Asked about concerns many CIOs and IT managers still feel about cloud applications and services, Urlocker said cloud vendors have significantly improved their security, reliability and performance. "Things have really matured in the last few years. It's not the Wild West anymore," he said.

CIOs may find that the reliability and security they get from their commercial cloud vendors often exceeds what they get from their own IT departments, he said.

Urlocker recommends starting small and slow. "Organizations should start and take a few steps in this direction and try a few projects," he said.

"If you have an IT organization that isn't running any cloud-based software, that's really behind the curve," he added.