Cloud Computing adoption has experienced a considerable
rate of growth since its emergence in 2006. In 2011, it
had become the top technology priority for organizations
worldwide and according to some leading industry reports
the cloud computing market is estimated to reach
$241 billion by 2020. Reasons for adoption are multi-fold,
including for example the expected realisation of benefits
pertaining to cost reduction, improved scalability,
improved resource utilization, worker mobility and
collaboration, and business continuity, among others.
Research into the cloud computing adoption phenomenon
has to date primarily focused on its impact on the larger,
multinational enterprises. However, one key area of the
market where cloud computing is expected to hold
considerable promise is that of the Small and Medium
Sized Enterprise (SME). SMEs are recognized as being
inherently different from their larger enterprise
counterparts, not least from a resource constraint
perspective and for this reason, cloud computing is
reported to offer significant benefits for SMEs through, for
example, facilitating a reduction of the financial burden
associated with new technology adoption.
This paper reports findings from a recent study of Cloud
Computing adoption among Irish SMEs. Despite its
suggested importance, this study found that almost half
of the respondents had not migrated any services or
processes to the cloud environment. Further, with respect
to those who had transitioned
to the cloud, the data
suggests that many of these SMEs did not rigorously
assess their readiness for adopting cloud computing
technology or did not adopt in-depth approaches for
managing the cloud life cycle. These findings have
important implications for the development/improvement
of national strategies or policies to support the successful
adoption of Cloud Computing technology among the SME
market. This paper puts forward recommendations to
support the SME cloud adoption journey
