When you talk about cloud, a lot of the emphasis on business transformation happens at the customer level. The funny thing is that the first group of players in the cloud market, the technology and service providers, are the ones who are going to feel the need to re-evaluate their businesses first. It will also help determine which of these providers will make it through the early adoption of cloud and continue to be a player in the established cloud market, and who will either end up as an acquisition by one of these organizations or will simply decide to focus on other business lines.

For those who decide to stay in the cloud game, they will need to re-evaluate what role they plan to play in helping organizations adopt cloud technologies and services. Personally, I see the cloud dividing technology providers into two major groups: enablers and providers. Here’s why. Continue reading →