Colleges, Universities Need More Use of Cloud Computing to Meet IT, Efficiency Goals

There needs to be more use of cloud computing at colleges and universities – as these institutions expand online learning and make other improvements to draw in students, a new study recommends.

When it comes to IT at colleges and universities – they also need to improve customer satisfaction, according to the study released by Ovum (News - Alert).

 In addition, Ovum’s ICT Enterprise Insights report says that only a few colleges or universities use “cloud-based computing for core enterprise applications,” a company statement said. Less than 20 percent even use an on-demand delivery method.

The disinterest in cloud computing could block advances in constituent relationship management (CRM) and learning management systems (LMS) contracts – even though these two categories are “key focuses” for the sector, the survey said.

It was also found that CRM was “widely adopted” among colleges and universities, Ovum said. Only 10 percent of higher educational institutions are not using a CRM solution.

It was also found that over 50 percent of these colleges or universities plan to get a new LMS solution within two years. That may lead to a desire to get solutions from “innovative new providers,” Ovum said. LMS helps colleges manage e-learning.
 

Growing sectors such as online learning may play an important role in IT development.

“The role and priority of online learning is evolving rapidly, as are institutional expectations for functionality and service,” Navneet Johal, an Ovum analyst said in a statement. “To secure their position in the market, LMS providers must be quick to expand their platforms to seamlessly incorporate compelling features such as social media, video, analytics, and other learning objects, keeping customer satisfaction high and prices low.”

And in the case of cloud computing, vendors may have to present a case to colleges and universities why it makes sense.

“A myriad of factors is holding institutions back from moving core applications to the cloud: the absence of viable solutions in some cases, the questionable return on investment from switching out existing solutions, the difficulty of supporting highly customized solutions in a hosted environment, and even lingering (albeit somewhat irrational) doubts about security,” Johal said. “However, there may be some enterprise applications where cloud computing will be necessary, and vendors that are able to help institutions understand the differences are more likely to succeed.”

Ovum’s ICT Enterprise Insights survey questioned 6,500 CIOs and other senior IT officials to come up with the responses. The worldwide survey was taken between May and September.