What cloud services mean for IT departments in 2014

The use of the cloud in the business landscape has moved beyond a fad and is now at home as a standard business practice. A recent article from The Guardian features interviews with several different technology experts to find out what can be expected when it comes to cloud computing trends in 2014.

Those that commented spoke about everything from cost cutting to improving operational effectiveness. One of the experts that was spoken with is Keith Tilley, the executive vice president of EMEA and APAC at SunGard Availability Services.

"For the first time in years we're seeing optimism among businesses, the recession is in recovery and organizations are now looking at ways they can capitalize on the forecasted growth," Tilley said. "Cost cutting is taking a back-seat to innovation – undoubtedly good news for the nation's IT departments. Cloud is set to play a key part in this, with CIOs relying on its power and flexibility to help deliver bottom-line benefits for the business."

Tilley also said that the results of a study his company conducted found 97 percent of business leaders believe a closer alignment between business departments can yield a competitive advantage. This means many companies will be forced to change their mindsets and allow IT departments to break out of their silos and become a partner with every aspect of a business.

With the help of cloud consulting services, any business that is interested in adding a cloud computing strategy can seamlessly deploy the technology and incorporate it into current workflow.