, Benioff shares the strategies that have inspired employees, turned customers into evangelists, leveraged an ecosystem of partners, and allowed innovation to flourish.

Is Your Information Easy to Steal? Every business has something it needs to protect. Whether it's top-secret IP, an exclusive client list, or a secure payment portal, your data is what sets you apart from the competition. But most businesses aren't doing a very good job of protecting what's theirs. The digital world is changing fast-and cybercrime is changing with it. Whether it's a 12-year-old "script kiddie" crippling your website with denial-of-service attacks, or a master hacker targeting a project leader with phishing e-mails, the bad guys have dozens of clever and creative ways to take your assets. Sooner or later, you will come under attack. The future of your organisation depends on making your information hard to steal. But most business owners don't know where to start. This book is the answer.