Cloud computing, shifts in IT roles

fergalr

Just musing about something here, like to get a straw poll on it.

I was at an presentation on cloud computing the other day; just an internal university talk by a student.
It was thought provoking in some ways.

Themes in the talk included the possible eventual transition of computation to a utility; so, like you pay your gas bill, your ESB, you'll pay your computation bill each month as well.

Now, this won't be true for large enterprises.

But I now several small companies, you know, small legal firms, doctors, offices, where there are < 20 people in the office.

These companies are typically a trainwreck in terms of their IT. You know, backup procedures aren't quite right, they get malware on their networks; things that should really never ever happen.
And thats sort of inevitable, because small companies don't have the resources to employ dedicated skilled IT staff.
They sometimes have a support contract with someone that comes in to do the IT for them, but this inevitably doesn't seem to work well; they are too vulnerable to cowboys because they can't tell who is doing a good job and who isn't.


Cloud computing is going to be very disruptive for these businesses (in a good way). Hosted gmail is going to trump the exchange server every time, yada yada.

But its going to proliferate out from these companies to the medium size ones as well.

Are we going to finally have the age of the network computer?
Or are there real business constraints that'll stop this happening? (Too many domain specific applications that aren't going to end up in the cloud?)
Are there going to be a lot of IT support staff out of work as things get easier to maintain?

Anyone got any strong thoughts?

Clearly there's a lot of hype about 'cloud computing', but no blanket posts solely saying 'the term doesn't mean anything' please...
...the fact that I can go in an hour and have 1000 EC2 computers running my programs if I have a big enough credit card, is a real change... but will it have any meaningful impact on small businesses?

amen

Themes in the talk included the possible eventual transition of computation to a utility; so, like you pay your gas bill, your ESB, you'll pay your computation bill each month as well

mainframes 30 years ago did exactly that.

A lot companies paid for time to run billing, accounts, calculations etc.

Collumbo

I cannot speak for all companies, and I cannot speak for the specific examples you mentioned, but sure I'll throw in my two cents if it's of any use.
I wrote a few written proof-of-concept apps running on EC2 using S3, Cloudfront streaming and SimpleDB. Was more of a pet project really just to see how easy it was. Messed around too with Azure but didn't take it very far.


>>>>>>>>Or are there real business constraints that'll stop this happening? (Too many domain specific applications that aren't going to end up in the cloud?)

I've pushed the idea of cloud storage for some projects, and possibly cloud hosting for less critical apps that don't access any sensitive information. Was met with very cold response due to "security concerns". I said what about the laptops that went missing from the HSE? And the USB Sticks that walk out the door with confidential data every day. And the 7 laptops that went missing the UK with hundreds of thousands of records of Social Affairs data. No replies. Public sector in this country will be very very slow to convince that Cloud Hosting/Storage is going to be very popular in future. US Govt has acknowledged this. Now I understand certain situations where data is just too precious (banks, social security, healthcare) where data simply has to be under the custody of the merchant/service provider. But an awful lot could justifiably be pushed to the cloud and save sh!!tloads of cash in the process of doing so. Not in terms of just hosting or hardware costs, but in terms of staff.


>>> Are there going to be a lot of IT support staff out of work as things get easier to maintain?

It's a long way off I reckon.


Will it hurt small businesses? Probably it will hit the smaller LAN security specialists as their services won't be as critical as they once were...


>>>> Anyone got any strong thoughts?
If data ain't as sensitive as banking data or something that the CIA hold on the North Korea or whatever, I may be pushing for hosting using cloud providers. I will definitely push for using S3 for larger assets. I will certainly be streaming video from cloudfront. Not only is it cost efficient, but the multiple edge locations make it a no-brainer if your website has a global audience and not just one country. Security concerns do not bother me - I was happy with the security features offered on S3 and Ec2 and SimpleDB. The performance of Cloudfront was particularly impressive for very long videos (RTMP used to stream a 1 hour video... no problems randomly clicking around the timeline). The only security concern I have if any, is in the area of PCI compliance, but to be honest, I'd never accept a CC number on my own site anyway... use 3rd party like paypal or realex or another for that.

