Latin America sees scope for cloud services

NEW YORK, USA: In the next few months Latin America will see a high demand for cloud computing professionals and experts, believes the CIO Committe, comprising of CIOs from Latin America, that met recently at CIO LA Summit (hosted by GDS International), Mexico.

Latin America has traditionally been seen by the rest of the world to be behind when it comes to information technology. 

Also Read: Cloud Constitution from Gartner 

However, a recent announcement from Cisco stated that the company is hoping to form new partnerships within the region, which will boost the level of IT skills. 

Increased investment and outsourcing data storage will help the continent to build on the more basic needs of better communication and government support systems for Latin America, feels the committee.

“It is up to each and every CIO to seek out and take responsibility for the most cost-effective and productive IT systems and strategies in order to create opportunity out of an increasingly rocky landscape. Quite frankly, IT is a game changer,” David Broffman, project director

Broffman added that cloud is not new to business but the potential it holds to transform the internal workings of a company are still being discovered. At the moment, cloud computing is very much in the early years.

Chuck Hollis, VP and global marketing CTO, EMC Corporation understands that we are still seeing security and networking issues. For bigger companies with large amount of data there are risks to handing this over to a remote provider.

"We are seeing a “If you want a job doing, do it yourself”, attitude which requires dedicated work from IT service staff. The agility of a business can make or break how it reacts to varying economic changes. Business depends on quick response times, so it is vital that everyone has access to all relevant information and can keep up with the current economic climate," he added. 

Hollis also added that the journey to private cloud requires a transformational approach that balances an ambitious architecture with a solid operational framework. The result is rationalized business processes, applications and platforms that align with business imperatives — giving you the efficiencies, control and choice you need to thrive in this economy.

The CIO committee comprised of  Patricio Melo, COO/CTO, Banco de Chile; João Lencioni, CIO Latin America, GE;  Marcos Semola, CIO, Shell; and Jose Luis Fernandez Serrano, CIO Mexico, Pepsi Beverages Company.