NTT DATA Services announced the findings of a study that found 61% of organizations in the U.S. and Canada are committed to moving enterprise applications to the cloud as quickly as possible, but many struggle with challenges related to company culture.

The report, "Every Cloud has a Culture Lining," found that despite the importance of next-generation cloud adoption, cultural change management is a major obstacle for many businesses, with nearly two-thirds of respondents reporting technical challenges as easier to overcome than people-related challenges.

"Cloud adoption is critical to create a more agile, innovative business, but leaders must address cultural challenges to successfully modernize," said Emily Lewis-Pinnell, Vice President, Cloud and Application Transformation, NTT DATA Services. "Our findings show only a small minority are taking the appropriate cultural change management steps, but those who are report greater agility, increased efficiency and stronger security."

The research also found 60% of advanced organizations, called "next-gen cloud leaders" in the report, are focused on building business-essential use cases rather than supporting enterprise application modernization through a simplified lift and shift migration. Additional findings support this trend, as more experienced respondents are more aware of challenges associated with a complex cloud transformation but also more likely to see the value.

Enterprises are also taking a realistic view of the scale of investment needed for a successful cloud transformation: 60% agreed their organization is prepared to measure and manage any increase in costs associated with a complex, multi-cloud environment.

"Our findings highlight that leaders recognize both the challenges and benefits of a cloud transformation, but cultural shifts are still critical to accelerate the transition and achieve their desired results," said Lisa Woodley, Vice President, Customer Experience, NTT DATA Services. "Leaders must develop a holistic employee experience strategy to identify and manage people-related challenges, placing end users at the heart of cloud transformation."

Next-gen cloud leaders are more likely than average to report having developed a cultural change strategy and reorganized teams ahead of transformation efforts, which places them at a significant advantage over competition. In addition, once migration is underway, these leaders also report upskilling the workforce or partnering with a cloud managed service provider to implement changes that allow them to focus on innovation, shorten time to market and realize greater returns on modernization investments.