In short, I'm a big advocate of it and happy I've learned the few ropes there are to get up and running with it... (amazon's version anyway...)

Art_Wolf

fergalr wrote: »

But its going to proliferate out from these companies to the medium size ones as well.....Or are there real business constraints that'll stop this happening? (Too many domain specific applications that aren't going to end up in the cloud?)

This is where I think you will hit the major problem and why should be a large uptake with small firms, but as they move into medium they will need to pull more stuff in-house so that their product can be more unique - and hence more difficult for competitors to copy.

Boskonay

There are lots of 'types' of cloud solution now, and some of them are as near to a replica of the 'rack in the back of the office' as you can get (like http://dediserve.com for an irish example)

Ross

Boskonay wrote: »

There are lots of 'types' of cloud solution now, and some of them are as near to a replica of the 'rack in the back of the office' as you can get (like http://dediserve.com for an irish example)

Your brother runs that service though, might want to give a bit of disclosure

Sparks

Collumbo wrote: »

I've pushed the idea of cloud storage for some projects, and possibly cloud hosting for less critical apps that don't access any sensitive information. Was met with very cold response due to "security concerns". I said what about the laptops that went missing from the HSE? And the USB Sticks that walk out the door with confidential data every day. And the 7 laptops that went missing the UK with hundreds of thousands of records of Social Affairs data. No replies. Public sector in this country will be very very slow to convince that Cloud Hosting/Storage is going to be very popular in future. US Govt has acknowledged this. Now I understand certain situations where data is just too precious (banks, social security, healthcare) where data simply has to be under the custody of the merchant/service provider. But an awful lot could justifiably be pushed to the cloud and save sh!!tloads of cash in the process of doing so. Not in terms of just hosting or hardware costs, but in terms of staff.

Except that for the public sector in this country (and for the public sector in much of the EU), it legally cannot use the cloud. Our data protection acts and similar EU law prohibits sending the data to other jurisdictions, and that's pretty much what you're doing with the cloud at the moment.

Yes, there have been breaches through loss of equipment and so forth; but there's a difference between a stolen laptop and a policy decision to move data to an unsecure location in violation of EU and Irish law.

See this rather good bit by McGarr Solicitors, it lays it out pretty clearly.

hobochris

We have suggested such Setup's to our clients, only to be shot down for a few reasons.

1. The CEO would prefer all company assets including data remain on site. This mentality is hard to overcome for many business owners, as they feel like a physical asset their data is safer in their possession then being looked after by someone else.

2. They do not trust the network infrastructure to be able supply them with their data consistently, lets face it with the likes of Eircom being the main network infrastructure who could blame them?

3.And finally, What happens with their data should contract be terminated/altered or effected in any way, many fear that in the event that the business relationship with the data host ends etc.. that they will not be able to recover their data in a timely manner that will not effect their business operations.


Without specific Governance, much improved infrastructure and education/reassurance to business owners cloud computing is still a distant dream.

amen

Our data protection acts and similar EU law prohibits sending the data to other jurisdictions, and that's pretty much what you're doing with the cloud at the momen

you can specify what jurisdiction to store your data in.

The CEO would prefer all company assets including data remain on site

do you store all you backups on site as well?

one thing you be aware of is steaming costs to persist/retrieve the data

Sparks

amen wrote: »

you can specify what jurisdiction to store your data in.

Depends on the service. As McGarr pointed out:

The FAQ for Amazon’s Cloud offering, called S3, baldly announces that “Amazon S3 allows customers of Amazon S3 to store their data in the EU; however, it is up to the customers of Amazon S3 to ensure that they comply with EU privacy laws.” Furthermore, their Terms of Service states, in all caps for emphasis, that they do not warrant “THAT THE DATA YOU STORE WITHIN THE SERVICE OFFERINGS WILL BE SECURE OR NOT OTHERWISE LOST OR DAMAGED.”

