But how?
A CIO’s approach to selling the cloud should be no different than any other disruption they have faced in the past. They should begin with a well-defined strategy for practical application of cloud services within a business. Because, as James Henderson of ARN writes, “having a good strategy will enable [CIOs] to apply its tenets quickly with few delays…” helping to speed up end results.
Uncertainty can often bring more uncertainty. According to Gartner reports, a good strategy can help to “create a culture less averse to change, unified in vision and direction, and that can manage change more effectively over longer time frames.”
It’s important to remain simple and humble in an approach to implementing cloud strategy for a company. CIOs should challenge their leadership in a way that is inclusive, supportive and encouraging. For Gartner this means garner support, “…CIOs must avoid hyping their vision as a panacea, but rather present it as an iteration and expansion of previous achievements.”
In the cloud-verse, CIOs have all the power, that is, until they don’t. In other words, the success of cloud migration and strategic implementation rests in the hands of a company’s CIO.
But remember, as cloud usage expands, so does the need for managed services and managed services providers. Henderson speculates that there will be a need for MSPs to advise CIOs so they can educate their CEOs “about the need to invest in the cloud as a style of computing that drives greater speed, agility and innovation …” And, once this occurs, there will be a very real need for MSPs to support a CIO’s newly developed cloud strategy so it can become a reality.
