Brian Connelly

As the world becomes flatter as movement of resources between countries have made even the smallest company a viable competitor with a global footprint, MIS students must appreciate that some of the possible career paths and responsibilities will be defined from the understanding of scope and price terms dealing with company contractual agreements among cloud and outsourcing vendors.  As the dynamics of what the cloud has to offer does become more complex, an MIS professional will be tasked with working with many different career professionals to negotiate agreements that will deliver the company more value while also mitigating risks.  That is to say that a  “cloud computing contract can look downright simple to an experienced IT outsourcing customer accustomed to inking pacts hundreds of pages long that outline service levels and penalties, pricing and benchmarks, processes and procedures, security and business continuity requirements, and clauses delineating the rights and responsibilities of the IT services supplier and customer.  And that simplicity, say IT outsourcing experts, is the problem with cloud computing” (How to Negotiate a Better Cloud Computing Contract).  So, what really becomes the growth opportunity for an MIS professional is a through understanding of both technology and the business and not as separate business entities, but as a single unit that will continue to push the envelope of the cloud and outsourcing to deliver better results and solutions to issues.  Please read the following two articles from CIO.com.

1. Outsourcing Contracts and Negotiations Getting More Complex
2. How to Negotiate a Better Cloud Computing Contract