ING has found that no single vendor can move a company through the whole process of virtualizing systems and building an internal cloud, Kerrison said.

"I'd recommend forming an ecosystem of partners that's right for your business," he said.

Skellinger, of the life sciences firm Illumina, said moving to the cloud requires greater "business acumen" in areas like contract management.

"Sometimes the skills you needed yesterday aren't going to be the ones you need tomorrow," he said.