Many I have talked with recently about their budget process have noted tighter and tighter restrictions on the operating side of the ledger. No surprise there but they continue to describe ways of obtaining funds for capital expenditures, whether it be through historical expectations of capital outlays or structured grant programs which lean toward favoring capital outlay versus operating budget relief. Those of us promoting the benefits of the emerging Cloud Services market must be cognizant of the very real requirement educate the business and financial planners of a re-balanced understanding that must exist for Cloud Services to deliver on its promises. The low capital investment model of Cloud Services gives way to potential increases in operating cost. Classic examples are found in the rapidly emerging virtual desktop market. We now will see Return On Investment (ROI) models that pit heavy capital outlay for PCs versus medium capital outlay for VDI versus minimal capital but increased operating dollars for Desk as a Service (DaaS). Strong IT organizations will embrace the dialogue necessary with financial planners and granting organizations to help reveal positive return on investment profiles for Cloud Services.
