FinOps Center and the 2024 FinOps Framework
We've been building FinOps Center for 2 years based on what our team saw as challenges for customers.
Reviewing their framework now, we provide perspective on how we think about the categories and what we've implemented in FinOps Center (FoC) from the Point of View of the above Theme...
Understand Your True AWS Costs and What needed to Really Save
When businesses decide to migrate to AWS or create new applications, they make a lot of strategic decisions, often supported by business cases developed by consultants. Initially, the effort needed to manage AWS spending was largely unknown. As adoption grew, so did the unexpected operational and financial tasks, becoming crucial as companies strive to efficiently manage their AWS environment.
The Rise of Cost Optimization
Cost Optimization has become a major focus for AWS users because it directly impacts monthly expenses. Every click and script execution is essentially a buying decision that might not have been part of an in-depth design discussion. By 2020 there were numerous third-party vendors offering tools to identify ways to reduce consumption or introduce buying recommendations. When AWS bills were smaller, the fees charged by these vendors were less noticeable. But as we approach 2025, these fees are becoming harder to justify, almost feeling like you're in a joint venture relationship with these vendors.
Exploring Beyond the Obvious
In a bit of irony, when customers started to take actions to reduce their hard cost they dramatically increased their internal soft costs to handle often complex tasks to align AWS spending to their individual organization. By 2020, many organizations had set up centralized teams to handle AWS billing, combining expertise from IT, Finance, and Cloud Engineering.
These team members work behind the scenes, saving significant amounts in hard costs and managing soft costs that are often overlooked. They handle tasks like:
Part 2: Understand Your True AWS Costs and What needed to Really Save
What are the activities and tasks that are going on behind the scenes or hiding in plain sight that we need to have operationalized processes for to achieve Real Saving against your True AWS Cost?
This is a daunting question because most organizations don’t really know how to even begin to get started.