CFOs look to move to cloud ... but not yet

Companies are still wary about the security aspect of cloud computing and want more reassurance before investing in the technology. That's according to new research from SunGard which found that only 15 percent of chief financial officers (CFOs) would be happy to entrust their company's data to cloud providers.

To no great surprise, financial accounting systems were the applications that CFOs were most reluctant to see despatched to the cloud – 37 percent said it would be the app they'd least like to see removed from their company's own infrastructure, compared to the 13 percent that didn't want to see their websites removed.

However, CFOs are still very keen to see their organisations move to the cloud – nearly three-quarters of them wanted to see company data centres removed from the balance sheet – but they're in no hurry, only a quarter of respondents expected this to happen in the next five years.

And, in contrast to claims that costs are the main driver for cloud deployment, the survey found that most CFOs were looking for a solid record of resilience and protection of a customer's data' rather than 'impressive ROI' (Return on Investment) stats when it came to choosing a provider.

Keith Tilley, managing director UK and executive vice president Europe for SunGard Availability Services, said, "When selecting a cloud provider, it seems, right now, that guaranteeing resilience and security of data is far more important than achieving significant ROI. Whilst this prudence is entirely appropriate, moving your data or IT infrastructure into the cloud should not necessarily be seen as a risk. Quite the opposite – using a private cloud, managed by a trusted supplier, is an opportunity to increase the security and resilience of your data as you're entrusting it with a specialist for whom this is their only concern."