Frost and Sullivan

Customer relationship management and human resources management technologies are leading the charge for cloud computing adoption in Australia, according to analyst firm, Frost and Sullivan.

The findings are the result of a recent survey of 330 IT "decision makers" from medium sized organisations across the Asia Pacific region by the analyst firm. It highlights the additional popular uses for Cloud computing, including server computing, desktop, security, and analytics or reporting applications, which was noted by more than a third of all participants.

According to the survey, over a third of Australian participants have adopted some form of Cloud computing, whether public, private or a hybrid service, and were optimistic for 2011. Some 36 per cent of all organisations indicated an increase in cloud computing budgets for then year, during 62 per cent of organisations noted intentions to maintain current spending levels. Just 2 per cent demonstrated plans to make any decreases in Cloud computing expenditure.

"This suggests that organisations may not be giving enough consideration to either the business benefits or the risks inherent in a shift to cloud computing," Chandrasekaran said in a statement.

"What are the regulatory compliance issues when operating in the cloud and who is going to own legal liability if problems arise? There's a real need for CIOs and IT managers to lead the cloud discussion, now it's a discussion that must include senior management from across the business."