Cloud computing delivers a range of benefits – some obvious from the “hard numbers” in an analysis, others buried in “soft number” categories – in many different environments. How, though, can an IT manager communicate cloud benefits in financial terms to a senior executive audience? And what’s the best way to translate these promises of savings and increased productivity into an RFP that commits suppliers to supporting these goals?
In the far-reaching third segment of our five-part analysis of cloud computing ROI, we asked our expert panel – Mark Kovarski of the Bank of Montreal, Rene Marquis of the Laval School Board, and Doug Jones, Business Unit Executive for Cloud Computing at IBM Canada – to discuss ways of translating their cloud experiences into business cases, and their experiences in reflecting their cloud requirements in supplier RFPs.
The first part of our discussion focused on the factors that figure into a demonstration of cloud value to management – the hard and soft-dollar items used to build the cloud business case.
Video: Building the Cloud Business Case
One hard dollar factor common to most cloud business cases is hardware capex avoidance. Mark Kovarski of BMO stated plainly, “I look at the CAPEX of the acquisition of hardware…from day one. There’s hard numbers behind that.”
