This case presents a cloud computing technology solution that gives promise to a company devastated by a natural disaster. After a hurricane, the company recovered because of a solid disaster recovery plan, although it was financially strapped. The Vice President of Information Technology suggested using cloud computing to cut internal information technology costs. With a cloud computing solution, the IT department would go from twelve people to six. IT infrastructure (servers, hardware, programs, processing) would be done by a vendor (“the cloud”), although responsibility for information technology would be retained by the company. The case presents a background in cloud computing and cloudonomics. As the case unfolds, the authors find that proper oversight was neglected; rash decisions were made; and a crisis developed. The president took matters into his own hands, and without following proper protocols, selected a vendor that later went bankrupt and forced the company into dire circumstances.
Capturing Student Achievement and Learning Pathways at the University of Maryland, Baltimore County
