Enterprises Using Multiple Cloud Providers, Software-as-a-Service

Enterprises in numerous industries continue to recruit cloud services in their quest for reduced operating costs, improved efficiency and greater productivity. According to a recent InformationWeek survey, more than half of businesses are using between two and five cloud providers, indicating

Enterprises in numerous industries continue to recruit cloud services in their quest for reduced operating costs, improved efficiency and greater productivity. According to a recent InformationWeek survey, more than half of businesses are using between two and five cloud providers, indicating that companies are increasingly comfortable outsourcing multiple IT tasks.

The study also revealed some cloud service models have become more popular than others, as 57 percent of IT professionals said their firm uses Software-as-a-Service, compared to just 27 percent leveraging Infrastructure-as-a-Service.

"It's pretty clear that the norm for most companies will be a hybrid cloud, with a mix of external providers and sensitive or critical applications kept in-house," said Lorna Garey, content director of InformationWeek Reports. "But service providers are making strides in terms of security and performance. IT teams that don't at least evaluate are doing their companies a disservice."

Of the more than 500 enterprise IT professionals surveyed by InformationWeek analysts, only 14 percent said their organization had replaced or fired a cloud provider, underscoring the importance of initial vendor selection.

Most experts say widespread adoption of cloud technology will continue this year and beyond. According Strategy Analytics, the global cloud services market will reach $82 billion by 2016, up from $31 billion in 2011.