IT organizations becoming cloud providers: IDC survey

More evidence of the blurring roles between IT service providers and consumers:

According to results of an IDC/IDG Enterprise survey announced at the Cloud Leadership Forum this week, 72% of the 225 IT executives surveyed say they believed that by 2014, a third of all IT organizations will be providers of cloud services to customers or business partners.

Many companies — especially those with substantial IT assets — see themselves as assuming the role of cloud providers. Many non-IT companies may be evolving into cloud service providers as part of their core businesses.

Julie Bort of Network World also surfaced the finding that most IT managers do not fear the cloud at all. When asked if they agreed or disagreed with the statement that “75% of IT jobs will no longer exist as currently defined by 2015,” 64% disagreed, while only 20% agreed, the rest were unsure. A majority, 52%, also disagreed with the statement that IT will have to go through a painful restructuring to move to the cloud.

Vendors may have more to fear, however. As IDC relates it: “nearly two-thirds of those surveyed agreeing that several IT vendors will stumble badly in the transition to the cloud over the next three years, putting them at risk of becoming the next Wang or DEC.”