Page 50 - Cloud Essentials

From a business perspective, cloud computing is a form of outsourcing.
Outsourcing is contracting a service of outside suppliers instead of
providing those services via the company’s own staff and assets.
Where cloud computing is specific to IT, outsourcing is not. With

outsourcing, companies use outside professionals to complete specific
activities. For example, businesses and individuals can hire a professional
to prepare tax returns. The tax return is completed on your behalf, but you
pay the outside entity to complete the work.
Recall that cloud computing elasticity allows for rapid provisioning of

computing resources, so companies can quickly add or remove services.
Outsourcing normally involves a long-term contract whose changes require
renegotiation.

Any exam questions testing your knowledge of cloud computing versus

outsourcing will probably be based on the fact that outsourcing requires
more time to make contractual changes than a cloud service contract.

Public cloud offerings are usually one-size-fits-all type of solutions, with
some configuration options. Outsourcing tasks such as computing needs
allows more granular computing offerings. For example, a business might

outsource its help-desk needs for a specific line of business software, and
the help-desk personnel would have expertise in this specific software.
Table 2-1 compares cloud computing with outsourcing.

TABLE 2-1 Comparing Cloud Computing and Outsourcing

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