Cloud deployment can be private, public or hybrid. With cloud, there is no one-size-fits-all solution, said BalaMahadevan, CEO, Orange Business Services, India, in a recent interaction with Infotech Lead. Sometimes the best solution turns out to be a combination of alternatives, he said.
The type of IT organization also dictates the approach to cloud computing, BalaMahadevan said. Centralized IT can use private clouds and offer standardized applications to the entire organization while distributed or federated IT organizations which do not have the same level of control are probably better suited to accessing cloud computing applications through hybrid clouds.
Cloud deployments have redefined the security landscape in IT. Traditional approaches to security in the enterprise have been based on control—control of devices, of infrastructure, of information—and of processes inside enterprise firewalls. In the borderless enterprise, information resides in the cloud and is accessed from many devices outside the perimeter of the traditional enterprise.
However, today security of data is one of the primary concerns seen among enterprises when deciding on cloud models, BalaMahadevan said. “At Orange- All of our cloud services are ‘secured by design’. They are implemented by security professionals using secure data centers (ISAE 3402 certification), platforms and operations.”
“Depending on the amount of security required, we can provide Public, Private or Hybrid Cloud design. Customized, flexible solutions can be developed and as a result we don’t see this factor hindering the growth of this solution,” BalaMahadevan said.
According to BalaMahadevan, cloud story has evolved over the last three years. Trends around cloud are varied depending on industry and vertical. The cloud story has evolved over the last three years- from enterprises which were only talking about cloud to the actual adoption we are witnessing today. At the same time cloud offerings and delivery by service providers have also matured.
Earlier, enterprises would only consider dedicated private cloud infrastructure to support mission-critical systems and only use public cloud for integration and testing purpose. However, now, the debate is no longer about using private or public cloud models in isolation. Enterprises have become more open to the idea of cloud after assessing hybrid models which give them the flexibility they need.
Orange Business Services provides cross portfolio cloud services including Unified Communications on the cloud, Contact Center on the cloud and Infrastructure services, BalaMahadevan said.
“Our cloud services are hosted in state-of-the-art cloud-ready data centers to offer our customers outstanding worldwide quality of service and security. Flexible Computing solutions and Business Together as a Service (UCaaS) are available from three regions: Europe, the U.S. and Asia.”
The Business Together as a Service is delivered as collaborative work and unified communications solutions in the cloud. Flexible Computing Express, a self managed Infrastructure as a Service, enables customers to rapidly scale their IT requirements up or down to meet fluctuating demands.
Flexible Computing Premium, the managed Infrastructure as a Service enables customers to transform their IT and free up valuable resources to focus on business value add. Orange Business Services also offers Contact Center on the cloud.
Cloud computing is more than just cost reductions, according to BalaMahadevan. The agility, flexibility and organizational change delivered by moving into the cloud are best understood by looking further than TCO and into ‘return on agility’. The bigger picture is that cloud delivers the flexibility and agility for enterprises to be competitive.
Rajani Baburajan
