Systems approach to cloud computing adoption in an emerging economy

Purpose Cloud computing (CC) services have given a tremendous boost to the creation of efficient and effective solutions. With developing countries at a slow pace of adoption, this research aims to identify factors and their interrelationships influencing the adoption of CC in a developing country context. The developing countries are enjoying numerous benefits from CC services; however, its low adoption is still a question in developing economies; hence, the authors have selected the context of information and communication technology (ICT) firms in India. Design/methodology/approach The qualitative research method is used where experts from thirteen ICT firms in India are interviewed. Findings Sixteen factors, twenty-eight subfactors, and 25 interrelationships are revealed through content analysis. Further, causal loop diagrams are proposed to display the behavior of cause and effect of these factors from a system's perspective. This will help to understand the relationships among the factors in order to enhance the speed of CC adoption. Possible financial loss and resistance to change are found as the key barriers to adoption. The proposed interrelationships can guide both policymakers and service providers for designing effective CC policies. Originality/value This is the first scholarly work that identifies interrelationships among factors and subfactors, thereby providing a holistic picture to decision-makers while making a choice on whether to adopt cloud services or continue with on premise data centers and servers.