Enterprises also need to be aware that some IT services are destined for the cloud computing style and others are destined for more integration and intimacy with the business. Once it is established that a particular service is destined for cloud computing, then a decision needs to be made as to whether it makes more business senses to wait for a mature cloud service to appear or to develop private cloud services sooner.

“Each cloud service will have a different road map for the future — some should be focused on tighter integration, intimacy customization and differentiation for the business,” Bittman said. “Others should be focused on independence, easy interfaces, standardization and eliminated customization and are therefore potential cloud service candidates.”

In order to make these choices, Bittman said that large enterprises will need to create dynamic sourcing teams that make day-to-day decisions about sourcing. These teams will orchestrate the services in the cloud to meet business needs and, as such, will need to be business and technology savvy.

Smaller businesses are unlikely to have the skills needed to orchestrate cloud services efficiently and instead will use service brokers that will take responsibility for the overall service-level requirements in the business. They will likely be skilled in specific industries and will be able to monetize their value by having deeper skill in the cloud market than small businesses can muster, and by leveraging a rapidly changing market to continue to find the best deals to keep costs as low as possible.

Bittman highlighted the following three-point action plan for CIOs and infrastructure and operation leaders as they contemplate the future of cloud services in their organizations:

Now
Experiment with the cloud and discover where it is already taking place in the enterprise
Lead a cross-organization cloud initiative
Next 90 Days
· Use virtualization as a catalyst to drive IT modernization

· Portfolio your services

· Develop strategies for services and private cloud

· Identify new opportunities for the enterprise that are emerging due to cloud computing

Next 12 Months
· Develop an overall cloud computing strategy

· Build a dynamic sourcing organization