I was reading this article today on cio.com:

“Gartner Predictions for 2012: More Cloud, Consumerization, Loss of IT Control”
(found here: http://www.cio.com/article/695777/Gartner_Predictions_for_2012_More_Cloud_Consumerization_Loss_of_IT_Control)

Which led me to this less bleak article on networkworld.com:

“Q&A: Why consumerization won’t kill corporate IT”
(found here: http://www.networkworld.com/news/2011/100311-forrester-matthew-brown-251482.html)

In this article Forrester Research analyst Matthew Brown said, “…the consumerization of IT is now freeing up corporate IT departments to perform more complicated tasks that will add more value to their companies.” This is a sentiment echoed by Thought Ensemble Founders Lisa Jasper and Jim Smelley in their book “Reboot: Competing with technology strategy.” The idea is that IT departments can be more powerful than just password reset and email setup monkeys. So, IT tribes should not run from the Cloud fearing that it will render them useless and wipe out their jobs. This isn’t a dark storm cloud of impending doom; this is a fluffy sunshine and happy times cloud. With more cloud technologies and ever-expanding consumerization of IT there is a growing opportunity for IT departments to move more of the “nuts-and-bolts” operations of IT off their plate and focus on projects and activities that bring added value to the business and their customers. It’s debatable whether every company will move in the direction of the cloud and consumerization, so many IT organization may remain unchanged or may be a completely different organization by the time the change creeps in. But, whether or not this change is inevitable the idea of expanding the value of your IT organization beyond the internal customer is a golden idea that will not tarnish.