The top fifty EMEA businesses innovating in the cloud have been recognised in an exclusive industry report.
Spearheaded by HotTopics.ht and sponsored by application security and cloud provider F5 Networks, the Top 50 EMEA Cloud Climbers Report is the first study of its kind explicitly dedicated to cloud computing’s transformational business impact.
The report features 50 companies from a wide range of industries, each assessed for excellence in strategic cohesion, market impact, operational performance and overall value. It also includes detailed case studies of selected Cloud Climbers, as well as pertinent cloud trend analysis.
The retail sector secured the most top 50 slots (12 percent), followed by financial services (eight percent), automotive (six percent), sport (six percent) and transport/logistics (four percent). Marquee names in the report include Spotify (for continually evolving and optimising its massive music streaming service), Mercedes F1 (cloud-fuelled performance analytics) and Airbus (cloud and machine learning to store and process several hundred terabytes of satellite imagery annually).
Europe’s public-private cloud partnership – the Helix Nebula Initiative – is another notable inclusion and indicative of the technology’s immense reach and influence. A unique partnership between IT providers and Europe’s top research centres (CERN, EMBL, ESA and PIC), the collective’s headline-grabbing work includes aiding the search for the Higgs Boson “God Particle”.
All organisations were subjected to a rigorous assessment process conducted by an eminent judging panel comprising David Linthincum, SVP, Cloud Technology Partners; Mu Kenny Li, CEO, Cloud Spectator, Rene Buest, director, Technology, Arago GMBH; and Roy Illsley, principal analyst, Ovum.
According to IDC, at least half of IT spending will be cloud-based by 2018, reaching 60 percent of all IT infrastructure, and 60–70 percent of all software, services, and technology spending by 2020.
Shallu Behar-Sheehan, senior director, F5 Networks, said, “The Cloud Climbers Report proves that with the right approach and a comprehensive multi-cloud solution, organisations will drive innovation and add significant customer value. An effective cloud architecture strategy increases business agility and provides flexibility to scale based on shifting hardware, software and on-demand requirements. Meanwhile, application control, access, and security ensure optimal service performance, availability and security.”
