30-май-2014
How should governments go cloud first?
Dr Steve Hodgkinson, Chief Analyst, Global Public Sector
Three Australian state governments have recently released updated ICT
strategies that include cloud-first policy positions. However, each
state has taken a different approach to driving cloud services adoption.
This raises interesting questions about the impact of cloud services on
the logic of whole-of-government ICT strategy.
Our view is that central agencies should focus on leadership and
enablement. They should be mindful of the risk that too much top-down
strategy too early on will kill the golden goose of decentralized cloudy
innovation that is created when agencies are simply empowered to buy
services that already work.
NSW government agencies are already evaluating cloud-based services when undertaking ICT procurements
The New South Wales (NSW) state government’s ICT Strategy was
published in 2012 with an implementation update released recently. The
2012 policy statement on cloud services remains unchanged:
NSW Government agencies will evaluate cloud-based services when
undertaking ICT procurements to determine the ICT delivery model that
provides the best value sustainable investment, taking account of the
full range of cost-benefit considerations.
To promote and support cloud services adoption, the NSW government has
- created the Cloud Services Policy and Guidelines
- created the IT Services Catalogue
- produced the Cloud Pilot Project Report (NSW agencies now have
extensive hands-on experience of a range of solutions, including Google
Apps, Microsoft Office 365, Salesforce, and SAP Business By Design SaaS
ERP)
- added the as-a-service module to the state’s ICT procurement framework
- added as-a-service sourcing models to the state’s ICT investment policy and guidelines.
NSW was visionary enough to include cloud services aspirations in its
strategy in 2011/12, and it nurtured pilot projects in agencies while
diligently executing a centrally driven program of supportive policy
initiatives.
This foresight is starting to deliver results. The NSW government has
demonstrated its appetite for cloud services. Sydney has become the
obvious choice for any global cloud services provider seeking to
establish a beachhead in the Australian market, including, so far,
Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft, Oracle, Rackspace, and SAP.
Victoria will evaluate cloud-based ICT services first for new and renewed systems
The Victorian state government recently released an update to its ICT
Strategy. A new principle relating to cloud services was added:
Cloud-based ICT services will be evaluated first for new and renewed
systems. Public cloud ICT services will be evaluated to assess their
suitability. The preference will be for standard versions provided by
public cloud vendors, requiring little or no customisation.
Victoria has a handful of well-developed cloud services
implementations in agencies using solutions from Oracle, Salesforce, and
Telstra. However, within individual agencies, momentum for cloud
services has so far been driven from the bottom up.
A range of centrally driven programs to accelerate cloud services
adoption are in development, including an Infrastructure and Services
Roadmap (with explicit consideration of the impact of as-a-service
offerings on enterprise architecture) and a Public Cloud Framework and
associated cloud guidance. Victoria is also implementing a new
procurement arrangement called VicConnect – an ICT network for the
delivery of standardized services to agencies. VicConnect is expected to
create a whole-of-government marketplace for telecoms and other
as-a-service offerings.
Queensland will architect cloud-based ICT services by default
The Queensland state government recently released its new Cloud
Computing Strategy as an addendum to its 2013–17 ICT Strategy. The
document includes an unambiguous cloud-first procurement statement:
The Queensland Government will place cloud computing in a prominent
position in the government’s ICT reform by taking a ‘cloud-first’
approach to the sourcing of ICT as-a-service: agencies will procure
cloud-based ICT services as the default option for their ICT
requirements unless a sound business case exists for a contrary
solution.
The strategy is part of a suite of documents that also comprises ICT
as-a-service policies, an ICT-as-a-service Decision Framework, and a
Cloud Computing Implementation Model.
The Cloud Computing Implementation Model describes a comprehensive
top-down approach, comprising a cloud marketplace and storefront,
external cloud brokers, a private community cloud, and an identity
federation platform, and transformation of agency ICT divisions into
trusted brokers of ICT services from external suppliers.
How much top-down whole-of-government strategy is “enough” for cloud services adoption?
The strategy agendas of the three state governments vary in the degree to which they are top-down or bottom-up approaches.
NSW appears to have the best balance of a bottom-up, hands-on
approach to cloud services adoption in agencies and pragmatic top-down
leadership and enablement. The focus has been on celebrating innovation
in agencies and providing support by creating policy enablers and
removing policy barriers – for example in investment and procurement
rules.
Victoria has some highly effective bottom-up cloud services projects
in agencies, but has so far done little centrally to create enablers or
remove systemic policy and procurement barriers to cloud services
adoption.
Queensland is heading for the opposite of this – its approach would
warm the heart of any enterprise architect. The state is attempting to
catch up from a slow start with a “forced march” toward cloud services.
Although this approach may appear necessary due to budget constraints
and the pressing imperatives for ICT asset and application renewal, it
runs the risk of repeating the errors of over-centralization that have
plagued previous ICT strategies in this and other states.
It will be interesting to see how the approaches of these three
states evolve over time. Insufficient top-down strategy will slow cloud
services adoption by failing to create enablers and remove blockages,
while too much will slow cloud services adoption by over-centralizing
decision-making and creating unwieldy procurement and operational
arrangements that restrict agency autonomy.
Cloud services are an inherently decentralizing – bottom-up – mode of
ICT procurement. The best balance is one that focuses on business
outcomes for agencies and accelerating the rate at which staff in
agencies learn where, when, and how to deploy cloud services – first.
Our view is that central agencies should focus on leadership and
enablement. They should be mindful of the risks that too much top-down
strategy too early will kill the golden goose of decentralized cloudy
innovation that is created when agencies are simply empowered to buy
services that already work – cloudy is as cloudy does.