The terms “Cloud Computing” and “Software as a Service (SaaS)” are relatively new buzz phrases that have been flying around both the technology and business communities for the past few years. While these concepts might appear to be new and “radical” the reality is the implementation of these buzz phrases has been around for a number of years and there are a number of companies who have been using these technologies for years to provide both businesses and consumers with useful online products.

So why is the first question I get from IT and business executives, “How Secure is Indicee?” Each time I get this question I struggle with whether I should express my “inside head voice” or my “outside head voice.” Logic usually prevails and I take the high road. I know that most of the questions simply stem from a desire to the maintain the privacy and control of their corporate data. What is funny is that most of these executives don’t see the vulnerabilities they face in their current “inside the firewall” methodologies that are, in many cases, far more vulnerable than any of the current cloud technologies used today. Not to mention the huge security holes they have with employees being able email corporate data in spreadsheets and documents to just about anyone.

At the end of the day this debate really depends on which “lens” you choose to look at the world through. My belief is that the choice between using “cloud” or “inside the firewall” is first and foremost cultural. I see 3 cultural lenses most often and these lenses tend to follow Geoffrey Moore’s Technology Adoption Life Cycle curve

1. Innovators Lens – these are the people or companies that are the first to hear about new technology and adopt it quicker than the vendors can produce it. When we talk to the IT and business leaders in innovative companies like this they are near polar opposite to laggards(see below). These are the companies that are trying to find as many ways to push everything they can into the cloud. Indicee’s operations are like this. We live in the cloud….Google Docs, Slide Rocket, Salesforce.com, Version 1, Amazon Web Services, Basecamp and a bunch more. If Stephanie, our sales goddess, tells me her computer spontaneously combusted I don’t have to ask her if she had it backed up. If Craig, our king of partnering, drops his laptop in the moat of Treasure Island while attending a conference I only need to ask how many beer he had. Everything we need is in the cloud, secure and waiting for us no matter what computer we are on. As you can see this lens has a very different view and the scenery is spectacular from my balcony. My advice to these companies….the wave is here RIDE IT!

   

2. Wait and See Lens - “I don’t know about that cloud computing stuff….I know it seems to be hot and people are talking about it but I am just not sure.” This is a common statement I hear from both business and IT people in all sizes of organizations. The indecisiveness is a major challenge for these organizations especially when they dabble in the new technologies but they never fully commit to trying them in specific areas of the business. Instead they burn up endless cycles dabbling while maintaining the status quo of what they already have. These companies would be better served by making more clear and decisive decisions. SaaS services are amazing for doing small projects to determine their viability, they are low cost, easy to get going and if you don’t like them they are easy to kick to the curb. With SaaS and cloud computing you can actually be an innovator while you hold steady on your current course, something that has been historically more challenging to do with traditional enterpirse on-premise software. While the Wait and See crowd tends to take longer to change, they are much more open and receptive to the learning and change than a Laggard is. Wait and See types need validation from others, they need proof, they need trust and they need buy in from the rest of their peers. My advice to companies with this culture..pick something and DO IT! Live the Nike mantra and go for it.

3. Laggards Lens -  I have met and visited with thousands of companies over the course of my career and what I have learned is that no matter how many facts, figures and benefits you put in front of a person(or company) if they are fundamentally apposed to it, culturally, you are probably not going to change their mind. Here is a simple, real world example of a conversation I have had with a Director of IT for $100M sporting goods manufacturing and distribution company: “The Founder of our business is an old school guy…he doesn’t even use email but he does use a phone. There is no way he is going to let us move our data outside the four walls of this building. As a matter of fact he only wants 4 people on the executive team to see any type of corporate data!” And that, my friends, is an exact quote. That is usually my cue to ask, “what is the quickest route back to the airport from here?” I actually like companies like this because I can see the lens they see the world through and I can quickly determine that our company and their company are probably not destined to do business together. Well, until the succession plan has been implemented and the founder has decided to move on. My only message to companies that adopt this type of culture…..have a listen to Bob Dylan’s “These Times They are A-Changin’”
   

So what does all of this have to do with the question,, “How Secure is Indicee?”  The answer is highly dependent on your cultural lens your company looks through. If you are an innovator, you already believe that the cloud is better, more secure and more reliable. It is built into your DNA. If you are laggard, well this “Cloud dog don’t hunt.”  If you are anywhere in between, then you just need to start hanging out with the innovators more often!

So what cultural lens does your company look through?