INTELLIGENT BRANDS // Cloud
UK businesses want to boost cloud strategies but only 13 % have a dedicated cloud team
Pluralsight , the technology workforce development company , has released its second annual State of Cloud Report , which surveys 336 technologists and technology leaders in the UK on the most current trends and challenges in cloud strategy and learning .
The study findings reveal a marked gap between the importance of the cloud to UK businesses and the preparedness to work with and embrace the technology . possible . The report reveals that 90 % of UK businesses are making changes to their cloud strategies – from migrating to new cloud providers ( 21 %) to moving between on-prem and cloud ( 20 %).
Attitudes towards the cloud are changing too . Today , half ( 48 %) of UK businesses think the cloud is more effective than non-cloud and nearly a quarter ( 23 %) see it as a vital technology to deliver more value to customers .
Within organisations that are still planning for future layoffs , a third believe that up to 50 % of layoffs will be in cloud roles and a quarter said this would be up to 75 %. Many UK businesses still have a long way to go to become mature in their use of the cloud , with only 22 % of UK businesses being totally cloud enabled and 10 % still only using cloud on an ad-hoc basis .
Businesses must rebuild cloud skills to move forward
The rising role of cloud
The cloud continues to become more important to UK business leaders , with 62 % of organisations planning to increase cloud budgets over the next 12 months , despite ongoing economic pressures .
As well as more investment , UK businesses are also working to get their cloud strategy ‘ just right ’, to make it as effective as
Layoffs have hit cloud roles hard – but these skills are vital
Despite the importance of cloud technology to businesses , cloud roles have been impacted significantly by layoffs and restructuring . A total of 36 % of UK businesses have made layoffs this year . Of these businesses over half ( 52 %) saw a decrease in cloud roles of up to 25 %.
In order to bridge the gap between where organisations want to be with the cloud and where they are today , upskilling in the most in-demand areas is critical .
Pluralsight ’ s report reveals that DevOps skills are the most in-demand cloud skills ( 24 %) in 2023 and that the largest cloud skills gaps exist in security and governance ( 17 %), followed by data analytics , engineering or storage ( 14 %). p
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