A rose by any other name - or, is it HR or IT?

While reading the news of the day yesterday morning, I happened by this post by my trusted friend Prashanth Padmanabhan. 

The debate started well before we started speaking about "CLOUD" or SaaS, discussed many times, at meetings, global user groups and conventions, in private offices and conference halls.

Credit: http://incandescentcloud.com/cloud-credits/ - isn't it a magnificent art installation?

Indeed, should HR or IT take the lead when it come to HRIS projects? 
When the Cloud started being commercialized, the common understanding was that FINALLY the function could be solely in charge, with very limited or no input required by the IT/IS group - so there would be no need for expensive long term consultants, nor specialized IT headcount. Is that true? More specifically, can we hold it true when we are talking about critical systems as HR Core?

One trip, two UserGroups and three countries later.

I am back, if still jet-lagged.

Three days spent at the HRGUG annual meeting in Walldorf always are deeply satisfying and informative. SAP  provided us with a backbone of updates and presentations with, among others, the below screenshot sporting the most recent development for the Core of HR in the Cloud - Employee Central and its spiffy looks. Of course, Carla Grant was there... can there be BizX without Carla, ever?