This ‘as-is’ approach clashes fundamentally with the responsibility of a Data Controller to ensure the security of the data they pass on to a data processor. There is the additional complication that, unlike Amazon, not all the cloud computing service providers will promise to keep the data uploaded from the EU in the EU. The result is the possibility of breaching the laws which prevent EU citizen’s personal data being exported to jurisdictions with less stringent protections.

dvpower

Sparks wrote: »

Except that for the public sector in this country (and for the public sector in much of the EU), it legally cannot use the cloud. Our data protection acts and similar EU law prohibits sending the data to other jurisdictions, and that's pretty much what you're doing with the cloud at the moment.

Most of the providers (certainly Microsoft and Amazon) allow you to specify what region the data will be hosted in. Both of these providers have data centres in Ireland. It is potentially a problem for other countries' public services.

Mind you, I can see a lot of resistance within big organisations to holding their critical data outside their own buildings, never mind their countries.

dvpower

amen wrote: »

one thing you be aware of is steaming costs to persist/retrieve the data

One of the big issues that I hear from people using cloud computing is the lack of transparency on pricing. Its often quite difficult to calculate (especially at the start of a project) and because it is based partially on data transfers it can be difficult to predict. Indeed, it becomes a much more important factor in application design.

BostonB

One minute you are talking about SME < 20 the next minutes massive companies, Govt agencies/Depts. Worlds apart?

Maybe I have a simplistic viewpoint. But I think theres a few issues, with the SME's anyway.

I don't think cloud computing will pitched as cheaper to traditional IT solutions. Also the worry is once someone else has your business, the costs rise, and its can be difficult to extract yourself from it, when its embedded into someone else solution.

I use Gmail a lot but I wouldn't use it for business. For example, Where people might use the wrong subject titles its just gets everything mixed up under the same label. Sometimes dropping it into a folder is so much more elegant than convoluted filters. Theres a bunch of other stuff but you get the idea. Lots of cloud applications have similar limitations.

A lot of SME, rely on a small number of "power users" to deliver solutions. Think of the work done in EXCEL or ACCESS VBA. Customization and similar of Cloud solutions often require a level of expertise beyond power users.

The other aspect is that a lot of these SME have a tiny spend on IT. Many soldier on with ancient hardware and software, without any issues at all.

amen

“THAT THE DATA YOU STORE WITHIN THE SERVICE OFFERINGS WILL BE SECURE OR NOT OTHERWISE LOST OR DAMAGED.”

and most data centers won't promise this either so if you host in a data center you can have the same problem.

fergalr

Collumbo wrote: »

I've pushed the idea of cloud storage for some projects, and possibly cloud hosting for less critical apps that don't access any sensitive information. Was met with very cold response due to "security concerns". I said what about the laptops that went missing from the HSE? And the USB Sticks that walk out the door with confidential data every day. And the 7 laptops that went missing the UK with hundreds of thousands of records of Social Affairs data. No replies. Public sector in this country will be very very slow to convince that Cloud Hosting/Storage is going to be very popular in future. US Govt has acknowledged this. Now I understand certain situations where data is just too precious (banks, social security, healthcare) where data simply has to be under the custody of the merchant/service provider. But an awful lot could justifiably be pushed to the cloud and save sh!!tloads of cash in the process of doing so. Not in terms of just hosting or hardware costs, but in terms of staff.

Sparks wrote: »

Except that for the public sector in this country (and for the public sector in much of the EU), it legally cannot use the cloud. Our data protection acts and similar EU law prohibits sending the data to other jurisdictions, and that's pretty much what you're doing with the cloud at the moment.

Yes, there have been breaches through loss of equipment and so forth; but there's a difference between a stolen laptop and a policy decision to move data to an unsecure location in violation of EU and Irish law.

On the security angle, and especially when talking about small enterprises, I think data is probably much more secure in a reputable cloud infrastructure, than it is on a badly administered local network, or laptop, that currently runs a lot of business applications.

The state of security is pretty terrible in a lot of SMEs; lawyers, accountants, offices, all get viruses and malware. This should really never happen...
But realistically a small company with few IT skills, isn't going to keep their windows desktops secure and their data backed up. It just doesn't happen in reality.
Rubbish security appears to be the case for companies that should have the resources to do better, like banks and public services. In many cases - even though it might appear less secure to have the data outside the office - its probably an improvement.


