Course Description:

This Cloud Computing course is designed to provide students with strategic and tactical information about the current state of cloud computing, how it affects IT organizations, and how it can be employed to maximize user satisfaction and IT effectiveness.

This class is a component of the IT Management and Leadership Professional Certification. (ITMLE^©)

Delivery formats include: Traditional Classroom, Self-Paced eLearning and Real-Time Webinars.

Course Objectives:

Upon completion of the Cloud Computing course, students will be able to:

• Make informed decisions related to Cloud Computing
• Understand the financial implications of Cloud Computing
• Effectively manage strategic directions related to Cloud Computing
• Be conversant with the advantages & disadvantages of Cloud Computing
• Effectively deal with user executives on the subject of Cloud Computing 

Audience:

• IT professionals who have their ITMLP^© Certification
• IT individual contributors with leadership career goals
• IT team leads/supervisors or soon-to-be
• IT managers seeking superior “technical people” management skills
• Experienced IT managers who wish to build their “personal brand”
• Senior IT managers who are focusing on mentoring skills to build bench strength 

Prerequisites:

• none 

Duration:

½ day, full day and customized full-day formats available.

Course Topics:

      I.          Description of Cloud Computing

a.    Cloud computing definitions including public, private and hybrid clouds

b.    Cloud product categories including Saas, PaaS, and IaaS

    II.          Major Vendors and Players

a.    Overview of major cloud platform, service and software providers

b.    Less obvious cloud providers, vendors, and users

   III.          Cloud Computing Pros and Cons

a.    Various advantages including operational ease, peak load management, and many others

b.    Various disadvantages including security, data movement issues, and many others

  IV.          Finances and Usage

a.    Financial ramification of capital expenditures and current period expenses

b.    Conceptual cost models within growing and shrinking environments

c.    Selecting appropriate vendors, technologies, integrators, and business partners

   V.          User Perspective

a.    Setting user expectations and understanding their concerns and excitement

b.    How cloud computing can provide strategic business advantages for your business

  VI.          Food For Thought

a.    Various mini-case scenarios that help illustrate cloud computing pains and payoffs