The Role of Cloud Computing Adoption in Global Business

Introduction

Cloud computing is a technological innovation that has adapted the utilization of information systems from traditional physical computers to virtual technology services (Ratten, 2014). The rapid emergence of cloud computing usage has occurred because of its dynamic and innovative nature (Stein, Ware, Laboy, & Schaffer, 2013). The use of ICT can improve business competitiveness, and has provided genuine advantages for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), enabling them to compete with large firms (Bayo-Moriones & Lera-Lopez, 2007). Cloud-based end-user services, such as e-mail or office applications, find their ways into daily business practices, offering new opportunities and capabilities, but equally creating new challenges for stakeholders (Alshamaila, Papagiannidis, & Li, 2013). Cloud computing services are helpful to consumers because of the reliability and flexible access they provide to data on hosting devices (Gray, 2013).

Cloud technology allows an organization to scale its business operations easily (Berman, Kesterson-Townes, Marshall, & Srivathsa, 2012). Sultan (2013) stated that cloud computing makes economic sense in the digital age. Cloud computing represents a fundamental shift in the delivery of IT services that has permanently changed the computing landscape (Srinivasan & Getov, 2011). Organizations can use cloud computing to be more flexible and cost effective so that people working for them can have better scalability of information systems (Ratten, 2012). Cloud computing services save consumers money by handling information maintenance needs and by facilitating quick technology applications without the high upfront costs of purchasing hardware or software resources (Karakas & Manisaligil, 2012).

The strength of this chapter is on the thorough literature consolidation of cloud computing. The extant literature of cloud computing adoption provides a contribution to practitioners and researchers by describing a comprehensive view of the functional applications of cloud computing to appeal to different segments of cloud computing in order to maximize the business impact of cloud computing adoption. In this chapter, the TOE framework is explained and leads the practitioners and researchers in the area of innovative business management regarding technological context, organizational context, and environmental context systematically utilized to gain sustainable competitive advantage in modern organizations.