Chapter 20. Geographic Impact on Using the Cloud

This chapter is a departure from other chapters in this book. It’s a look at my personal experiences traveling the globe and observing how differences in cultures impact how different areas accept and adopt the cloud and cloud capabilities.

In my current job, I’ve had the privilege to tour the world talking to companies about the cloud. In these travels, I’ve noticed that how the cloud is utilized and how it impacts company culture varies based on what part of the world you are in. Much of this is due to country and region cultural differences working their way into corporate culture. If you are working in a multinational corporation and working on cloud adoption, you may find these differences intriguing.

I’ve specifically noticed trends that vary between Europe, the United States, southeastern Asia, and Australia and New Zealand. Based on my travels, I’ve identified five specific areas where geographic diversity impacts cloud adoption.

Cloud Matters Everywhere, But at Different Levels

Interest in various ways organizations can leverage the cloud is a universal truth across industries and the world. However, the level and maturity of cloud adoption varies by geography. I talked about cloud maturity in “Six Levels of Cloud Maturity”, but that focused on corporate culture. What I identified in my travels is that there is a geographic divergence in how the cloud is adopted.

For example, companies based in Australia and New Zealand ...

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