(MC2)2: A Generic Decision-Making Framework and its Application to Cloud Computing

Abstract

Cloud computing is a disruptive technology, representing a new model for information technology (IT) solution engineering and management that promises to introduce significant cost savings and other benefits.The adoption of Cloud computing requires a detailed comparison of infrastructure alternatives, taking a number of aspects into careful consideration.Existing methods of evaluation, however, limit decision making to the relative costs of cloud computing, but do not take a broader range of criteria into account.In this paper, we introduce a generic, multi-criteria-based decision framework and an application for Cloud Computing, the Multi-Criteria Comparison Method for Cloud Computing ((M C 2 ) 2 ).The framework and method allow organizations to determine what infrastructure best suits their needs by evaluating and ranking infrastructure alternatives using multiple criteria.Therefore, (M C 2 ) 2 offers a way to differentiate infrastructures not only by costs, but also in terms of benefits, opportunities and risks.(M C 2 ) 2 can be adapted to facilitate a wide array of decision-making scenarios within the domain of information technology infrastructures, depending on the criteria selected to support the framework.