Legal jurisdiction is an interesting one.
I can see how this definitely excludes a lot of applications at the moment.
I imagine eventually this will get resolved to the point where you have fine grained control over what jurisdictions the data is allowed go, and a hosting facility in every jurisdiction (and probably an excess charge for the privilege).

fergalr

BostonB wrote: »

I use Gmail a lot but I wouldn't use it for business. For example, Where people might use the wrong subject titles its just gets everything mixed up under the same label. Sometimes dropping it into a folder is so much more elegant than convoluted filters. Theres a bunch of other stuff but you get the idea. Lots of cloud applications have similar limitations.

I don't understand this point at all.
Why wouldn't you use Gmail for business?

If I were advising a small company I'd totally recommend them to go with a hosted mail like Gmail rather than run their own in house mail server. Its just one less thing to run internally, and Gmail seems to do a very good job. Is it mainly that you object to UI elements of Gmail such as search_vs_sort bias it has? Would you go with a different hosted mail application that had these?

BostonB wrote: »

The other aspect is that a lot of these SME have a tiny spend on IT. Many soldier on with ancient hardware and software, without any issues at all.

Depends on the business, I guess. A lot of people require internet access to do their work these days, and its very hard to maintain a secure infrastructure with internet access. I guess it depends on the domain; I often wonder how small solicitors deal with this though, with their confidentiality requirements. From experience I think most people just ignore any potential security problems and hope they don't arise, and just lose their data now and again ?

Art_Wolf

fergalr wrote: »

I often wonder how small solicitors deal with this though, with their confidentiality requirements. From experience I think most people just ignore any potential security problems and hope they don't arise, and just lose their data now and again ?

No one will steal this guys data!

Curiously though I wonder how much Cloud Computing is being stymied in SME by simply lack of knowledge about it. As BostonB points out they generally have small budgets but that was one of the pros of Cloud Computing. Maybe dvpower's point about the lack of transparency does not help this - it is easier to simply budget a specific amount each month...

fergalr

Art_Wolf wrote: »

No one will steal this guys data!

Curiously though I wonder how much Cloud Computing is being stymied in SME by simply lack of knowledge about it. As BostonB points out they generally have small budgets but that was one of the pros of Cloud Computing. Maybe dvpower's point about the lack of transparency does not help this - it is easier to simply budget a specific amount each month...

I think its too early to say that they're slow to adopt. They wouldnt exactly be early adopters anyway, they are often running domain specific applications which someone will (eventually) need to port, and its early days for 'cloud computing' anyway (as a modern business idea - mainframes and client-server have been around a while as technologies...).

Art_Wolf

The uptake in technology is exponential so ignoringing cloud computing after it has had been discussed for so many years is putting someone at a disadvantage.

fergalr wrote: »

they are often running domain specific applications which someone will (eventually) need to port

Figuring out at what point the functionality is "cloudy" will be the main point. Legally the regionalism of data will not be changing too quickly (IMHO) so innovators will need to bet on where the commonality is - and where cloud computing can excel.

Cloud Computing/globalization must compete against Porter's competitive strategy of vertical integration. it is possible but the ROI will be heavily reviewed.

Naikon

Cloud computing is just an excuse to remove the liberty of data protection from you. Once you upload your stuff to "the cloud" you essentially forfeit any rights to that data. Not in the strictist legal sense, but it's not far off when gmails privacy policy states your data may remain resident on their systems. Cloud == loss of rights. Unless you are using PGP, don't ever send anything confidential over email. I don't anymore after reading about the issues surrounding "the cloud".

fergalr

Naikon wrote: »

Cloud computing is just an excuse to remove the liberty of data protection from you.

You seem to be implying that cloud computing is mainly motivated to get people to give up their privacy rights. That sounds like conspiracy theory nonsense to me.
There's certainly important issues about data security and privacy when putting your data in the cloud, but to say that cloud computing is 'just an excuse' to make people forfeit their rights is a stretch. Don't suppose you've got any evidence or interesting argument to back this claim up?

Naikon wrote: »

Once you upload your stuff to "the cloud" you essentially forfeit any rights to that data. Not in the strictist legal sense, but it's not far off when gmails privacy policy states your data may remain resident on their systems.

