Cloud computing as a facilitator of SME entrepreneurship

Abstract

The rapid adoption of Cloud-based information and communication technology (ICT) services reflects a Schumpeterian creative destruction scenario [Schumpeter, J. A. 1942. Capitalism, Socialism and Democracy. New York: Harper & Row], as they increasingly supplant traditional in-house ICT capital investment models [Ross, P. K., and M. Blumenstein. 2012. Leveraging the Opportunities of the Cloud: The Impact of Cloud Computing Strategies on Organisational Structures, Management Practices and ICT Worker Skill Sets in Queensland Private and Public Sector Organisations. Brisbane: Griffith University and the Department of Science, Information, Technology, Innovation and the Arts (SITIA)]. This research examines how Cloud technologies facilitate the development of internationally orientated small- and medium-sized enterprise (SME) entrepreneurship by providing greater access to global markets, lowering opportunity costs and supporting collaboration and innovation in an increasingly connected world. The Cloud computing paradigm also brings associated threats for SMEs, including potential challenges in adapting to Cloud-based and supported business models and increased competition from globally based competitors. Therefore, while Cloud technologies offer a potential boon to SME entrepreneurship, they may also usher in a period of rationalisation, as some firms will inevitably fail to successfully adapt to a globally competitive Cloud environment.