Google Cloud and Rackspace report shows resisting cloud migration is not an option
Rackspace Technology has announced the results of a global survey conducted with Google Cloud highlighting the rapid pace of cloud adoption.
The 'Future of Compute' survey of more than 1,400 IT executives shows the question is no longer whether organisations should migrate to the cloud but how they can leverage the cloud for innovation, efficiency, and growth.
More than half (51%) of all survey respondents say 100% of their applicable infrastructure now resides in the cloud, while (49%) say they plan to move more of their workloads into the cloud when possible.
Over two-thirds of respondents' compute workloads are now supported by public cloud, colocation, and managed hosting services. IT infrastructure spread has reached equilibrium, and leaders expect it to hold steady over the next three to five years.
Thirty-five percent of respondents say IT executives play a key role in driving the company's direction as silos between functional areas continue to dissolve. Rackspace Technology says this underscores the increasingly central role that technology is playing in transforming operations.
"Driven in large part by the power of the cloud, today's technology landscape is evolving at a breakneck pace, while IT is penetrating all areas of the organisation," says Rackspace Technology chief technology evangelist, Jeff DeVerter.
"In this environment, IT leaders have the power to help companies and organisations see around corners to solve both their short-term and long-term business challenges and provide critical guidance in the areas of business growth, security, efficiency, and customer experience," he says.
According to Gartner, the cloud market grew 23% to $323.3 billion over the past year, and it projects a future growth rate of 18% annually. Accordingly, most respondents say they are already enjoying the benefits of a public cloud (63%) or a private cloud (66%). In addition, public cloud investments represent as much as 40% of most IT budgets, with private clouds at 30%.
Containerised applications are also continuing to grow in popularity as organisations shift away from on-site data centers. The most common tactic among organisations (85%) employing public cloud remains "lifting and shifting" using cloud-based virtual machines, but 84% of respondents say they are investing in public cloud with containers. Sixty-two percent of respondents say their use of containerised applications will increase in the next two years.
Rackspace Technology believes the cloud revolution brought an influx of advancements to the world of compute, but that the past decade of inundation is settling into a more level pool of opportunity. Over the next 12 months, survey respondents anticipate their infrastructure spending will include on-site data centers (55%), managed hosting (52%), public cloud (51%), and colocation (34%). However, 60% of respondents also say they envision not owning a data center in the next five years.