And whose mail server used people use before gmail?
Cloud computing might be new, but people have stored their mails on mail servers for a long time.

Naikon wrote: »

Cloud == loss of rights. Unless you are using PGP, don't ever send anything confidential over email.

Unless email is end-to-end encrypted, it should be treated as insecure, yes. It is typically forwarded between servers in the clear...

Naikon wrote: »

I don't anymore after reading about the issues surrounding "the cloud".

...but e-mail has been sent in the clear for years before 'the cloud'?

Naikon

fergalr wrote: »

You seem to be implying that cloud computing is mainly motivated to get people to give up their privacy rights. That sounds like conspiracy theory nonsense to me.
There's certainly important issues about data security and privacy when putting your data in the cloud, but to say that cloud computing is 'just an excuse' to make people forfeit their rights is a stretch. Don't suppose you've got any evidence or interesting argument to back this claim up?

It's common knowledge that cloud computing results in a loss of control over uploaded data. Once the data leaves your domain, you don't have a say in how it's used. Read the privacy policies for most cloud based services. There is plenty of evidence out there to assert my claims. Companies like Facebook even make money off this data! Data minining is big now, to the point where your data can't be traced to a single source as in the past.

fergalr wrote: »

And whose mail server used people use before gmail?
Cloud computing might be new, but people have stored their mails on mail servers for a long time.

I never said email is secure. It's plain text, how could it be?

fergalr wrote: »

Unless email is end-to-end encrypted, it should be treated as insecure, yes. It is typically forwarded between servers in the clear...


...but e-mail has been sent in the clear for years before 'the cloud'?

No, but at least it was typically stored in a users local mail directory. Most gmail users probably don't back up their emails offline. Besides email isn't the issue, the cloud is.

fergalr

Naikon wrote: »

It's common knowledge that cloud computing results in a loss of control over uploaded data. Once the data leaves your domain, you don't have a say in how it's used. Read the privacy policies for most cloud based services. There is plenty of evidence out there to assert my claims. Companies like Facebook even make money off this data!

You had said that cloud computing was just 'an excuse' to [make_customers_lose_control_of_their_data].
Now you are arguing that [make_customers_lose_control_of_their_data] is a byproduct of cloud computing.
Thats a more reasonable thing to say. It was the bit about it 'just being an excuse' I was objecting to.

Naikon wrote: »

I never said email is secure. It's plain text, how could it be?

You said

Naikon wrote: »

I don't anymore after reading about the issues surrounding "the cloud".

I just pointed out it wasn't secure before 'the cloud' either, so it seemed a little unfair to pin that on 'the cloud'.

Naikon wrote: »

No, but at least it was typically stored in a users local mail directory. Most gmail users probably don't back up their emails offline.

Thats an issue to do with the backing up of the data, rather than privacy or security of the data.
Tbh, I'd say most users emails are a lot safer stored on gmails servers - from both points of view - than they are downloaded to their inboxes from pop3.iol.ie or whereever.

Naikon

fergalr wrote: »

You had said that cloud computing was just 'an excuse' to [make_customers_lose_control_of_their_data].
Now you are arguing that [make_customers_lose_control_of_their_data] is a byproduct of cloud computing.
Thats a more reasonable thing to say. It was the bit about it 'just being an excuse' I was objecting to.



You said



I just pointed out it wasn't secure before 'the cloud' either, so it seemed a little unfair to pin that on 'the cloud'.



[/I]

Thats an issue to do with the backing up of the data, rather than privacy or security of the data.
Tbh, I'd say most users emails are a lot safer stored on gmails servers - from both points of view - than they are downloaded to their inboxes from pop3.iol.ie or whereever.

Ok, fair enough I won't argue this further. I just don't like the concept of having dekstop applications phased out in favour of cloud based services which offer no control to the user beyond trivial stuff. I personally like having full control over my data and applications. The cloud is a nice concept but it should not replace traditional desktop computing in my view.

fergalr

Naikon wrote: »

Ok, fair enough I won't argue this further. I just don't like the concept of having dekstop applications phased out in favour of cloud based services which offer no control to the user beyond trivial stuff. I personally like having full control over my data and applications. The cloud is a nice concept but it should not replace traditional desktop computing in my view.

