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For many years, major software companies like Microsoft and Oracle made previously
unfathomable profits by selling enterprise software that companies would buy and
operate in their own data centers. In the last 20 years, we have seen a gradual transition
to a wide variety of software and services models – SaaS, IaaS, PaaS – in addition to
traditional enterprise software. New entrants like Salesforce and AWS are now powerful
players in a global marketplace for software, infrastructure, and services collectively
referred to as “the cloud” which powers virtually every government entity, business,
educational institution, and organization on the planet.
Data is at the heart of this digital transformation happening in every aspect of our
daily lives. Data powers AI and machine learning, which powers digital marketing,
political campaigns, scientific discovery, and the ever increasingly complex and
interconnected global financial system. Not surprisingly, the security and scrutiny over
that data is intense. Government regulations, corporate policy, industry standards, and
physical proximity all play a factor in where the data must be stored and how it must be
managed. |
