By Praveena Shenoy


The cloud computing landscape in India is witnessing a significant acceleration in cloud migration efforts by enterprises, leading to a surge in early adopters of Cloud 3.0. This growing enthusiasm among businesses stems from the confidence gained in transferring critical operations to the cloud, signalling a shift in perception and readiness for advanced cloud adoption. The implications of this trend are profound, with the potential to reshape the Indian cloud market and drive substantial economic growth.


According to a Nasscom report, large-scale cloud adoption has the power to contribute a staggering $380 billion to India's GDP by 2026, underlining the significant impact it can have on the nation's economy. 


The public cloud model has emerged as the most sought-after deployment model in India. Its appeal lies in offering businesses the opportunity to leverage third-party service providers for data generation and storage, eliminating the need for maintaining costly hardware infrastructure. This shift towards the public cloud has opened doors for organisations to optimise their operations, enhance security measures, and streamline their IT infrastructure, unlocking new possibilities for growth and innovation.


Driven by the promise of increased efficiency, scalability, and cost savings, Indian enterprises are keen to embrace Cloud 3.0 and unlock its transformative potential. Cloud 3.0 encompasses advanced cloud technologies and services such as artificial intelligence, machine learning, serverless computing, and containerisation. By adopting these technologies, organisations can optimise their operations, enhance security measures, and streamline their IT infrastructure, leading to improved productivity and competitive advantage.


However, to fully harness the potential of cloud computing, organisations must formulate a solid cloud strategy. While almost every organisation utilises cloud computing to some extent, many lack a comprehensive cloud strategy or implementation plan. Without a sound strategy, businesses will be unable to fully leverage the benefits of cloud services. A cloud strategy serves as a guiding document that explores and defines the role cloud computing should play in an organisation, aligning it with the broader business strategy. It provides direction and clarity for implementation, ensuring that cloud initiatives are driven by the organisation's goals and objectives.


A report by Gartner predicts a 17 per cent compound annual growth rate (CAGR) in cloud adoption until 2025, indicating the accelerated shift towards cloud computing. Organisations with a well-defined cloud strategy are better positioned to derive maximum benefits from cloud computing. They have a coherent approach to cloud usage, understanding both its advantages and potential downsides. A cloud strategy facilitates collaboration among IT leaders and enables them to prioritise cloud initiatives based on the organisation's needs.


While it is ideal to craft a cloud strategy before adopting cloud computing, many organisations develop their strategy after gaining some experience with the cloud. Nevertheless, it is never too late to establish a cloud strategy. The earlier an enterprise formulates its strategy, the better it can avoid potential pitfalls and maximise the value derived from cloud investments.


According to Gartner global end-user spending on public cloud services is forecast to grow 21.7 per cent to a total $597.3 billion in 2023, up from $491 billion in 2022. Leading players in the market, such as Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, and Google Cloud, dominate the industry by providing robust public cloud platforms and services. Organisations worldwide are increasingly migrating their data to the cloud and leveraging cloud applications for their business operations. This trend is expected to continue, further solidifying the dominance of these key players and fueling the growth of the Indian cloud market.


The acceleration of cloud migration among Indian enterprises is reshaping the Indian cloud market, with an influx of early adopters embracing the potential of Cloud 3.0. The shift towards the public cloud model presents organisations with an opportunity to optimise operations, enhance security measures, and drive innovation. To fully realise the benefits of cloud computing, organisations must develop a robust cloud strategy that aligns with their business objectives. With the right strategy in place, Indian enterprises can unlock the true potential of the cloud and propel themselves towards a more agile and competitive future.


(The author is the Country Manager at Opsio)


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