Yeah, I hear you. This is something I think about a bit.

There's been several times in the past - after the PC revolution - where some big companies tried to make a move back to unprogrammable client computers. Oracle spearheaded a big one back in the 90s: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Network_Computer

Then we had other efforts like http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trusted_Computing which also were about controlling the PC platform.

It does concern me that the cloud-ipad combo thats gaining traction at the moment, while probably good for users at the moment from a usability point of view, could ultimately lead to service lock in that stifles innovation; bullets the tech industry has maybe only narrowly dodged before. Ipads - fairly dumb, walled-garden, internet terminals - could end up replacing PCs and I think that that would have some negative tradeoffs for programmers, and maybe eventually users in general.

Boskonay

I think a lot of this argument depends on what you term a cloud computing service.

There are local options for cloud that meet the data protection, privacy and service levels SME's need and, more importantly, hit the price points they need at a simple, fixed monthly cost.

In addition, by running infrastructure in a cloud, you can still run all those all windows applications and core business applications (even phone systems), just they all now live on a cloud infra platform in a datacentre.

Cloud is the inevitable evolution for 99% of Irish companies (since they are all SME) it's just a matter of exposure, education and partnering up with the local IT guy/firm/service provider.

Evil Phil

The Google App Engine does allow for the exporting of data stored in their datastore, although I've haven't used it yet so I can't vouch for is usability.

Would I be correct in assuming that SQL Azure, being SQL Server based, allows for data import/export along the lines that traditional SQL Server does? I know there's a lot of issues around data protection etc but with the GAE, Amazon, Azure and a host of other big players this issues will be addressed. Vendor lock-in is a bigger issue, particularly if your vendor goes bust.

I'm most familar with Google Docs as a user and from working with resellers. Google Docs Enterprise costs $50 per user per year and makes sense at the price. That's $500 for ten users for a year, latest version of your productivity suite, intranet, plus your email server. Microsoft's recommended retail price for licensing the standard edition of exchange was $699 at the end of last year. Add on CALs and the cost of Microsoft Office that will eventually have to be upgraded and Google Docs starts making a lot of sense to a small, or even a medium to large, company financially speaking.

Last year when I was moving in the SME space before leaving Ireland the concern with Google Docs wasn't data protection, it was uptime. It's handled in the SLA (99.9% per annum) which most seemed happy to accept. Access to reliable broadband and uptime, I have to say, were by far their greatest concerns. Broadband being number one.

Boskonay

Connectivity is still a primary concern for cloud outsourcing. Makes the ISPs the ideal cloud partner?

bobbytables

Boskonay wrote: »

Connectivity is still a primary concern for cloud outsourcing. Makes the ISPs the ideal cloud partner?

When fergalr started this thread I was going to immediately jump in with my 2c regarding connectivity. I absolutely agree, the feasibility of subscribing to cloud based apps is heavily dependent on reliable broadband connectivity. When I read fergalr's first post, I was immediately thinking about the great work the guys in Ireland Offline did back in the late 90s, while some of us considered ourselves privileged to be on flat-rate dialup (IOL NoLimits) at the time. As the thread evolved, I must admit I agree with the majority if not all of what fergalr has been saying.

I am currently in the process of developing a new cloud based venture (aren't we all LOL ). I have spent the last few years working with a lot of SME's around Ireland and a lot of the resistance I'm seeing towards cloud based IT on this thread is based on the assumption that the majority of SMEs already implement best practices (or close to) through a more traditional (non-cloud) setup. They absolutely do not!, and I can say that without a shadow of doubt across the board.

We all know that SMEs do not have the budgets or in-house resources, and this has only gotten worse over the last 2 years. I have walked in the door of many offices around the country to find what I can only describe as total chaos in terms of IT resource management, nevermind the "data" propagating through it. The SME attitude to IT is, "if it does what I need it to do today, then it's not getting any more money". You can have as much legislation as you like, but if people are not aware of or understand the problems, understand the solutions, and have a readily available ability to benchmark compliance/progress, they will just continue to wing it, and they do!. I have also seen some "High Potential SMEs", be overly protective of their data, keeping everything under one roof, but still wander around the building with USB keys in their pockets and not appreciate the benefits of off-site backups. This is simply because someone somewhere beat the concept of security in to their heads from a few perspectives and they have yet to appreciate that there is no such thing as 100% security, only best practices that attempt to find a balance between workflow efficiency / cost / security.

