دانلود رایگان مقاله ساختار حکمرانی برای خدمات محاسبات ابری و ارزیابی اثربخشی آنها

Abstract

This research suggests information technology (IT) governance structures to manage the cloud computing services. The interest in acquiring IT resources as a utility from the cloud computing environment is gaining momentum. The cloud computing services present organizations with opportunities to manage their IT expenditure on an ongoing basis, and access to modern IT resources to innovate and manage their continuity. However, the cloud computing services are no silver bullet. Organizations would need to have appropriate governance structures and policies in place to manage the cloud computing services. The subsequent decisions from these governance structures will ensure the effective management of the cloud computing services. This management will facilitate a better fit of the cloud computing services into organizations’ existing processes to achieve the business (process-level) and the financial (firm-level) objectives. Using a triangulation approach, we suggest four governance structures for managing the cloud computing services. These structures are a chief cloud officer, a cloud management committee, a cloud service facilitation centre, and a cloud relationship centre. We also propose that these governance structures would relate directly to organizations’ cloud computing services-related business objectives, and indirectly to cloud computing services-related financial objectives. Perceptive field survey data from actual and cloud computing service adopters suggest that the suggested governance structures would contribute directly to cloud computing-related business objectives and indirectly to cloud computing-related financial objectives.

10. Conclusion

The importance of sourcing the cloud computing services from the cloud computing environment is gaining momentum, and cloud computing is here to stay. While the concept of acquiring and consuming resources and services as a utility is not new, the thought of sourcing IT services as a utility is presenting excellent opportunities to organizations to manage their IT cost, and have modern IT services to facilitate innovation. However, a change in the way of acquiring the IT services does not negate organizations' responsibility of appropriately managing these services, and ensuring that these resources fit into their existing business processes. Therefore, organizations need to consider appropriate governance structures to manage the cloud computing services. We adopted a triangulation approach and have suggested four possible governance structures for the cloud computing services. These structures relate to having a strategic thought on the cloud computing services, the importance of having a cloud expert, cloud service polices, and manage and integrate the cloud computing services in organizations. We also showed that organizations perceive that the suggested governance structures do relate directly to their cloud computing services-related business objectives, and indirectly to their cloud computing services-related financial objectives. We hope our effort will increase the understanding on ways to approach the adoption of the cloud computing services by establishing procedures at the outset to ensure the acquired IT resources contribute to the strategic intent of organizations, and swiftly fit into their existing business processes.