Written by a practitioner for a practitioner, Transitioning The Enterprise to the Cloud: A Business Approach, focuses on identifying the costs, complexities, risks and benefits necessary to build a complete cloud sourcing strategy. The structure of this book is organized into five main parts: Part 1: Frames the conundrum the cloud presents Part 2: Provides a business perspective of the cloud Part 3: Outlines how and what to assess in your current technology environment Part 4: Suggests several potential cloud transition scenarios Part 5: Develops a cloud sourcing strategy TRANSITIONING THE ENTERPRISE TO THE CLOUD: A BUSINESS APPROACH An inconsistency exists between actual cloud adoption rates and the viewpoints and direct actions of those responsible for corporate information technology operations. On the one hand, information technology (IT) leaders generally believe the cloud more easily enables the implementation and management of technology services, from web and mobile application development to on-demand computing and storage. These leaders also appreciate the cloud's consumption-based pricing model over their current capital-intensive cost structures. Transitioning an IT operation to the cloud is expensive and risky. The transition, in turn, adds complexity to the overall support model. And, until the transition is complete, recurring costs actually go up. As if additional costs, increasing risk, and added complexity were not enough, deciding where to start is perplexing. Furthermore, a cloud transition can be disruptive and requires structured risk planning that must take into account the appropriate pace of change for a particular company.