The primary objective of any business is to make money, plain and simple. Everything is secondary to that, including data protection. I have had to cut ties with traditional SME business people in the past because they simply would not sacrifice any more of their margins to "better" practices.

So IMO, if the the cloud app providers acknowledge the concerns and implement best practices at their end, in many regards that will be a step in the right direction for many SMEs (in Ireland anyway), because what they have / are doing today is far worse than what a lot of people would think and even worse again, what they think themselves.

The only thing worse than a lack of security, is a false sense of security.

BostonB

fergalr wrote: »

I don't understand this point at all.
Why wouldn't you use Gmail for business?

If I were advising a small company I'd totally recommend them to go with a hosted mail like Gmail rather than run their own in house mail server. Its just one less thing to run internally, and Gmail seems to do a very good job. Is it mainly that you object to UI elements of Gmail such as search_vs_sort bias it has? Would you go with a different hosted mail application that had these?...

Yes, I'm seeing lots of people who just don't get the UI in the Gmail. Also it mixes up email conversations if people muck about with the subject line, things like that. You know they change the subject line randomly. Going back to find things afterwards is a problem. The whole, search paradigm only works if you know what to search for.

Also I in SME I see a lot of power user customization of Office apps, including Outlook. VBA, Macro's all that. Perhaps you can do that in Google Apps, but I'm guessing if it is possible, its not as featured, and it requires a skillset that SME don't have.

bobbytables

Taking the Gmail example, as it's a good one, I think it's more the lack of awareness than the learning curve involved in the transition away from Outlook. E.g. some of the most technically incompetent users I've met can still remember a handful of search commands E.g. from:<name or email> to get a list conversations they held with a particular person. Also throw in ajax driven auto-completion in to the mix and they don't have to remember much. For what most people will want to do, there isn't really that much to learn off. Some SME's that I've helped transition to Google Apps think it was the best IT decision they've authorized in recent years.

Every direction that you can take in terms of employing technology in business will have its own set of inherent pros and cons. Nothing is absolute. The dynamics of each & every business will impact the outcome of any particular path and is also subject to change over time. Strategic planning, etc, etc, etc.

However I still find many SME's that lack non-technical personnel make the call themselves about the technical directions they should take in advance of consulting professionals. Instead of focusing purely on business problems, they get themselves entangled in technology problems and rely way too much on their ability to identify a solution. When they have identified this "solution", you get the "hey, I just need you to do this small job for me" down the phone. That wreaks of A) I am not paying anyone to identify the technical bottlenecks, or to identify the best technical direction from here, C) I have also decided that your implementation job will be small because cheap is best.

The reality is and I say this to any IT professionals I meet: Whether contemporary business acknowledges this or not, their reliance upon technology and competent IT people is on the increase whether they like it or not. So don't let anyone undervalue what you have to offer. It makes complete business sense that they would try, but they are vulnerable. It has been proven time and time again in the SME sector that non-technical managers do not even possess the expertise to ask the right questions, never mind provide the right answers. It makes sense because when I go to my GP with an illness I don't go in there with a diagnosis, looking for a solution. I go in there with a description of my symptoms, a.k.a "the problem", which is further clarified by a professional interrogation, which then leads to a diagnosis by my GP, etc, etc.

I'm not saying IT professionals should take businesses to the cleaners, but should recognize that it will be us that businesses will rely on to steer them safely through the technical mine fields. Just because businesses try to undermine the problem, doesn't mean that we should undervalue the solution.

In a lot of cases there will be strong business incentives beyond the obvious cost benefits of utilizing apps in the cloud. How revolutionary it will be (or not), will be interesting to watch unfold. Widespread broadband & hardware virtualization made it possible, it's now down to innovation within the "apps" space to see how successful the technology will be.