Since 2010, when the 25-Point Implementation Plan and “Cloud First” were introduced to the Federal sector, cloud adoption rates have increased steadily throughout the Federal Government. These plans, along with other mandates such as:
- Federal Information Security Management Act (FISMA)
- DoD Information Assurance Certification and Accreditation Process (DIACAP)
- Federal Risk and Authorization Management Program (FedRAMP)
These are designed to streamline, standardize, and secure cloud/IT offerings, as well as encourage agencies to use resource-saving cloud solutions before beginning new programs. The Government is continuing to try to find common ground in legislating cloud-related solutions, processes, and requirements; while recognizing its urgent need to do more with less.
Last October, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Chief Information Officer (CIO) Richard Spires testified before the House Committee of the necessity of transitioning to cloud solutions, advocating them as a cost-effective means of increasing efficiencies while providing transparency. He went on to advise the traditional data model of “separate IT infrastructures for each system…must evolve to meet the growing customer demands within a budget-constrained environment.”
While the Government is wrestling with high-profile topics such as information security, expense, and labor resources; nearly every Federal agency has adopted some form of cloud. In 2011, USDA completed the largest single cloud move to date, by transitioning email for 120,000 government employees into the cloud via Microsoft Office 365. According to Information Week Government’s September 2012 cloud computing survey, the greatest requirements were identified as the need for reduced costs in both IT operations and hardware, such as servers.
Additionally, commercial cloud services are being chosen over private cloud services by a slight margin, while both numbers are up from last year. What this tells us is individual agencies are eager to save time, energy, and money by moving to the cloud, and due to its capacity for rapid deployment, many agencies are already reaping the benefits of moving to the cloud. Of 103 Federal survey respondents, over half confirmed that the cloud has already or will offer savings in their organizations, and nearly half of the cloud solutions currently in use are using cloud infrastructure-as-a-service over other options, as illustrated below.
Of the manifold benefits the Federal government can receive through migrating to the cloud, which ones will affect you most directly?
Resources
Delahunty, Stephen. (October 8, 2012). Federal Agencies Build A Business Case For The Cloud [blog]. Retrieved from www.informationweek.com
Delahunty, Stephen. (October 5, 2012). Research: Federal Cloud Computing Survey [survey]. Retrieved from www.reports.informationweek.com
Lipowicz, Alice. (March 9, 2012). Chris Smith led USDA to new heights [blog]. Retrieved from www.fcw.com
SimplySecurity.com. (October 5, 2011). Us Federal Cloud Migration In State Of Transition – Can It Wait? (Op-Ed) [blog]. Retrieved from www.simplysecurity.com
Testimony of Richard A. Spires Chief Information Officer U.S. Department of Homeland Security before the House Committee on Homeland Security Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Infrastructure Protection, and Security Technology [Transcribed hearing]. (October 6, 2011). Retrieved from homeland.house.gov
