Despite the claims that most companies have migrated, or are in the process of migrating, to cloud-based email or cloud office systems, recent study by Gartner recorded surprisingly low levels of adoption. According to Gartner’s research, there are currently about 50 million enterprise users of cloud office systems, which amounts to only 8% of total office system users. The research firm says we will see a big shift towards cloud-based office systems starting by early 2015, and forecasts 33% penetration by 2017.
Gartner pointed to the fact that email is still a primary collaboration tool, while team sites and communities are also gaining importance. However, email is typically a determining factor in deciding whether or not to move to cloud office systems. Gartner estimates that by the end of 2017 a minimum of one third of enterprise email seats will be based on a cloud or SaaS model.
Gartner says that the typical knowledge worker now uses up to four devices to access their organization’s office system capabilities in one week. An increase in the number of devices per user could drive some organizations to cloud office systems as they can reduce the IT burden of software installation, maintenance and upgrades of locally installed office software.
Gartner says that number of devices is an important consideration for organizations looking to move their office systems to the cloud. If an organization has workers who are increasingly using multiple devices, moving to a per-user payment model which is typical for cloud services can lead to substantial savings, eliminating the need to purchase subscriptions or licence for each device under per-device licensing model. However, companies with many devices shared between employees, such as in the banking industry, may be better off licensing by device.
Current levels of cloud office systems adoption differ greatly across industries. Gartner found that organizations in industries at the leading edge, such as higher education, discrete manufacturing, retail and hospitality, are significantly more likely to adopt cloud-based office systems at present. Those in the intelligence and defense sectors, and in heavily regulated parts of the financial services and healthcare industries, are among the least likely to be early adopters.
