Let’s cut to the chase: As a CEO or CIO dealing with a continual barrage of unexpected business and societal disruptions, you probably focus on two things: How to innovate faster when the next “new normal” smacks you in the face, and how to create an organization that’s better at adapting over the longer term. Thoughtfully adopting “hyperscale cloud”[1] approaches to IT underpins both objectives.
- Cloud for tactical innovation: The No. 1 benefit an organization gets from cloud technologies is flexibility, which allows you to out-innovate your competition. Instead of IT worrying about fitting 50 new servers needed by a proposed acquisition into their data center, they check a few boxes on the cloud vendor’s dashboard and capacity becomes available in hours rather than weeks. If Marketing runs a terrific campaign that spikes order volumes, IT can bump existing capacity in minutes (or the cloud vendor can automatically adjust capacity to match volume). If manufacturing needs specialized new software to drive an Industry 4.0 project, the vendor probably has it running already in the cloud. And if your IT team is using modern cloud networking and security technologies, connecting this new software to your new factory and to your existing applications is far quicker than traditional ways of integrating new software and new sites[2]. Allowing the business to innovate faster than ever before, plus working with IT as a fast-moving partner, is a cultural change for most of us. But it’s innovation on the tactical level.
- Cloud supporting true digital transformation: Digital transformation is a CEO/Board of Directors-led rethinking of culture, markets, products, employee experience, and customer experience made possible by your use of technology or made necessary by others’ use of technology. Digital Transformation is strategic-level innovation, big and audacious and risky—why it needs to be CEO-led and Board-supported—and starts with business rather than technology. But hyperscale cloud tools allow you to quickly innovate (or to quickly counter a competitor’s innovation). Cloud vendors have invested billions of dollars to add cutting-edge capabilities to their product portfolios:
- Big data databases with advanced analytics let your people make better, faster decisions
- Artificial intelligence engines free your people from routine tasks
- Low-code suites allow business experts to create serious applications
- Industry-specific tools reduce time-to-value for new ventures or market entries
Merely adopting cloud solutions doesn’t create strategic innovation; that’s still the C-suite’s job. But cloud technology allows your business and technical teams to turn breakthrough ideas into innovative new products that drive future growth.
Adopting hyperscale cloud helps your organization pivot quickly while creating an adaptive, empowered culture of innovation that’s needed in today’s uncertain world.
[1] Don’t be fooled by the many old technologies re-christened ‘cloud’ for marketing purposes: The IT transformation that gets you into the future fastest is hyperscale cloud from a small set of deep-pocketed vendors.
[2] In fairness to your CIO, who is dealing with mountains of old software, hardware, and networks, adopting cloud architecture isn’t free or easy. It needs investment along with C-suite/board commitment!
Learn more about Wipro FullStride Cloud Services, industry-leading cloud capabilities and services. Contact us to know how we can fast track your business transformation journey on the AWS Cloud.
This post is brought to you by AWS and CIO Marketing Services. The views and opinions expressed herein are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views and opinions of AWS.
